Hulu thriller 'Nine Perfect Strangers' features mysterious storyline, star-studded cast

NEW YORK -- Nicole Kidman returns to TV on Wednesday night in a new thriller series streaming on Hulu.

"Nine Perfect Strangers" is from producer David E. Kelley. The mini-series, like Kelley's earlier hit "Big Little Lies," is based on a novel by Liane Moriarty.

Kidman plays the mysterious proprietor of a wellness retreat where there are - nine perfect strangers.

The characters are played by some of the most recognizable stars working today and they are nowhere near perfect.

"She has her presenting self and you know her actual, true self: full of all of the range of what it is to be human," said Regina Hall, who plays Carmel Schneider.

Hall stars opposite Melissa McCarthy as author Frances Welty who is in a career slump.

"She's kind of taken so many blows that she's, she's damaged," McCarthy said. "I find her funny and heartbreaking all rolled up into one."

This is the fourth time that McCarthy has worked with Bobby Cannavale, who plays Tony Hogburn.

RELATED | How Nicole Kidman kept Hulu's 'Nine Perfect Strangers' in production during pandemic

"She texted me, and she said 'you gotta read this thing, it's really, really good,'" Cannavale said.

Tony is a former professional athlete who is addicted to opiates.

"I love desperate characters but this is a different level, this guy really is closer to the end of the rope than most," Cannavale said.

A husband and wife cope with unimaginable loss along with their daughter.

"You see the slow reconnection of this family through bringing up emotions that we've all been afraid of," said Grace Van Patten who plays Zoe Marconi.

Asher Keddie plays opposite Michael Shannon - one of two Oscar nominees in the cast, including Kidman.

"It was a really fantastic ensemble, we all had the same level of commitment and investment in the themes of the show and the stories that we were telling," Keddie, who plays Heather Marconi, said.

Watching these skilled performers deliver such fine dialogue in some pretty unusual situations amounts to intriguing fun.

"Nine Perfect Strangers" is streaming on Hulu which is owned by the same parent company as this station.