Slow Horses Star's New R-Rated Thriller Debuts To Solid Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score

The Slow Horses cast has delivered another well-received project outside their Apple TV series.

Based on Mick Herron’s Slough House novels, Slow Horses has released five seasons in six years, and the hit spy thriller has already been renewed for seasons 7 and 8. On Rotten Tomatoes, the series has a 97% score from critics and 87% from audiences. Centered on the Slough House unit comprised of disgraced or failed MI5 agents, the Slow Horses cast features Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb, Jack Lowden as River Cartwright, Kristin Scott Thomas as Diana Taverner, Jonathan Pryce as David Cartwright, and Olivia Cooke as Sidonie “Sid” Baker.

Now, Cooke’s new movie A Talent for Murder has debuted with a “Fresh” 79% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. The percentage is based on more than 50 ratings as of this writing and may fluctuate as more audience reviews are added to the aggregation site. The audience score is almost the exact same as the one from critics, which is a “Certified Fresh” 78% based on 60 reviews.

Directed by Anton Corbijn and written by Joanne Murray-Smith, A Talent for Murder sees literary editor Edward Ridgeway (Alden Ehrenreich) going to Switzerland in order to convince author Patricia Highsmith (Helen Mirren) to write one more book about Tom Ripley. As his attempts become more dangerous, tension escalates between the two characters. Cooke plays Clementine Balfour, who is Edward’s love interest and an American heiress.

Courtesy Bleecker Street and LD Entertainment

©Bleecker Street Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

©Bleecker Street Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

©Bleecker Street Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

Courtesy Bleecker Street and LD Entertainment

©Bleecker Street Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

©Bleecker Street Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

©Bleecker Street Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

Many of the audience reviews for the R-rated thriller praise the performances by Mirren and Ehrenreich, noting that the latter delivers distinct portrayals of Edward and Tom Ripley. The suspense and plot twists are also highlighted as strengths in numerous reviews, along with noting that this movie is well-suited to fans of the Ripley character. As for criticisms, issue is taken with the pacing, particularly with the film having a slow beginning, in addition to the story being too convoluted or ambiguous to follow at certain points.

In ScreenRant‘s A Talent for Murder review, George Bate gives the movie six out of 10 stars and writes that “it may not have a talent for intrigue and tension, but it does have a talent for contemplation and mind-bending, and, as such, makes for a worthwhile watch.” He also argues that the movie doesn’t truly excel until “a final act that addresses Highsmith’s relationships with herself and Ripley, her most famous literary creation.”

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2026 has been a year of major releases for Cooke, as, along with A Talent for Murder, she has starred in Slow Horses season 6 and House of the Dragon season 3. This is the first time she has been in Apple TV’s spy thriller since season 1. As for House of the Dragon, this is the penultimate season, in which her character, Alicent Hightower, is put to the test like never before after Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) begins sitting on the Iron Throne and takes extreme measures to hold onto her power.

Cooke’s A Talent for Murder co-star, Mirren, reprises her role of Maeve Harrigan in season 2 of the Paramount+ crime drama series MobLand, and it has received an early renewal for season 3. Ehrenreich did not have a major show or movie release this year, but he has been cast in Miami Vice ’85, which is in production and also stars Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler.

A Talent for Murder is now playing in theaters.

A Talent for Murder