Playing Nice
BritBox | Release Date: August 26, 2025
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
63
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Critic Reviews
Positive:
4
Mixed:
3
Negative:
1

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
iEmily BakerJul 28, 2025
Season 1 Review: With no murder and no mystery, Playing Nice is a different type of thriller. One that makes you question your own stance on the nature vs nurture debate, on the differences between motherhood and fatherhood, on what you would do in such a horrific situation. Read full review
80
The TelegraphAnita Singh Jul 28, 2025
Season 1 Review: It’s more-ish, though, one of those bingeably implausible dramas that you will thoroughly enjoy if you surrender to it rather than yelling: “But that would never happen!” Read full review
80
The TimesCarol MidgleyJul 28, 2025
Season 1 Review: Grace Ofori-Attah’s nimble adaptation of JP Delaney’s novel had faith in its excellent cast’s ability to illuminate deep feeling with subtle looks, gestures and evasions. Read full review
70
DeciderJoel KellerAug 26, 2025
Season 1 Review: While the first episode of Playing Nice is a bit predictable, the performances of the leads, along with the prospects of what will happen in the rest of the series, adds tension to the psychological thriller. Read full review
58
Paste MagazineLacy BaugherAug 26, 2025
Season 1 Review: There’s nothing particularly groundbreaking or memorable about Playing Nice, nor does the drama have anything especially profound to say about parenting. You’ll likely remember your frustration with it far longer than any of its plot specifics. And yet, while you’re watching it, you’ll still find yourself desperate to know what happens next. Read full review
40
The Observer (UK)Barbara EllenJul 28, 2025
Season 1 Review: The main problem, oddly, is Norton (also an executive producer). Not only does Pete’s accent go walkabout from Penzance to Surrey; he is such a soggy dweeb, lamenting away in his Seasalt Cornwall separates, that it feels like a misguided ruse to guard against Norton being typecast for ever as Tommy from Happy Valley. McArdle, however, is convincingly menacing: all faux-bonhomie and granite-hard eyes. Read full review
40
The IndependentNick HiltonJul 28, 2025
Season 1 Review: There’s a good human thriller buried in there, about the interpersonal challenges of unriddling an unthinkable situation. But what we get, instead, is another whiplash-inducing, overripe shock fest, which privileges handbrake turns over steady handling. Read full review
20
The GuardianRachel AroestiJul 28, 2025
Season 1 Review: Playing Nice is clearly unconcerned with interrogating real human emotions or examining what it actually means to be a parent. Instead, it’s the worst of modern television: a witless mystery overly reliant on insidious ambience and really nice houses. Read full review
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