Why Sarah From Home Economics Looks So Familiar
Created by Michael Colton and John Aboud, the ABC sitcom "Home Economics" explores the lives of three adult siblings, all of whom are in different economic classes. Tom (Topher Grace), the oldest, is a struggling author, whose finances place him and his wife Marina (Karla Souza) right in the middle class. The middle child, Sarah (Caitlin McGee), is a child therapist who is really struggling financially; she is married to Denise (Sasheer Zamata), a teacher, and the couple has two kids. Finally, the youngest sibling, Connor (Jimmy Tatro) is the wealthiest thanks to the private equity firm that he owns. The series is currently in its second season, with the season finale slated to air later this month.
Fans who have been enjoying the show will likely recognize its cast from some of their previous projects — Grace, for one, is no stranger to the sitcom genre with his background of starring in "That '70s Show," while Tatro starred in the 2017 series "American Vandal." But, while watching, it may be the third sibling, Sarah, played by Caitlin McGee, who strikes you as familiar-looking. So what else has McGee been in?
McGee's early roles include guest appearances on popular shows
McGee began her acting career in 2013 with short films and by 2017, she was guest starring on popular shows, beginning with the acclaimed Amazon series "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," which follows a 1950s housewife who begins pursuing stand-up comedy. McGee appeared in two episodes of Season 1, playing a character named Vonnie, who works at The Gaslight Cafe, which regularly features stand-up performers. Vonnie is present the first time that the titular Midge Maisel (Rachel Brosnahan) drunkenly performs stand-up and discovers her knack for it. While speaking with Brief Take, McGee briefly discussed her time on "Maisel," saying, "When I was on 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,' [creator] Amy [Sherman-Palladino] and [executive producer] Dan [Palladino] are absolute geniuses. Watching them work with Maisel was so much fun."
A year later, McGee showed up on another popular show: "Grey's Anatomy." For two episodes of Season 14, McGee played Liz Brosniak, a pregnant woman who checks herself into the hospital for back pain (which is revealed to be early contractions, as she is only at 23 weeks). While at the hospital, the doctors discover that Liz's young son, Noah (Steele Gagnon) has a brain tumor that is very difficult to operate on. However, the doctors are able to provide treatment for Noah, as well as Liz.
She starred in a Modern Love episode
Each episode of the Amazon anthology series "Modern Love" showcases a different story of love, whether it be platonic, romantic, familial, or otherwise — all of which are based on the real-life stories from the New York Times column of the same name. McGee starred alongside Dev Patel in the Season 1 episode, "When Cupid is a Prying Journalist." In the episode, Joshua (Patel), the founder of a popular dating app, tells a journalist, Julie (Catherine Keener) the story of his lost love, Emma (McGee). Joshua and Emma had fallen deeply in love and started a life together, but broke up when Emma cheated on him with an old flame. Despite the betrayal, Joshua regretted ending things with Emma and often found himself thinking of her. When Julie writes about Joshua and Emma's story in a published article, Emma and Joshua find their way back to one another.
In her interview with Brief Take, McGee spoke about working on the episode. She said, "I was so grateful to be working with Dev, who has such an ease to him and he is effortlessly charming. He was someone that I instantly trusted and I was really able to convey that feeling. We were both able to show that meet-cute but not have it be cheesy, because it's very real."
McGee landed a TV lead with Bluff City Law
In 2019, McGee transitioned from guest roles to a starring role with the NBC legal drama, "Bluff City Law," which she co-led with Jimmy Smits. The series is set in Memphis, Tennessee and follows Elijiah Straight (Smits) and his daughter Sydney (McGee), both of whom work at a law firm that specializes in handling civil rights cases, many of which are considered controversial. At the beginning of the series, Sydney has spent the last three years away from practicing law, but decides to return to her father's firm following the death of her mother.
Speaking with Hollywood Life in 2019, McGee described where Sydney's headspace is when viewers meet her at the beginning of the series. She said, "She cares so deeply about her clients and about the people that she fights for to the extent where it really takes over her life. ... I think there's a long way for her to go to sort redeem herself in the eyes of her fellow co-workers at the firm as well as herself."
McGee had a recurring arc on Mythic Quest
Beginning in 2020 (and through 2021), McGee had a recurring role on the Apple TV+ comedy series "Mythic Quest," appearing in eight episodes. Created by Charlie Day, Megan Ganz, and Rob McElhenney, the series follows the employees of a video game studio who produce "Mythic Quest," a popular MMORPG (or massively multiplayer online role-playing game) on the cusp of releasing an expansion pack. The game's creator, Ian Grimm (Rob McElhenney), often butts heads with the other employees.
McGee plays a character named Sue Gordon, who is the Community Manager, meaning she is in charge of monitoring player feedback — this often results in her receiving intensely harsh messages. Under the justification of her job being stressful, her office is located in the basement, isolated from the rest of the staff. Despite the stress and the isolation, Sue is known amongst her colleagues as being unusually upbeat and friendly.
The last Sue was seen was in the Season 2 episode "Please Sign Here" — we'll just have to wait and see if Sue continues to pop up throughout the (already renewed) third and fourth seasons (via Deadline).