The Pharmacist (TV series)

Last updated
The Pharmacist
The Pharmacist (Netflix).jpg
Genre Docuseries
Written by
  • Lana Barkin
  • Jenner Furst
  • Jed Lipinski
  • Julia Willoughby Nason
Directed by
Music by
  • Danielle Furst
  • Khari Mateen
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes4
Production
Executive producerMichael Gasparro
Producers
  • Lana Barkin
  • Jed Lipinski
Cinematography
  • Seth Hahn
Running time47–60 minutes
Production companyThe Cinemart
Original release
NetworkNetflix
ReleaseFebruary 5, 2020 (2020-02-05)

The Pharmacist is an American true crime documentary series produced by The Cinemart. It released in February 2020 on Netflix, the series relates the efforts of Dan Schneider (activist), a small-town pharmacist in Poydras, Louisiana, to identify his son's killer and how this led to his gathering evidence against a prolific "pill mill" doctor in New Orleans. [1] [2]

Contents

Episodes

No.TitleOriginal release date
1"Justice for Danny"February 5, 2020 (2020-02-05)
Dan Schneider grew up in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, married Annie after high school, and had two children, Danny and Kristi. Dan and Annie moved east to St. Bernard Parish during the 1980s era of white flight. Danny has difficulty during his senior year of high school but attends community college. In 1999, Danny was murdered while purchasing crack cocaine in New Orleans. After finding the police unhelpful due to the apathy from numerous similar drug-related murders in New Orleans, Dan takes a personal role in investigating Danny's murder. Through painstaking investigation, Dan identifies an eyewitness, Shane Madding, who identified Jeffrey Hall as the killer.
2"A Mission from God"February 5, 2020 (2020-02-05)
Shane received frequent death threats as the trial approached and moved to Witness Protection, but testified against Jeffrey despite the significant pressure. Jeffrey Hall pleads guilty to manslaughter in exchange for a 15 year sentence. Dan goes back to work as a pharmacist following the conclusion of the trial. Sensitive to youth addiction issues, Dan sees an increase in the frequency of opioid prescriptions and grows suspicious of Dr. Jacqueline Cleggett, a frequent prescriber of OxyContin. Dan, with the help of Robbie, investigate Dr. Cleggett and reported their finds to the DEA. Agents of the DEA started investigating Dr. Cleggett in February 2000 without Dan's knowledge, observing Dr. Cleggett prescribe medication for 76 patients per day and depositing almost $2 million over one year. Annie and Kristi struggle with Dan's continued obsession with the investigation and his increasing paranoia.
3"Dope Dealers with White Lab Coats"February 5, 2020 (2020-02-05)
The DEA's investigation uncovers that Dr. Cleggett prescribed over 180,000 pills in just 10 pharmacies. Dan's investigation turns to Purdue Pharma, the manufacturer of OxyContin. Chris Davis, the Purdue sales representative for New Orleans, talks about Purdue's aggressive corporate sales tactics. In 2001, national media coverage recognizes St. Bernard Parish as a region with significant opioid abuse. The Louisiana Medical Board revokes Dr. Cleggett's medical license after Dan provides evidence of prescription abuse.
4"Tunnel of Hope"February 5, 2020 (2020-02-05)
Cleggett's medical license is revoked in 2003 after overwhelming evidence is presented. Cleggett is indicted by the United States Attorney, but agrees to a plea deal after being severely injured in a car accident. In the present, Cleggett is interviewed about her prior practice. The opioid crisis deepens following the devastation of St. Bernard Parish from Hurricane Katrina. Dan encourages the prescription management system to monitor prescription distribution, but the tighter control leads to an increase in illicit heroin abuse. Multiple states begin to file prescription abuse cases against Purdue, leading to Purdue filing bankruptcy.

Reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 89% based on 9 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10 for the miniseries. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>The Keepers</i> 2017 American documentary web series

The Keepers is a seven-episode American documentary web series that explores the unsolved murder of nun Catherine Cesnik in 1969. Cesnik taught English and drama at Baltimore's all-girls Archbishop Keough High School, and her former students believe that there was a cover-up by authorities after she suspected that a priest at the high school, A. Joseph Maskell, was guilty of sexually abusing students. The series was directed by Ryan White and released on Netflix in 2017.

Alias Grace is a Canadian television miniseries directed by Mary Harron and written by Sarah Polley, based on Margaret Atwood's 1996 novel of the same name. It stars Sarah Gadon, Edward Holcroft, Rebecca Liddiard, Zachary Levi, Kerr Logan, David Cronenberg, Paul Gross, and Anna Paquin. The series consists of six episodes. It premiered on CBC on September 25, 2017, and appeared on Netflix on November 3, 2017.

<i>Manhunt</i> (2017 TV series) American crime drama anthology television series

Manhunt is an American drama anthology television series created by Andrew Sodroski, Jim Clemente, and Tony Gittelson, initially commissioned as a television miniseries. The first season, Manhunt: Unabomber, stars Sam Worthington and Paul Bettany, and depicts a fictionalized account of the FBI's hunt for the Unabomber. It premiered on Discovery Channel on August 1, 2017. On July 17, 2018, Charter Communications was in advanced negotiations with the series' producers to pick up the series for two additional seasons to be aired on their Spectrum cable service. The show's second season follows the hunt for Eric Rudolph, who was the perpetrator of the Centennial Olympic Park bombing, after suspicion initially fell on security guard Richard Jewell. The second season, Manhunt: Deadly Games, premiered on February 3, 2020.

<i>American Vandal</i> Mockumentary crime series by Netflix

American Vandal is an American mockumentary television series created by Dan Perrault and Tony Yacenda that premiered on September 15, 2017, on Netflix. The series is a parody of true crime documentaries such as Making a Murderer and Serial. On October 26, 2018, it was announced that Netflix had canceled the series after two seasons; however, it was also reported that producers intend to shop the program to other venues.

<i>Unbelievable</i> (miniseries) 2019 American drama TV miniseries

Unbelievable is an American true crime television miniseries starring Toni Collette, Merritt Wever, and Kaitlyn Dever. It follows a woman who was charged with a crime for reporting that she was raped, and a police investigation that led to the perpetrator's conviction for the rape of multiple women. The show was co-created by Susannah Grant, Ayelet Waldman, and Michael Chabon. All three co-creators and Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, and Katie Couric were executive producers. It was released on September 13, 2019, on Netflix.

<i>Queer Eye</i> (2018 TV series) Netflix original series

Queer Eye is an American reality television series, initially released February 7, 2018 on Netflix. A reboot of the original 2003 series produced by Bravo, each episode has five advisors spend a week applying their expertise to help improve someone's life situation.

<i>Dirty John</i> (TV series) 2018 American true crime anthology series

Dirty John is an American true crime anthology television series, based on the podcast of the same name by Christopher Goffard, that premiered on November 25, 2018, on Bravo. Outside the United States, it was made available through Netflix on February 14, 2019. The series was created by Alexandra Cunningham also an executive producer alongside Richard Suckle, Charles Roven, Mark Herzog, Christopher G. Cowen, and Chris Argentieri. The series was initially given an order for two seasons. In May 2019, it was announced that the series will be moving from Bravo to USA Network, ahead of the premiere of the second season. The second season is titled Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story. A trailer for the season was released on March 25, 2020, featuring Christian Slater and Amanda Peet in the role of Betty Broderick. In April 2020, it was announced that the second season would premiere on June 2, 2020, with a sneak peek of the first episode of the second season airing on May 31, 2020.

<i>Ugly Delicious</i> 2018 TV series or program

Ugly Delicious is a non-fiction original series on Netflix combining travel, cooking, and history. Each episode highlights one dish or concept, and explores how it is made in different regions and how it evolves.

<i>McMillions</i> True crime documentary television series

McMillions is a documentary miniseries about the McDonald's Monopoly promotion scam that occurred between 1989 and 2001. Directed by James Lee Hernandez and Brian Lazarte, the series details how the scam was perpetrated by Jerry Jacobson, the head of security for the agency that ran the promotion, and how he recruited a wide range of accomplices. The series premiered in the US on February 3, 2020, on HBO, and all episodes were made available in the UK on May 27, 2020, on Sky Documentaries. McMillions was nominated for five Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series.

<i>Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes</i> American docu-series on Netflix

Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes is an American documentary that premiered on Netflix on January 24, 2019, the 30th anniversary of Bundy's execution. Created and directed by Joe Berlinger, the four episodes ranging from 51 to 74 minutes long were sourced from over 100 hours of interviews and archival footage of serial killer Ted Bundy, as well as interviews with his friends, surviving victims, and the law enforcement members who worked on his case.

<i>Dont F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer</i> 2019 American true crime documentary series

Don't F**k with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer is a 2019 true crime docuseries about an online manhunt. It is written and directed by Mark Lewis and was released on Netflix on December 18, 2019. The series chronicles events following a crowd-sourced amateur investigation into a series of animal cruelty acts committed by Canadian pornographic actor Luka Magnotta, culminating in his murder of Chinese international student Jun Lin. It was one of Netflix's Top 5 most-watched documentaries of 2019.

Visible: Out on Television is a documentary miniseries about the representation of LGBTQ+ people in television, both on-screen and behind the camera. Directed by Ryan White, all 5 episodes were released on Apple TV+ on February 14, 2020.

Unorthodox is a German drama television miniseries that debuted on Netflix on March 26, 2020. The first Netflix series to be primarily in Yiddish, it is inspired by Deborah Feldman's 2012 autobiography, Unorthodox: The Scandalous Rejection of My Hasidic Roots. The four-part miniseries was created and written by Anna Winger and Alexa Karolinski, and directed by Maria Schrader.

<i>Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich</i> American television miniseries

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich is an American web documentary television miniseries about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The miniseries is based on the 2016 book of the same name by James Patterson, and co-written by John Connolly and Tim Malloy. Filthy Rich was released on May 27, 2020, on Netflix. The four-part documentary features interviews with several survivors including Virginia Giuffre and Maria Farmer, along with former staff members and former police chief Michael Reiter, a key individual from the first criminal case against Epstein.

Trial by Media is a true crime documentary miniseries that premiered May 11, 2020 on Netflix.

<i>Murder Among the Mormons</i> 2021 true crime TV series

Murder Among the Mormons is an American true crime documentary television miniseries following Mark Hofmann, one of the most notable forgers in history, who created forgeries related to the Latter Day Saint movement. Joe Berlinger serves as an executive producer. It consists of three episodes and premiered on Netflix on March 3, 2021.

<i>Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer</i> American true crime documentary miniseries

Night Stalker: The Hunt For a Serial Killer is a 2021 American four-part true crime documentary miniseries about the serial killer Richard Ramirez. The series was executive produced by Tiller Russel, Eli Holzman, Aaron Saidman and Tim Walsh.

<i>The Crime of the Century</i> (2021 film) American documentary film

The Crime of the Century is an American two-part documentary film, directed, produced, and written by Alex Gibney. The film follows the opioid epidemic in the United States, and the political operatives, government regulations and corporations that enable the abuse of opioids, particularly the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma.

<i>Candy</i> (miniseries) 2022 American biographical crime drama television miniseries

Candy is an American biographical crime drama television miniseries created by Nick Antosca and Robin Veith. The series stars Jessica Biel as the real-life Candy Montgomery, who was accused of the axe murder of her neighbor, Betty Gore in 1980, in Texas. It premiered on May 9, 2022, on Hulu, with a new episode for five nights until May 13.

Painkiller is an American drama miniseries created by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster. Based on Patrick Radden Keefe's New Yorker article "The Family That Built an Empire of Pain" and Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic by Barry Meier, the series focuses on the birth of the opioid crisis, with an emphasis on Purdue Pharma, the company owned by Richard Sackler and his family that was the manufacturer of OxyContin. The Sackler family has been described as the "most evil family in America", and "the worst drug dealers in history".

References

  1. MaFt (January 23, 2020). "See One Man's Fight Against the Opioid Epidemic in "The Pharmacist"". New on Netflix. Archived from the original on January 28, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
  2. Stolworthy, Jacob (February 4, 2020). "The Pharmacist: Netflix's new true-crime documentary with a twist". The Independent . Archived from the original on February 5, 2020. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  3. "The Pharmacist: Miniseries (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes . Archived from the original on August 5, 2020. Retrieved August 7, 2020.

Further reading