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Billions is an American drama television series created by Brian Koppelman, David Levien, and Andrew Ross Sorkin. The series premiered on Showtime on January 17, 2016, and has produced six complete seasons to date. The series is often set in large financial centers, most notably New York and Connecticut. The series tells the story of hedge fund manager Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis), as he accumulates wealth and power in the world of high finance. Axelrod's aggressive tactics to secure high returns frequently cross over into the illegal—acts that United States Attorney Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti) attempts to prosecute. A large ensemble secondary cast supports the series' story arcs.
Some plotlines mirror real-life prosecutions of financial crime by federal authorities. The series was inspired by the investigations undertaken by Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan from 2009 to 2017, on whom Rhoades is based.[1][2] Bharara's 2013 prosecution of hedge fund manager Steven A. Cohen of S.A.C. Capital Advisors loosely influenced the first season, while Salomon Brothers' 1991 manipulation of U.S. Treasury bonds inspired the second.[3] The series also interweaves subplots with Wendy Rhoades (Maggie Siff), a psychiatrist turned performance coach, Taylor Mason (Asia Kate Dillon), a market analyst, and Mike "Wags" Wagner (David Costabile), Axelrod's right-hand man.
The series has received generally positive reviews. Billions is considered the first American TV series to have a non-binary character (Taylor Mason).[4][5] As such, it was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series in the 29th, 30th, 31st GLAAD Media Awards for its representation of the LGBTQ community. The series has been nominated for multiple Satellite Awards, a Critics' Choice Television Award and an Artios Award for Outstanding Achievement in Comedy Pilot Casting, the latter for its pilot episode. The show's coverage of the hedge fund industry has been recognized as realistic.[6][7] The fifth season premiered on May 3, 2020;[8][9] however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only 7 of the 12 episodes in that season aired that year.[10] The fifth season resumed airing on September 5, 2021.[11] In October 2020, the series was renewed for a sixth season which premiered on January 23, 2022.[12][13] From the sixth season onwards Damian Lewis as Bobby "Axe" Axelrod was replaced with Corey Stoll as Mike Prince.[14] In February 2022, the series was renewed for a seventh season. |
