A FAMILY TREE BEARS TWO GOOD APPLES AND MORE GREAT TV

The Better Sister marks the first major work of Olivia and Elizabeth Milch, daughters of Deadwood legend David

- By ALAN SEPINWALL

Officially, Prime Video’s new series The Better Sister is an adaptation of the 2019 novel by Alafair Burke, about a pair of estranged siblings, here played by Jessica Biel and Elizabeth Banks, reuniting when one’s husband is murdered. But it’s also a way for the show’s creator, Olivia Milch, to work through the family dynamics with her own sister, Elizabeth Milch (a Better Sister producer), and their dad, David Milch, the brilliant but troubled mind behind the all-time classic TV dramas Deadwood and NYPD Blue.

In the story, the father of Biel’s Chloe and Banks’ Nicky was a drunk who sobered up before younger daughter Chloe was old enough to be aware of the worst of his behavior. Chloe has grown up to be a celebrated journalist and activist, raising her sister’s son, while Nicky is a recovering addict. Similarly, David Milch suffered multiple addictions, including heroin and gambling, but got sober by the time Olivia was 10, while Elizabeth was I5. The girls’ personalities — along with their brother Ben, who like Elizabeth witnessed his father’s addiction — formed accordingly.