Lie to Me
Lie to Me.svg
Genre Crime Drama
Police Procedural
Created by Samuel Baum
Starring Tim Roth
Kelli Williams
Brendan Hines
Monica Raymund
Hayley McFarland
Mekhi Phifer[1]
Opening theme "Brand New Day" by Ryan Star
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 3
No. of episodes 48 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s) Brian Grazer
David Nevins
Samuel Baum
All Seasons
Shawn Ryan
Season 2
Elizabeth Craft
Sarah Fain

Season 2
Producer(s) Samuel Baum
Seasons 1?2
Tim Roth
Season 3
Running time 42 minutes
Production company(s) Imagine Television
20th Century Fox Television
MiddKid Productions (season 1-2)
Pagoda Pictures (season 3)
Broadcast
Original channel Fox
Original run January 21, 2009 (2009-01-21) – January 31, 2011 (2011-01-31)

Lie to Me is an American crime drama television series. It originally ran on the Fox network from January 21, 2009 to January 31, 2011. In the show, Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth) and his colleagues in The Lightman Group accept assignments from third parties (commonly local and federal law enforcement), and assist in investigations, reaching the truth through applied psychology: interpreting microexpressions, through the Facial Action Coding System, and body language.[2]

In May 2009, the show was renewed for a second season consisting of 13 episodes;[3] Season 2 premiered on September 28, 2009.[4] On November 24, 2009, Fox ordered an extra nine episodes for season 2, bringing the season order to 22 episodes.[5]

On May 12, 2010, Entertainment Weekly reported that Lie to Me received a 13-episode third season pick-up.[6][7] The third season of Lie to Me was originally to premiere on November 10, 2010. On September 28, 2010, the premiere date was moved to October 4, 2010, because of the cancellation of Lone Star.[8] Lie to Me was cancelled by Fox on May 11, 2011.[9]

Contents

Characters and casting[edit]

Main[edit]

Hayley McFarland, who plays the role of Emily Lightman

Recurring[edit]

Episodes[edit]

Season Episodes Originally aired DVD release dates
Season premiere Season finale Region 1 Region 2 Region 4
1 13 January 21, 2009 May 13, 2009 August 25, 2009 September 14, 2009 October 28, 2009
2 22 September 28, 2009 September 13, 2010 November 9, 2010 January 3, 2011 December 1, 2010
3 13 October 4, 2010 January 31, 2011 October 4, 2011[17] N/A November 2, 2011[18]

Plot[edit]

Based on the work of Paul Ekman, the series follows Lightman and his team of deception experts as they assist law enforcement and government agencies to expose the truth behind the lies.[19]

Season one opens with Cal and Gillian hiring a new associate: TSA officer Ria Torres, who scored extraordinarily high on Cal's deception-detection diagnostic, and is in turn labeled a "natural" at deception detection. Her innate talent in the field clashes with Cal's academic approach, and he often shows off by rapidly analyzing her every facial expression. She counters by reading Lightman and, when he least expects it, peppers conversations with quotes from his books.

It was gradually revealed that Dr. Lightman was driven to study micro-expressions as a result of guilt over his mother's suicide. She claimed to have been fine in order to obtain a weekend pass from a psychiatric ward, when she was actually experiencing agony (which mostly parallels Paul Ekman's anecdote in his book "Telling Lies").

For a small number of the early episodes, Lightman would team up with Torres to work on a case, while Foster and Loker would team up on a separate case. Occasionally, their work would intertwine, or Foster and/or Lightman would provide assistance on each other's cases. As the first season progressed, the cases became more involved, and all four of the main characters would work together on one case for each episode.

In addition to detecting deception in subjects they interview, Lightman and his team also use various interviewing and interrogation tactics to elicit useful information. Rather than by force, they use careful lines of questioning, provocative statements, theatrics and healthy doses of deception on their own part. In the show's pilot episode, Lightman is speaking to a man who is refusing to speak at all, and is able to discern vital information by talking to him and gauging his reaction to each statement. This approach is also taken in several other episodes (e.g., "Do No Harm").

Principal crew[edit]

Samuel Baum (Showrunner/Head Writer), Brian Grazer, David Nevins, Steven Maeda. Katherine Pope, former president of NBC Universal?s TV studio, has signed on as a consulting producer. Pope worked on the final four episodes of the first season.[20] Shawn Ryan, creator of The Shield and The Unit, took over as show runner for the second season.[21][22]

Reception[edit]

Critical reception[edit]

The show received mostly positive reviews from television critics. It gained a score of 64 on Metacritic from 24 reviews.[23] Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker awarded Lie to Me a B- rating and wrote "Lie to Me is derivative yet well crafted, predictable yet ever-so-slightly novel? it's no wonder that Fox thinks it's got itself a potential hit". However, he also commented "if this review were a face, Dr. Lightman would say it had a forced smile: hopeful, but dubious, about Lie's chances."[24] Tom Shales, writing for the Washington Post, said "Lie to Me seems an unusually meaty, thoughtful and thought-provoking crime drama ? another police procedural, yes, but one with a dramatic and mesmerizing difference? easily one of the season's best new shows."[25]

Ratings[edit]

In the United States, the viewing figures declined as the series progressed. The Pilot was seen by 12.37?million, however by the final episode of the first season it was down to 8.46?million. The most viewed episode was the third episode, "A Perfect Score", which attracted 12.99?million. The second season premiered on September 28, 2009 to 7.73?million viewers.[26] The season two finale had 4.94?million viewers in the U.S. on September 13, 2010.[27] The third season, which had its premiere moved forward to October 4, 2010, was viewed by 5.87?million people in the U.S.[28] The series' official cancellation was announced by Fox on May 10, 2011.[29]

Seasonal ratings[edit]

Season Episodes Original airing Rank Viewers
(in millions)
Notes Network
Season premiere Season finale TV Season
1 13 January 21, 2009 (2009-01-21) May 13, 2009 (2009-05-13) 2008?2009 #29[30] 11.06[30] Fox
2 22 September 28, 2009 (2009-09-28) September 13, 2010 (2010-09-13) 2009?2010 #57[31] 7.39[31] [Note 1]
3 13 October 4, 2010 (2010-10-04) January 31, 2011 (2011-01-31) 2010?2011 #78 6.71[33]

Awards and nominations[edit]

Primetime Emmy Awards[edit]

People's Choice Awards[edit]

Lie to me was nominated for two awards at the 37th People's Choice Awards and won both of them.[34]

International broadcasting[edit]

The series is broadcast on Global in Canada, Network Ten in Australia, M-Net in South Africa, and also airs in Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Hungary and Belgium.[35][36] Lie to Me aired on Sky1 in the UK and Ireland,[37] starting on May 14, 2009. On July 20, 2009, Fox aired the premiere in Latin America.[38] RTL 5 in The Netherlands has been broadcasting it since November 6, 2009. The series debuted in Italy on September 7, 2009 on the Fox Satellite channel. The series has aired in India since September 2010.

Country Television Network
Albania Albania Digi
Argentina Argentina Fox
Arab League Arab World Fox
Armenia Armenia Kentron TV
Australia Australia Network Ten, W
Austria Austria ATV
Belgium Belgium 2BE, RTL-TVI
Brazil Brazil Fox, Rede Globo
Bulgaria Bulgaria bTV Cinema
Canada Canada Global, V
Chile Chile Fox, MEGA
Colombia Colombia Fox, Caracol Television
Costa Rica Costa Rica Fox
Croatia Croatia HRT2
Cuba Cuba Multivision
Czech Republic Czech Republic TV Prima
Denmark Denmark TV2
Dominican Republic Dominican Republic Fox
Ecuador Ecuador Fox Broadcasting Company
El Salvador El Salvador Fox Broadcasting Company
Estonia Estonia TV3
Finland Finland MTV3
France France M6
Georgia (country) Georgia Rustavi 2
Germany Germany VOX
Honduras Honduras Fox
Hungary Hungary RTL Klub, Cool TV
Iceland Iceland St?? 2
India India STAR World
Indonesia Indonesia Fox, B Channel
Republic of Ireland Ireland RT? Two
Israel Israel yes stars Action HD
Italy Italy Fox, Rete 4
Japan Japan Fox, TV Tokyo
KazakhstanKazakhstan KazTRK
Latvia Latvia TV3, TV3 , TV6, Fox Life
Lithuania Lithuania TV3
Malaysia Malaysia ntv7 Fox
Mexico M?xico Fox
Moldova Moldova Jurnal TV
Netherlands The Netherlands RTL 5
New Zealand New Zealand TV3 (New Zealand)
Norway Norway TV2
Panama Panama Fox, TV Max
Paraguay Paraguay Fox
Peru Peru Fox
Philippines Philippines Fox, Jack TV
Poland Poland Canal Poland, FOX Life, TVP Seriale, TVP2
Portugal Portugal FOX (Portugal), TVI
Russia Russia Channel One (Russia)
Serbia Serbia TV Avala
Singapore Singapore Starhub Channel 505 ? Fox Channel
Slovakia Slovakia TV JOJ
Slovenia Slovenia TV 3
South Africa South Africa M-Net
South Korea South Korea Fox Korea
Spain Spain Antena3
Sweden Sweden TV4
Switzerland Switzerland RSI La 1, 3 , TSR 1
Taiwan Taiwan PTS
Thailand Thailand True Series (Thailand), Fox Thailand
Turkey Turkey Foxlife
Ukraine Ukraine 1 1
United Kingdom United Kingdom Sky1, Pick TV, Universal_Channel_(UK)
Uruguay Uruguay Canal 4
Venezuela Venezuela Fox
Vietnam Vietnam VTV6

Home release[edit]

Season one and two have been released on DVD in Regions 1, 2 and 4. However, while season one was also released on Blu-ray in North America[39] there has been no announcement about releasing the second season on Blu-ray.[40] The first and second season DVDs sets include deleted scenes and behind-the-scenes featurettes.[41][42] The second season also includes "Dr. Ekman's Blog" and a gag reel.[42] The third and final season was released on October 4, 2011.[17]

Season DVD release date Blu-ray release date
Region A Region B
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4 United States Canada United Kingdom Australia
1 August 25, 2009 (2009-08-25)[39] September 14, 2009 (2009-09-14)[43] October 28, 2009 (2009-10-28)[44] August 25, 2009 (2009-08-25)[39] N/A N/A
2 November 9, 2010 (2010-11-09)[42] January 3, 2011 (2011-01-03)[45] December 1, 2010 N/A N/A N/A N/A
3 October 4, 2011[17] N/A November 2, 2011[46] N/A N/A January 9, 2012 (2012-01-09)[47]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ The season 2 ranking and average viewers only covers the first 10 of 22 episodes in season 2. Episodes 11 through 22 of season 2 were broadcast beginning on June 7, 2010.[32]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Lie to Me ? Characters". Fox Broadcasting Company. Retrieved July 23, 2009. 
  2. ^ "Lie To Me". Fox. Retrieved November 16, 2008. 
  3. ^ "Fall TV: Fox Renews Lie to Me, Sets Sights on Human Target and Sons of Tucson". TVGuide.com. Retrieved May 12, 2009. 
  4. ^ Shows, Fox 
  5. ^ Lie to Me gets full season pick up, TV by the numbers, November 24, 2009 .
  6. ^ Report: Lie to Me ? Human Targe renewed by Fox, TV by the numbers, May 12, 2010 .
  7. ^ It is official: Fox cancels Lone Star, Deadline .
  8. ^ "Season three of Lie to Me to premiere Monday, October 4, on Fox" (Press release). Fox Flash. September 28, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2010. 
  9. ^ Ausiello, Michael (May 10, 2011). "Fox Cancels Human Target, Lie To Me, Chicago Code, Two Others". TV Line. Retrieved May 10, 2011. 
  10. ^ "Dr. Cal Lightman ? Tim Roth". Fox. Retrieved May 14, 2009. [dead link]
  11. ^ Lie to Me: lack of candor, Hulu .
  12. ^ Lie to Me, USFCA .
  13. ^ [1][dead link]
  14. ^ "Eli Loker ? Brendan Hines". Fox. Retrieved May 14, 2009. [dead link]
  15. ^ "Ria Torres ? Monica Raymund". Fox.com. Retrieved May 14, 2009. [dead link]
  16. ^ "Unchained". Lie to Me. Season 1. Episode 5.
  17. ^ a b c Lambert, David (August 10, 2011). "Lie to Me - The 3rd and Final Season of the Show is Announced for DVD". TV Shows on DVD. Retrieved August 10, 2011. 
  18. ^ "Lie To Me – Season 3 (DVD)". JB HI-FI. Retrieved October 10, 2011. 
  19. ^ "The Face Never Lies". January 23, 2009. Retrieved May 14, 2009. 
  20. ^ Littleton, Cynthia (February 7, 2009). "Pope joins Fox's 'Lie to Me'". Variety. Retrieved May 14, 2009. 
  21. ^ Ausiello, Michael (May 12, 2009). "Scoop: Fox renews 'Lie to Me,' installs 'Shield' creator as new showrunner". EW.com. Retrieved May 14, 2009. 
  22. ^ Sepinwall, Alan (September 28, 2009). "Lie to Me improves with help from 'Shield' creator Shawn Ryan ? Sepinwall on TV". The Star-Ledger. Newark. Retrieved November 15, 2009. 
  23. ^ "Lie to Me reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved July 23, 2009. 
  24. ^ Tucker, Ken (January 14, 2009). "TV review ? Lie to Me (2009)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 23, 2009. 
  25. ^ Shales, Tom (January 19, 2009). "'Lie to Me' handles famous psychologist's truth nicely". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 23, 2009. 
  26. ^ Calabria, Rosario T. (October 5, 2009 (2009-10-05)). "Broadcast TV Ratings for Monday, October 5, 2009". YourEntertainmentNow.com. 
  27. ^ Gorman, Bill (September 14, 2010). "TV Ratings Monday: 90210, Gossip Girl Premieres Down Sharply; Lie to Me Summer Finale Falls". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved September 15, 2010. 
  28. ^ Seidman, Robert (October 5, 2010). "Monday Finals: Castle, Lie to Me, 90210 Adjusted Down; How I Met Your Mother, Mike Molly, Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved October 5, 2010. 
  29. ^ Ausiello, Michael (May 10, 2011). "Fox Cancels Human Target, Lie To Me, Chicago Code, Two Others". TVLine. Retrieved May 11, 2011. 
  30. ^ a b "Season Rankings from 09/22/08 through 08/23/09" (Press release). ABC Medianet. May 27, 2009. Retrieved January 25, 2011. 
  31. ^ a b Gorman, Bill (June 16, 2010). "Final 2009?10 Broadcast Primetime Show Average Viewership". TV By The Numbers. 
  32. ^ Levin, Gary (May 14, 2010). "Networks freshen up summer with scripted series". USA Today. Retrieved January 25, 2011. 
  33. ^ tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com
  34. ^ "People's Choice Awards 2011 Nominees". Procter Gamble. Retrieved January 25, 2011. 
  35. ^ Knox, David (November 10, 2008). "TEN cooks up Big Brother replacement". TV.com. Retrieved November 16, 2008. 
  36. ^ "Tim Roth series honest about lying". JAM! Television. Retrieved December 18, 2008. 
  37. ^ Wilkes, Neil (January 22, 2009). "Sky1 acquires 'Lie To Me'". Digital Spy. 
  38. ^ Tim Roth, un detector de mentiras, humano, (in Spanish). La Naci?n. Retrieved on July 20, 2009.
  39. ^ a b c Lambert, David (May 27, 2009). "Lie to Me ? Did Amazon Lie To Me? CORRECT Date, plus Details/Extras/Box for DVD Blu-ray 3-disc Blu-ray and 4-disc DVD both due on August 25th (two weeks later than Amazon's current date)". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  40. ^ Lambert, David (July 14, 2010). "Lie to Me ? Honestly, Fox Has Announced a DVD Release for Season 2!". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  41. ^ Lambert, David (June 24, 2009). "Lie to Me ? Fox's Official Press Release for Season 1 on Blu-ray Disc DVD". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  42. ^ a b c Lambert, David (August 18, 2010). "Lie to Me - Fox's Official Season 2 Press Release Includes the Finalized DVD Street Date As mentioned in our previous report, the date was not in October: look for this on November 9th". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  43. ^ "Lie To Me ? Season 1 (DVD) (2009)". UK: Amazon. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  44. ^ "Lie To Me ? Season 1 DVD". dvdorchard.com.au. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  45. ^ "Lie To Me ? Season 2 (DVD) (2010)". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved October 3, 2010. 
  46. ^ "Lie To Me ? Season 3 (DVD)". JB HI-FI. Retrieved October 10, 2011. 
  47. ^ "Lie to Me: The Complete Final Season Blu-ray". Bluray.com. December 15, 2011. Retrieved December 15, 2011. 

External links[edit]