REVIEW: ‘Kill Jackie’ Is A Stylishly Bumpy Ride

A woman in control is a dangerous thing, but when everything is ripped out from under her? You’d best watch out. At least, that’s what Kill Jackie sets up. From the creatives behind Killing Eve and Gangs of London and based on Nick Harkaway’s The Price You Pay, this eight-episode series aims for high-stakes adrenaline set amid flashy, stylish visuals that are admittedly dazzling at times. Unfortunately, the gloss and glamour can’t hide this bumpy storyline, with character weaknesses and contrived plot conveniences dulling its shine.

The series follows Jackie Price (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a former international drug dealer turned fine art seller who, because of the fragile sensibilities of one man-baby, becomes the target of The Seven Demons, an elite group of super assassins who will stop at nothing to kill their targets. For Jackie, the timing couldn’t have been better. Despite living a life of luxury and comfort, it’s grown boring. Forced to go on the run, she feels excitement and challenge for the first time in years. 

Though she slowly feels reinvigorated by the adrenaline rush of being on the run, Jackie and those around her face incredible danger. Kill Jackie wastes little time in establishing how quickly things can go sideways for Jackie, even if at times she is protected by plot armor. The danger is far greater for those around her, with Jackie learning the hardest of lessons surrounding attachment, and how quickly such attachments can be turned against her in a blink of an eye.

Kill Jackie is flashy and stylish, but it’s not enough to hide the story’s flaws.

As Jackie, Catherine Zeta-Jones is at her peak. Jackie is incredibly messy, occasionally irrational, and full of overzealous, ridiculous plans that shouldn’t work at all. Zeta-Jones fills her with wit and fire that make Jackie nigh irresistible, even when she’s equally delusional and frustrating. It’s through her efforts that Kill Jackie is watchable, because frankly, the story is not entirely up to snuff. 

Part of this is due to how surprisingly inept The Seven Demons actually are in Kill Jackie. From the start, they are portrayed as the most deadly group of assassins in the world, whose high costs and incredible results meant that the team would get any job done. Instead, this group is mostly style and easily distracted once Jackie enters the picture. Sure, one could argue that she’s unpredictable enough to cause confusion, but throughout the course of the series, she conveniently lucks into some wins against this squad of killers. 

It makes the cat-and-mouse chase between Jackie and these assassins almost hard to watch toward the end. The writing makes it clear how things will pan out, reducing the suspense and adrenaline. Perhaps set up against a more capable band of enemies, the challenges in the latter half of the series might have developed more weight. But even when a surprise (though an expected twist given flashbacks) enters at the halfway point, Jackie has pretty much found her stride.

Even with its issues, Kill Jackie is entertaining enough.

Even still, the cast keeps things entertaining enough. As Sam, Jackie’s lawyer, Daniel Ings leans into the natural comedy of the situations Sam’s placed in. A man who has lived his life by the law, suddenly being thrust into a life on the run, provides Jackie with a bewildered anchor of sorts. And even if, at times, Sam’s role gets a little one-note, the inevitable arc he’s meant to go on shows a man changed.

Of the Seven Demons that have longevity, Sidse Babett Knudsen‘s Karenina is incredibly memorable. Relegated to a tech role, she yearns for something more. She and Jackie seem on equal ground from the beginning, and the war of words between them throughout shows the depth of their relationship, but also Karenina’s need to prove her worth to her new boss. And when she does get a chance to show her strengths, you know she’s not all talk.

One character that arguably could have been introduced sooner, just because of how much chemistry he has with Catherine Zeta-Jones, is Óscar Jaenada‘s Zigor. His character has so much to work with on the page, given his history with the Seven Demons and his skillset, something that is noticeably lacking from other characters with significant screen time in Kill Jackie. Jaenada gives depth and range to Zigor that proves how easily the man can’t be pegged down, but also draws focus. If there was ever a season with just Jackie and Zigor, sign me up.

If there is a second season, Kill Jackie should focus less on style and more on substance.

Visually, Kill Jackie aims to deliver a sleek, stylish affair that mirrors this generation’s band of assassin/spy-related fare. Sweeping drone shots appear liberally throughout, easily selling the locations where the show was shot, particularly Bilbao, which gets considerable coverage in this series. Everyone has a distinct look and fashion sense, and the wardrobe sometimes does the storytelling for the show rather than what you see onscreen. 

Therein lies the biggest takeaway of Kill Jackie. At many points, it often operates on style, with minimal, or at least by-the-numbers, substance. Perhaps that is the point, though, given how the series ultimately concludes itself. Even still, what attempts to flesh out and further develop characters beyond the surface level ultimately clashes with established pacing and tone, making it a struggle bus of a juggling act once things diverge from a set point. 

Even still, Kill Jackie is entertaining enough, and Catherine Zeta-Jones is positively divine as the chaotic former drug dealer-turned-art peddler on the run. Just prepare yourself for some drag and underwhelm once the series moves beyond the general artifice and shine it sets up in the beginning. 

Kill Jackie premieres exclusively on AMC+ on October 2, 2026, with new episodes dropping weekly.