Why Everyone Is Talking About 'Jury Duty' and How to Watch It for Free

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It's the show everyone is talking about—on the free streaming service you might not have heard of yet. That's right, we're talking about the documentary-style comedy series Jury Duty, FreeVee's real-life riff on The Truman Show (the '90s Jim Carrey movie in which the main character is unaware his life is staged and everyone he knows is an actor). Set during a three-week civil trial in an L.A. courtroom, the new series features a cast of twelve jurors in which all are actors—except one, who thinks it's all real.

Co-created by The Office alums Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, Jury Duty is funny, uplifting, and might make you forever doubt your reality. The cast stars James Marsden (Enchanted, Party Down season 3) as himself (hey, stars get called for jury duty too), along with a talented cast of improvisational comedic actors, including a few who have real-life credentials in the legal profession.

But, of course, the one everyone wants to know about is "the Truman" of this story, Ronald Gladden. We've got the scoop, plus everything you need know about how to watch and stream Jury Duty on FreeVee because you'll want to catch up before the finale on April 21.

Who Is Ronald Gladden on "Jury Duty"?

Ronald Gladden, 30, is a solar contractor from San Diego, California. No, he was not in on the gag; he thought he was part of a real documentary. Yes, he genuinely was unsure who James Marsden was when the star (playing a satirical, self-absorbed version of himself) sat down beside him in the waiting room for jury selection. “Truthfully, I did have to do a Google search on the guy," he told Access Hollywood in a joint interview with Marsden. Yes, Gladden is really a super-nice guy and that's by design.

His casting began with a ruse: a vague Craigslist ad recruiting eligible jurors for a documentary about the jury deliberation process. Gladden, along with about 4,000 others, applied and sent in videos, which were followed up with interviews, explained executive producer Nicholas Hatton in an interview with NationalWorld.

Eventually, the casting team, led by producer Alexis Sampietro, whittled the applicants down to Gladden, whom they felt was a hero audiences could root for. "We really wanted them to have a connection with Ronald, we didn't ever want him to feel like he was the butt of the joke, or that we were punching down," Hatton said.

Another of Gladden's inherent good-guy characteristics? The ability to keep a secret: “I didn’t tell anyone about it, I didn’t post about it, I’ve literally just kept living my life as if it didn’t happen,” Gladden told Primetimer, though he has maintained friendships with the cast.

How to Watch "Jury Duty" on FreeVee

You can watch Jury Duty on the Amazon streaming service FreeVee, which as the name suggests is free—like really, truly free. There are multiple ways to watch FreeVee, whether you download the FreeVee app to your mobile device, streaming media player, or smart TV. Got an Amazon Fire TV or Fire TV Stick? The app should already be there. For convenience, Amazon Prime subscribers can also stream it through Prime Video. Along with original programming like Jury Duty, FreeVee offers an array of popular movies and TV shows on demand. The only catch? Commercials. (Come on, you knew that one was coming.)

There are eight episodes of Jury Duty, six of which are available to watch now on FreeVee. The last two, including the big reveal where Gladden finds out what the show really is, will drop on Friday, April 21.

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