The latest thriller from Apple TV Plus – Prime Target – hasn’t been met with the most glowing reviews.
Despite a promising trailer, the series has achieved just 33% on review website Rotten Tomatoes after the first two episodes were made available on the streamer.
Critics were not impressed with the Leo Woodall fronted series, with film reviewer Daniel Hart writing it is ‘hard to care’ about his character Edward Brooks. On X, Julian Roman said although it had ‘an intriguing premise’ the episodes fail to achieve their potential. ‘The series is plagued by baffling logic gaps, unlikable leads that lack chemistry, and a molasses-drip spigot of reveals that take way too long to develop,’ they added.
Clikengle had an issue with an initial scene, asking: ‘Why’d @AppleTV’s #PrimeTarget start off with a horrifying explosion in the middle of a bustling Arab market for some architectural reveal?? Can you imagine a similar scenario in a Western city where the people and their fear and pain are background plot devices?’
The plot is centred on what happens when mathematical genius Edward gets caught up in a conspiracy. The official synopsis for the eight-episode show reads: ‘A brilliant young math postgraduate, Edward Brooks, is on the verge of a major breakthrough. If he succeeds in finding a pattern in prime numbers, he will hold the key to every computer in the world.
‘Soon, he begins to realize an unseen enemy is trying to destroy his idea before it’s even born, which throws him into the orbit of Taylah Sanders, an NSA agent (Quintessa Swindell) who’s been tasked with watching and reporting on mathematicians’ behaviour.
‘Together, they start to unravel the troubling conspiracy Edward is at the heart of.’
Ahead of its release there was plenty of excitement from fans, who were keen to see Leo, 28, in his first big project following his role as Dex on One Day (he’ll also be in Bridget Jones 4, released on February 4). Some people even suggested that the premise had an air of Good Will Hunting about it. The 1997 tear-jerking drama starred the late Robin Williams and Matt Damon as the ultimate maths whiz has a much higher 97% approval rating.
An audience score has not yet been revealed for Prime Target on Rotten Tomatoes, so it may have passionate defenders giving their take as the weeks go on.
Leo put his all into the job, working with a mathematics expert to understand a little more about his character’s job, and even preparing to be unfriendly.
‘I’m someone who is friendly and thinks I’m decent with people, and he is not like that. He doesn’t care. He’s not doing niceties,’ he shared with Screen Rant.
‘For me, it was just mentally preparing for that, and it was hard. There were a lot of times where I wanted to just smile at people, and I wasn’t allowed.’
The first two episodes of Prime Target are available to watch on Apple TV, which will be followed by a new episode each Wednesday until the finale on March 5
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