Wellington_Paranormal

<i>Wellington Paranormal</i>

Wellington Paranormal

New Zealand mockumentary television series


Wellington Paranormal is a New Zealand mockumentary comedy horror television series which first aired on 11 July 2018 on TVNZ 2. The series is a spin-off of the 2014 film What We Do in the Shadows and first television series in the franchise, and its lead characters—Officers Minogue and O'Leary—first appeared in the film as a pair of incurious police officers.[1]

Quick Facts Wellington Paranormal, Created by ...

Production history

The series was created by Taika Waititi, Jemaine Clement and Paul Yates based on characters from What We Do in the Shadows[2] by Clement and Waititi. Waititi and Clement serve as the series' executive producers, while Clement directs four of the six episodes in Series 1.[1] The series was confirmed for a second series of 13 episodes, which aired 6 episodes beginning on 16 October 2019.[3][4]

A Christmas special aired on 19 December 2019, with the remaining six episodes airing as a second series.[5] Between the special and third series, a sixteen-episode digital web series and public service campaign by New Zealand Police to inform the public on health, safety, and best practices during the COVID-19 pandemic, titled Important COVID-19 Messages from Wellington Paranormal, began airing from 26 March 2020, featuring Andrew Coster and Clarke Gayford as themselves.[6] The lead characters also appeared as part of a 2018 New Zealand Police Recruitment video,[7] and four 2018 Police Safety campaign videos. The third series premiered on 24 February 2021.[8][9]

Jemaine Clement stated in June 2021 that the fourth series was in post-production. He added: "We're pausing on [Wellington Paranormal], we're not sure we'll be back for a fifth [series]", while discussing a new series that he and Waititi are currently developing.[10] The fourth series premiered on 16 February 2022, following a sneak peek confirming that it would be the final series.[11]

Cast

Main

Recurring

Guest

Episodes

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Series 1 (2018)

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Series 2 (2019)

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Christmas special (2019)

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Series 3 (2021)

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Series 4 (2022)

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Specials

Police Recruitment video

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Police Summer Safety

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Important COVID-19 messages (2020)

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Broadcast and distribution

The series is broadcast on TVNZ 2 with catch-up availability on TVNZ's streaming service TVNZ+.[22] In neighboring Australia, the series is available on SBS on Demand.[23]

In 2021, Sky licensed the first three series of the show for streaming on Now (formerly Now TV) and Sky Q via Sky Comedy in the United Kingdom.[24][25] In the United States, the series debuted on The CW on 11 July 2021, with episodes available to stream on HBO Max the day after they air.[26][27][28]

As of 10 March 2023 the series are also being broadcast on the Flemish TV channel Canvas.[29]

Reception

Clarke Gayford's appearance on a short Wellington Paranormal video in April 2020 encouraging people who were looking after young children during the COVID-19 pandemic drew some criticism due to his relationship with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. National Party Member of Parliament Brett Hudson alleged during an Epidemic Response Committee meeting in early May 2020 that the video risked "politicising" the New Zealand Police. In response, Police Commissioner Andrew Coster defended Gayford's participation on the grounds that he was a well-known television personality who had participated in the television series.[30]

Notes

  1. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "70's Ghost"[12]
  2. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "She-Wolf"[13]
  3. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "Vampire"[14]
  4. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "The Not Ness Monster"[15]
  5. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "The Haunting of the '85 Nissan 300ZX ZR Turbo"[16]
  6. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "Who the Hell?"[19]
  7. When aired on The CW, the title of the episode is "Time Cop: Not The Jean-Claude Van Damme One"[20]

References

  1. Rae, Fiona (8 July 2018). "The TV spin-off of What We Do in the Shadows is finally (almost) here". Noted. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
  2. "13 new episodes of Wellington Paranormal will air in 2019". Stuff. 3 October 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2018.
  3. Croot, James (16 October 2019). "Wellington Paranormal: Why it continues to be a spookily great Kiwi comedy". Stuff. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  4. Wellington Paranormal – Citizens Brigade. "Behind the Scenes – Part 4, the Big One!". Facebook. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  5. Wellington Paranormal – Citizens Brigade (25 December 2020). "Weelington Paranormal – Citizens Brigade – Posts". Facebook. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  6. Harvey, Kerry (11 February 2021). "Wellington Paranormal's Jemaine Clement reveals 'alien' encounter". Stuff. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  7. Cordero, Rosy (30 June 2021). "Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi working on new series unlike anything they've done". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 11 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  8. Moore, Trent (14 February 2022). "'What We Do in the Shadows' Spinoff 'Wellington Paranormal' to End with Upcoming Fourth Season". Syfy Wire. NBCUniversal. Archived from the original on 14 February 2022. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
  9. "(#104) "She-Wolf"". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
  10. "(#105) "Vampire"". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  11. "Watch Wellington Paranormal". TVNZ. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  12. "TVNZ TV Guide and Free Live TV". Retrieved 4 November 2023.
  13. "Watch Wellington Paranormal". TVNZ OnDemand. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  14. "Wellington Paranormal". SBS On Demand. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  15. "Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi's Wellington Paranormal heads to the US". The New Zealand Herald. 25 March 2021. Archived from the original on 25 March 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  16. "Wellington Paranormal: serie start in maart op Canvas". 23 February 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  17. "Police Commissioner questioned over Clarke Gayford video". Otago Daily Times. 1 May 2021. Archived from the original on 15 March 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.

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