After nearly a decade away from leading dramatic roles on television, Jon Hamm has returned to familiar territory but with a modern twist. In Your Friends & Neighbors, now streaming on Apple TV+, Hamm leads a sharply drawn drama that blends dark humour, glossy intrigue and a touch of domestic noir. He plays Andrew Cooper, a disgraced hedge fund manager trying to hold on to the remnants of his high-flying life, one morally dubious decision at a time.
The series opens with a bang, quite literally. Cooper wakes up in a pool of blood on the floor of his lovers home. What happened and how he got there unfolds across another classy tv series from Apple. From there, we’re whisked back in time to trace his unraveling. He’s recently divorced, ousted from his job after a workplace fling, and still desperately trying to maintain his standing in a world where Maseratis are as common as crushed oyster shell driveways.
Cooper’s world is the fictional Westmont Village, a high-income enclave where the wine is decanted, the art is curated, and the neighbors all pretend to like each other while plotting behind one another’s backs. It’s a setting ripe for satire, and the show has fun with the performative civility of its elite inhabitants. Cooper is no anti-hero in the traditional sense. He’s not trying to fix a broken system, just trying to survive inside it, even if that means breaking a few laws.
The comparison points come easy: The White Lotus with less sun and Breaking ‘not quite so’ Bad. But Your Friends & Neighbors carves its own space thanks to Hamm’s magnetic performance. He plays Cooper with sly restraint, a man aware of his slow-motion collapse but unable to stop it. There’s a quiet humor in the way he moves through his world, increasingly cornered but still clinging to charm like a lifeboat.
Hamm is joined by a strong ensemble. Amanda Peet plays his ex-wife Mel with sharp-tongued precision, while Olivia Munn brings a cool intensity as Samantha, a neighbor and part-time lover whose own unraveling mirrors Coop’s. A standout addition is Elena, a savvy housekeeper for the rich played by Aimee Carrero, her perspective from outside this gilded bubble forces Coop to reckon with the system he once profited from.
Your Friends & Neighbors is a smart, stylish ride that lets Jon Hamm do what he does best.
As Coop’s schemes escalate, he stumbles upon more secrets than he can keep track of as the plot thickens. The series eventually pivots into a murder mystery when Coop finds himself entangled in a death he didn’t see coming. Tracking back from its opening, it’s a welcome shift that gives the back half of the season some additional urgency.
That said, Your Friends & Neighbours doesn’t always hit the satirical high notes it aims for. While it skewers the trappings of extreme wealth with wit, it never quite delivers the full critique it promises. The show enjoys the luxury too much to truly interrogate it, and occasionally you’re left wondering whether it wants to scorn these people or simply admire their taste in scotch and watches.
Still, it’s a smart, stylish ride that lets Hamm do what he does best. Even if the show doesn’t hit every target, it takes its swings with confidence and flair. In a TV landscape crowded with heavy-handed prestige dramas, there’s something refreshing about a series that remembers to be entertaining.
In the end, Your Friends & Neighbours may not change television, but it reminds us why Jon Hamm is such a compelling presence on screen. His return to a leading role is long overdue, and this nine-episode cocktail of crime, comedy, and consequence is a solid toast to his talents.
It’s yet another polished addition to Apple TV+’s growing catalogue of high-end originals. From the crisp cinematography to the sharp writing and standout performances, the platform continues to prove it’s serious about quality, HBO will be watching their backs.
All 9 episodes of Your Friends & Neighbors is available to stream on Apple TV+.
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fantastic series, jon hamm is brilliant!