Tatiana Maslany’s career exploded in the mid-2010s with her virtuoso multi-character work on BBC America’s brainy sci-fi thriller series “Orphan Black.” It was a very good show, but the deeper Maslany got into her roles, the more you wondered what she could do in a film or series where her performance prowess could be concentrated on one specific part. Indeed, she proved to be unsettlingly fierce as the vengeful Sister Alice on HBO’s dark reinvention of “Perry Mason” and brought all the charm she could muster to Marvel Studios’ irreverent “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.” Her talent was undeniable, but the projects weren’t proper showcases of her astonishing ability.
This changed in 2026 with the premiere of Apple TV’s comedy-thriller series “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed.” The show stars Maslany as Paula Saunders, a fact checker (the noblest and most under-appreciated of journalistic professions) who’s fighting for custody of her child while looking into the kidnapping and apparent death of a webcam model named Trevor (Brandon Flynn). No less an authority than Stephen King has effused that “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” is “like Hitchcock came back to do it one more time.” Its first season is streaming in its entirety on Apple TV, and it’s officially coming back for more. So, now is the time to get caught up before you’re 20 episodes deep down a binge hole.
Tatiana Maslany delivers Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed and then some
The tone-setting pilot of “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” was directed by David Gordon Green, who was once a Terrence Malick-ian stylist (see: early triumphs like “George Washington” and “All the Real Girls”) before he segued to mainstream movieshness.” But while “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” possesses a bit of visual sophistication, it’s the writing by series creator David J. Rosen and his staff that puts it over the top
The casting is also key. Jake Johnson is deliciously antagonistic as Paula’s ex-husband Karl, who’s seeking sole custody of their child while she nurses her anguish with wine and digs into the fate of her newfound internet companion. Rosen and the show’s writers pile the complications on with inventive abandon, and Tatiana Maslany surprises every step of the way as a protagonist we simply can’t figure out.
“Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed,” as mentioned, has been renewed for a second season, so Maslany will get another 10 episodes to explore possibly the best character she’s ever been given to play. In the meantime, you should get out to see Noah Segan’s “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York,” where she is dynamite as John Turturro’s daughter. The Maslany-ssiance is upon us.
