Premiere date: August 2nd
Network: USA
Starring: Jessica Biel, Bill Pullman, Christopher Abbott, Abby Miller and Dohn Norwood.
Synopsis: An eight episode close-ended series, The Sinner follows a young mother (Jessica Biel) who, when overcome by an inexplicable fit of rage, commits a startling act of violence and to her horror has no idea why. The event launches an inverted and utterly surprising crime thriller whose driving force is not the “who” or the “what” — but the “why” — as an investigator (Bill Pullman) finds himself obsessed with uncovering the woman’s buried motive. Together they travel a harrowing journey into the depths of her psyche and the violent secrets hidden in her past. – USA.
Why we’re watching: Jessica Biel is one of those actresses who should be a lot more famous than she is and in bigger profile roles and films than she gets. Little known now except for being the wife and baby mama of Justin Timberlake, she’s been working consistently for years but not in anything of note. Her role in The Illusionist with Edward Norton was a demonstration of the acting talent she has and this seems to be another opportunity for her to show it off. Plus, the series marks her return to TV after her not so graceful exit from the 90’s hit Seventh Heaven.
Aside from that, the series looks to be every bit the intriguing crime-thriller-drama that will drive home the suspense, crank up the tension to eleven and leave viewers agonising over the week long wait between episodes and wildly speculating. It should at least be all of those things even if it isn’t particularly good. Those are what make crime thrillers fun to watch.
