Common Sense Media Review
By Melissa Camacho
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Far-fetched missing persons procedural highlights racism.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Found
What's the Story?
FOUND is a crime series about a public relations specialist who focuses on finding missing people who have been forgotten about. Gabi Mosely (Shanola Hampton) was a young Black girl who was kidnapped and held for years by a man she had to refer to as Sir (Mark-Paul Gosselaar). She managed to escape, and now as an adult heads up a crisis-management team in Washington, D.C. to help other missing individuals, especially those from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds whose disappearance receive little attention from law enforcement or media. With the help of Margaret Reed (Kelli Williams), law student Lacey Quinn (Gabrielle Walsh), Chan Rana (Karan Oberoi), and tech expert Zeke Wallace (Arlen Escarpeta), Gabi does everything she can to find the missing, even if it means breaking laws to do so. This frustrates Detective Mark Trent (Brett Dalton), her ally at the District 9 Police Department. They're all committed to what they do, especially since have all been affected by a missing persons crime in some way. But Gabi is living with a disturbing secret that threatens all the good that she's doing.
Is It Any Good?
The character-driven crime procedural is inspired by real-life missing person firms that offer alternatives outside of police departments to search for missing loved ones who have been forgotten. Found successfully underscores how race and ethnicity affect the way law enforcement and larger society value the lives of those who have disappeared, and the media bias (often referred to as "missing White girl syndrome") that exists as a result. It also highlights the long-term effects abduction can have on those who survived their kidnapping, as well as their loved ones. But Found also offers some over-the-top plot lines for the sake of entertainment, making the series feel very far-fetched. Nonetheless, it's a procedural that's easy to get caught up in.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about what to do if a loved one has gone missing. How soon should you report it to the police? What other things can you do to help locate this person?
How realistic is Found? Are real-life missing persons groups as successful as Gabi Mosely's team? Does this mean that such organizations aren't useful?
TV Details
- Premiere date : October 3, 2023
- Cast : Shanola Hampton , Brett Dalton , Mark-Paul Gosselaar
- Network : NBC
- Genre : Drama
- Character Strengths : Compassion , Perseverance , Teamwork
- TV rating :
- Award : NAACP Image Award - NAACP Image Award Nominee
- Last updated : January 15, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate