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Season 1 – BAIT

Play trailer 1:36 Poster for Season 1 – BAIT Mar 2026 Drama Comedy Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
94% Tomatometer 48 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
London-based actor Shah Latif suffers from an existential crisis and his life spirals out of control after auditioning for the role of a lifetime.
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BAIT — Season 1

BAIT — Season 1

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Riz Ahmed creates and stars in this compassionate, humor-filled meta-satire that dazzlingly lures in its audience like delicious BAIT.

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Critics Reviews

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Nicholas Harris New Statesman Apr 29
If Riz Ahmed has created a comedy that nibbles but never bites, it is for the very sympathetic reason that he has not numbed his heart. Go to Full Review
Wenlei Ma The Nightly (AU) Apr 21
Bait will, uh, bait you with its James Bond hook, but then it morphs into a much more interesting and hilarious story. Go to Full Review
Nadira Goffe Slate Apr 16
Even with Shah’s increasingly debilitating hallucinations and psychosis guiding his actions, it’s difficult to understand and empathize with why he as a character does what he does, when the only possible outcome is a recipe for disaster. Go to Full Review
John Stark Mac the Movie Guy Jul 27
64/100
It didn’t leave me shaken or stirred. Even if I think it didn’t fully capitalize on its brilliant premise, it is a unique look at what it is like to be this close to playing one of the most iconic film characters in history. Go to Full Review
James Preston Poole The Cosmic Circus May 29
Bait is a consistently engaging watch all the way, with its engrossing screenwriting touching on everything from online harassment to cultural icons and the importance of staying true to ones roots. Go to Full Review
James Croot The Post NZ May 5
Latif is a brilliant role for the versatile Ahmed, allowing him to showcase both his trademark nervous energy (as anyone who saw 2021’s under-rated Encounter can testify) and his comedic timing. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Camilla R @camilla703 Jul 28 Different, interesting & I really enjoy Riz Ahmed's work in general. Unfortunately It uses a trope that I actively despise - the imaginary character that antagonizes or advises the lead character (e.g. Dexter incessantly talking to the imagined spirit of his dad, ugh). In this case, it's a pig's head which gets points for originality, but I found those scenes in the show pretty annoying. Minor quibble aside, I enjoyed it and would recommend this one. See more Adrian M @RT5689032154 Jul 23 Started very strong, kinda lost its way towards the middle, ended well. Nothing special but it's a quick binge. I wish the show kept leaning into the racial and culture stuff because it goes to some surprisingly dark and timely places but undercuts it too often. Definitely worth a watch, but it's so close to being genuinely great. See more Kathleen J @KathJoK Jul 22 A good show about a terrible person. My biggest problem with it is Riz Ahmed's character ruining his life for 5 episodes just for it not amounting to anything in the last one. See more Doreen B @RT5690754321 Jul 12 Good show, but I am not sure Riz Ahmed was the correct choice for the show regardless of his involvement with the show. Unironically someone like Dev Patel would have been better. Guz Khan steals the show as always. See more Lakeisha S @RT6789043 Jul 9 Underneath all the chaotic writing and many plot holes there is a solid drama. Overall I enjoyed this short watch but they really tried too hard to be unique and it led to a much worse story. See more sjohnston267 T @RT24327236 Jun 27 Every character is shitty to each other and has no redeeming quality except for the pigs head, lol. See more Read all reviews
BAIT — Season 1

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Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Mar 25, 2026 Blatant, Not Subtle Out of work actor Shah Latif blows his audition for the role of a lifetime; his desperate effort to put himself back in the mix throws his personal and professional life into chaos. Details Episode 2 Aired Mar 25, 2026 TO TROLL, TO PROVOKE Shah's family grills him on the rumors; he faces a bizarre physical training session. Details Episode 3 Aired Mar 25, 2026 HOUSE OR HOME A hallucinatory sequence where Shah envisions his life as a global superstar. Details Episode 4 Aired Mar 25, 2026 LOYALTY, ALLEGIANCE Public backlash and fan theories reach a fever pitch. Details Episode 5 Aired Mar 25, 2026 LURE, PART OF A TRAP Shah returns home to find his family missing and evidence of foul play; with the help of an unlikely companion, a spiraling Shah searches the city, trying and failing to enlist help from everybody and anybody. Details Episode 6 Aired Mar 25, 2026 THE SUBTLE ONE The clock ticks on Shah's final callback for the role of a lifetime; Shah struggles to piece together what happened to him and his family over the last four days and must confront the real reason he blew his audition. Details
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Season Info

Director
Bassam Tariq
Creator
Riz Ahmed
Executive Producer
Riz Ahmed, Ben Karlin, Jake Fuller, Roopesh Parekh, Allie Moore
Network
Prime Video
Genre
Drama, Comedy, Sci-Fi
Original Language
British English
Release Date
Mar 25, 2026
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