Culprits
Culprits
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Culprits

"They did a bad thing."

5.9
Yr 2023
Status Ended
Your Verdict

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Series Brief

Overview

Family man Joe Petrus is living the American dream with his fiancé and step-kids. However, unbeknownst to them, Joe was involved in a mysterious crime three years ago and now his dangerous past is about to catch up with him. When a killer starts targeting the crew behind the crime, Joe realizes it's only a matter of time before his family is targeted. He returns to London to track down his old gang and find out who is coming after them.

Critical Reception

What critics are saying

Score 74 /100

Culprits received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised its slick style, energetic pacing, and entertaining spin on the traditional heist caper. Many reviewers enjoyed creator J Blakeson's structure, which kicks off post-heist and plays with timelines to keep the suspense high. Lead actor Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and supporting cast members like Gemma Arterton earned frequent praise for their engaging performances, helping elevate the series beyond standard genre conventions.

Positive assessments highlighted the show's dark humor, tense action sequences, and high-end production values. Critics described it as an entertaining and stylish binge, with several outlets noting that despite sticking to familiar caper tropes, the show delivers enough twists, heart, and suspenseful storytelling to keep viewers hooked.

However, the consensus was somewhat tempered by complaints about the narrative's conclusion and script quality. Critics from outlets like Radio Times and The Hollywood Reporter argued that the final episodes lost steam and failed to deliver a satisfying payoff. Others took issue with melodramatic moments and dialogue that felt underdeveloped when compared to classic crime influences.

“absolutely gripping TV, very much a spiritual TV successor to Sexy Beast”

“it is highly stylised and whips along at a pace; it looks great and the cast is fantastic”

“a morbidly fascinating series that keeps viewers hooked with its suspenseful storytelling and unreliable narrator”

“engaging TV that knows how to please”

Transmission Paths

Where to Watch

Hulu
US
Disney Plus
CA • UK
Show 1 more
ITVX
UK
Next Signal

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Why fans love it

Culprits maps the slow collapse of a quiet suburban life after a heist settles into an inescapable reality. The series tracks Joe Petrus as he trades a domestic routine for a hunt across London to identify a killer systematically eliminating his former partners. Unlike narratives that focus strictly on the mechanics of a robbery, the tension here rests entirely on the aftermath and the fraying nerves of those who thought they had successfully outrun their own criminal history.

The narrative utilizes sharp shifts between the present stakes and the murky history of the initial operation. Nathan Stewart-Jarrett anchors the story, portraying a man caught between the safety of his current family and the inevitable reach of his past acquaintances. The cast acts as a collective of survivors rather than allies, creating a paranoid atmosphere where friends and enemies are increasingly difficult to distinguish as the group faces a targeted threat.

Featured Players

Cast

Credited 64
Regulars 10
Longest run 7 eps
Show 56 more
Karl Collins as Fixer 6 episodes Laura Morgan as Soldier 7 episodes Colin Salmon as Don Bardwell 1 episode Vincent Riotta as Marcello Bari / Driver 5 episodes Maria Nash as Frankie 7 episodes Baeyen Hoffman as Bud 7 episodes Paulina Miel as School Mom 1 episode Morgan Kelly as Kyle Bedrosian 3 episodes Thomas Mitchell as Cop 1 episode Grant Masters as Harry Metcalf 2 episodes Charles Hagerty as Jeff Miller 1 episode Hermione Gulliford as Go-Between 1 episode Michael Culkin as Crime Head 1 episode Leonard Trusty as Bardwell's Driver 1 episode Amy Keating as EMT 1 episode Mike Taylor as Officer Halliday 1 episode Marisa Martí as Waitress (uncredited) 1 episode Tom Mothersdale as Anton Irving / Right Hand 7 episodes Amara Karan as Doctor 4 episodes Jonathon Ojinnaka as Kevlar 4 episodes Tom Phillips as Businessman 1 episode Momina Nadeem as Doctor's Baby 1 episode Kosha Engler as News Reader 2 episodes Rose Napoli as Molly Farber 1 episode Jason Weinberg as Private Investigator 1 episode Nick Babatsikos as Mall Security Guard 1 episode Jo Stone-Fewings as Philip Wainright 1 episode Kiran Sonia Sawar as Sami Tahar 1 episode Alex Skarbek as Paris Hotel Manager 1 episode Gary Fannin as Red Masked Goon 1 episode Shanda Bezic as Mrs. Bedrosian 1 episode Jim Armstrong as Cabbie 1 episode Chris Jones as Goon 2 (uncredited) 1 episode Kamel El Basha as Youssef Mizouni / Cracker 4 episodes Uriel Emil Pollack as Malek Mizouni 2 episodes Suzette Llewellyn as Catherine Marking 1 episode Jude Akuwudike as Carl Marking 1 episode Mark Field as Robert Yates / Fuse 4 episodes Nathan Welsh as Colin Burnham 2 episodes Blanca Star Olivera as Restaurant client / passerby (uncredited) 1 episode Hamid Krim as French Paint Store Owner 1 episode Juliet Cowan as Marian / The Intermediary 3 episodes Murray Urquhart as Intruder 2 episodes Zannah Hodson as Unlucky Woman 1 episode Suzy Eddie Izzard as Vincent Hawkes 2 episodes James Lawrence as Jake Irving 1 episode Elle Foster as Kelly Irving 1 episode Jodie McNee as Gwen Irving 1 episode Bobby O'Neill as Twelve Year Old Boy 1 episode Lee Colley as Gareth 1 episode Christian Greenway as Vincent's Heavy 1 episode Tomos Gwynfryn-Evans as William Henderson 1 episode Stephen Bradley as Station Guard 1 episode Larry Olubamiwo as Station Guard 1 episode Marc Bartlett as Gangster (uncredited) 1 episode Rick Osman as Vincent's crony (uncredited) 1 episode
Production Board

Crew

Unit Production Manager
Director of Photography
Line Producer
Creator
Director
Executive Producer
Stand In
Costume Design
Production Design
Camera Trainee
Sound Re-Recording Mixer
Assistant Costume Designer
Music
Original Music Composer
Art Direction
First Assistant Camera
Signal Match

Similarity

Where Culprits overlaps with other shows, and exactly what they have in common.

Keyword Cloud

Keywords

culprit criminal past heist criminal killer masked villain female criminal
Technical Sheet

Details

First Aired
November 08, 2023
Status
Ended
Origin
GB
TMDB Votes
63