# The Lowdown (American TV series)
**The Lowdown** is an American neo-noir comedy-drama television series created, written, and directed by Sterlin Harjo for FX, starring [Ethan Hawke](https://www.edgepedia.org/ethan-hawke) as Lee Raybon, a [Tulsa, Oklahoma](https://www.edgepedia.org/tulsa-oklahoma) bookstore owner and self-proclaimed "truthstorian" who investigates local corruption as a citizen journalist.[1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show) The first season premiered on September 23, 2025, with two episodes on FX and streaming on Hulu, and ran for eight episodes.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025) • [3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-lowdown/) FX renewed the series for a second season on January 7, 2026, and the new season premiered on October 14, 2026, adding [Tommy Lee Jones](https://www.edgepedia.org/tommy-lee-jones) and Betty Gilpin to the cast.[4](https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-lowdown/season-two-renewal) • [5](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/the-lowdown-season-2)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Network and premiere | FX; season 1 premiered September 23, 2025, with two episodes, streaming on Hulu[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025) |
| Creator | Sterlin Harjo, co-creator of *Reservation Dogs*, who writes and directs[1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show) |
| Lead | Ethan Hawke as Lee Raybon, a citizen journalist and bookstore owner who calls himself a Tulsa "truthstorian"[1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show) |
| Episodes | Season 1: 8 episodes (2025); season 2: 8 episodes (2026)[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-lowdown/) |
| Season 1 reception | Metascore 85 ("universal acclaim") from 29 critics; 98% Tomatometer and 77% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-lowdown/) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025/s01) |
| Honors | AFI Award, TV Program of the Year; Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Lead Performance in a New Scripted Series (Hawke)[7](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/the-lowdown/1060524246/) |
| Season 2 | Premiered October 14, 2026, with a two-episode drop on FX, Hulu, and Hulu on Disney+; Tommy Lee Jones and Betty Gilpin joined the cast[5](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/the-lowdown-season-2) |
## Premise
The series follows Lee Raybon (Hawke), a used-bookstore owner in downtown Tulsa who moonlights as an investigative journalist, digging into local corruption.[1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show) • [8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt31289994/plotsummary/) In the first season, the publication of Lee's exposé on the powerful Washberg family is immediately followed by the apparent suicide of Dale Washberg ([Tim Blake Nelson](https://www.edgepedia.org/tim-blake-nelson)), the family's black sheep, who hides a letter before his death; Lee becomes convinced the death was not a suicide and that the family's dealings, including the purchase of large swaths of Black-owned property in North Tulsa by the development company Akron, conceal a history of crime, land theft, and systemic racism.[9](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt35365096/plotsummary/)
Lee's pursuit of the story is complicated by his family and by the physical cost of the work. He shares a teenage daughter, Francis (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), with his ex Samantha ([Kaniehtiio Horn](https://www.edgepedia.org/kaniehtiio-horn)), and he is repeatedly beaten up over the course of the season, becoming progressively more bruised and disheveled as the series goes on.[1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show) • [10](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/dec/26/the-lowdown-review-ethan-hawke-disney-plus) A mysterious, well-read man calling himself Marty ([Keith David](https://www.edgepedia.org/keith-david)) stalks Lee while taking a strong interest in his Washberg investigation.[11](https://www.tvinsider.com/1212062/the-lowdown-fall-preview-sterlin-harjo-kyle-maclachlan-exclusive/) In the season finale, Lee survives an encounter only because Marty, standing behind him with a firearm, identifies himself as an undercover federal agent and says he is there to arrest Lee.[12](https://time.com/7330763/the-lowdown-finale-recap-ending-explained/)
The show engages directly with Tulsa's history, raising the story of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, in which hundreds of Black residents were killed by white Tulsans.[13](https://www.sbs.com.au/whats-on/article/the-lowdown-explainer/px1ck08qh) Critics have placed it in a recent wave of Oklahoma-set works, alongside *Watchmen* (2019) and *Killers of the Flower Moon* (2023), that addresses the state's history of displacing Black and Native communities and the erasure of those atrocities.[14](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/09/29/the-lowdown-tv-review-fx)
## Cast
The principal cast includes Ethan Hawke as Lee Raybon, Keith David as Marty Brunner, Jeanne Tripplehorn as Betty Jo Washberg, Donald Washberg's dissolute ex-wife, [Kyle MacLachlan](https://www.edgepedia.org/kyle-maclachlan) as Donald Washberg, Ryan Kiera Armstrong as Francis Raybon, and Tim Blake Nelson as Dale Washberg; [Peter Dinklage](https://www.edgepedia.org/peter-dinklage) plays Wendell, Lee's scathing former business partner.[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-lowdown/) • [10](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/dec/26/the-lowdown-review-ethan-hawke-disney-plus) The second season adds Academy Award winner Tommy Lee Jones, playing Lee's estranged father Lee Raybon Sr., and Emmy winner [Betty Gilpin](https://www.edgepedia.org/betty-gilpin) as Ginger, a brash public defender and fellow crusader for truth.[5](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/the-lowdown-season-2) • [1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show)
## Origins
The character of Lee Raybon draws on [Lee Roy Chapman](https://www.edgepedia.org/lee-roy-chapman), a citizen journalist and self-taught historian who was Harjo's friend and colleague at the Oklahoma-based publication *This Land Press*; Chapman died in 2015 at the age of 46.[15](https://www.tvinsider.com/1216999/the-lowdown-true-story-explained-fx/) • [14](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/09/29/the-lowdown-tv-review-fx) In 2011, Chapman wrote an exposé in *This Land Press* about Tulsa founder W. Tate Brady's ties to the [Ku Klux Klan](https://www.edgepedia.org/ku-klux-klan) and his participation in the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre; the story prompted the city council to change the name of the arts district then named after Brady.[16](https://www.thewrap.com/the-lowdown-review-fx-ethan-hawke-sterlin-harjo/) Harjo described riding around Tulsa with Chapman while he talked about the city's hidden and neglected histories.[15](https://www.tvinsider.com/1216999/the-lowdown-true-story-explained-fx/)
Harjo, who was born, raised, educated in, and still lives in Oklahoma, has set almost all of his projects in the state.[17](https://time.com/7319033/the-lowdown-review-fx/) He has described the series as a "Tulsa noir" and said he wanted to embrace the influences of existing noirs and neo-noirs while telling a specific story in a place where a noir had not been set.[11](https://www.tvinsider.com/1212062/the-lowdown-fall-preview-sterlin-harjo-kyle-maclachlan-exclusive/) • [18](https://www.thewrap.com/the-lowdown-ethan-hawke-sterlin-harjo-interview/) Critics have noted echoes of the [Coen brothers](https://www.edgepedia.org/coen-brothers), [Paul Thomas Anderson](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-thomas-anderson)'s *Inherent Vice*, Shane Black's *[The Nice Guys](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-nice-guys)*, and crime writer Jim Thompson, whose novels Lee references in the show.[19](https://www.avclub.com/the-lowdown-review-tv-fx) • [20](https://www.whathifi.com/streaming-entertainment/you-have-to-watch-this-hat-wearing-whodunnit-with-a-perfect-soundtrack)
## Production
The series is produced for FX, with Sterlin Harjo directing and executive producers including Garrett Basch, Ethan Hawke, and Ryan Hawke.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025) Production designer Brandon Tonner-Connelly described the approach as a "shaggy detective story" in which the hero roams the different zones and subcultures of a city, set in Tulsa rather than Los Angeles or New York; the crew worked without soundstages or prop houses.[21](https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/awards/the-lowdown-bookstore-production-design-brandon-tonner-connelly/) The soundtrack draws on Tulsa-connected musicians and country music, and the series won a 2026 GMS Award for Best Music Supervision for Television Drama.[22](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2025-09-22/the-lowdown-sterlin-harjo-ethan-hawke-review) • [7](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/the-lowdown/1060524246/)
## Reception
Season 1 was broadly acclaimed. Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 85 based on 29 critic reviews, all positive, and Rotten Tomatoes recorded a 98% Tomatometer from 59 reviews with a critics consensus praising the show's Tulsa affection and Hawke's "hangdog charisma".[3](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-lowdown/) • [6](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025/s01) The American Film Institute named it one of the 10 outstanding television programs of 2025, and it appeared prominently on critics' "Best TV of 2025" lists, including *The Atlantic*'s and the *Wall Street Journal*'s.[4](https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-lowdown/season-two-renewal) • [23](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025/12/best-tv-shows-2025-the-pitt-adolescence-andor/685009/) • [24](https://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/fOlqWxn0bSa4sBF1juU2-WSJNewsPaper-12-2-2025.pdf) Reviewers singled out Hawke's performance, which several compared to his portrayal of John Brown in *The Good Lord Bird* (2020).[17](https://time.com/7319033/the-lowdown-review-fx/) • [25](https://www.tvguide.com/news/the-lowdown-review-fx-hulu-ethan-hawke-sterlin-harjo/)
## Season 2
FX announced the renewal on January 7, 2026, with production set to begin in Tulsa that spring.[4](https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-lowdown/season-two-renewal) The season premiered on October 14, 2026, with a two-episode drop on FX, Hulu, and Hulu on Disney+, followed by weekly episodes through November 25, 2026.[5](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/the-lowdown-season-2) • [26](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025/s02) The story begins with Lee accepting a Citizen Journalist of the Year award, whose unfiltered acceptance speech lands him in trouble again; a missing prisoner then draws him into a web of corruption involving two murders and a possibly rotten sheriff's department, while his estranged father (Tommy Lee Jones) arrives in town.[1](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show) • [27](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/streaming/12-new-movies-and-shows-to-stream-this-weekend-on-netflix-prime-video-and-more-oct-16-18) • [28](https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-lowdown) Early reviews were again positive, with Rotten Tomatoes listing a 100% Tomatometer from 10 reviews for the season.[26](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025/s02)
## References
1. [About The Lowdown, ABC.com](https://abc.com/show/6143d828-10bf-433d-8716-3143060a0276/about-the-show)
2. [The Lowdown (2025), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025)
3. [The Lowdown Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/tv/the-lowdown/)
4. [FX's The Lowdown Renewed for Second Season on FX and Hulu, FX Networks (January 7, 2026)](https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-lowdown/season-two-renewal)
5. [FX's The Lowdown, Season 2 Is Now Streaming, Disney+ Explore](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/the-lowdown-season-2)
6. [The Lowdown: Season 1, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025/s01)
7. [The Lowdown, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/the-lowdown/1060524246/)
8. [The Lowdown (TV Series 2025– ) Plot, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt31289994/plotsummary/)
9. [The Lowdown Pilot Plot, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt35365096/plotsummary/)
10. [The Lowdown review, The Guardian (December 26, 2025)](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/dec/26/the-lowdown-review-ethan-hawke-disney-plus)
11. [The Lowdown Interview: Inside Ethan Hawke Noir Drama With Sterlin Harjo, Kyle MacLachlan, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/1212062/the-lowdown-fall-preview-sterlin-harjo-kyle-maclachlan-exclusive/)
12. [The Lowdown's Finale Recap, Time](https://time.com/7330763/the-lowdown-finale-recap-ending-explained/)
13. [The Lowdown Explainer, SBS What's On](https://www.sbs.com.au/whats-on/article/the-lowdown-explainer/px1ck08qh)
14. [The Lowdown Is a Noir for Our Era, The New Yorker (September 29, 2025)](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/09/29/the-lowdown-tv-review-fx)
15. [The Lowdown: Inside the Show's Real-Life Inspiration, TV Insider](https://www.tvinsider.com/1216999/the-lowdown-true-story-explained-fx/)
16. [The Lowdown Review: Sterlin Harjo's Gripping FX Mystery, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/the-lowdown-review-fx-ethan-hawke-sterlin-harjo/)
17. [FX's The Lowdown Is One of the Year's Best Crime Dramas, Time](https://time.com/7319033/the-lowdown-review-fx/)
18. [The Lowdown Creator Sterlin Harjo and Star Ethan Hawke on the Real-Life Origins of Their FX Noir, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/the-lowdown-ethan-hawke-sterlin-harjo-interview/)
19. [Sterlin Harjo and Ethan Hawke kill it in FX's comedy noir The Lowdown, The A.V. Club](https://www.avclub.com/the-lowdown-review-tv-fx)
20. [You have to watch this hat-wearing whodunnit with a perfect soundtrack, What Hi-Fi?](https://www.whathifi.com/streaming-entertainment/you-have-to-watch-this-hat-wearing-whodunnit-with-a-perfect-soundtrack)
21. [Inside the Production Design of The Lowdown, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/awards/the-lowdown-bookstore-production-design-brandon-tonner-connelly/)
22. [The Lowdown Review, Los Angeles Times (September 22, 2025)](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2025-09-22/the-lowdown-sterlin-harjo-ethan-hawke-review)
23. [The 14 Best TV Shows of 2025, The Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2025/12/best-tv-shows-2025-the-pitt-adolescence-andor/685009/)
24. [The Best TV Shows of 2025, Wall Street Journal Arts in Review (December 2, 2025)](https://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/fOlqWxn0bSa4sBF1juU2-WSJNewsPaper-12-2-2025.pdf)
25. [The Lowdown Review: Ethan Hawke's Noir, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/news/the-lowdown-review-fx-hulu-ethan-hawke-sterlin-harjo/)
26. [The Lowdown: Season 2, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_lowdown_2025/s02)
27. [12 new movies and shows to stream this weekend (Oct. 16-18), Tom's Guide](https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/streaming/12-new-movies-and-shows-to-stream-this-weekend-on-netflix-prime-video-and-more-oct-16-18)
28. [FX's The Lowdown, Watch on Hulu, FX Networks](https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-lowdown)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Drama and prestige series (individual series) › Crime and thriller series › Police and detective procedurals*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license