‘The Residence’: Uzo Aduba Chases After a White House Killer With Oddball Charm 

Alci Rengifo

What odd timing for Netflix’s “The Residence.” This oddball murder mystery set in the White House arrives seeming quite innocent, even fantastical, in light of real world political events. Everyone looks so nice and humane in comparison to our current administration. If you block out the real world, the series is a breezy distraction. It follows a basic formula now common in streaming where someone gets killed and we spend the next eight episodes watching everything unspool. The detective on duty, here played with great comedic timing by Uzo Aduba, is now required to be a bit odd. Aduba keeps the story engaging after the plot dries up.

A party is usually required to kick off the murder. Since this is the White House, it’s not just any gathering. President Perry Morgan (Paul Fitzgerald) is hosting an Australian State Dinner to ease tensions with the ally nation. Promises have been made that Hugh Jackman might attend but Kylie Minogue (played by the singer herself) has definitely been confirmed. Making sure everything is flawless is White House Chief Usher A.B. Wynter (Giancarlo Esposito). All seems to be going well until a scream pierces the Oval Office halls and Wynter is suddenly dead on the floor. What happened? Events are recounted in the future for a Congressional committee hearing by Jasmine Haney (Susan Kelechi Watson), the new Chief Usher. Jasmine guides the committee through what happens after the body is discovered. Metropolitan Police Chief Larry Dokes (Isiah Whitlock Jr.) calls in Cordelia Cupp (Uzo Aduba), the greatest detective in the world, naturally. The doors of the White House are locked and all the guests become suspects. 

Creator Paul William Davies and producer Shonda Rhimes (“Scandal”) pull a fast one by claiming this is all based on a nonfiction book, “The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House” by Kate Andersen Brower, which is a history of the presidential home through the eyes of its staff. Since the industry these days won’t produce anything that isn’t IP, it goes without saying this is a sly way of getting your own idea greenlit by simply attaching any existing published work to it. The writing does make use of facts to make the initial episode informative in a fun way. We get a tour through the various floors and rooms of the White House, the camera then gliding through its kitchens and staff breathlessly trying to keep the state dinner running without a glitch. In a nod to real life surely to rile certain viewers, the Congressional committee is headed by Senator Aaron Filkins, played by Al Franken, the comedic commentator turned senator who left office under a cloud of sexual misconduct allegations. Filkins’ rival on the committee is Senator Margery Bay Bix (Eliza Coupe), a loud bully prone to conspiracy theories. 

While the setting is in a way original, “The Residence” cuts and pastes endless tropes from recent murder mysteries like “Knives Out” and “Only Murders in the Building.” This isn’t a negative for viewers who need a sleuth fix. Cordelia rounds up the suspects while taking the edge off with her side hobby of birding, even using her binoculars to indulge in the White House lawn. Aduba, best known for “Orange is the New Black,” gives the material some spark by balancing keen skills with quirkiness. She’s the kind of detective who follows “clues” that don’t seem plausible to others, even relying on the guidance of a falcon. This unnerves or sparks curiosity among the key side characters including the president’s chief adviser, Harry Hollinger (Ken Marino) and Secret Service head Colin Trask (Dan Perrault). FBI Special Agent Edwin Park (Randall Park) attempts to be helpful but is constantly brushed aside. 

The rest of the lineup provides the kind of zany, entertaining ensemble a murder mystery must always deliver. Davies makes use of the potential in the premise. The president’s mother-in-law, Nan Cox (Jane Curtain), is a vodka-chugging alcoholic. Tripp Morgan (Jason Lee), the president’s brother, has plenty of nepotistic secrets. It’s no shock that letters are found where A.B. seems to predict his demise or that someone was having a tryst during the dinner party near where the murder took place. “The Residence” could have aimed for truly vicious political satire, but it was in the production before the world was once again turned upside down. So, for now these characters are fun to watch when the show’s quirky charms truly kick in. There’s nothing too new to be found yet for its intended audience the case has enough to offer. 

“The Residence” begins streaming March 20 on Netflix.