If you ever stumbled upon Baskets on FX, you probably spent the first ten minutes wondering if you were supposed to be laughing or crying. It’s a weird show. It's beautiful, but undeniably weird. At the center of this surrealist dramedy about a classically trained French clown working at a Bakersfield rodeo is a group of actors who shouldn't, on paper, make any sense together. Yet, the cast of the show Baskets managed to create something so deeply human that it transcended the slapstick humor of a man falling over in a giant Costco-sized tub of Gatorade.
Zach Galifianakis is the name on the marquee. He’s the engine. But honestly? The show doesn't belong to him. It belongs to Louie Anderson. That’s not a knock on Zach; it’s just the reality of what happened when cameras started rolling in the dusty heat of the San Joaquin Valley.
The Dual Role of Zach Galifianakis
Zach plays Chip Baskets. He also plays Dale Baskets.
Chip is the "artist." He went to a prestigious clowning school in Paris—Le Flop—and failed out because he couldn't speak French. He’s arrogant, prickly, and deeply sad. Then there's Dale. Dale is the twin brother who runs a career college, wears pleated khakis, and is essentially a personified panic attack.
Playing twins is a trope as old as television itself, but the way it’s handled here feels different. It isn’t about "wacky" misunderstandings. It’s about two men who share the same DNA but deal with their deep-seated feelings of inadequacy in diametrically opposed ways. Zach brings a physical comedy to Chip that feels like a silent film star trapped in a modern-day nightmare. When he’s on that scooter, or trying to maintain dignity while wearing a ruff collar in 100-degree heat, you see the commitment.
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But then there’s Dale.
Dale is arguably the more impressive feat of acting. He’s incredibly annoying. He’s the guy who corrects your grammar while you’re having a heart attack. Galifianakis manages to make you pity Dale even while you want to shove him into a locker. It’s a masterclass in playing two characters who are both losers, just different kinds of losers.
Louie Anderson as Christine Baskets: The Soul of the Show
You cannot talk about the cast of the show Baskets without talking about the late, great Louie Anderson.
When Louis C.K. and Zach Galifianakis were developing the show, they needed someone to play the mother, Christine. Zach reportedly heard Louie Anderson’s voice in his head while writing the lines. He didn't want a "man in a dress" caricature. He wanted a mother.
Louie delivered.
He won an Emmy for this role, and he deserved three more. Christine Baskets is a woman obsessed with Costco, Kirkland signatures, and her ungrateful twin sons. She’s a woman who finds joy in a refreshing Schweppes ginger ale but carries the weight of a lonely life and a complicated past with her husband. Anderson played her with such sincere, delicate grace that within five minutes of the pilot, you completely forget you're watching a legendary stand-up comedian in a wig. You just see a mom.
There's a specific scene involving a breakfast buffet and a hidden container of juice that feels so real it hurts. It’s funny, yeah, but it’s also a commentary on the small ways people try to reclaim power in a world that ignores them. Anderson’s performance is the reason the show lasted four seasons. He provided the emotional stakes. If Christine was just a joke, the show would have folded after six episodes. Instead, she became the protagonist.
Martha Kelly: The Deadpan Queen
Martha Kelly plays Martha.
Just Martha.
Before this show, Martha Kelly was a stand-up known for a very specific, ultra-low-energy delivery. She was a friend of Zach’s in real life. In the show, she’s an insurance agent who becomes Chip’s de facto chauffeur and only friend, despite him treating her like absolute garbage for most of the series.
Her performance is the ultimate foil. Where Chip is loud, theatrical, and explosive, Martha is a flat line. She’s a human beige wall, and I mean that as the highest possible compliment. Her timing is impeccable. She can say more with a three-second silence and a blink than most actors can with a monologue.
She represents the audience. She’s the one watching this madness unfold and just... accepting it. "Okay," she seems to say with every shrug. It’s a thankless role on paper that became the comedic backbone of the series. Without Martha to ground the absurdity, Chip would just be an annoying guy in makeup. With her, he’s part of a tragicomic duo.
The Supporting Players Who Rounded Out Bakersfield
The world-building in Baskets relied heavily on a rotating door of character actors and non-traditional performers who made Bakersfield feel lived-in.
- Sabina Sciubba as Penelope: Chip’s French "wife" who clearly doesn't love him and only married him to get to America. She’s cold, blunt, and hilarious in her disdain for everything Californian.
- Ernest Adams as Eddie: The owner of the Buckaroo Rodeo. He’s got that weathered, authentic cowboy vibe that you can't fake. He treats the rodeo like a sacred institution, even when it’s falling apart.
- Garry and Jason Clemmons: They played the "Carpet King" twins, adding another layer of strange twin-dynamics to the show's universe.
It’s worth noting that the show leaned into its location. Bakersfield isn't just a backdrop; it’s a character. The cast had to fit into that specific aesthetic of dusty strip malls, chain restaurants, and the faded glamour of the West.
Why the Casting Was Risky (and Why It Worked)
Look, on paper, this shouldn't have been a hit. A silent-film-inspired clown show on a basic cable network starring a man playing twins and a man playing a mother? That sounds like a fever dream.
The reason it worked is the cast of the show Baskets never played it for laughs.
They played it for truth.
Jonathan Krisel, the show’s primary director and co-creator (who also did Portlandia), pushed for a cinematic, almost melancholy tone. He let the camera linger. He let the actors sit in uncomfortable silences. If you watch the scene where Christine discovers her love for the music of Ronald Reagan's era, or when she starts dating Ken (played by the wonderful Alex Morris), it’s played as a straight-up romance.
Alex Morris, by the way, was a perfect addition later in the series. He brought a warmth and normalcy that finally gave Christine the happiness she deserved. Their chemistry was surprisingly sweet, proving that even a show about a depressed clown could find room for a genuine love story.
The Evolution of the Ensemble
By the time Season 4 rolled around, the dynamics had shifted. The show stopped being about Chip’s failed career and started being about the Baskets family finding a way to coexist.
We saw the introduction of the "Chemical Workers" and more time spent at the career college. The cast expanded to include people like Mary Wiseman (who played Trinity) and various students who highlighted how out-of-touch Dale actually was.
The beauty of the ensemble was its fluidity. Characters would disappear for episodes and then pop back up exactly when the narrative needed a jolt of reality. It felt less like a sitcom and more like a documentary of a very specific, very strange neighborhood.
Real Talk: The Limitations and Criticisms
Not everyone loved the cast's direction. Some critics felt that the treatment of Martha was too mean-spirited in the early seasons. It was hard to watch Chip treat her so poorly while she did everything for him. However, the writers eventually addressed this, giving Martha more agency and showing that her "meekness" was actually a form of incredible resilience.
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There was also the controversy surrounding Louis C.K., a co-creator. When the allegations against him became public, he was removed from the show. Many wondered if the show could survive without his creative input. Interestingly, many fans and critics felt the show actually improved in its final seasons, becoming warmer and more focused on the growth of the Baskets family, particularly Christine’s journey. The cast stepped up, and the storytelling became more empathetic.
Final Insights on the Baskets Legacy
The cast of the show Baskets left behind a legacy of "sad-funny" that paved the way for shows like The Bear or Barry. It proved that you can have a ridiculous premise but ground it in such high-level acting that the audience stops seeing the "gimmick."
If you’re looking to revisit the show or watch it for the first time, keep an eye on the background actors. The show used a lot of real people from the Bakersfield area, which adds an authenticity you won't find in a show filmed entirely on a soundstage in Burbank.
What to Do Next
- Watch the "Easter" Episode: If you want to see the cast at their absolute peak, Season 2, Episode 3 ("Bail") or the Season 3 finale are masterclasses in tone.
- Look Up Louie Anderson’s Interviews: He spoke extensively about how he based Christine on his own mother and his sisters. It adds a whole new layer of depth to his performance.
- Appreciate the Silence: Pay attention to the scenes where nobody is talking. The physical acting from Galifianakis and the facial expressions from Kelly are where the real story is told.
The show is currently streaming on platforms like Hulu or Disney+ (depending on your region). It’s four seasons of some of the best acting you’ll see on television, wrapped in a package of clown makeup and Arby's roast beef sandwiches. It’s weird, it’s messy, and it’s perfect.