The Curse starring Emma Stone and Nathan Fielder has been widely praised by critics as one of the best shows of the year.
Created and written by Fielder (The Rehearsal) and Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems), the comedy series follows newly married couple Asher (Fielder) and Whitney Siegel (Stone) who believe they have been afflicted by a curse while co-hosting their problematic HGTV home improvement show, Flipanthropy, in New Mexico.
The first reviews have been released ahead of the show’s debut on Paramount+ later this month, with Entertainment Weekly describing it as “the weirdest, most unforgettable show of 2023”.
In the B+ review, the outlet wrote: “Blending cringe comedy with contemplative character study and undertones of horror, The Curse is unrelentingly odd and tough to forget.”
The Standard were similarly effusive in a five-star review, and explained how the show comments on “white privilege, condescension and mutual distrust”.
“To deliver such grand themes with deadpan accuracy and hilarity is no small feat,” the review read. “Emma Stone is capitivating as she flips from breathless do-gooder to barely concealed narcissist; and Nathan Fielder is stellar as the deeply unlikable Asher.”
In a five-star review of the first three episodes by the BBC, The Curse is described as being as “edgy, unsettling and smart” as you’d expect from the creator of HBO’s The Rehearsal. “However the next seven unpredictable episodes unfold, The Curse is already one of the most richly imagined and acted shows of the year,” the review added.
Along with co-directing Uncut Gems and Good Time with his brother Josh, Safdie also recently starred in Oppenheimer where he played Edward Teller.
The Curse premieres on Showtime in the US on November 10, with the show arriving on Paramount+ in the UK from November 11.
