Apple TV+’s newest TV show, “The Crowded Room,” is here. The highly anticipated series, which debuted on June 9, is partially based on “The Minds of Billy Milligan,” the true-crime novel by Daniel Keyes.
At the center of “The Crowded Room” is Danny Sullivan (Tom Holland), a character loosely based on the real-life Milligan, who had dissociative identity disorder and was the first person to be acquitted of a crime for the reason of insanity. In real life, Milligan was arrested and charged with the robbery, kidnapping, and rape of three women in 1977. But following a lengthy psychiatric evaluation, it was determined that Milligan had 24 alternate personalities, which would eventually deem him to be not guilty of his crimes.
The miniseries’s star-studded cast also includes Amanda Seyfried and Emmy Rossum. Plus, Holland serves as an executive producer, and he’s very happy with how the show turned out. “I am so proud of this project, I’m so proud of what everyone’s achieved. I think that we’ve found the perfect balance to a show that is nostalgic to the 1970s while also being incredibly unique and unlike any TV show that’s ever come before it,” he told Collider in an interview published on June 7.
Read on to learn more about the cast of “The Crowded Room.”
Apple / Stephanie Mei-Ling
Tom Holland as Danny Sullivan
In the series, Holland plays Danny Sullivan, a complicated man dealing with severe mental illness. Holland is known for several roles, most recently Nate Drake in “Uncharted” and, most notably, Peter Parker in the Spider-Man film series.
Holland has been vocal about how mentally taxing portraying the role had been. He revealed in May that digging into mental health on the series led him to get sober. And on June 7, Holland announced that he’s taking a year off from acting.
“I’ve always sort of lived by this idea that hard work is good work,” he told Extra on June 6. “But then again, the show did break me. There did come a time where I was sort of like, ‘I need to have a break.’ I disappeared. I went to Mexico for a week and had some time on a beach. And I’m now taking a year off, and that is a result of how difficult this show was.”
Apple
Amanda Seyfried as Rya
“Mamma Mia” star Seyfried plays Rya, a clinical psychologist who works with Danny throughout his criminal trial. No stranger to television shows based on real life, Seyfried starred in the 2022 Hulu limited series “The Dropout” as disgraced Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes.
Apple
Emmy Rossum as Candy
Rossum plays Candy, Danny’s mother. The actor has an extensive film and television career and is most known for her raw role as Fiona Gallagher on the acclaimed series “Shameless.”
Rossum’s casting has stirred polarizing opinions from many on social media. The actor is only 10 years older than Holland, who plays her son. But in a June 2 interview with Entertainment Tonight, she said it makes sense. “Candy’s a super young mom, she’s almost a child in her own right when she becomes pregnant at age 16. You watch as I age from 25 to 35, which is actually younger than I am now,” she explained.
She added of the series, “I was so taken with the series and really just loved all my scenes, especially with young Danny (Zachary Golinger). Our relationship was so beautiful and so I knew everything that we had that I had lost in the scenes with Tom. [It] was really fun.”
Getty / Stefania D'Alessandro
Christopher Abbott as Stan
In the series, Christopher Abbott stars as Stan, Danny’s lawyer and a Vietnam War veteran. In real life, Gary Schweickart served as Milligan’s defense attorney, who could very well be an inspiration for the character of Stan.
As for Abbott, he gained notoriety for his role as Captain John Yossarian in the Hulu series “Catch-22” and as Charlie in “Girls.”
Apple
Sasha Lane as Ariana
Sasha Lane plays Ariana in “The Crowded Room,” a close friend of Danny who also struggles with a painful past. She appeared in the Disney+ series “Loki” and in 2022’s “Conversations With Friends.”
Apple / Stephanie Mei-Ling
Emma Laird as Isabel
You might recognize Emma Laird from her work as Iris in the Paramount+ series “The Mayor of Kingstown.” The up-and-coming actor plays Isabel, a friend of Danny from high school who connects with him.
Apple / Stephanie Mei-Ling
