How to Watch Peacock’s ‘A Friend of the Family’ Without a Subscription
Jan Broberg’s childhood neighbor Robert Berchtold kidnapped her in the 1970s — twice. Now, that story is the source material for Peacock drama series A Friend of the Family. Find out how you can watch episodes of A Friend of the Family for free when they come out on Oct. 6, 2022.
Robert Berchtold’s kidnappings inspired the Peacock series
This isn’t the first time Jan’s story has come up in popular culture. You may have heard of her story previously in the Netflix documentary Abducted in Plain Sight. Now, Jan’s story is being told by Jake Lacy (The Office, The White Lotus), who plays Berchtold in the Peacock series.
The show also stars Hendrix Yancey (George & Tammy)/McKenna Grace (The Handmaid’s Tale) as Jan. Moreover, the plot of A Friend in the Family follows that of the Netflix documentary but with a deeper dive into Berchtold’s skill as a master manipulator.
“It’s a surreal story,” creator and executive producer Nick Antosca wrote in a press release from Peacock. He continued:
“When I first heard it, I empathized with the family’s vulnerability, and I felt like I understood their story from the outside. But it stayed with me, and I wanted to understand from the inside — to know what their lives felt like, to live in each family member’s experience, to see how they were caught in such a bizarre web, and to help audiences empathize with them too.”
Nick Antosca, Peacock
Anna Paquin (The Irishman, True Blood) and Colin Hanks (Impeachment: American Crime Story) also star in the upcoming Peacock series. They play Jan’s parents, Mary Ann and Robert Broberg.
Watch ‘A Friend of the Family’ for free on Peacock
Since the true crime drama is a Peacock original series, it’s available through the Peacock app on your smart TV or devices like Roku, Fire Stick, as well as Apple and Android devices. If you don’t have a Peacock account, you can still watch 10,000+ hours for free — no credit card required. Note that free Peacock accounts do have ads.
If you’re looking for an ad-free experience, Premium Plus for $9.99 a month. Peacock also offers Premium accounts for $1.99 a month (regularly $4.99). However, this subscription contain shows with ads.
‘A Friend of the Family’ episode release schedule
The first three episodes of A Friend of the Family premiere on Peacock on Oct. 6, 2022. Episode 1 is titled “Horseback Riding in American Falls” and episode 3 is titled “The Gift of Tongues.” The name of the second episode has not been released.
The remaining hour-long episodes will release weekly on Thursdays as follows:
- “Articles of Faith” — Oct. 13
- “The Bitter Cup” — Oct. 20
- “Son of Perdition” — Oct. 27
- “The Great Deceiver” — Nov. 3
Titles for episodes 8 and 9 have yet to be announced. Those episodes will be released on Nov. 10 and Nov. 17, respectively.
Stream A Friend of the Family on Peacock beginning on Oct. 6.
