Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsHoliday Watch GuideGotham AwardsSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
Episode guide
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Popular

  • TV Series
  • 1999–2001
  • TV-14
  • 1h
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
7.2K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
1,650
1,121
Leslie Bibb and Carly Pope in Popular (1999)
CT #1 Post
Play trailer1:07
1 Video
99+ Photos
ParodyTeen ComedyTeen DramaComedyDramaRomance

Two girls who despise each other because they're on opposite sides of the "popularity fence" are forced together when one's father marries the other's mother.Two girls who despise each other because they're on opposite sides of the "popularity fence" are forced together when one's father marries the other's mother.Two girls who despise each other because they're on opposite sides of the "popularity fence" are forced together when one's father marries the other's mother.

  • Creators
    • Ryan Murphy
    • Gina Matthews
  • Stars
    • Leslie Bibb
    • Carly Pope
    • Tamara Mello
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.4/10
    7.2K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    1,650
    1,121
    • Creators
      • Ryan Murphy
      • Gina Matthews
    • Stars
      • Leslie Bibb
      • Carly Pope
      • Tamara Mello
    • 94User reviews
    • 5Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 5 wins & 9 nominations total

    Episodes43

    Browse episodes
    TopTop-rated

    Videos1

    Popular: Second Season
    Trailer 1:07
    Popular: Second Season

    Photos128

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 120
    View Poster

    Top Cast99+

    Edit
    Leslie Bibb
    Leslie Bibb
    • Brooke McQueen
    • 1999–2001
    Carly Pope
    Carly Pope
    • Sam McPherson
    • 1999–2001
    Tamara Mello
    Tamara Mello
    • Lily Esposito
    • 1999–2001
    Christopher Gorham
    Christopher Gorham
    • Harrison John
    • 1999–2001
    Sara Rue
    Sara Rue
    • Carmen Ferrara
    • 1999–2001
    Bryce Johnson
    Bryce Johnson
    • Josh Ford
    • 1999–2001
    Tammy Lynn Michaels
    Tammy Lynn Michaels
    • Nicole Julian
    • 1999–2001
    Ron Lester
    Ron Lester
    • Michael 'Sugar Daddy' Bernardino
    • 1999–2001
    Leslie Grossman
    Leslie Grossman
    • Mary Cherry
    • 1999–2001
    Lisa Darr
    Lisa Darr
    • Jane McPherson
    • 1999–2001
    Scott Bryce
    Scott Bryce
    • Mike McQueen
    • 1999–2001
    Diane Delano
    Diane Delano
    • Bobbi Glass…
    • 1999–2001
    Adria Dawn
    Adria Dawn
    • April Tuna
    • 1999–2001
    Hank Harris
    Hank Harris
    • Emory Dick
    • 1999–2001
    Anel Lopez Gorham
    Anel Lopez Gorham
    • Poppita Fresh
    • 1999–2000
    Robert Gant
    Robert Gant
    • Principal Calvin Krupps
    • 2000–2001
    Anthony Montgomery
    Anthony Montgomery
    • George Austin
    • 2000–2001
    Diana Bellamy
    Diana Bellamy
    • Principal Cecilia Hall
    • 1999–2000
    • Creators
      • Ryan Murphy
      • Gina Matthews
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews94

    7.47.1K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    applehuntr

    The Most Fun You Can Have Watching T.V.

    'Popular' is one of the best shows on T.V. While "Friends" is one of my favorite shows, "Popular" is the ultimate comedy. "ER" is the top-rated drama, "Popular" can create drama you actually care about. This show has overcome many obstacles, bad ratings, some bad plot lines (Harrisons leukemia will always be the low-point in this shows running), and some rather unfriendly reviews. This show sports some of the hottest young talent today, Leslie Grossman is the best comedic actress on prime-time, nothing can top Mary Cherry, Sara Rue gives her character depth, and is the most realistic looking teen on T.V., I love Carmen, and Tammy Lynn Michaels plays Nicole (or as Mrs. Glass calls her "Satan's Child") with such priss and wit she is right up there with Megan Mullaly on "Will and Grace". The other actors are top-notch, too. Sometimes the drama dialogue sounds lifted from "Dawson's Creek", but it is usually something you can relate to and care about. Situations are exaggerated for comedic relief, and it almost always works. "Popular" is underappreciated greatness, just waiting for the attention it deserves. Watch now, I can not stress that enough.
    Machine_of_god

    Orginal the first show to make us laugh and cry within five minutes.

    Popular is best described as a dramedy, for its 43 episodes it both had its bittersweet moments ones that made you cry to it's repulsive laugh out loud black comedy moments which made us die with laughter. Popular dealt with the issue we all face in high school the divide between the popular people and the unpopular people and for once it shows us that those people arent losers as they were in other stereotypical teen dramas. The cast were first class, the leads were good choices as they did seem like representable teenage girls. Plus the fact that Sara rue (perharps one of the best actresses on the show) represented fat people like me without any difficulty because shewas so honest with the role. I've read on here that people think this season made fun at delicate issues. That is not true it did indeed show that they were done in a new light. not with the same softpading done with other shows. Honest Brutal and touching. Popular dealt with issues truthfully the way we have to in the world and in the world it shows us not everything is peachy. Plus we finally got funny moments admist the sadness which took away the depressing parts of the show. So for all the cast the top acting skills which i plan to continue enjoying i enjoyed after last moments of brooke and co and sam and co as it was good to see something other than stereotypical rubbish when popular broke the boundraries of our modern society
    8irehawk

    Needs to be rebooted...

    Yeah, this show is good, but the reason it got discontinued right after season 2 in the wrong time because of the bad relation between former WB network president Jamie Kellner and the entire WB network station.

    This show was favored by the entire WB network station, but not by Jamie Kellner. Jamie is both an ableist and an ageist and that's why he messed up this show's entire second season and that led to this show's discontinuation.

    This show may need to be rebooted and aired in a low public type of cable network station, so it can last beyond 3 or more seasons without problems.
    famousgir1

    The Popular Vs The Unpopular

    Popular is a really great teen sitcom about the popular and unpopular kids at Kennedy High. A mix and match of a cast here too with Leslie Bibb playing the most popular girl and the likes of Carly Pope and Tamara Mello playing the unpopular girls. I'm not to keen on that Ms. Glass though. The show always keeps you interested all the time. So, catch it if you can. It's really good.
    9Ross83

    A truly original teen-drama

    This is one of the few TV shows I can think of that was always consistent during its time on-air. There was a great ensemble cast who never failed to entertain week after week and could perform both comedy and drama to a high standard. The writers managed to bring out every emotion. A great example is the episode 'Ch-Ch-Changes' (#118) about a male teacher going about a sex change. The first half of the show was extremely funny, but then it seamlessly changed in tone to be about discrimination and had an ending that couldn't help but leave a tear in your eye. Despite some great dramatic storylines the show never took itself too seriously, and characters like Nicole and Mary Cherry were always around to provide some light relief. The show has been sorely missed since its cancellation.

    Ryan Murphy Series, Ranked

    Ryan Murphy Series, Ranked

    With all the hot takes on Ryan Murphy's new Hulu series "All's Fair," let's take a look at how the producer-creator's shows stack up against one another according to IMDb ratings.
    See the rankings
    Poster
    List

    More like this

    Jack & Jill
    7.2
    Jack & Jill
    The New Normal
    6.9
    The New Normal
    Felicity
    6.9
    Felicity
    Sweet Valley High
    5.8
    Sweet Valley High
    Grosse Pointe
    7.9
    Grosse Pointe
    Ally McBeal
    6.9
    Ally McBeal
    Nip/Tuck
    7.7
    Nip/Tuck
    Make It or Break It
    7.5
    Make It or Break It
    6.2
    The Furies
    Pretty/Handsome
    6.8
    Pretty/Handsome
    Savannah
    7.2
    Savannah
    Charmed
    7.2
    Charmed

    Related interests

    Bill Pullman, John Candy, Joan Rivers, Daphne Zuniga, and Lorene Yarnell Jansson in Spaceballs (1987)
    Parody
    Lacey Chabert, Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, and Amanda Seyfried in Mean Girls (2004)
    Teen Comedy
    Molly Ringwald in The Breakfast Club (1985)
    Teen Drama
    Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
    Comedy
    Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, André Holland, Herman Caheej McGloun, Edson Jean, Alex R. Hibbert, and Tanisha Cidel in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca (1942)
    Romance

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The producers didn't know the show was going to get canceled. In fact, they claim that the WB executives told them to do cliffhangers, and they did, figuring that they wouldn't be canceled, and had several storylines planned for a third season. Alas, that didn't realize.
    • Goofs
      Throughout out the series, it's clear that the actors/actresses portraying teenagers are actually in their 20s+. This is done as to not interfere with the schooling of real teenagers and to give the general viewing audience who are teenagers themselves someone they can look up to.
    • Quotes

      Samantha 'Sam' McPherson: You know what, Brooke? Cancel my subscription, I'm over your issues.

    • Alternate versions
      Due to licensing costs, some of the songs originally featured on the soundtrack of several episodes have been replaced by less expensive tracks (or no tracks at all) on the DVD release.
    • Connections
      Featured in Visible: Out on Television: Breakthroughs (2020)
    • Soundtracks
      Supermodels
      Theme Song

      by Kendall Payne

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ20

    • How many seasons does Popular have?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 29, 1999 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Лучшие
    • Filming locations
      • Los Angeles, California, USA
    • Production companies
      • Murphy/Matthews Productions
      • Shephard / Robin Productions
      • Touchstone Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h(60 min)
    • Color
      • Color

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit pageAdd episode

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.