NBC

Do You Remember: Persons Unknown

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The short-lived mystery series Persons Unknown, which only lasted one season, debuted on NBC in the summer of 2010, starting on June 7; but a few weeks later it was relegated to Saturday nights to “burn-off” the remainder of its episodes. There were 13 episodes filmed, however, the final 2 episodes did not air in all of the US markets due to NFL pre-season games; and episode 11 never even aired.

The show was created by Christopher McQuarrie, who wrote the 1995 film The Usual Suspects and has since gone on to direct the Tom Cruise movies including both Jack Reacher films, Edge of Tomorrow, The Mummy and the 2015 and 2018 Mission: Impossible films.

The unusual series focused on seven diverse strangers who awaken in a hotel, in a mostly deserted town, with little to no knowledge of how they go there or where they are. The hotel and small 1950s-era town nearby are completely filled with cameras and microphones. Over the course of the following weeks, they are subjected to significant psychological and physical stress.

Those seven strangers were:

Joe Tucker, played by Jason Wiles, who is best known for the long-running cop series Third Watch, was the official leader of the group, later revealed to be a Roman Catholic priest who was part of the Program, the secret organization running the mystery town and hotel.

Janet Cooper, played by Daisy Betts, who has appeared in Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce and Chicago Fire, was a single mother and day-care owner from San Francisco, who was looking for her husband who left in the middle of the night, abandoning her and their five-year-old daughter.

Sergeant Graham McNair, played by the late, great Chadwick Boseman – best known for Black Panther – who was a level-headed Marine and devout Muslin.

Moira Doherty, played by Tina Holmes, who had appeared in Six Feet Under, a mental patient at St. Mary’s Hospital in Sandusky, Ohio.

Tori Fairchild, played by Kate Lang Johnson (aka Kate Miner), who went on to appear in Shameless, a wealthy socialite whose father was the American ambassador to Italy and former head of the CIA.

Bill Blackham, played by Sean O’Bryan, who was part of the cast of the box office movies Olympus Has Fallen and London Has Fallen, a slick opportunist whose first priority is himself.

Charlie Morse, played by Alan Ruck, best known for his roles in Speed, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Twister, a CEO of a very successful investment firm.

Two other abductees who were introduced into the show included:

Erika Taylor, played by Kandyse McClure, best known for her work in the reboot of Battlestar Galactica, a tough as nails ex-con.

Kat Damatto, played by Lola Glaudini, who has appeared in Ray Donovan and Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, a smart, sexy and hard-nosed editor at a muck-raking tabloid” in San Francisco.

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Some of the guest stars included:

Reggie Lee, who went on to star in Grimm and can now be seen in All Rise;
Karla Souza, who went on to star in How To Get Away With Murder; and,
James Read, best known for his role in the classic 80’s North & South mini-series and Legally Blonde fame, who is one of the stars of Days of Our Lives.

One of the executive producers of the show stated that they would provide all the answers to the questions that (we) set up, but the finale was criticized for not following through on that statement; and given that one episode never aired and the final two didn’t air in all markets there was no real conclusion for viewers. The show also averaged less than 2 million viewers, coming to an end on August 28, 2010.

Here is a trailer for the show:

Do you remember Persons Unknown?

Using her favorite online handle, Rueben is an East Coast-bred gal who is now a permanent Californian and a lifelong tv-oholic. She watches at least 25 TV shows a week, goes to the movies as often as possible, listens to music every waking moment, reads every day and “plays” on the internet every chance she can. Some of her current favorite TV shows are Outlander, Sweet Magnolias, Wednesday, The Mandalorian, The Equalizer, Fire Country, Miss Scarlet, Hudson & Rex, SkyMed, The Rookie, Bridgerton, Cobra Kai, Virgin River, The Witcher, Leverage: Redemption and School Spirits. She is looking forward to the fall TV season, including the return of Outlander, Tracker and The Equalizer and the debuts of the new dramas Matlock, Murder In a Small Town, NCIS: Origins and Cross. Follow her on Bluesky @ruebensramblings.bsky.social or contact her at rueben@nicegirlstv.com. Please also check out Rueben's Ramblings website for even more entertainment news.