Finalist in Final Draft's Big Break competition. When a beloved handyman vanishes from a luxury Florida beach town - with strong Nashville connections - the town begins to crack, exposing simmering rivalries, past regrets, buried scandals, and a tangled web of suspects, each more desperate than the next to keep their secrets hidden. Think Big Little Lies meets Nashville meets Knives Out.

SYNOPSIS:

Season 1 begins with the annual Seaside Gala, where the cast is introduced and mysteries begin to show. When local handyman Biff Hartley fails to return home, his teenage daughter Amy grows increasingly concerned. The town’s well-heeled residents begin to squirm, each hiding something that could connect them to Biff. Whispers turn to accusations, motives multiply, and the sheen of civility slowly peels away.

The truth doesn’t come quickly. In fact, Biff’s body isn’t discovered until the final moments of the pilot. From there, the season spirals through a rotating lens of characters—real estate moguls, country music royalty, small-town schemers, and guilt-ridden sinners—all of whom have something to lose.

Anchored by the wry voiceovers of Buddy, the town eccentric's Greek chorus, Seaside blends biting Southern wit, slow-burn suspense, and rich emotional storytelling. It’s a story of love and betrayal, money and legacy, guilt and denial. And what happens when the wrong man disappears, but nobody wants him found.

Character Bios & Arcs

As an ensemble cast, it is difficult to define each character as good or bad. While the character list may appear long, several are generally seen together in a pod, each with its own ambitions and secrets. These pods do often cross-pollinate, figuratively and literally, and the lines tend to blur the deeper we get into the season. These characters may have dark secrets and ambitions, but each one is likable and relatable in some way.

Protagonist

There are few truly good guys in this story. Detective Hawks is our main protagonist as he is laser-focused on finding out the truth, especially in later episodes. Amy is certainly a protagonist, especially as the season progresses and she becomes more aggressive in her search for the truth. Buddy begins as a disconnected observer, but by Episode 3 he becomes active in his unique perspective to find the truth.

Antagonist

All other characters are a mix of good and bad. Some more so than others. I might compare this cast to an Agatha Christie novel. All come with a veneer of goodness, but with dark secrets that gradually reveal during the season. Nearly everyone had a motive to kill Biff. And the willingness.