Californication [TV Series] (2007)

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Former X-Files star David Duchovny played for laughs rather than chills in this Hollywood-based Showtime dramedy, which first aired August 13, 2007. Duchovny was cast as writer Hank Moody, whose highly acclaimed best-selling novel "God Hates Us All" had been made into an innocuous romantic comedy film with Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise named "A Crazy Little Thing Called Love." The novel, alas, may have been the summit of Hank's literary career; after a lengthy professional slump, he was suffering from the mother of all midlife crises. To boost his tattered self-esteem, Hank had turned to booze and drugs, to say nothing of his innumerable one-night stands with an endless parade of nameless starlets, waitresses, and assorted floozies. As a result, his relationship with his 12-year-old daughter, Becca (Madeleine Martin), was somewhat shaky; while Becca's mother, Karen (Natascha McElhone), weary of Hank's self-destructive hedonism in particular and the L.A. scene in general, had become engaged to another man. At the same time, Hank's brief fling with a girl named Mia (Madeline Zima) would prove to sobering long-range ramifications...but we're getting ahead of ourselves. Rounding out the cast was Evan Handler as Charlie, Hank's agent and best friend (a unique combination in La-La Land!). The weekly Californication had originally been conceived as a theatrical feature by series creator Tom Kapinos, who'd been inspired by the famous cautionary bumper sticker "Don't Californicate Oregon." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi