Series synopsis
Planet America is an Australian news comedy television series. It stars John Barron and Chas Licciardello.
The Chaser's Chas Licciardello and the ABC's John Barron set out to discover the real America - its politics and its people - with US and Australian experts coming along for the ride.
Premise
The Chaser's Chas Licciardello and the ABC's John Barron set out to discover the real America - its politics and its people - with US and Australian experts coming along for the ride.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
Episodes
This series spans 20 seasons with 137 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 6 | 42 | February 1, 2019 | December 13, 2019 |
| Season 7 | 1 | January 22, 2020 | January 22, 2020 |
| Season 8 | 1 | January 22, 2021 | January 22, 2021 |
| Season 9 | 12 | July 22, 2022 | November 21, 2022 |
| Season 12 | 27 | August 4, 2023 | December 15, 2023 |
| Season 13 | 14 | January 12, 2024 | March 6, 2024 |
| Season 14 | 17 | January 17, 2025 | March 14, 2025 |
| Season 15 | 23 | February 2, 2026 | August 17, 2026 |
| Season 2012 | 0 | February 10, 2012 | December 7, 2012 |
| Season 2013 | 0 | January 22, 2013 | May 24, 2013 |
| Season 2016 | 0 | January 29, 2016 | November 11, 2016 |
| Season 2017 | 0 | January 20, 2017 | December 22, 2017 |
| Season 2018 | 0 | February 2, 2018 | December 14, 2018 |
| Season 2019 | 0 | February 1, 2019 | December 13, 2019 |
| Season 2020 | 0 | January 22, 2020 | November 18, 2020 |
| Season 2021 | 0 | January 22, 2021 | December 3, 2021 |
| Season 2022 | 0 | September 26, 2022 | November 21, 2022 |
| Season 2023 | 0 | August 4, 2023 | December 15, 2023 |
| Season 2024 | 0 | January 12, 2024 | November 29, 2024 |
| Season 2025 | 0 | January 17, 2025 | November 28, 2025 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Chas and John talk to Anthony Scaramucci (aka The Mooch) who has some advice for the President; a look at the first black woman to run a major presidential campaign plus what does Roger Stones indictment mean for Trump? |
February 1, 2019 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Congress contemplates a divided State of the Union, while race scandals and a sex scandal rock the extraordinary state of politics in Virginia. Plus a look back at how Jesse Jackson paved the way for Clinton and Obama. |
February 8, 2019 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 A National Emergency and the President's latest bid to build that wall. The Democrats' Green New Deal: socialist utopia or a whole lot of nothing? Plus the challenge of fact-checking Trump's tweets. |
February 15, 2019 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Chas and John return to look at the start of Trump's Impeachment Trial with special guest former Republican Senator Jeff Flake. How reliable are the latest polls? Plus the weird way America picks its Presidential candidates. |
January 22, 2020 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Biden's Inauguration and the First 100 Days (22/1/2021) Chas and John break down Joe Biden's Inauguration with former presidential speechwriter Jim Fallows and trail-blazing Senator Carol Moseley Braun. Plus the history of the 'First 100 Days' and the COVID challenge for America. |
January 22, 2021 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Friday 22/07/2022 In a Planet America Special, John Barron and Chas Licciardello examine what's been revealed at hearings into the events of the Capitol riot attacks on January 6 2021. The latest hearing details how President Trump responded. |
July 22, 2022 |
| 2 |
Monday 26/9/2022 John Barron and Chas Licciardello return for a new season of Planet America. Can Democrats avoid a midterm wipe-out? Will mounting legal woes spell the end for Donald Trump? Plus the migrants caught up in a political stunt. |
September 26, 2022 |
| 3 |
Monday 3/10/2022 Hurricane Ian continues its trail of destruction, but can Biden and DeSantis put politics aside during the storm? Plus the bipartisan move to prevent another January 6 attack, and Biden's senior moment as he summons the dead. |
October 3, 2022 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Fireside Chat (4/8/2023) Is Trump heading for the White House or the Big House? Will mounting legal woes dent his status as Republican frontrunner? Plus the struggles and scandals of Hunter Biden and a check-in on the 2024 presidential campaign. |
August 4, 2023 |
| 2 |
Fireside Chat (11/8/2023) America's economy is taking off, but Joe Biden isn't getting the credit. Who else is running for President in 2024? Plus Ohio's win for abortion rights, Trump's lead in the polls and the "fat spat" with Chris Christie. |
August 11, 2023 |
| 3 |
Fireside Chat (18/8/2023) Is the Georgia indictment the most perilous threat to Trump? Plus the special counsel probe into Hunter Biden, the anniversary of America's chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and all the fun of the fair in the Hawkeye state. |
August 18, 2023 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Friday 12/1/2024 Trump goes to the Supreme Court to try and stay on the ballot. Also, how do the Iowa caucuses work and why do they matter? Plus insights from Iowa stalwarts Steve Deace and Kay Henderson with UVA legal expert Sai Prakesh. |
January 12, 2024 |
| 2 |
Friday 19/1/2024 Can Donald Trump be stopped? New Hampshire may seal the deal after a landslide in Iowa. Plus could Joe Biden's strikes on Houthis be illegal? And why evangelicals worship Trump. Chas and John unpack another big week. |
January 19, 2024 |
| 3 |
Friday 26/1/2024 And then there were two. As Donald Trump claims a second state, Nikki Haley ponders the road ahead. Why Joe Biden's best chance could be Donald Trump, plus is the US push for a two-state solution doomed to fail? |
January 26, 2024 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | January 17, 2025 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | January 22, 2025 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | January 24, 2025 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Alex Pretti and Renee Good. Can the federal agents who killed Minnesota protestors Alex Pretti and Renee Good be charged with murder? Plus Trump's approval rating sinks as he rewrites the rules in Venezuela and threatens an attack on Greenland and Iran. |
February 2, 2026 |
| 2 |
Epstein files, plus the US-Russia nuclear treaty. Chas and John guide you through the events in Trump's America including the fallout from the release of the Epstein files, plus the US-Russia nuclear treaty expires bringing fears it could trigger a nuclear arms race. |
February 9, 2026 |
| 3 |
Pam Bondi Attorney General Pam Bondi's fiery Epstein files hearing descends into chaos prompting more claims of a cover-up. Border czar Tom Homan announces an end to Minnesota's ICE surge and Trump's approval slumps to an all-time low. |
February 16, 2026 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | February 10, 2012 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | February 17, 2012 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 24, 2012 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | January 22, 2013 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | February 1, 2013 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 8, 2013 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | January 29, 2016 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | February 5, 2016 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 12, 2016 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | January 20, 2017 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | January 27, 2017 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 3, 2017 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | February 2, 2018 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | February 9, 2018 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 16, 2018 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | February 1, 2019 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | February 8, 2019 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 15, 2019 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Episode 1 | January 22, 2020 |
| 2 | Episode 2 | January 29, 2020 |
| 3 | Episode 3 | February 5, 2020 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Biden's Inauguration and the First 100 Days John Barron and Chas Licciardello bring you a complete round-up of events in the US, from Inauguration Day as President Joe Biden takes office, to Donald Trump's second impeachment, civil unrest and the COVID situation. |
January 22, 2021 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 President Biden signs executive actions on climate and orders 200 million more COVID vaccine doses. Trump Impeachment Trial is to begin February 9th but many Republican Senators call impeaching a former President unconstitutional and hopes for a Trump conviction fade. Chas and John discuss the increasing threat of homegrown terrorism, the fight to abolish the filibuster plus the trauma of the death penalty. |
January 29, 2021 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Chas and John unpack the week, speaking with Obama's Former Education Secretary on teachers refusing to return to classrooms due to COVID, Reagan's poor handling of the AIDS epidemic during the 1980s, plus the Sedition Act. Chas and John also discuss the QAnon Congresswoman; Marjorie Taylor Greene, along with the future of Space Force. |
February 5, 2021 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 John Barron and Chas Licciardello return for a new season of Planet America. Can Democrats avoid a midterm wipe-out? Will mounting legal woes spell the end for Donald Trump? Plus the migrants caught up in a political stunt. |
September 26, 2022 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Hurricane Ian continues its trail of destruction, but can Biden and DeSantis put politics aside during the storm? Plus the bipartisan move to prevent another January 6 attack, and Biden's senior moment as he summons the dead. |
October 3, 2022 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Only 30 days to go until the Midterms. Chas and John cover the scandal that could cost Republicans the Senate, Biden's pot pardons and is America's violent crime wave for real? |
October 10, 2022 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Is Trump heading for the White House or the Big House? Will mounting legal woes dent his status as Republican frontrunner? Plus the struggles and scandals of Hunter Biden and a check-in on the 2024 presidential campaign. |
August 4, 2023 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 America's economy is taking off, but Joe Biden isn't getting the credit. Who else is running for President in 2024? Plus Ohio's win for abortion rights, Trump's lead in the polls and the "fat spat" with Chris Christie. |
August 11, 2023 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 Is the Georgia indictment the most perilous threat to Trump? Plus the special counsel probe into Hunter Biden, the anniversary of America's chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and all the fun of the fair in the Hawkeye state. |
August 18, 2023 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Donald Trump visits the Supreme Court to remain on the ballot | January 12, 2024 |
| 2 | Can Trump be stopped? | January 19, 2024 |
| 3 | Donald Trump and Nikki Haley last two standing in Republican primaries | January 26, 2024 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Planet America is back for a new year and a new political era in 2025! | January 17, 2025 |
| 2 | Donald Trump returns to the White House as US President | January 22, 2025 |
| 3 | Donald Trump's big first week back in office | January 24, 2025 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | ABC TV |
|---|---|
| Last aired | March 23, 2026 |
| Runtime | 43 minutes |
| Status | continue |
| Schedule | Monday at 21:35:00 |