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Nine Perfect Strangers returns with a deadly boring season 2

A brand-new setting (and wig for Nicole Kidman) can't save this Hulu drama.

By Saloni Gajjar  |  May 19, 2025 | 12:00pm
Photo: Reiner Bajo/Disney
TV Reviews Nine Perfect Strangers
Nine Perfect Strangers returns with a deadly boring season 2
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Hulu’s Nine Perfect Strangers is a mess. After a forgettable first season, which was based on Liane Moriarty’s novel of the same name, the psychological thriller returns for round two without any source material from which to borrow. Creator David E. Kelley and star Nicole Kidman have apparently learned nothing from the second outing of their previous Moriarty adaptation, Big Little Lies. And that HBO show’s mediocre sophomore run feels stellar compared to this. 

These eight new episodes demand the patience of a saint. They lack focus, a tight pace, intriguing characters, and, most of all, the self-aware campiness that made NPS somewhat amusing when it debuted four years ago. The series is bogged down by its predictable suspense (the so-called twists can be seen from a mile away) and hollow commentary on societal power imbalances. As it turns out, Nine Perfect Strangers is unequipped to provide meaningful analysis to such a resonant topic. This is a delirious drama about a “wellness expert” who drugs and experiments on her clients to alleviate their trauma and overcome her own grief. Juggling this premise with an overarching tale of corruption and corporate greed, as well as emotional family struggles, results in a jarring misfire. 

Season two rushes through the explanation for how Masha Dmitrichenko (Kidman), who has gained popularity for her work with psychedelics (and got off scot-free for tricking folks at the Tranquillium House in season one), now manages an expensive facility in the Alps called Zauberwald. Masha works alongside her former counselor, Helena (an underused Lena Olin) and Helena’s eager scientist son, Martin (Lucas Englander), to spearhead a new program that, of course, centers exclusively on using dangerous hallucinogens. 

This trio’s complicated dynamic pales in comparison to the relationship Masha had with her employees in season one in terms of her cult-leader-esque hold over them. At least in 2021 Nine Perfect Strangers delved into why people were blindly drawn to Masha’s mysterious, soothing personality and how she wielded her manipulative skills to her benefit. (She was using drugs as a way to “see” her deceased daughter, administering them to patrons to figure out the right dosage.) But Kelley and the writers waste an opportunity to dig deeper into their fascinating anti-hero in season two. They aren’t able to fully realize the depths of Masha’s pathos, which means Kidman is simply going through the motions. (Even her heavy, distracting Russian accent dissipates, with Masha giving a silly Putin-related reason for the change.)  

Masha’s familiar backstory becomes the basis of season two’s trite plot. She invites a man from her past, elusive billionaire David Shaw (Mark Strong, who pretty much holds the same expression in each of his scenes), to Zauberwald’s cutting-edge retreat for sneaky reasons. The remaining eight “strangers” are also tied to each other (and to David) in ways big and small, even though they don’t all know it. These guests include Peter (Henry Golding) and Imogen (Annie Murphy), who instantly bond over the damage they’ve suffered at the hands of their respective neglectful parents. Both actors try hard to nail down the show’s bizarre comedic beats and heightened drama, with Golding succeeding more than anyone else in the ensemble. 

  

Murray Bartlett also gets to display some range in his role as Brian, a depressed children’s TV host/puppeteer desperate to regain his groove. The White Lotus star convincingly depicts his character’s flaws, paranoia, and a desire to change his ways when Brian is put through the wringer. It’s too bad that the other new additions to this anthology series don’t have much to offer, with NPS disappointingly wasting the talents of Dolly de Leon and Christine Baranski. At least the latter gets to constantly dole out one-liners (“She’s going to bleach our brains, darling”) and poke fun at everything from the Golden Globes to the Vatican. 

Unfortunately, brief moments of levity still add up to a whole lot of nothing. Everyone’s interconnected arcs are drawn out instead of being developed thoughtfully. Plus, the setting itself feels dreary without a cause. Zauberwald’s isolated, icy scenery is meant to mirror the harsh, lonely interior lives of those who arrive hoping Masha’s guiding hand will heal them. But these surroundings are barely relevant to the plot. The show’s other big underlying idea of overcoming an identity crisis collapses onto itself because the characters are so thinly sketched that their actions, turmoil, and final fates don’t evoke strong feelings.

Compared to The White Lotus (wherein a getaway pushes people to introspect, often in shocking or moving ways) or The Four Seasons (about nuanced, evolving group dynamics examined through their multiple vacations), NPS‘ similar conceit of how travel can help with self-analysis feels squandered. The show fails to realize its entertaining potential, relying on lazy twists and annoying conveniences to make weak points about letting go of the past and standing up against rich overlords. While there is far too much going on, Nine Perfect Strangers is nevertheless Kidman’s dullest TV project to date.  

Nine Perfect Strangers season two premieres May 21 on Hulu  

 
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