Jury Duty season 2 is outrageous – it might be the best show of the year

When Jury Duty dropped in 2023, it’s fair to say even Amazon Prime Video was surprised by the absolute smash it became.

A mockumentary/elaborate prank show targeting a singular man on a fake jury (with Hairspray’s James Marsden, no less), it was a fun concept, but was chucked onto their now-defunct Freevee service with little fanfare.

And yet something about it broke through. Captivating audiences with a uniquely quirky charm, word-of-mouth spread Jury Duty to the masses. By the end of 2023, it was nominated for four Emmys and two Golden Globes.

With success that big, it was inevitable that the streaming platform would want a second go-around. But Jury Duty was lightning in a bottle, and the concept was used up. Convincing another unsuspecting member of the public into a completely dysfunctional situation was a tall order.

Thankfully, Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat is a follow-up so beautifully outrageous it somehow not only matches the original’s energy and heart, but tops it.

This time our ‘Hero’ is 25-year-old temp worker Anthony Norman. Hired as an assistant for two weeks at the family-owned Rockin’ Grandma’s Hot Sauce, his job is to do some paperwork and help Kevin, Head of HR, ensure their annual company retreat runs smoothly.

This year’s a big one for the team: Their CEO, Doug, is retiring and handing the business to his son, Dougie Jr. So Kevin wants to pull out all the stops to make it one to remember.

Along for the ride is a camera crew ‘filming Rockin’ Grandma’s for a documentary on small businesses’. It’s basically a ‘real-life’ version of The Office – except everyone is an actor who has spent three months planning the most chaotic fortnight of Anthony’s life.

It’s easy to see why the production team picked their new target. So laid back he’s practically horizontal, Anthony is immediately endearing, takes everyone at face value and gets on with whatever he’s asked to do. He quickly bonds with his co-workers, seems to genuinely enjoy their company, and embraces their eccentricities.

In less than one half-hour episode, Anthony becomes a core part of the group, and you’re rooting for him even when you know what’s coming as a viewer. As things go south as they arrive at the retreat, he’s truly so invested in everyone’s wellbeing he’ll do anything to fix any given situation, no matter how ludicrous it gets.

There are so many things that could have gone wrong with a second season of Jury Duty. The outstanding kindness of original Hero, Ronald Gladden, was what made everyone fall in love with the first outing. If they hadn’t found someone like Anthony to take centre stage, this entire project would have collapsed.

The stakes are higher on the cast this time too, as the characters had to feel lived in, like they’ve known each other for years, not strangers thrown together for a court case.

There are points where it feels like Anthony may have rumbled them, joking to the camera crew ‘this feels like I’m in a TV show’, only to then backtrack and add ‘but then… this just isn’t something you could make up’.

By the time CEO Doug shares he’s considering selling the company to a major corporation, Anthony has turned into a ride-or-die bestie for his colleagues – especially Dougie Jr, the hapless 30-something nepo baby who was meant to take over from his dad.

Sure, Dougie dropped out of business school to spend four years with a ska band in Jamaica (embracing every stereotype you would assume of a shaggy-haired white man who’d do this in the process), but he wants to make his dad proud. And Anthony, with his entire being, wants to help him achieve that before it’s too late.

One of the more beautiful things Company Retreat does is tap into the ‘chosen family’ dynamic so many possess with co-workers. They might get on your nerves, or you might have to avoid them for a week after a drunken staff party snog, but trapped in an office all day, you bond and become a unit to get through daily stresses.

Establishing that tenderness was the key to convincing Anthony – and as a viewer, you can’t help being taken in by it too.

How the cast survived filming without cracking from guilt, I will never know, but I’m glad they did. Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat is pure joy, and possibly the best show of the year so far.

You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll want to tightly hug all your colleagues by the time the season’s through. Just make sure you clear it with HR first.

Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat starts Friday, March 20 on Prime Video.

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