# Anatomy of a Scandal (2022)

> A privileged political wife's comfortable life collapses when hidden secrets surface and her husband is accused of a shocking crime.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/94980

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 6
- Episode runtime: 45 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama, thriller
- Created by: David E. Kelley, Melissa James Gibson
- Network: Netflix
- Cast: Sienna Miller, Rupert Friend, Michelle Dockery, Naomi Scott, Josette Simon, Joshua McGuire, Sebastian Selwood, Amelie Bea Smith
- TMDB rating: 7.0/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12748084/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: mild
- Tone: suspenseful, morally charged, intimate, glossy, tense

## What critics say

Viewers find the political courtroom drama gripping in its premise and performances, though the mixed audience reception reflects reservations about its handling of the story.

## Synopsis

Anatomy of a Scandal (2022) is a British-set English-language limited series created by David E. Kelley and Melissa James Gibson for Netflix. Sienna Miller plays Sophie Whitehouse, the privileged wife of powerful politician James Whitehouse, played by Rupert Friend, whose polished life in the corridors of Westminster begins to fray when scandalous secrets surface and James stands accused of a shocking crime. Michelle Dockery plays barrister Kate Woodcroft, a sharp legal mind whose courtroom battles and interior pressures drive the case forward, while Josette Simon and Naomi Scott round out a circle of allies and rivals. The engine of the miniseries is the gap between what the couple project to the public and what they quietly know, as each revelation forces Sophie to reconsider her loyalties and the meaning of her marriage. The six-episode run alternates domestic confrontations with tense courtroom sequences, building a steady cadence of dread and reckoning. Set in contemporary Britain, it moves through private homes, chambers, and parliamentary offices with a glossy but brittle surface. The tone is suspenseful, morally charged, and intimate, a stylish character-driven drama. Fans of Big Little Lies, Scandal, and The Night Of will find resonance in its polished elite settings, legal stakes, and marriage under scrutiny.

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