Ripley is a beautifully controlled, deliberately paced adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley, anchored by Andrew Scott’s watchful performance. Its black-and-white images turn Italy into a world of shadow, architecture and carefully framed secrets. The eight-episode series gives Tom’s schemes room to unfold, creating unnerving suspense—but viewers looking for a brisk thriller may find that patience tested.
What is Netflix’s Ripley about?
Steven Zaillian’s 2024 limited series follows Tom Ripley, a grifter who takes a job in Italy and becomes entangled in wealth and privilege. As he pursues the life he wants, he constructs a web of lies. The story is based on Patricia Highsmith’s 1955 novel The Talented Mr. Ripley; the available production sources identify the series with that first novel, not with all five books in Highsmith’s Ripley sequence. Netflix’s production announcement and the Television Academy’s feature provide background on the adaptation and its source.
This is an eight-episode limited series. Zaillian wrote and directed every episode, with Scott as Tom, Dakota Fanning as Marge Sherwood and Johnny Flynn as Dickie Greenleaf. Netflix classifies it as a TV-MA thriller. Netflix Media Center lists the production and episode details.
How does Andrew Scott’s performance shape the thriller?
Scott plays Tom with close attention to the gap between what he presents and what he is calculating. The performance’s tension comes less from open menace than from watching him assess a room, a person or a problem—and then decide what to do next.
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That perspective is part of the show’s design. Scott has said the series aims to bring the audience into Ripley’s point of view rather than keep it solely with those who become his victims. Zaillian told the Associated Press that following Tom as he works out each next step makes viewers part of that process. This can produce unease and complicity without requiring viewers to approve of or sympathize with him. Scott put the viewing challenge this way: “You have to teach the audience how to watch it to a certain degree.” The Associated Press interview and review discusses the actors’ and creator’s approach.
Why is Ripley in black and white?
The monochrome image was planned from the start, not a workaround. Zaillian described the story as suspenseful and foreboding rather than a sunny, colorful postcard: “I never saw it as some sunny, colorful postcard of a story but rather as the foreboding suspense story that it is.” Cinematographer Robert Elswit’s compositions make that idea tangible: windows, mirrors, doorways and other enclosed frames repeatedly place Tom within boundaries, as if the image itself is watching or containing him. Netflix Tudum’s making-of feature covers the visual approach and production.
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The result is gorgeous in a specific, constructed sense. Light and shadow give interiors a sculptural quality, while the compositions make streets, rooms and stairways feel like parts of a design rather than postcard scenery. Netflix’s account also quotes Scott describing a story of “art and beauty and sensuality… helped by the great beauty of Italy.” The locations included Venice, Rome, Naples, Palermo and Atrani; production took place in 2021 during the Covid pandemic.
Is the slow pace worth it?
The series often spends time on the mechanics of a scheme: noticing a risk, finding a way around it, and waiting to see whether the plan holds. That measured rhythm can sharpen suspense, because a small mistake has room to register. It also makes the series languorous by design. The Associated Press reports Scott’s view that viewers need time to remain with the tension when things go wrong; TIME’s review, by contrast, calls the drama languorous and argues that it does not fully earn its comparison to Caravaggio, while praising its craft, casting and sound design. Those are distinct critical responses, not a universal verdict. TIME’s review lays out its reservations.
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If the pleasure of a thriller lies in fast turns and frequent revelations, Ripley may feel too patient. If close observation, visual composition and the step-by-step evolution of a deception are part of the appeal, its pace is more likely to feel purposeful than inert.
How does this version compare with earlier adaptations?
Two prominent screen versions offer useful reference points: René Clément’s 1960 French film Purple Noon, starring Alain Delon, and Anthony Minghella’s 1999 film The Talented Mr. Ripley, starring Matt Damon, Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow. The Television Academy notes the 1999 film’s particular familiarity to U.S. audiences; TIME discusses both earlier films alongside the series.
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| Comparison | Ripley (2024) | Earlier versions |
|---|---|---|
| Format | Eight episodes give Tom’s plans and their consequences extended space. | Purple Noon and The Talented Mr. Ripley are feature films, compressing the story into a shorter form. |
| Point of view | The series deliberately stays close to Tom’s process, as Scott and Zaillian have explained. | Screen choices differ; the sources cited here do not establish a single shared point of view for both films. |
| Visual approach | Planned black-and-white cinematography emphasizes shadow, framing and architecture. | TIME discusses the earlier films, but the sources cited here do not supply a like-for-like production account of their visual choices. |
| Pacing | The extended runtime supports a patient, procedural build; reviewers have differed on whether the pace pays off. | As feature films, the earlier adaptations tell the story in less screen time; the sources cited here do not provide a comparable measured pacing analysis. |
There is no need to name one version definitive without specifying what matters most. This series’ clearest distinction is the room its format gives to process, combined with a deliberately austere visual style.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where can you watch Ripley?
Ripley is listed on Netflix. Its official title page also lists download availability, audio and subtitle choices, but the options can vary by country and change. Check the listing for your region for current access and language details: Netflix’s Ripley page.
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Did Ripley win awards?
Netflix Tudum reported four Emmy wins for the series in September 2024, including directing, sound editing, special visual effects and cinematography. The recognition for cinematography is especially apt for a series whose framing and control of light are central to its identity. Netflix Tudum’s awards report lists the wins.
Should you watch Ripley?
Watch it for Scott’s tightly observed lead performance, Zaillian’s coherent authorial control and cinematography that makes black-and-white a storytelling choice rather than a novelty. Expect a slow-burn crime drama that watches a deception take shape, not a rapid-fire thriller. Its central trade-off is clear: the same patience that deepens the suspense can also make the series feel drawn out.
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