Writer-producers Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields, who did such strong work on “The Americans,” have put together a limited series for FX that has just gone into production. Called “The Patient,” it stars Steve Carell (whose Netflix comedy “Space Force” returns for season 2 on Feb. 18, by the way).
Carell will play a psychotherapist who’s being held prisoner by a serial killer, played by Domhnall Gleeson. The twist: The killer wants the therapist, whose wife recently died, to help him curb his homicidal compulsions. On “The Sopranos,” the message seemed to be that it’s impossible to “cure” a psychopath, so it will be interesting to see how it works out. On “Dexter,” the only way to help a psychopath was to get him to commit to only dragging bad people into his kill rooms.
Advertisement
The cast also includes Linda Emond (”Lodge 49″), Laura Niemi (Jack’s mother on “This Is Us”), and Andrew Leeds (“Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist”).

Matthew Gilbert can be reached at matthew.gilbert@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewGilbert.