Ella Purnell is currently one of TV’s biggest stars, but few of her fans have seen her underrated drama series,Sweetbitter, and that’s a crying shame. Most people likely haven’t even heard of the Starz drama, and are probably more familiar withPurnell’s most famous television characters, such as the plucky Lucy inFalloutor the ill-fated Jackie inYellowjackets.
Hailing from London, England, Purnell’s earlier TV work is predominantly across the pond, including the television movieCyberbully, oppositeGame of Thrones' Maisie Williams, and the BBC’s Agatha Christie drama,Ordeal by Innocence.Purnell’s work inStar Trek: Prodigy, voicing Gwyn, first saw her rise to prominence with American audiences. She followed that up by voicing Jinx in Netflix’sArcane.
But beforePurnell starred in her perfect Rotten Tomatoes-scoring show, she appeared inSweetbitterfrom 2018–2019. A Starz drama,Sweetbitteris based on Stephanie Danler’s buzzy 2016 novel of the same name. The series follows Purnell’s Tess, a young Ohio transplant who moves to New York City and gets a job at a high-end restaurant. It’s one of her best roles, and the show deserves a watch.
Ella Purnell’s Tess Explores New York’s Trendy Restaurant Scene In Sweetbitter
Nobody does fish-out-of-water better than Ella Purnell, andPurnell’s performance inSweetbitterdeserved just as much acclaimas her work inYellowjacketsorFallout. Like these two popular series,Sweetbitter’s Tess is a stranger in a strange land, finding herself in over her head as she tries to navigate the high-pressure, high-end restaurant world of New York City.
A coming-of-age tale about a young 20-something trying to find herself in the big city may sound like an overblown cliche, but Purnell wholly makes Tess her own. She may be wide-eyed, but she’s certainly not innocent, with Purnell playing up the messiness to her character.
While viewers might get hooked on her will-they, won’t-they relationship with bartender Jake (Tom Sturridge), it’s Tess' complicated friendship with senior server Simone (Caitlin FitzGerald) that provides most of the show’s juiciest drama. Purnell has chemistry with almost anyone she acts opposite, but her spark with FitzGerald is absolutely intoxicating.
The Critics Were Wrong About Sweetbitter
The reasonSweetbitterwent under so many people’s radars may have to do with its less-than-favorable reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, theunderrated Ella Purnell serieshas a paltry score of 58%. Most of the bad press is directed at season 1, which has an even more dismal 30%.
Essentially, the pundits felt thatSweetbitterdidn’t do enough to set itself apart from other coming-of-age New York series that came before it. They also dinged the show for not living up to the edginess of its source material novel.
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Sweetbitterseason 2 did much better with its critical rankings, netting a respectable 86%. However, you have to take that with a grain of salt, as only seven reviews were compiled for season 2 vs. 23 reviews for season 1.
Interestingly, the Rotten Tomatoes audience scores were much higher, boasting 82% for season 1, 96% for season 2, and 89% overall. This speaks volumes, as RT audiences are usually much harsher on romantic, female-driven movies and shows. And a big reason for this is likely due to Parnell and her fantastic performance.Sweetbitter’s tropes may be familiar, but Tess is a wholly unique character, all thanks to Purnell.
Why Sweetbitter Was Canceled After Two Seasons
Critics and audiences alike may have felt thatSweetbitterseason 2 was a strong improvement over season 1, but the show’s sophomore installment lost huge viewership numbers, with season 1 averaging 164,000 live-same-day viewers, while season 2 only averaged 92,000 (viaTHR). Ultimately, due to such a dramatic decline, Starz gaveSweetbitterthe axe.
It’s difficult to say why so many audience members fell off betweenSweetbitterseasons 1 and 2. A very possible culprit is the sheer glut of TV shows that have come with the streaming wars.
With heavyhitters like Netflix and Prime Video emerging as juggernauts, perhaps a Starz drama series with mediocre reviews wasn’t enough to demand viewers' attention. It’s unfortunate, but it happens. At the very least,Sweetbittermakes for the perfect weekend binge-watch.
