---
title: "English Teacher"
year: 2024
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/english-teacher"
fi1m_id: "english-teacher"
imdb_id: "tt20782190"
tmdb_id: 258902
wikidata_id: "Q128924796"
fi1m_score: 73
critics_score: 76
critics_reviews: 9
published: "2026-10-01T00:20:21.639249+00:00"
updated: "2026-10-01T00:20:48.577349+00:00"
region: "SI"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# English Teacher (2024)

Created by Brian Jordan Alvarez · Comedy

## Identity

English Teacher

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/tv/english-teacher
- **Type:** Series
- **Fi1m ID:** english-teacher
- **IMDb ID:** tt20782190
- **TMDB ID:** 258902
- **Wikidata ID:** Q128924796
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt20782190/, https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/258902, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q128924796

**Fi1m score: 73** · Critics 76 from 9 reviews

*In a sentence:* Grown adults out-argued by sixteen-year-olds, then off to the bar to complain about it

> Brian Jordan Alvarez’s school comedy is quick, well cast and funny about arguments most sitcoms would not go near. It is also slight: eight episodes of good staffroom talk with no story to hold them together.

## Synopsis

Evan Marquez (Brian Jordan Alvarez) teaches English at an American high school and would like to get through the term without incident. He does not. The series follows him through a run of staffroom rows about what can be said and taught in a classroom now, and who gets to decide. Principal Grant Moretti (Enrico Colantoni) wants every problem closed with the least possible noise. Evan’s closest friend on the staff, Gwen Sanders (Stephanie Koenig), wants to discuss each one with everyone. Markie Hillridge (Sean Patton) has a view, as he does on everything. Around them are the scheming Rick Santana (Carmen Christopher), Harry Daughtler (Langston Kerman) and Keith (Trixie Mattel), while the pupils watch, film it, and have opinions of their own.

## Review

Brian Jordan Alvarez has created, written for, directed episodes of and starred in a comedy about an American high school, and about the arguments that now gather around any American classroom: what can be said, what can be taught, who can kiss whom in a corridor. That is a hard thing to joke about without picking a side or losing your nerve, and *English Teacher* mostly manages it. It is quick, well cast and funny. It is also slight, and eight episodes go by without much happening to anyone.

Alvarez plays Evan Marquez, who teaches English and would like to get through the term without being the subject of a staffroom row. He is not so lucky. His principal, Grant Moretti (Enrico Colantoni), would like every problem to go away quietly. His friend Gwen Sanders (Stephanie Koenig) would like to talk about each one at length. Markie Hillridge (Sean Patton) has opinions about everything and keeps none of them for longer than a scene. The best of the programme is in the staffroom, where these four talk across one another at a speed most sitcoms gave up on decades ago.

Koenig is the find. She is among the writers as well, and it shows: she plays Gwen as a woman who says the wrong thing with complete confidence and is usually half right, and she and Alvarez have the rhythm of people who have been finishing each other’s sentences for years. We laughed out loud, several times an episode, at lines that went past before we had quite caught them. Then, an hour after each episode, we found we could not say what had happened in it. Both of those things are true of the whole series.

Colantoni gives Moretti the tired patience of a man who has read every memo and believed none of them, and he gets the best quiet reactions in the show. Patton’s Markie is the one who should not work, the loud dissenter in a comedy made by a gay man, and the scripts treat him as a friend rather than a target, which is braver than it sounds. Carmen Christopher’s Rick Santana, a fellow teacher with a scheme in every scene, and Trixie Mattel, who turns up as a drag performer called Keith, fill out a staff that is more interesting than any of the pupils. That is a problem for a programme named after a teacher. The teenagers are mostly furniture, there to say something alarming and leave.

Jeffrey Waldron and Brian Burgoyne shoot it bright and flat, in the hard light of a school corridor, and they resist the hand-held wobble most American workplace comedies now use. Kate Bunch’s production design gets the laminated posters, the blocky lockers and a staffroom where nothing has been replaced since the nineties. Erinn Knight and Cristina Spiridakis dress Evan a little too well for his salary and Markie in shorts in all weathers. Jonathan Krisel is among the directors, and the episodes keep a straight face no matter how odd the premise. The editing, shared between five people, keeps the scenes short. Nothing is allowed to settle.

The slightness is the real complaint. Each episode picks up a live argument, deals with it and puts it down, and the next one starts clean. Nothing is the spine of the series. Nobody changes, nobody loses anything, and by the eighth episode we had stopped expecting them to. Alvarez the actor is also less sure than Alvarez the writer. He plays Evan with a bright, slightly performed patter that can look like a man doing bits in his own show, and the people around him are easier to believe in. A second season of ten episodes followed.

Set against the school comedies it will be compared with, it is sharper than [*Abbott Elementary*](https://film.one/tv/abbott-elementary) and a good deal less kind, and it has none of the cruelty of *Vice Principals*. It wants to be liked, and it is. Watch it two episodes at a time, with somebody who will argue back. On your own, late at night, it goes past pleasantly and you will not remember it in the morning.

*Fi1m score 73, published 1 October 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics like it, and the praise lands in the same places: a sharply drawn ensemble of chaotic teachers, rapid-fire dialogue, and a willingness to take on the arguments now running through schools without losing its sitcom shape. The repartee between Evan and Gwen is singled out, as is a confident, distinctive voice that several reviewers say rewards a second viewing. The warmest reviews put it among the year’s best new comedies.

The reservations cluster on structure. More than one critic finds the first season slight, with episodic stories, an underdeveloped ensemble and no strong arc to hold it; the teen characters are said to be underused. The Guardian is the coolest on that season, finding the characterisation thin and faulting the lead performance. Vulture, reviewing the second season, is the only review to drop below the midpoint, arguing the show assumes everyone shares its sensibility, and regretting the allegations against its creator and lead actor. The spread is otherwise narrow.

## Straight answers

**Is English Teacher worth watching?**

*English Teacher* is worth watching for anyone who likes quick staffroom comedy and does not mind that nothing much happens, and we scored it 73. Brian Jordan Alvarez's school sitcom is well cast and funny about arguments most comedies avoid, with Stephanie Koenig the standout. It is slight, though: eight episodes with no story holding them together, best taken two at a time with someone who will argue back.

**Where can I watch English Teacher in Slovenia?**

*English Teacher* is streaming on Disney+ in Slovenia. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is English Teacher, and is it suitable for children?**

*English Teacher* is not violent or frightening, but it carries a TV-MA rating in the US and has no UK certificate, which puts it beyond children. It is a comedy for adults built on staffroom rows about what can be said and taught in a classroom now, and the pupils are there mainly to say something alarming and leave. Older teenagers may find it recognisable; younger ones are not its audience.

**How does English Teacher compare to Abbott Elementary?**

*English Teacher* is sharper and a good deal less kind than [*Abbott Elementary*](https://film.one/tv/abbott-elementary), which is the warmer of the two school comedies and the one whose staff like each other more. Alvarez's series talks faster and takes on arguments the Philadelphia mockumentary would not go near, but it has no spine and nobody changes. Choose *Abbott Elementary* for comfort and characters you want to live with; choose *English Teacher* for the better jokes and the braver rows.

**What should I watch after English Teacher?**

After *English Teacher*, try [*Abbott Elementary*](https://film.one/tv/abbott-elementary) (2021, Fi1m 82): The kinder American school comedy, with a staffroom that likes each other more. Then [*Teachers*](https://film.one/tv/teachers) (2001, Fi1m 76): A British staffroom of overgrown adolescents, smoking behind the bike sheds.

### Reviews we read (9)

- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Angie Han (85/100, inferred): Han gives the series a strongly positive verdict, wishing its short first season had more episodes. She praises its sharply drawn ensemble and affectionate, dry humor around contentious school issues. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/english-teacher-review-fx-brian-jordan-alvarez-1235979208/)
- **IndieWire**, Proma Khosla (B): Khosla finds the series a promising, razor-sharp comedy, though its season lacks a clear arc. She praises the rapid-fire jokes and the chaotic supporting teachers, while noting that the teen actors are underused. [Read](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/shows/english-teacher-review-fx-1235043326/)
- **The AV Club**, Tim Lowery (B): Lowery finds the series a funny, mostly sunny workplace comedy that engages with current school controversies without losing its sitcom spirit. He especially praises the chemistry and repartee between Evan and Gwen, while noting some loose ends. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/english-teacher-tv-review-fx)
- **The Guardian**, Adrian Horton (65/100, inferred): Horton finds the series a pleasant, witty comedy with plenty of potential, but says it remains slight and underdeveloped. She praises its nuanced handling of conflicting perspectives, while criticizing the thin characterization and the lead performance. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/article/2024/sep/02/english-teacher-review-fx)
- **Vulture**, Kathryn VanArendonk (55/100, inferred): The critic finds the second season well made and entertaining, but argues its assumption that everyone shares the same sensibility can leave people out. She praises its strong comedic actors and blend of classic and contemporary comedy, while regretting the allegations against its creator and lead actor. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/english-teacher-review-fx-season-2-brian-jordan-alvarez.html)
- **/Film**, BJ Colangelo (90/100, inferred): The critic calls the series the best new comedy of 2024 and praises its ability to portray Gen Z without cringe. They single out Brian Jordan Alvarez’s firsthand understanding of online culture as key to the show’s authentic teenage characters. [Read](https://www.slashfilm.com/1664944/english-teacher-best-new-comedy-2024-gen-z/)
- **Consequence**, Liz Shannon Miller (85/100, inferred): Miller calls the series one of the year’s best, praising its confident, distinctive voice. She singles out the detail-rich scenes and ensemble chemistry as reasons it rewards rewatching. [Read](https://consequence.net/2024/09/english-teacher-review-fx-show/)
- **Collider**, Elisa Guimarães (8/10): The critic finds Season 2 entertaining, topical, and ultimately strong despite a misjudged premiere. She praises its expanded character lives and willingness to tackle issues facing education. [Read](https://collider.com/english-teacher-season-2-review/)
- **Paste**, Casey Epstein-Gross (7.8): The critic finds the series already good and charming, but not yet great, because its episodic stories and underdeveloped ensemble lack a strong emotional throughline. They praise its rapid-fire dialogue and deft, funny engagement with current school and culture-war debates. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/fx-hulu/english-teacher-review)

## Details

- **Created by:** Brian Jordan Alvarez
- **Creator:** Brian Jordan Alvarez
- **Director:** Jonathan Krisel, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Kathryn Dean, Michael McDonald, Dave King
- **Writer:** Brian Jordan Alvarez, Zach Dunn, Dave King, Jake Bender, Stephanie Koenig, Rajat Suresh, Jeremy Levick, Paul Simms, Emmy Blotnick, Sam Johnson, Shana Gohd
- **Cinematography:** Brian Burgoyne, Jeffrey Waldron
- **Editor:** Michael Giambra, Antonia de Barros, Miki Matteson, August Freirich, Daniel Haworth
- **Production design:** Kate Bunch
- **Costume design:** Erinn Knight, Cristina Spiridakis
- **Producer:** Todd Aronauer, Rajat Suresh, Jeremy Levick
- **Cast:** Brian Jordan Alvarez as Evan Marquez; Stephanie Koenig as Gwen Sanders; Enrico Colantoni as Principal Grant Moretti; Sean Patton as Markie Hillridge; Trixie Mattel as Keith / Shazam; Carmen Christopher as Rick Santana; Langston Kerman as Harry Daughtler; Jordan Firstman as Malcolm
- **Release (Slovenia):** 2 September 2024
- **Genres:** Comedy
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgCj-JV3C80

## Where to watch in Slovenia

- Disney+: streaming, uhd

*Checked 2026-10-01.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *Abbott Elementary* (2021), Fi1m 82: The kinder American school comedy, with a staffroom that likes each other more — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/abbott-elementary.md)
- *Teachers* (2001), Fi1m 76: A British staffroom of overgrown adolescents, smoking behind the bike sheds — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/teachers.md)
- *Entre les murs* (2008): A Paris classroom where the pupils actually win the arguments, and it is not a comedy
- *Please Like Me* (2013): Australian comedy with the same quick, offhand way of being serious
- *Vice Principals* (2016): What the same school would look like if the staff were monsters

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/english-teacher