One of the more interesting, yet frustrating aspects of the modern entertainment landscape is that the relationship between television and film has become cyclical. A decade ago, television shows like True Detective and House of Cards became the embodiment of what serious entertainment for adults look like. Thanks to famous stars at their center, cinematic quality craftsmanship, and thought-provoking stories, prestige television felt like the only option for storytelling when the cinematic marketplace was crowded by costumed heroes and lightsabers. This process ended up repeating itself, as the streaming world’s now dominated by the likes of Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and the superheroes of Marvel and DC. A promising drama series like The Old Man was cancelled after its second season; unless it attained a level of popular culture relevance comparable to The Handmaid’s Tale or Succession, it’s unlikely that a drama show as deliberately old-fashioned as The Old Man could have had a robust run for multiple years.
The Old Man is the type of series that would’ve been a movie had it been adapted 10 or 20 years prior. Although it didn’t have the popularity of The Bourne Identity, Thomas Perry’s 2017 novel had the type of espionage charms that could’ve inspired a mid-budget thriller released outside of the summer movie season. There’s always a risk that a fairly straightforward novel would’ve been damaged by an expansion into television, as no viewer wants to sit through episodes that are stretched out to accommodate for a lack of narrative thrust. However, The Old Man is a series that lived on its attention to process. Its cancellation indicates that audiences no longer have the patience for a methodical method of storytelling.
The drawing factor behind The Old Man is its stars, with Jeff Bridges given the type of juicy role that has become less common for actors of his age. Although Bridges won an Academy Award for Best Actor for Crazy Heart, the last few years of his career have been dominated by supporting roles in projects that were clearly beneath him. The Old Man casts him as Dan Chase, a veteran CIA agent whose past comes to haunt him when the government begins an inquiry into his service during the Soviet-Afghan war. Meticulous time paid to Chase’s living situation and romantic flings might not sound exciting, but The Old Man benefits from how Bridges is invested in the role. Every interaction that Chase has is tinged with feelings of regret, and a wistful nod to his cynical assessment of the world. Although there are extensive flashbacks that show what exactly made Chase into such a recluse, Bridges is able to spell out an entire backstory that doesn’t need to be explicitly stated.
Alongside Bridges is John Lithgow, more active on television thanks to his acclaimed supporting turns on The Crown and Dexter. If Bridges benefits from perfecting the wounded anti-hero archetype, Lithgow succeeded through a subversion of what viewers may have come to expect from a career FBI agent. Lithgow’s Harold Harper, a former ally of Chase’s who’s retired from public life to care for his grandchild. Like Chase, Harper has hidden demons from his past, and is forced back into active duty when his record is called into question. What’s fascinating is that Harper makes the discovery that his misdeeds in the Vietnam era, however tactless they may have been at the time, are more commonplace within the way that American justice is now conducted. While this doesn’t absolve him of his guilt, it does inspire a team up with Chase, which resulted in the show’s most fascinating dynamic.
A pairing as charismatic as Bridges and Lithgow would have likely been enough to sustain interest in The Old Man, but the series admirably didn’t rely on star power. The second season, which wrapped up in October, spotlighted Chase’s daughter, Emily, played by Arrested Development and Search Party veteran Alia Shawkat. Despite being biologically related to Dan, Emily was raised by Harper, and granted a position in the FBI as a result of her lineage. The character’s fascinating because she’s the medium between her stepfather’s professionalism and her father’s vigilantism. The second season was largely centered on Emily’s recognition of her heritage in the Middle East, and managed to examine the sociopolitical complexities of the conflict in a manner that didn’t have easy answers. The Old Man never showed an interest in condensing modern espionage into a story of good and evil; the series presented the world as it is, and left viewers to make their own observations.
Perhaps putting this much faith in the viewer was the biggest blunder of The Old Man, as it appeared that interest in the series declined after it became clear that it would not simply be Bridges’ answer to John Wick. There are plenty of fight scenes that bring out a surprising amount of athleticism within its aging stars, but The Old Man is as interested in revolutionary politics as it is extended brawls. There’s no certainty that The Old Man would’ve sustained its quality, but even a disappointing conclusion would’ve been preferable to a sharp cancellation. As much hate as shows like Game of Thrones and Ozark received for their finales, the extreme reaction was enough to keep them in conversations. In all likelihood, The Old Man will remain an oddity that only attracts occasional interest as it collects dust in a streaming library.