Abstract
ABSTRACT In this article, I consider the Apple+ tv series Bad Sisters (2022-) as a transnational production. I take into account the background of its showrunner, Sharon Horgan, and her positioning as a transnational programme maker and comedian. I discuss the series as a remake of the Belgian/Flemish TV series, Clan (English title, The Out-Laws), analysing significant departures, particularly in terms of use of location. I proceed to discuss the overlaps between Bad Sisters and Big Little Lies (HBO 2017–19), notably the strategy of slipping an analysis of coercive control into a drama that makes an overt play for the consumerist pleasures of high-end life-styling. In my analysis of Bad Sisters, I focus particularly on Horgan’s reworking of the topography of suburban Dublin to create an image of a family clustered around a region of significant wealth on the coast, exemplified by their meetings at the Forty Foot swimming area. I discuss the differences between this production and other Irish TV drama, and the consequences for Horgan in making Bad Sisters for Apple TV+ rather than with the Irish national broadcaster, RTÉ. I conclude by asking to what extent Bad Sisters, given its glossy aesthetic, can explore social issues.
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