Atypical: 'Nobody's normal' in new featurette for Netflix show

Atypical follows a teenage boy, Sam (Keir Gilchrist), with autism as he navigates high school — but the show isn’t just about him: It also shows the struggles his family goes through, including his mother’s (Jennifer Jason Leigh) extramarital flirtation and his sister’s (Brigette Lundy-Paine’s) misguided attempts to stop bullying at school.

“The theme of Atypical is, no one’s normal, but Sam’s probably the most normal one of all of them,” series creator Robia Rashid, whose previous credits include How I Met Your Mother and The Goldbergs, says in a new featurette for the Netflix comedy-drama.

That sentiment is echoed in a clip that plays during the featurette: “Sometimes I wish I was normal,” Sam says. “Dude,” a friend (Graham Rogers) responds. “Nobody’s normal.”

“There’s something beautiful about making a show that is about a character with special needs but isn’t a show about the special needs,” director Seth Gordon adds. “He’s just a kid in a family.”

Michael Rapaport also stars in the show as Sam’s dad. See him and the rest of the cast and crew go behind the scenes of Atypical above. The series premieres on Netflix Friday, Aug. 11.