Families like Ours

Families Like Ours

Company type	Television miniseries
Industry	Television
Founded	2024 (2024)
Founder	Thomas Vinterberg
Headquarters	Denmark
Products	Dramatic television miniseries
Website	www.tv2.dk

Families Like Ours () is a 2024 dramatic television miniseries co-created and directed by Thomas Vinterberg. It made its debut at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on 31 August 2024 and started broadcasting on TV 2 from 20 October 2024.

Premise

As sea levels continue to rise, Laura and her family are tasked with orchestrating a large-scale evacuation across Denmark.

Cast

• Amaryllis August portrays Laura
• Albert Rudbeck Lindhardt plays Elías
• Nikolaj Lie Kaas appears as Jacob, Laura’s father and an architect
• Paprika Steen features as Fanny, Laura’s mother and a journalist
• as Amalie, Laura’s stepmother
• Esben Smed acts as Nikolaj, Amalie’s brother and Laura’s uncle
• Magnus Millang plays Henrik, who is Nikolaj’s husband
• Thomas Bo Larsen portrays Holger, Fanny’s brother and Laura’s uncle
• David Dencik appears as Peter, Henrik’s brother
• Max Kaysen Høyrup plays Lucas
• Asta Kamma August acts as Christel, Lucas’s mother

Production

Thomas Vinterberg developed the concept for the series in 2017 while residing in Paris. Drawing inspiration from the 2015 film Brooklyn, Vinterberg emphasized themes of human endurance and survival mechanisms during emergencies rather than focusing on political or environmental issues.

The script was completed prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Vinterberg and his co-writer Bo Hr. Hansen revised it to steer clear of any unintended pandemic parallels. Additionally, the story’s original setting was relocated from Kyiv to another place.

The project was announced in August 2020, with casting details disclosed in October 2022. Filming took place over the course of one year across Denmark, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Romania, and France. The production involved more than 40 actors alongside 2,500 extras.

Release

On 4 December 2023, promotional images from the series were unveiled. A teaser trailer followed on 28 August 2024. The series had its world premiere at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on 31 August 2024. Director Thomas Vinterberg selected Venice for its relevance to flooding issues, which resonate with the series’ climate change narrative. The premiere was met with a standing ovation lasting four minutes. Additionally, the first two episodes were showcased at the London Film Festival on 11 and 14 October 2024.

Broadcasting began in Denmark via TV 2 on 20 October 2024. Subsequently, it became available for streaming in Canada on CBC Gem starting 22 November 2024. The series was acquired by the BBC for UK distribution in March 2025 and later secured by Netflix for the United States market in June 2025.

Reception

Stephanie Bunbury of Deadline characterized the series as "grimly prophetic," observing that it confronts "a subject perhaps too vast for a television drama." Jan Lumholdt from Cineuropa commended both Vinterberg’s direction and the performances delivered by the cast.

Niels Jakob Kyhl Jørgensen of Filmmagasinet Ekko awarded five stars out of six, describing Families Like Ours as simultaneously a homage and a powerful social narrative. In contrast, Jacob Ludvigsen of Soundvenue rated it three out of six stars, commenting that despite its "brilliant premise," it becomes overwhelmed by Thomas Vinterberg's ambitiously large-scale TV 2 production.

Serena Seghedoni from Loud and Clear Reviews gave it a five-star rating, emphasizing its "brilliant premise" as crucial for Europe's perspective on the refugee crisis while applauding its emphasis on humanity and character depth. She referred to it as "the kind of series you don’t want to end."

External links

• Families like Ours available on IMDb