The Netflix Murder Mystery That Imagined An Openly Gay President
We’ve all thought about it once or twice. A White House with a gay president. What would that be like? RuPaul performing at inauguration? Free poppers at state dinners? Mean Girls quotes written into The Constitution? (I’m gay; I can make these jokes.)
Thanks to Pete Buttigieg’s meteoric success and semi-successful presidential campaign, America almost made the dream of a gay Commander in Chief into a reality. Of course, good old traditional values won over in the end, and America went the time-tested “old straight white guy” route instead. But with Netflix’s The Residence, creator Paul William Davies has finally put a gay President in the White House. And what do you know, it doesn’t make a lick of a difference.
In this ironically apolitical murder mystery, Uzo Aduba plays Cordelia Cupp, “the best detective in the world,” who’s tasked with solving the murder of the White House’s chief usher, A.B. Wynter (Giancarlo Esposito). To gather clues, Cupp must not only wander the White House and its many, many rooms, but also butt heads with the White House’s various denizens, including the President of the United States (Paul Fitzgerald). Unfortunately, the President’s husband, the First Gentleman (Barrett Foa), is a possible suspect. As you can imagine, the focus of this series is on the “murder mystery” part. There’s no time to moralize or virtue signal about the revolutionary development of having a Gay President. The President just happens to be gay. America and the White House continue to operate as they would under any other leader.
That said, there are several other great reasons to watch this show. Keep reading.
The meticulous White House research
The Residence lifts all of its knowledge of The White House from Kate Andersen’s non-fiction book The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House. That’s why every scene of The Residence is resplendent with details about the famous home’s geography, quirks, standards of procedure, and job descriptions. The Residence dumps a lot of information on the viewer, which is a true gift for armchair detectives. At some point, you may find yourself taking notes so that you can solve the series’ murder yourself.
If this show gets a Season 2, it may be difficult to replicate this patently magical aspect of the series. There’s not much of the White House it hasn’t explored already. But who’s to say that the titular “Residence” of future seasons needs to be the White House?
Uzo Aduba
Uzo Aduba, or Uzo Abubu if you’re a RuPaul’s Drag Race fan, puts in the work to make her character, Cordelia Cupp, more compelling. As written, Cupp isn’t that memorable, notwithstanding her possible ADHD and tendency to go birdwatching at crucial moments in her investigation. The psychological techniques she uses – the purposeful silences and periodic switches between formality and informality – are par for the detective course. She’s a bit arrogant, sure, but what famous brilliant detective isn’t? It’s Aduba’s performance, rather, that shades Cupp with eccentricities, charisma, and wry humor. She is a joy to watch throughout the series.
The White House “family”
The staff of the White House play a major role in The Residence, and their intricate relationships often take center stage. This creates an upstairs/downstairs vibe similar to those found in Downton Abbey and Gosford Park, but with more bite. In addition to learning about the White House’s inner workings (did you know there are on-site florists and calligraphers?), viewers can revel in the touching and tragic stories swirling around the central murder.
No hamfisted politics
This series’ nods to administrations past and present are subtle. Though it alludes to the apparent hot mess left by the previous administration, it never calls out the Orange Man. Yes, there’s a suspiciously blonde congresswoman named Marjorie – sorry, Margery. Yes, there are also references to government-wide systemic corruption which probably seemed funnier and less depressing before Election Day 2024. But the “R” or “D” words never even come into play. Viewers aren’t hit over the head with politics; this is a murder mystery through and through.
The editing
The improvisational jazz soundtrack of The Residence doesn’t vibe with Cordelia Cupp’s often calculating personality, even though her character does often work on the fly. Rather, it’s the show’s editing which provides a window into her very ADHD brain. The show jumps back and forth between interviews and flashbacks, sometimes even for one or two seconds, and often to comedic effect. This ambitious, all-encompassing, and scatterbrained aspect of the show is the perfect distillation of Cupp’s personality, and a likely reason why The Residence quickly entered Netflix’s Top 10 list. Though a Season 2 hasn’t been announced yet, it’s likely coming, so make sure to watch the show on Netflix before it gets here.
