United States of Tara is based on an idea conceived by ace filmmaker Steven Spielberg, and centers on the life of a mother of two, Tara, suffering from a dissociative personality disorder. Owing to this disorder, she suffers from multiple personalities, and deals with the different situations in her life. The lead role of Tara is played by Toni Collette, who has garnered numerous accolades for her role in the show. These include a primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award, among others.

At first sight, Tara seems to be living the life of an ordinary housewife, deeply in love with her husband, Max, played by John Corbett, who supports her through all the manifestations of her illness. They have two children, daughter, Kate, played by Brie Larson, who is a teenager living a messed-up life; and son, Marshall, played by Keir Gilchrist, who is a self-confessed gay. To add to the characters, there is Charmaine Craine, Tara’s self-obsessed younger sister.

Charmaine’s role is portrayed by Rosemarie DeWitt, who plays a vicious and promiscuous young woman, envious of all the attention that Tara gets. It leads her to believe that Tara is faking her illness. Amidst the entire hullabaloo is Tara, who strives to juggle her multiple personalities with a demanding life. Tara unconsciously shifts between these personalities whenever she is in any stressful situation.

Her alter egos include a brash teenager, T; a housewife from the medieval times, Alice; a troublemaking perverted alcoholic, Buck; a clichéd therapist, Shoshana; a 5-year old representation of Tara, Chicken; and finally, a destructive, animalistic creature, Gimme.

The series premiered on January 18, 2009. The first season introduced us to the different identities of Tara, acquainting us with each gradually, while giving us an insight into Tara’s struggle with her disorder. As the story unfolded, Tara was seen experimenting with various solutions to deal with her disorder, which included seeing a therapist and filming herself during the transitions.