Netflix’s ‘Big Mistakes’ was filmed all over NJ — here’s where

My wife Linda and I have a problem. It is not a serious problem. It is the kind of problem that makes you realize your life is pretty good — but it is still a problem.

We cannot agree on what to stream.

Some nights we find something in five minutes and settle in happy. Other nights we doom-scroll through Netflix, then HBO, then Prime, then Hulu, then back to Netflix — until one of us gets frustrated and the whole evening slips away. When I get really stuck I do what any self-respecting radio host does. I ask our listeners on the Judi & EJ Show. And then I walk through the door at home with a list, chin up, chest out — like a male turkey in spring displaying his feathers — and I present my recommendations with full confidence.

But more often she finds something first — so when I do, that's a special night.

That is exactly what happened with Netflix's new Big Mistakes.

Schitt's Creek meets the Sopranos — sort of

Linda spotted it immediately. Dan Levy — David Rose from Schitt's Creek — was starring. We watched the first episode the same night. Dark comedy, crime thriller, completely unhinged family dynamics. We were in.

The premise is delightfully absurd. Nicky (Levy) is a nervous pastor. His sister Morgan, played by Taylor Ortega, is a frustrated actress who ended up teaching. They steal a necklace from a gift shop while trying to buy something for their dying grandmother — and that one terrible decision drags them straight into organized crime. Blackmail follows. Increasingly dangerous assignments follow. Chaos, naturally, follows all of that.

The show has been compared to The Sopranos run through a funhouse mirror, and that is not far off. Laurie Metcalf plays their caustic, overbearing mother Linda — yes, my wife's name — and the family dynamic is toxic, hilarious and weirdly loyal all at once. Eight episodes. First season. Already renewed in our household for continued viewing.

SEE ALSO: Why The Sopranos never filmed in the Pine Barrens 

The New Jersey connection that makes it even better

Here is where it gets good for those of us from this state.

Big Mistakes was shot over 46 days at 40 locations across New Jersey. Production brought in more than 300 New Jersey locals as cast and crew. Taylor Ortega, who plays Morgan, grew up in Cranbury. She told the production team it was surreal filming a major Netflix project in her home state.

The location list reads like a tour of the Garden State. Filming happened at Fosterfields Living Historical Farm in Morristown, Hazel Wood Cemetery in Colonia, Wyoming Presbyterian Church in Millburn, the Union Police Department, Edison Millwork & Hardware in Edison, Adam's Fine Clothing & Tuxedo in New Providence, Crystal Inn in Eatontown, and Harem Cabaret in Lodi. Additional towns where cameras rolled include Caldwell, Cranford, Franklin Lakes, Irvington, Jersey City, Warren, Weehawken and Springfield.

That is a serious New Jersey production. Not a show that uses Newark for two exterior shots and calls it a day. This one went deep into the state and it shows on screen.

Worth your time on the couch

New Jersey has always had a complicated relationship with Hollywood. We gave the world The Sopranos and spent years explaining that not everyone here is in the mob. Big Mistakes leans into that tradition — organized crime, dysfunctional families, suburban chaos — but with a tone that is more absurd than menacing. Think less Pine Barrens, more accidentally falling into the Pine Barrens while trying to return a stolen necklace.

If you are sitting there tonight doing the doom-scroll between platforms, stop. Go to Netflix. Watch the first episode of Big Mistakes. You will know by the end of it whether it is for you.

Linda knew in about twelve minutes. As usual, she was right.