{ "id": "epk5ncy9yg", "slug": "imperfect-women", "title": "Imperfect Women", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv", "label": "Scripted television and comedy series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series", "label": "Drama and prestige series (individual series)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series", "label": "Crime and thriller series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series.psychological-and-domestic-thrillers", "label": "Psychological and domestic thrillers", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series.psychological-and-domestic-thrillers" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series", "label": "United States · 2021 and later: Crime and thriller series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021", "label": "United States · 2021 and later", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv", "label": "Scripted television and comedy series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series", "label": "Drama and prestige series (individual series)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series", "label": "Crime and thriller series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Imperfect Women is an Apple TV psychological thriller series (2026) adapted from Araminta Hall's 2020 novel, starring Elisabeth Moss, Kerry Washington, and Kate Mara as friends shattered by a murder; renewed for a second season in October 2026.", "snippet": "Imperfect Women is an Apple TV psychological thriller series (2026) adapted from Araminta Hall's 2020 novel, starring Elisabeth Moss, Kerry Washington, and Kate Mara as friends shattered by a murder; renewed for a second season in October 2026.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv.drama-prestige-series.crime-and-thriller-series.psychological-and-domestic-thrillers", "markdown": "# Imperfect Women\n\n**Imperfect Women** is an American psychological thriller television series that premiered on Apple TV on March 18, 2026. Adapted from Araminta Hall's 2020 novel of the same name, it examines a crime that shatters the lives of three women in a decades-long friendship, exploring guilt and retribution, love and betrayal, and the compromises that irrevocably alter their lives.[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) • [2](https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/business/kerry-washington-pilar-savone-simpson-street-imperfect-women-interview/) The eight-episode first season stars [Elisabeth Moss](https://www.edgepedia.org/elisabeth-moss), Kerry Washington, and [Kate Mara](https://www.edgepedia.org/kate-mara), and the series was renewed for a second season in October 2026.[3](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2026/10/apple-tvs-hit-thriller-imperfect-women-to-return-for-a-gripping-second-season-led-by-emmy-award-winner-kerry-washington-and-new-original-story-from-co-showrunners-annie-weisman-and-justin-hillian/)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Premiere | March 18, 2026, on Apple TV, with the first two episodes released together[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) |\n| Season 1 | Eight episodes released weekly through the finale, \"The Bridge,\" on April 29, 2026[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) |\n| Source | Adaptation of Araminta Hall's 2020 novel of the same name[2](https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/business/kerry-washington-pilar-savone-simpson-street-imperfect-women-interview/) |\n| Lead cast | Elisabeth Moss as Mary, Kerry Washington as Eleanor, Kate Mara as Nancy, Joel Kinnaman as Robert[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) |\n| Creator | Annie Weisman, writer, showrunner, and executive producer[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) |\n| Format | TV-MA drama, about 46 minutes per episode[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women) |\n| Season 2 | Renewed October 5, 2026; centers on Eleanor in an original story set on Martha's Vineyard[3](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2026/10/apple-tvs-hit-thriller-imperfect-women-to-return-for-a-gripping-second-season-led-by-emmy-award-winner-kerry-washington-and-new-original-story-from-co-showrunners-annie-weisman-and-justin-hillian/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise\n\nWhen Nancy Hennessy is murdered, her seemingly perfect life unravels, leaving her best friends, husband, daughter, and a secret lover behind as dark secrets emerge.[5](https://www.productionlist.com/production/imperfect-women) Her friends Mary (Moss) and Eleanor (Washington) are devastated and confused by the loss, and as the investigation begins, shocking truths about Nancy surface that nobody expected. Both women struggle as the mysteries surrounding her death force them to reckon with the question of whether you can ever truly know somebody.[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women)\n\nThe series shifts among the three women's perspectives, generating intrigue from multiple unreliable narrators divulging their secrets.[6](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/04/mom-thriller-imperfect-women-how-to-get-to-heaven-from-belfast/686648/) Creator Annie Weisman described the adaptation's central idea as making the friendship itself the thing under threat: \"Instead of a marriage or a family or a business or a country or a civilization,\" she said, \"the thing under threat was a friendship.\"[7](https://www.motionpictures.org/2026/04/the-thing-under-threat-was-a-friendship-creator-showrunner-annie-weisman-on-imperfect-women/)\n\n### Season 2\n\nOn October 5, 2026, Apple TV renewed the series for a second season, ending its status as a limited series.[3](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2026/10/apple-tvs-hit-thriller-imperfect-women-to-return-for-a-gripping-second-season-led-by-emmy-award-winner-kerry-washington-and-new-original-story-from-co-showrunners-annie-weisman-and-justin-hillian/) • [14](https://www.tvtattle.com/p/imperfect-women-renewed-for-kerry) Because Hall's novel has no sequel, the new season is based on an original story from Weisman and co-showrunner Justin Hillian (*The Chi*, *Snowfall*).[3](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2026/10/apple-tvs-hit-thriller-imperfect-women-to-return-for-a-gripping-second-season-led-by-emmy-award-winner-kerry-washington-and-new-original-story-from-co-showrunners-annie-weisman-and-justin-hillian/) Washington reprises her role as Eleanor and executive produces, with Moss returning as executive producer. The season is set on [Martha's Vineyard](https://www.edgepedia.org/marthas-vineyard), where Eleanor returns to her hometown roots in the affluent Black enclave and finds secrets and scandals beneath its idyllic surface that threaten everything she thought she knew about her past.[3](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2026/10/apple-tvs-hit-thriller-imperfect-women-to-return-for-a-gripping-second-season-led-by-emmy-award-winner-kerry-washington-and-new-original-story-from-co-showrunners-annie-weisman-and-justin-hillian/) A premiere date had not been announced as of the renewal.[15](https://www.productionlist.com/production/imperfect-women-season-2)\n\n## Production\n\nThe series was created for television by Annie Weisman, who serves as writer, showrunner, and executive producer.[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) • [8](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/75637/imperfect-women) Moss and Washington also star and executive produce. Moss optioned Hall's book through Love & Squalor Pictures, the company she launched in 2020 with producing partner Lindsey McManus; Moss read the novel at the end of 2019, and it was the first project she and McManus developed together.[9](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/tv-shows/elisabeth-moss-kerry-washington-kate-mara-imperfect-women-interview-2026/) Washington produces through Simpson Street Productions, the company she founded in 2016 with Pilar Savone.[2](https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/business/kerry-washington-pilar-savone-simpson-street-imperfect-women-interview/)\n\n[Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) was scheduled to begin in Los Angeles in May 2025, with 20th Century Studios, Simpson Street, and Apple Studios attached as production companies.[5](https://www.productionlist.com/production/imperfect-women) The directing team includes Lesli Linka Glatter, Nzingha Stewart, Daina Reid, and Jet Wilkinson.[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) • [4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women) The production was filmed in post-wildfire Los Angeles, a circumstance the cast connected to the show's themes of resilience and community.[9](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/tv-shows/elisabeth-moss-kerry-washington-kate-mara-imperfect-women-interview-2026/)\n\nBeyond the three leads, the ensemble includes [Joel Kinnaman](https://www.edgepedia.org/joel-kinnaman) as Robert, Corey Stoll as Howard, Leslie Odom Jr. as Eleanor's brother Donovan, Ana Ortiz as Detective Bethany Ganz, Jill Wagner as Kit Hennessey, and Jackson Kelly as Marcus, along with [Sheryl Lee Ralph](https://www.edgepedia.org/sheryl-lee-ralph), Wilson Bethel, and [Sherri Saum](https://www.edgepedia.org/sherri-saum).[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) • [4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women) • [10](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/imperfect-women-apple-tv-review-2026)\n\n## Release\n\nThe series made its global debut on Apple TV on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, with the first two episodes, followed by one new episode every Wednesday through the season finale on April 29.[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) • [11](https://www.elle.com/culture/movies-tv/a70772531/imperfect-women-apple-tv-episode-release-dates-times/) The finale, \"The Bridge,\" sees Mary and Eleanor risk everything to expose the truth and find closure as new information emerges.[1](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/) As of late 2026 the series streams on Apple TV and the Apple TV Amazon Channel, and is available in 85 countries.[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women) • [12](https://www.flickfinder.net/tv/imperfect-women-2026-108181)\n\n## Reception\n\nCritical response was mixed, with reviewers consistently crediting the lead performances. Leila Latif of *The A.V. Club* gave the series a B+, writing that the three protagonists inhabit vastly different worlds economically, emotionally, and morally, yet each receives equal narrative gravity, making the series feel less like a traditional whodunit and more like a study on the fragility of long friendships.[13](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/critics-have-mixed-opinions-imperfect-women-one-thing-they-agree-on) Sherin Nicole of RogerEbert.com rated it 2 out of 4 stars, calling the series \"fine\" overall but praising the three leads as \"acting their faces off.\"[10](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/imperfect-women-apple-tv-review-2026) Daniel Fienberg of *The Hollywood Reporter* called it \"maddeningly generic,\" while Carly Lane of Collider gave it 5 out of 10, finding the performances strong enough to hook viewers but the narrative not consistently propulsive.[13](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/critics-have-mixed-opinions-imperfect-women-one-thing-they-agree-on) Aggregated scores placed the series at 75% on [JustWatch](https://www.edgepedia.org/justwatch), 6.4 on IMDb, and 45% on Rotten Tomatoes.[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women)\n\nWriting in *The Atlantic*, Sophie Gilbert placed the series in a tradition she called the \"messy-mom thriller,\" in which violence and mystery pierce the suburban ennui of middle-aged female protagonists, and argued it showed the genre's decline: the show rose to second place on Apple TV's viewership charts but did not crack the top-10 most-watched streaming titles overall in the United States.[6](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/04/mom-thriller-imperfect-women-how-to-get-to-heaven-from-belfast/686648/)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Imperfect Women, Apple TV Press](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/imperfect-women/)\n2. [How Producing Partners Kerry Washington and Pilar Savone Tackled the Character Complexity of 'Imperfect Women', TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/industry-news/business/kerry-washington-pilar-savone-simpson-street-imperfect-women-interview/)\n3. [Apple TV's hit thriller \"Imperfect Women\" to return for a gripping second season, Apple TV Press (October 5, 2026)](https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/news/2026/10/apple-tvs-hit-thriller-imperfect-women-to-return-for-a-gripping-second-season-led-by-emmy-award-winner-kerry-washington-and-new-original-story-from-co-showrunners-annie-weisman-and-justin-hillian/)\n4. [Imperfect Women, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/imperfect-women)\n5. [Imperfect Women, Production List](https://www.productionlist.com/production/imperfect-women)\n6. [TV's Failing Cure for Middle-Aged Malaise, The Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/2026/04/mom-thriller-imperfect-women-how-to-get-to-heaven-from-belfast/686648/)\n7. [\"The Thing Under Threat Was a Friendship\": Creator Annie Weisman on Reframing the Thriller in \"Imperfect Women\", The Credits](https://www.motionpictures.org/2026/04/the-thing-under-threat-was-a-friendship-creator-showrunner-annie-weisman-on-imperfect-women/)\n8. [Imperfect Women, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/75637/imperfect-women)\n9. [The Trio Behind 'Imperfect Women' Are Messy Onscreen and Unstoppable Behind the Camera, Marie Claire](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/tv-shows/elisabeth-moss-kerry-washington-kate-mara-imperfect-women-interview-2026/)\n10. [Imperfect Women TV review, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/imperfect-women-apple-tv-review-2026)\n11. ['Imperfect Women' on Apple TV: When Do New Episodes Air?, Elle](https://www.elle.com/culture/movies-tv/a70772531/imperfect-women-apple-tv-episode-release-dates-times/)\n12. [Where to watch Imperfect Women (2026), FlickFinder](https://www.flickfinder.net/tv/imperfect-women-2026-108181)\n13. [Critics Have Mixed Opinions Of Imperfect Women, But There's One Thing They Agree On, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/critics-have-mixed-opinions-imperfect-women-one-thing-they-agree-on)\n14. [Imperfect Women renewed for Kerry Washington-starring Season 2, TV Tattle](https://www.tvtattle.com/p/imperfect-women-renewed-for-kerry)\n15. [Imperfect Women Season 2, Production List](https://www.productionlist.com/production/imperfect-women-season-2)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Drama and prestige series (individual series) › Crime and thriller series › Psychological and domestic thrillers*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Imperfect Women\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Imperfect Women](https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women](https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Imperfect Women\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/imperfect-women. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Imperfect Women is an Apple TV psychological thriller series adapted from Araminta Hall's 2020 novel, starring Elisabeth Moss, Kerry Washington, and Kate Mara as friends shattered by a murder; renewed for a second season in October 2026." }