Psych

The main cast of Psych (L–R): Maggie Lawson, Corbin Bernsen, James Roday, Kirsten Nelson, Dulé Hill, and Timothy Omundson.

• Shawn Spencer (James Roday) is a freelance consultant with the Santa Barbara Police Department who pretends to be a psychic.
• Burton "Gus" Guster (Dulé Hill) is Shawn's best friend and business partner.
• Carlton "Lassie" Lassiter (Timothy Omundson) is the head detective for the Santa Barbara Police Department.
• Juliet "Jules" O'Hara (Maggie Lawson) is a junior detective for the Santa Barbara Police Department partnered with Lassiter.
• Henry Spencer (Corbin Bernsen) is Shawn's uptight and precise father and a former police sergeant.
• Karen Vick (Kirsten Nelson) is the SBPD Interim Chief and is later named Chief in "Shawn (and Gus) of the Dead" (main seasons 2–8, recurring season 1).
• Lucinda Barry (Anne Dudek)[lower-alpha 2] is Lassiter's original partner and love interest in the pilot, she is transferred after Shawn tips off her relationship with Lassiter to the Santa Barbara Police Department (season 1).

• Young Shawn (seasons 1–5: Liam James; seasons 5–6: Skyler Gisondo) is the younger version of Shawn Spencer.
• Young Gus (Carlos McCullers II) is the younger version of Burton "Gus" Guster.
• Buzz McNab (Sage Brocklebank) is a naive but lovable cop who often provides Shawn and Gus with clues.
• Madeleine Spencer (Cybill Shepherd) is a police psychologist who is Shawn's mother and Henry's ex-wife.
• Abigail Lytar (Rachael Leigh Cook) is Shawn's high-school crush.
• Winnie Guster (Phylicia Rashad) is Gus' mother.
• Bill Guster (season 2: Ernie Hudson; season 3: Keith David) is Gus' father.
• Mr. Yang (Ally Sheedy) is a serial killer.
• Mary Lightly (Jimmi Simpson) is a department psychologist who is an expert on Mr. Yang.
• Woody the Coroner (Kurt Fuller) is a police coroner with whom Shawn shares a mutual respect.
• Pierre Despereaux (Cary Elwes) is an extremely elusive Canadian art thief.
• Declan Rand (Nestor Carbonell) is a rich criminal profiler.
• Marlowe Viccellio (Kristy Swanson) is a woman Lassiter meets and later marries.
• Curt Smith (himself) is the singer of the band Tears for Fears.
• Frank O'Hara (William Shatner) is Juliet's estranged father.
• Rachael (Parminder Nagra) is Gus' girlfriend.
• Lloyd French (Jeffrey Tambor) is Juliet's stepfather.
• Harris Trout (Anthony Michael Hall) is a special consultant hired by the mayor to increase efficiency at the SBPD.
• Betsy Brannigan (Mira Sorvino) takes over as the new head detective when Lassiter is promoted to chief.
• Father Wesley (Ray Wise) is a Catholic priest and friend of Shawn and Gus.

Anne Dudek's character was written out of the series after the character generated a negative test audience reaction with Lassiter due to their relationship. Maggie Lawson was cast as Juliet O'Hara to serve as a replacement.[17][18]

The theme song for Psych is "I Know You Know" by The Friendly Indians, series creator Steve Franks's band. Some episodes in seasons three through eight use an extended version of "I Know You Know" consisting of the first verse and the chorus,[19] but most episodes use a shortened version consisting of mostly the chorus. In some episodes, the theme song is changed, usually as a tie-in to the theme of the episode to come.

In the "pilot", Roday improvised by picking up a pineapple and saying, "Should I slice this up for the road?" Since then, pineapples have appeared in every episode as a running gag, whether just one in the background or the actual mention of it. It is Shawn's go-to housewarming gift. The pineapple is a major marketing point for items related to the show on the USA website.[20] Fan movements, such as fan-made websites, have also been dedicated to finding a pineapple or pineapple-related object in each episode.[21]

Following the series finale on March 26, 2014, USA Network aired a live aftershow entitled "Psych After Pshow." The hour-long special was hosted by Kevin Pereira and featured series stars and creator/executive producer Steve Franks.[22]

In July 2011, Ion Television announced that Psych would become part of its 2012 broadcast in syndication.[23] During 2012, reruns of the show mostly ran on Saturdays as a marathon. In 2013, Ion Television announced the acquisition option pick-up of season seven of Psych. It no longer airs on Ion Television. The deal with NBC Universal Cable & New Media Distribution adds all 16 new episodes of season seven to Ion's existing library of seasons one–six of Psych and includes rights to future seasons.[24] As of January 2023, Psych started airing on Hallmark Movies and Mysteries.

Psych scored a 4.51 rating and an average of 6.1 million total viewers at its premiere, which made it the highest-rated scripted series premiere on basic cable in 2006 in all key demographics (households, P18-49, P25-54, and total viewers), according to a USA Network press release, quoted from the Futon Critic.[4]

Notes

Psych was the winner of the Independent Investigations Group Annual Award for "Excellence in Entertainment" for advancing the cause of science and exposing superstition. Accepting for Psych was staff writer Daniel Hsia.[46][47] James Roday Rodriguez was nominated for the 2006 Satellite Award for Best Actor – TV Series Musical or Comedy.[48] Rodriguez was also nominated for the 2009 Ewwy Award for Best Actor in a Comedy. Psych was nominated for its first Emmy Award in 2010 in the category Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for the episode "Mr. Yin Presents...".[49] Adam Cohen and John Robert Wood were the composers for this episode. Psych was nominated for its second Emmy Award in 2012 in the category "Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media" for their interactive game "HashTag Killer". In 2012 and 2013, Psych was nominated for the People's Choice Award for "Best Cable TV Comedy". In 2014, Psych won the People's Choice Award for "Best Cable TV Comedy" in its last nomination.

William Rabkin has written and published five novels based on the series. The novels are written in third-person narrative style. Additionally, Chad Gervich (Small Screen, Big Picture) has published a crime-fighting guide based on methods presented in the show.

Once production on the original series wrapped, series creator Steve Franks had the idea to bring the Psych universe back in film form later on. On May 8, 2017, USA Network announced Psych: The Movie, a two-hour TV film to air December 7, 2017.[50] All the original main cast would return for the film, directed by series creator Steve Franks and co-written by Franks and series star, James Roday Rodriguez. The first sequel, Psych 2: Lassie Come Home, was released on NBCUniversal's new streaming service, Peacock, on July 15, 2020.[51] A third film, Psych 3: This Is Gus, followed on November 18, 2021.[14] Three further Psych films are in development.[9]

Launched in November 2021, Maggie Lawson and Timothy Omundson have hosted a weekly rewatch podcast of the series and films. Episodes include plot recaps and behind-the-scenes memories from the two hosts. The series also features interviews with cast members, guest stars, and crew members, including writers, directors, and series creator Steve Franks.[52]