‘Barons’ Season 1 Episode 1 Preview: Cast, Plot, Photos and Air Date

The CW recently picked up the US distribution rights to Australia’s Barons, a surfing drama set in the early 1970s, and will launch the series on Monday, May 29, 2023 at 9pm ET/PT as part of their summer primetime lineup. Barons was created by Liz Doran (Doctor Doctor, Please Like Me), Michael Lawrence (Bra Boys) and John Molloy (The Gloaming) and aired in Australia in 2022.

Acclaimed surf director Taylor Steele (Momentum, The Show) – a filmmaker credited with helping to revolutionize the surf genre – was involved as an executive producer and directed a special surf unit charged with shooting scenes on the water. In an April 2022 interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Steele described his work on the series.

“I had a delicate dance because I was an executive producer working on some scripts and storylines, making sure it felt authentic to surfing, so I was the filter of the surf conscience to it in a way,” said Steele. “And then I am under the director in knowing my place and trying to get out of his way. But also, I was conscious of not going out and shooting stuff that would not fit.”

Barons stars Sean Keenan as Bill “Trotter” Dwyer, Ben O’Toole as “Snapper” Webster, Jillian Nguyen as Tracy Dwyer, Hunter Page-Lochard as Reg Thompson, Sophia Forrest as Dani Kirk, and Karina Banno as Jules Zemenik. Lincoln Younes is Buddy Fraser, George Pullar is Bernie Hunter, Megan MacKenzie is Kelly Fox, Vivienne Awosoga is Margaux Dupont, Nicholas Burton is Sharpie, Catherine Van-Davies is Shirley Kwong, Sebastian Tang is Peter “Dimma” Chan, and Kick Gurry is MAC.

“Paradise Lost” Plot: A group of surfers chase their sun-soaked dreams, but best mates Trotter (Keenan) and Snapper (O’Toole) soon become bitter rivals as competing surf brands are born.

The Plot, Courtesy of The CW:

Barons is set at a time of sexual liberation, social disruption, protest, and war. The eight-part series captures a unique moment of upheaval and opportunity as a new surfing counterculture collides with the realities of enterprise. Two best friends, inspired by their love for the Australian beach, create what will become rival iconic surf brands. Little do they know that their success will tear them — and their worlds — apart.

When their businesses go mainstream, the young rebels and their friends find themselves pulled deep into a world of corporate politics, jealousy, homophobia and racial tension. In selling their dream to the world, they create bitter, lasting rivalries.