Carol & the End of the World (stylized as carol & the end of the world) is an adult animated comedy drama television miniseries created by Dan Guterman for Netflix. Produced by Bardel Entertainment, it was released on December 15, 2023.
The series is based on the premise of planetary collisions. The planet Earth is about to collide with the fictional planet Keppler, and human extinction is inevitable. Most humans attempt to fulfil their lifelong dreams before they die. But former secretary Carol Kohl instead finds a way to pass the time by joining a group of office workers who crunch numbers for products that seemingly do not exist.
The series featured Kimberly Hébert Gregory's final role before her death in 2025.
Contents
Premise
A mysterious planet is hurtling toward Earth, and the world has erupted into a chaotic, hedonistic free-for-all skydiving, yacht-stealing, and bucket-list bingeing. But quiet, awkward Carol is just trying to return a library book on time. Lost among the frantic masses, she slowly discovers that her small, unremarkable routine might be the most radical and surprisingly comforting way to spend her final days ."
Voice cast and characters
Main
Martha Kelly as Carol Kohl, a middle-aged woman who has no desire to seize the day as the world is ending
Beth Grant as Pauline Kohl, Carol's mother
Lawrence Pressman as Bernard Kohl, Carol's father
Kimberly Hébert Gregory as Donna Shaw, Carol's co-worker who becomes friends with Carol. She is the mother of five now adult children and used to run a nail salon.
Mel Rodriguez as Luis, Carol's co-worker who lives in the same building as Donna. He spent most of his life traveling.
Bridget Everett as Elena, Carol's adventurous older sister
Michael Chernus as Eric, a stranger who shows romantic feelings towards Carol after spending a night together
Sean Giambrone as Steven, Eric's teenage son
Laurie Metcalf as HR lady, the head of human resources at the office building where Carol, Donna, and Luis work
Supporting
Delbert Hunt as Michael, Bernard's nurse who is also in a relationship with Pauline and Bernard
Megan Mullally as Janette, Carol's old friend
Gillian Jacobs as Lisa, Carol's old friend
Release
The 10-episode miniseries was released on December 15, 2023, on Netflix.
Nominations
Carol & the End of the World received a nomination for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series at the 36th GLAAD Media Awards.
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds a 100% approval rating with an average rating of 8.3/10, based on 18 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "With the tone set by Martha Kelly's dour wit, Carol & the End of the World is a clever and surprisingly approachable spin on the apocalypse." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 79 out of 100 based on 6 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Jenna Scherer of The A.V. Club gave the series an A− and said, "Carol & The End Of The World is funny, yes, and there's plenty of absurd slapstick; but at its core, this is a patient, meditative series about what it means to be a person living among other people".