Sophie (Brittany Snow), a wife and mother who moves from Massachusetts to the fictional East Texas town of Maple Brook with her husband, Graham (Evan Jonigkeit), is drawn into the glamorous, dangerous world of a socialite named Margo (Malin Akerman) and her elite clique, the "Hunting Wives." As Sophie gets closer to Margo, she becomes entangled in a web of obsession, secrets, and ultimately murder, when a teenage girl, Abby (Madison Wolfe), is found dead in the woods where the Hunting Wives meet.
Cast and characters
Main
Brittany Snow as Sophie O'Neil, a woman from Cambridge, Massachusetts, who recently moved with her husband to Maple Brook, Texas, after she killed a pedestrian in Cambridge while driving under the influence and becomes captivated with Margo, the wife of her husband's boss
Malin Akerman as Margo Banks, the leader of an elite socialite group of wives known as the Hunting Wives who takes an interest in Sophie
Evan Jonigkeit as Graham O'Neil, Sophie's husband, who is an architect
Katie Lowes as Jill, Brad's mother, who is the wife of Reverend Clint and a member of the Hunting Wives
George Ferrier as Brad, Jill's teenage son
Dermot Mulroney as Jed Banks, Margo's older, wealthy husband and Graham's boss, who is an oil tycoon and Texas gubernatorial candidate
Jaime Ray Newman as Callie, the number two of the Hunting Wives and the town sheriff's wife
Chrissy Metz as Starr, a working-class single mother who is not part of the elite socialite group. Her daughter, Abby, is dating Brad
Sophie and Graham move to Maple Brook, Texas, and attend an NRA fundraiser hosted by Jed, Graham's boss. Sophie has an unusual first encounter with Margo, Jed's wife, and takes an unexpected liking to her. At the party Reverend Clint's son, Brad, and his girlfriend, Abby, start to have sex before Abby stops them, and Margo sees them and she locks eyes with Brad before closing the door. Margo and Jed discuss that they both have taken interest in Sophie. Margo and her girl friends invite Sophie to join them for a Friday hangout, which starts with drinking and skeet shooting and turns into a night out dancing. Margo behaves suggestively with Sophie, which makes Sophie curious, but disturbs Margo's close friend Callie. Brad's mother Jill expresses disapproval with his relationship with Abby. While out on the town, a one-eyed man confronts Margo and calls her Mandy. At the end of the night, Margo tells her about her brother Kyle. She asks why Sophie doesn't drink or drive and Sophie reveals Graham mandated that she not drink or drive herself anymore after a DUI incident. Margo helps Sophie loosen up with some drinking and driving before taking her home.
2
"Knockin' Boots"
Julie Anne Robinson
Rebecca Cutter
July21,2025(2025-07-21)
As Jed decides to run for governor, Margo works overtime to keep their secrets hidden, including paying off Kyle and ending her secret relationship with Callie. At a couple's dinner with Sophie, Margo, Graham and Jed, Jed makes a pass at Sophie and Margo tells Sophie about their marital arrangement that they can both sleep with other women. Jed and Margo allow themselves to continue their arrangement with discretion. Sophie begins to realize her feelings for Margo. A jealous and suspicious Callie uncovers Sophie's past life in Boston through her husband Jonny the Sheriff. Abby navigates her rocky relationship with Brad and is suspicious of his connection with Margo. Meanwhile, Sophie tries to take a day for herself, but is confronted by the one-eyed man about Margo. Margo tries to end her affair with Brad, but when he threatens to expose it, they agree to continue it and keep it a secret. When Sophie comes to warn Margo about the one-eyed man, she sees Margo and Brad having sex, with Margo catching her looking.
After avoiding Margo for seeing her with Brad, Sophie ultimately makes up with her. Margo takes Sophie shopping for a hunting rifle for boar hunting, where Sophie also buys a handgun which she keeps from Graham. During a game of “Never Have I Ever”, Callie coerces Sophie to admit to the group that she struck and killed a pedestrian back in Boston. Sending everyone else away, Margo consoles Sophie by revealing her poor upbringing. Upset with Brad, Abby meets with youth pastor Pete, who reveals Brad confessed something to him, leading Abby to seek out Brad. Jill calls Abby asking about Brad and Abby threatens to expose Brad’s secret activities, leading Jill to go and find them. Margo invites Brad and his friend Jamie over and Margo and Sophie share their first kiss over "Spin the Bottle". Sophie declines Jamie's advances and everyone continues drinking, leading Sophie to black out. In the morning, Deputy Salazar, returning to duty after being injured pursuing missing teenager Kaycee Krummel, discovers Abby's body in the woods, having been shot to death. When Sophie wakes up and returns home, she is shocked when she can't find her handgun.
4
"Cheat Day"
Melanie Mayron
Emily Bensinger & Benjamin Flores
July21,2025(2025-07-21)
After Abby's body is discovered, Jill begins to scramble as Brad may be the prime suspect and makes sure he aligns his alibi with hers. As Sophie panics searching for her handgun at the lake house, Margo calms her down and the two have sex. Afterward, Sophie reveals to Margo that she had an emergency hysterectomy after a failed second pregnancy, which led to her depression, alcoholism and subsequent accident. The two of them align their own story for the night before, agreeing that they were both together the whole night. Clint puts Pete on leave from the church due to his closeness with Abby. Salazar promises Abby's mother Starr she will catch Abby's killer. During Abby's vigil, the police arrive to detain Sophie as they had recovered her handgun from a robber in another town and confirmed it to be the same weapon that killed Abby.
Now the prime suspect behind Abby's murder, Sophie tries to piece together the events of that night, but Graham believes she is losing control of herself. While Jed tries to do damage control, Margo sets in motion another plan. She tells the cops that she had actually left the lake house that night to deal with a family emergency. After an altercation with Starr, Jill decides to take desperate measures to ensure Brad's innocence. When the police relay Margo's story to Sophie, Graham tells her to leave and she checks into a motel. While all evidence points to Sophie, Salazar remains skeptical of a motive. Jed's ex-wife Sienna calls Sophie to tell her to seek out Kyle.
6
"Deep in the Heart of Texas"
Cheryl Dunye
Brandon Zuck
July21,2025(2025-07-21)
Sophie drives to Alba, Texas to see Kyle, who tells her that he had a drug overdose the night of Abby's murder. Sophie also learns about Margo's previous life as Mandy. Sophie meets with the doctor that treated Kyle who confirms Margo was with them that night. Margo believes she is being blackmailed when given photos of her with Brad. When she confronts Sophie, the two agree to work together to find the killer. Salazar suspects Pete and Jill based on Abby’s last calls. Margo has all of her friends sign NDAs to protect herself during Jed’s campaign, but Jill refuses, fueling everyone’s suspicions. Margo meets with Brad, who is already suspicious of his mother after learning about her call to Abby. Meanwhile, after speaking with Starr, Sophie talks to Pete, who reveals that Brad confessed to him that he got his girlfriend pregnant and she had an abortion, which Sophie believes was Abby. Sophie and Margo deduce Jill may have killed Abby to protect Brad's image. Pete takes Abby's friend Nina on a carnival date, where she is then drugged and kidnapped by Pete.
Brad discovers Jill had changed her passwords and deleted her GPS records and he tells Margo. Sophie tells Starr about the abortion, making Starr upset, but suspicious. Salazar learns that Pete was expelled from his previous church. She visits Pete and recognizes a smell from when she was shot. Realizing he is Kaycee Krummel's abductor, she and Deputy Flynn chase him and corner him on the highway where he kills himself. Kaycee and Nina are rescued and Salazar assumes Pete to be Abby's killer until Sheriff Jonny reveals evidence showing otherwise. Sophie is brought in to be shown footage from a hidden camera in the woods showing Sophie confronting Abby moments before she was killed and Sophie is charged with Abby's murder. When Margo remains suspicious of Jill, she and Callie confront Jill, who has shot and killed Starr as Starr believed Jill killed Abby and tried to kill Jill over it. When Jill threatens to kill Margo, Callie shoots and kills Jill.
8
"Sophie's Choice"
Jennifer Getzinger
Rebecca Cutter
July21,2025(2025-07-21)
Jill is named Abby's killer and the case closed. Margo discovers Callie was the blackmailer. After being exonerated, Sophie tells Graham she needs time to figure out herself and their marriage before she resumes her relationship with Margo. When Sophie finds something that makes her suspicious, she meets with Brad and an associate of the one-eyed man and Sophie realizes Margo is the "girlfriend" Brad got pregnant, not Abby, had the abortion, killed Abby when she found out, and framed Jill. The doctor from Alba that provided the abortion is Margo's father and, with Kyle's help, her murder alibi. Margo confirms this when confronted by Sophie, but Sophie leaves. Sophie reveals her affair to Graham, who leaves for Boston. Margo reveals her abortion to Jed, who kicks her out, leading her back to Kyle. When a stressed Sophie goes out for drinks, Kyle tries to confront her, but Sophie kills him with her car. Having been drinking, she dumps his body into a lake. She accidentally takes a call from Margo on Kyle's phone, making Margo suspicious. The one-eyed man's associate comes for Sophie at her home as she had not given him information in return for his.
Production
Development
In October 2023, it was announced Starz had given the series an eight-episode order, with Rebecca Cutter set to adapt the novel of the same name by May Cobb, and serve as executive producer and showrunner. Lionsgate Television and 3 Arts Entertainment will produce.[1] In an interview with Vulture, Malin Akerman revealed that the creative team used Melania Trump as reference for her character Margo Banks.[2] In September 2025, Netflix acquired the series as a global original for an eight-episode second season.[3]
Pre-production began on January 18, 2024, in North Charlotte, with 18 weeks of filming shortly following.[citation needed]
Principal photography began by March 2024, in North Carolina. Downtown Mooresville was turned into an East Texas city. Many surrounding locations were also used for principal photography. Production wrapped in June 2024.[9][8]
In an interview with Variety, Akerman said they had Lizzie Talbot, an intimacy coordinator on set, to make sure they feel comfortable with nudity and sex scenes or not.[10]
Following the spin-off of Starz Inc. into an independent company separate from Lionsgate Studios, Lionsgate Television acquired rights to The Hunting Wives back from Starz. In June 2025, Netflix licensed U.S. rights to the series for a year, with the series premiering on the platform on July 21.[12]
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 74% approval rating based on 23 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Brittany Snow and Malin Akerman are diabolically fun to watch in The Hunting Wives, a risqué soap that turns bad behavior into highly bingeable fun."[13]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, gave a score of 73 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable".[14]
Audience viewership
For the week of July 21 to 27, The Hunting Wives ranked third on Netflix's English-language TV list, drawing 5.2 million views.[15] According to Luminate, the series was the most-streamed series in the United States for the week of July 25 to 31, accumulated over 2 billion minutes viewed.[16]
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