I Saw The TV Glow Cast & Character Guide

May 21, 2024, 6:05 p.m.

Movies

I Saw The TV Glow Cast & Character Guide

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Summary "I Saw the TV Glow" centers on Owen and Maddy's friendship through their shared love of a show.

The film, praised for its introspective views, was directed by Jane Schoenbrun and produced by Emma Stone's production company, Fruit Tree.

The cast includes Justice Smith, Brigette Lundy-Paine, and Phoebe Bridgers in a cameo role.

I Saw the TV Glow chronicles two young characters' bond over their obsession with a television show and features a cast of a handful of familiar faces, including a popular singer-songwriter. The 2024 psychological horror drama film, directed and written by Jane Schoenbrun, was produced by Emma Stone and Dave McCary under their film and television production company, Fruit Tree, and released by A24. I Saw the TV Glow's reviews have been mostly positive, with critics praising Justice Smith's performance, Schoenbrun's direction, and the movie's introspective views on identity, adolescence, and the consumption of media.

I Saw the TV Glow premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2024, and was released in theaters on May 17, 2024.

As mentioned above, I Saw the TV Glow centers around two friends — Owen and Maddy — with troubled home lives who develop a friendship through their shared love of a show called The Pink Opaque. The supernatural series is about two teenage girls — Isabel and Tara — who use their psychic connection to battle monsters. When The Pink Opaque gets canceled, Maddy mysteriously goes missing, and the events that follow in the 2024 original horror movie begin to warp Owen's sense of reality.

I Saw the TV Glow Cast Role Justice Smith Owen Brigette Lundy-Paine Maddy Helena Howard Isabel Fred Durst Frank Danielle Deadwyler Brenda Ian Foreman Young Owen Lindsey Jordan Tara Amber Benson Johnny Link's Mom Connor O'Malley Dave Emma Portner Mr. Melancholy Phoebe Bridgers Herself Haley Dahl Herself Kristina Esfandiari Herself

Justice Smith As Owen

Active Since: 2012

Actor: Justice Smith was born in Los Angeles, California, and following his graduation from the Orange County School of the Arts when he was 18, Smith immediately jumped into acting. He started booking small roles in television shows and movies, but Smith's breakthrough came when he starred as Ezekiel "Zeke" Figuero in The Get Down, a Netflix musical drama series. Sadly, Netflix canceled The Get Down after one season, but Smith went on to appear in numerous notable films and series.

Notable Movies & TV Shows:

Movies/TV Shows Role Paper Towns Marcus "Radar" Lincoln The Get Down Ezekiel "Zeke" Figuero Every Day Justin Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Jurassic World Dominion Franklin Webb Pokémon Detective Pikachu Tim Goodman All the Bright Places Theodore Finch Generation Chester Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Simon Aumar The American Society of Magical Negroes Aren I Saw the TV Glow Owen

Character: Justice Smith plays Owen, one of the two main characters, in I Saw the TV Glow. Owen meets Maddy when he's in seventh grade and she's in ninth, and Maddy shows him The Pink Opaque, forever changing both of their lives. Meanwhile, Owen's mother is dying of cancer, and his father is certainly not the best parental figure in the world.

Related A24's Massively Hyped New Horror Movie Is Strangely Reminiscent Of A 15-Year-Old Creepypasta Story A24's new critically acclaimed horror film follows an original narrative but seems strangely reminiscent of a forgotten 15-year-old creepypasta story.

Brigette Lundy-Paine As Maddy

Active Since: 2015

Actor: Brigette Lundy-Paine was born in Dallas, Texas, as the child of two actors and filmmakers. They moved with their family to Alameda, California, when they were two years old, and when Lundy-Paine graduated from high school, they attended New York University and promptly pursued an acting career. Lundy-Paine ultimately rose to prominence when they landed the role of Casey Gardner in Atypical, a comedy-drama series on Netflix.

Notable Movies & TV Shows:

Movies/TV Shows Role Atypical Casey Gardner The Glass Castle Maureen Walls Bombshell Julia Clarke Bill & Ted Face the Music Billie Logan I Saw the TV Glow Maddy

Character: Brigette Lundy-Paine stars as Maddy, a lesbian who introduces Owen to The Pink Opaque, in I Saw the TV Glow. As the years go on, Owen and Maddy continue watching The Pink Opaque, but in her junior year of high school, Maddy runs away to escape her abusive stepfather, and the show gets canceled. Maddy mysteriously returns to town in 2006 and finds Owen to tell him the shocking details of her whereabouts for the past eight years (which, of course, relate to the series that initially bonded them).

Helena Howard As Isabel

Active Since: 2013

Actress: Helena Howard was born in New York City, New York, as the daughter of two artists. She grew up in New Jersey and attended a performing arts high school. But Howard was soon discovered by filmmaker Josephine Decker, who cast her as the lead role in her 2018 drama film Madeline's Madeline, which served as the actress' film debut and breakout role.

Notable Movies & TV Shows:

Movies/TV Shows Role Madeline's Madeline Madeline The Wilds Nora Reid Don't Look Deeper Aisha Shoplifters of the World Cleo I Saw the TV Glow Isabel

Character: Helena Howard portrays Isabel, one of the two female protagonists in the fictional television series The Pink Opaque, in I Saw the TV Glow. Isabel shares a psychic connection with a girl she meets at summer camp, allowing them to meet on a psychic plane where they fight monsters. I Saw the TV Glow director Jane Schoenbrun used '90s nostalgia as a queer allegory in the 2024 film, especially when crafting The Pink Opaque.

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Fred Durst As Frank

Active Since: 1990

Actor: Fred Durst was born in Jacksonville, Florida, and while he has appeared in a handful of films and television series, he is more known for his work as a rapper and singer. Durst developed an interest in making his own music as a child, and several years later, in 1994, Durst and his friends formed Limp Bizkit, a nu metal band. Starting in 2006, though, Durst began directing and starring in films, including his directorial debut The Education of Charlie Banks, starring Jesse Eisenberg.

Limp Bizkit has been nominated for three Grammys — one in 2000 for Best Rock Album for Significant Other, and two in 2001 for Best Hard Rock Performance for "Nookie" and "Take a Look Around."

Notable Movies & TV Shows:

Movies/TV Shows Role Zoolander Himself Population 436 Deputy Bobby Caine The Education of Charlie Banks Director The Longshots Director Play Dead Ledge Mostly 4 Millennials DJ Durst The Fanatic Director I Saw the TV Glow Frank

Character: Fred Durst stars as Frank, Owen's father, in I Saw the TV Glow. In A24's highly-rated horror movie, Frank disapproves of Owen's fondness for The Pink Opaque, claiming it's a show for girls, so, he forbids his son from watching it. However, Owen disobeys and continues watching The Pink Opaque with Maddy at her house.

Danielle Deadwyler As Brenda

Active Since: 2008

Actress: Danielle Deadwyler was born in Atlanta, Georgia, where she was raised. She received two master's degrees — one in American Studies from Columbia University and the second in creative writing at Ashland University. Deadwyler began her career by starring in stage productions in Atlanta, but she soon made her transition to the screen in 2012 when she played Erica Moses in A Cross to Bear. Deadwyler's breakthrough came when she landed a part in the 2021 Netflix western film The Harder They Fall.

Notable Movies & TV Shows:

Movies/TV Shows Role A Cross to Bear Erica Moses The Haves and the Have Nots LaQuita "Quita" Maxwell The Devil to Pay Lemon Cassidy Paradise Lost Nique Green P-Valley Yoli The Harder They Fall Cuffee Station Eleven Miranda Carroll Till Mamie Till Parallel Vanessa I Saw the TV Glow Brenda

Danielle Deadwyler is set to star as Berniece Charles in The Piano Lesson, an adaption of August Wilson's 1987 play of the same name, alongside John David Washington and Samuel L. Jackson.

Character: Danielle Deadwyler plays Brenda, Owen's sick mother, in Emma Stone's exciting new A24 horror movie. Two years after Owen meets Maddy, Brenda is diagnosed with cancer, which obviously puts a strain on Owen's home life. Unfortunately, the doctors determine that her cancer is terminal.

I Saw The TV Glow Supporting Cast & Characters

Ian Foreman as young Owen - Ian Foreman plays Justice Smith's character, Owen, as a seventh grader (aka when he first meets Maddy at the beginning of I Saw the TV Glow). Before appearing in the 2024 psychological horror drama, Foreman portrayed Isaiah Cole in Let the Right One In on Showtime.

Lindsey Jordan as Tara - Lindsey Jordan stars as Tara, the other protagonist in the fictional series The Pink Opaque in I Saw the TV Glow. Jordan is mostly known as Snail Mail, her indie rock solo project. She has released two studio albums — Lush and Valentine.

Emma Portner as Mr. Melancholy - Emma Portner plays Mr. Melancholy (among a few other characters, including Marco, Amanda, and Evil Clown), the man in the moon who sends monsters after Isabel and Tara in The Pink Opaque. While she acts in the 2024 A24 film, Portner is most known for her work as a choreographer and dancer.

Phoebe Bridgers as Herself - As seen in the I Saw the TV Glow trailer, Phoebe Bridgers makes a cameo as herself, performing with her former band Sloppy Jane. Bridgers left the band in 2015, and since then, she has released two successful studio albums — A Stranger in the Alps and Punisher. Bridgers has been nominated for 11 Grammy Awards, winning three with her supergroup, Boygenius, and one for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Ghost in the Machine" with SZA.

Haley Dahl as Herself - Haley Dahl, the front member of Sloppy Jane, performs alongside Bridgers in the psychological horror-drama movie. Dahl formed the band in 2009 when she was 15 years old.

Kristina Esfandiari as Herself - Kristina Esfandiari and her band King Woman also make a cameo in I Saw the TV Glow. Aside from King Woman, Esfandiari performs under the monikers Dalmatian, Miserable, and NGHTCRWLR, and with the band Sugar High.