‘Nine Perfect Strangers’ Is the Perfect Summer Show

About halfway through the first episode of Nine Perfect Strangers, Nicole Kidman’s ethereal Masha finds Frances (Melissa McCarthy) sobbing in her room. Frances has plenty of reasons to be crying. She’s been recently catfished by a man she thought was her soulmate, and her career is hanging by a thread. When Masha asks Frances why she almost didn’t make it to the wellness retreat she paid for, Frances says she doesn’t want to suffer. “You’re already suffering,” Masha calmly points out.

That’s the seductive promise both the fictional wellness retreat Tranquillum House, and Nine Perfect Strangers as a show offers. They lure you in with a smile, claiming that if you drink the right juices, ease into the right yoga poses, and stay away from your phone long enough, every misfortune will be cured. And it’s all a lie. Nine Perfect Strangers, in all its twisted, perfectly manicured glory, is an excellent adaptation of Liane Moriarty’s novel of the same name, a series that deepens this central story of healing and hurt while adding to the argument that there’s no quick few-day fix to betterment. The result is a show that’s every bit as thrilling as Big Little Lies, with a gnawing edge that we may be doing this whole wellness thing wrong.

If you’ve read Moriarty’s New York Times bestselling book, you already know how this particular story unfolds. Nine people in need of help book a stay at Tranquillum House, a wellness retreat that’s known for two things: its immaculate record and its mysterious leader, Masha. Only this time Masha has specifically selected this particular group of people. As they descend deeper and deeper into Masha’s realm, they start to get to the root of their own demons. But as Masha’s unhinged strategies become more extravagant, intensive therapy may be the last thing they have to fear.

It’s impossible to have read the book and not be charmed by the cast of this Hulu original, an ensemble that both highlights these characters’ strengths and humanizes their weaknesses. Leading the charge is Nicole Kidman in a role practically designed for her. Kidman excels at this vaguely villainous savior, a goddess-like woman who inspires fear at every turn yet practically forces people to respect and obey her through the force of her will. Next up in this all-star cast is Melissa McCarthy as the defeated romance author Frances. McCarthy’s flawless timing and quiet tenderness transforms her into the perfect rom-com heroine, exactly the type of woman Frances would write about in her own books. Then there’s Michael Shannon as the aggressively upbeat Napoleon Marconi, the working class patriarch of a family suffering through the loss of their son. Through his rambling monologues and large smiles, Shannon embodies just how toxic relentless positivity can be.

Regina Hall, Bobby Cannavale, Manny Jacinto, Melvin Gregg, Samara Weaving — every actor in this miniseries brings their A game. Nine Perfect Strangers is the rare show where it’s impossible to pick a favorite character because everyone is simply too good. The result is a show that’s as addicting and delightfully soapy as HBO’s summer hit The White Lotus. But instead of needling the rich for their wealth, Nine Perfect Strangers is more concerned with examining what sort of person would be drawn to this gorgeous trap.

The lengths Masha ultimately takes to help her patients are truly insane. That’s made very clear. There’s also a case to be made that, in spite of these negligent extremes, there is some sort of merit to Masha’s madness. After all, the woman gets results. This argument about the success of the wellness industrial complex is one that’s been explored in depth on TV through everything from Shrill to Rick and Morty. What’s been explored less is the sort of person who is drawn to these quick fixes. There is a contradictory quality to each of these characters, people who want a solution to their pain so badly that they’re willing to shell out astronomical amounts of money and jump through insane hoops, yet are too afraid to face their demons on a day to day basis. Over the course of the six episodes that were provided to critics (of eight total), Nine Perfect Strangers tenderly shows the vulnerability that goes into any sort of self-betterment journey, as ineffectual as it may end up being.

At its core that’s what this series is. It’s a show about a group of troubled people desperate for a shortcut to happiness. As flawed as that desire is, it’s a thrilling blast to watch them try.

Watch Nine Perfect Stranger on Hulu