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Freaks and Geeks is an American teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season. The show is set in a suburban high school near Detroit during 1980–81. The theme of Freaks and Geeks reflects "the sad, hilarious unfairness of teen life". With little success when it first aired, due to an erratic episode schedule and conflicts between the creators and NBC, the series was canceled after airing 12 out of the 18 episodes. The series became a cult classic, and Apatow continued the show's legacy by incorporating the actors in future productions. The series has appeared in numerous lists of the greatest television shows of all time, including lists by Time, Entertainment Weekly, TV Guide and Rolling Stone. It launched most of its young actors' careers, such as James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Busy Philipps, John Francis Daley, Martin Starr, Samm Levine and Linda Cardellini. Plot Teenager Lindsay Weir and her younger brother, Sam, attend William McKinley High School during the 1980–81 school year. The show is set in the town of Chippewa, Michigan, a fictional suburb of Detroit (named after Chippewa Valley High School, which series creator Paul Feig attended). Lindsay joins a group of friends who are referred to as the "freaks" — Daniel Desario, Ken Miller, Nick Andopolis and Kim Kelly — while Sam's friends, Neal Schweiber and Bill Haverchuck, constitute the "geeks." The Weir parents, Harold and Jean, are featured in every episode, and Millie Kentner, Lindsay's nerdy and highly religious former best friend, is a recurring character, as well as Cindy Sanders, the popular cheerleader on whom Sam has a crush. Lindsay finds herself attempting to transform her life as an academically proficient student, star "mathlete," and young girl into a rebellious teenager who hangs out with troubled slackers. Her relationships with her new friends and the friction they cause with her parents and her own self-image form one central strand of the show. The other follows Sam and his group of geeky friends as they navigate a different part of the social universe and try to fit in. Cast and characters Main cast Linda Cardellini as Lindsay Weir John Francis Daley as Sam Weir James Franco as Daniel Desario Samm Levine as Neal Schweiber Seth Rogen as Ken Miller Jason Segel as Nick Andopolis Martin Starr as Bill Haverchuck Becky Ann Baker as Jean Weir Joe Flaherty as Harold Weir Busy Philipps as Kim Kelly (credited after titles as "also starring") Recurring cast Guest stars and cameo appearances Guest stars included: Samaire Armstrong as "Deadhead" Laurie Alexandra Breckenridge as mathlete Shelly Weaver Jack Conley as Kim Kelly's stepfather Kevin Corrigan as Millie's delinquent cousin Allen Covert as a liquor store clerk Matt Czuchry as a student from rival Lincoln High Alexander Gould as Ronnie, the boy Lindsay babysits while high Steve Higgins as Mr. Fleck, the Geeks' A/V teacher Rashida Jones as Kim Kelly's friend Karen Scarfolli Bianca Kajlich as a nose piercing punk girl David Koechner as a waiter, in an uncredited role David Krumholtz as Neal's brother Barry Shia LaBeouf as Herbert, the school mascot Leslie Mann as school teacher Miss Foote Ben Stiller as a Secret Service agent Jason Schwartzman as Howie Gelfand, a student dealing in fake IDs The show's producers were resistant to stunt casting. For example, they resisted the network's suggestion that they have Britney Spears appear as a waitress in one episode; they thought such appearances would detract from the show's realism. Several of the screenwriters appeared on the show. Mike White played Kim Kelly's oft-discussed injured brother, and first appeared in episode 4, "Kim Kelly is My Friend". Paul Feig, Gabe Sachs and series composer Michael Andrews appear uncredited as members of the fictional band Dimension in "I'm With the Band". Numerous actors who starred on Freaks and Geeks would later appear on Judd Apatow's later TV series Undeclared, including Rogen, Segel, Levine, Starr, Phillips and Melnick, among several others. Episodes The script for the pilot episode of Freaks and Geeks was written by Paul Feig as a spec script. Feig gave the script to producer Judd Apatow, who sold it to DreamWorks, where Apatow was under an overall deal. DreamWorks sold it to NBC, who greenlit a pilot. Before the script was shot, Feig wrote a second episode at the behest of Apatow. He showed this second script to Apatow and pilot director Jake Kasdan, and they suggested that he combine the two episodes to form a stronger pilot. Notable additions include the introduction of Kim Kelly and Lindsay's recollection of her grandmother's death. Feig wrote a final draft after a read-through with the cast, this time incorporating a first meeting between Lindsay and the freaks (in previous drafts, Lindsay was already part of the group). The show ran for 18 episodes, three of which — "Kim Kelly Is My Friend", "Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers" and "Noshing and Moshing" — were unaired by NBC and not seen until Fox Family ran the show in 2000. The final three episodes premiered at the Museum of Television and Radio prior to being broadcast on television. The list below is ordered by the chronology of the storyline. * ^ Initial airing occurred on Fox Family. Planned storylines In a 2012 interview with Vanity Fair, Paul Feig detailed what would have happened to the characters if the show had continued: Lindsay would become a human rights lawyer, years after following the Grateful Dead. Sam would have joined the drama club. Neal would cope with his parents' divorce by joining a swing choir in school. Bill would join the basketball team, becoming a jock and leading to tension with the geeks. Daniel would end up in jail. Kim would become pregnant on tour while following the Grateful Dead. Nick would be pressured by his strict father to join the Army. Media releases DVD and Blu-ray On April 6, 2004, a six-DVD Freaks and Geeks box set was released through Shout! Factory and Sony BMG Music Entertainment. A limited "yearbook edition" set, including two additional discs, was also available through the official website for the show. Fans who had signed an online petition to get the show on DVD got priority in purchasing the special set. On November 25, 2008, the deluxe "Yearbook Edition" box set was re-released through Vivendi Entertainment. The set features all of the episodes, commentaries and special features of the "Complete Series" six-DVD set, plus two extra discs and deluxe packaging. It is packaged as an 80-page color yearbook with essays, pictures and episode synopses. In July 2015, Shout! Factory announced it had begun preparing for a Blu-ray release of the series. It was subsequently confirmed in December 2015 that Shout! would release the complete series on Blu-ray on March 22, 2016, and the set would contain all special features from the previous rele.... Discover the Dr Geek popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Dr Geek books.