Television series

The Circle

Name: The Circle
Released: 2020
Cast: Michelle Buteau

Other titles called The Circle: the 2000 film, the 2017 film, the 2018 series (Channel 4).

Social drama

Strangers lock themselves in separate apartments, talk only through a chat app, and either play themselves or invent someone more likeable. The others rate, flirt with, and eventually vote for whoever they trust — without ever seeing a face. It's gossip, deception and social math turned into a $100,000 pressure cooker. Funny, tense, oddly moving, and dangerously bingeable.

TVMaze rating

3.6

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy watching people play a social game in real time, reading strategy off how they flirt, lie and size each other up, and a host who keeps the chatter funny.

Skip it if you want a romance or a sincere connection to unfold, since every bond here is a move in a game and the mood stays brittle and performative.

What it asks of you: Stamina for a long haul, with seven seasons and about ninety episodes of roughly 51 minutes each, delivered as steady, chatty rounds rather than quick jolts.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Traitors2022

The same paranoid math as The Circle but with knives out: everyone's lying, everyone's watching everyone else's face, and the alliances shift by the hour. Addictive, mean, and endlessly rewatchable.

But Physical presence and eye contact change the game entirely; if you liked the purely digital angle, this feels different.

Big Brother2000

The granddaddy of locked-house social strategy. Alliances, blindsides, and the slow psychological unraveling of people who thought they were charming enough to win.

But Decades of seasons and spinoffs; picking a starting point is its own project.

Love Island2019

Strip away the app and you've got the same hierarchy of likeability, flirtation-as-strategy, and public ranking anxiety — just with bodies in a villa instead of avatars.

But Far less about deception and much more about romance; the strategic layer is thinner.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Circle

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Catfish2010

This is literally where 'catfishing' comes from — the exact deception The Circle turns into a game show, filmed here as raw, unscripted heartbreak instead of competition.

The documentary that gave the whole genre its name — a real online relationship that unravels into something stranger and sadder than anyone expected. Quiet, uncomfortable, and unforgettable.

But No prize money, no game structure — just a slow, melancholy true story that lingers rather than entertains.

Too Hot to Handle2020

Netflix's other reality machine, where charisma is currency and everyone's performing a slightly better version of themselves for cash. Trashy in the exact right way.

But Broader, hornier, and less interested in the psychology of persona than in comedy.

Catfish: The TV Show2012

MTV's long-running series that actually investigates people who fabricate online identities — the real-world version of what The Circle turns into a game.

But Often sadder than funny; it's about loneliness and manipulation with real consequences, not a prize.

Survivor2000

The original blueprint for outwitting, outplaying, and outlasting people through carefully managed reputation. If you liked watching players build trust to burn it later, this is the source code.

But Physical challenges and island survival add a layer The Circle doesn't have at all.

The Mole2000

A saboteur hides among the contestants while everyone else tries to unmask them — pure detective-work paranoia, similar to guessing who's catfishing.

But Team-based challenges dominate; the psychological unmasking is more procedural than social.

Perfect Match2023

Netflix reality veterans manipulate and match each other for advantage, blending strategy and romance in a way that rewards the same social read The Circle demands.

But Leans harder into drama and edits for chaos rather than the slow-burn deception of The Circle.

FBoy Island2021

A dating show built entirely around figuring out who's being sincere and who's playing a character for money — the same guessing game, just with more shirtless posturing.

But Broad comedy over psychological nuance; don't expect much subtlety.

The Talented Mr. Ripley1999

Same core question as The Circle — can a fabricated identity outperform the real thing — except the stakes here are someone's life instead of $100,000.

A gorgeously shot thriller about a man who invents a more likeable version of himself to climb into a world he doesn't belong to — charm as survival strategy, taken to lethal extremes.

But Slow, tense, and morally queasy rather than fun; this is prestige drama, not reality-show comfort food.

What's My Line?1950

Decades before The Circle's blocked-vs-influencer twist, this show already understood that identity guessed through a filter is its own kind of theatre.

A genteel 1950s panel show where blindfolded celebrities guess a guest's hidden occupation from questions alone — the original game of reading a stranger through limited information.

But Black-and-white, formal, and gentle by design; there's no strategy, betrayal, or money on the line.

People

Cast

Michelle ButeauHost

Production

Brittani NicholsConsulting Producer
Chet FensterExecutive Producer
Daisy LilleyExecutive Producer
Richard FosterExecutive Producer
Shane ByrneExecutive Producer
Stephen LambertExecutive Producer
Susy PriceExecutive Producer
Tim HarcourtExecutive Producer
Raphael DorvalProducer
Richard CalhounProducer