Limited Series – White House Plumbers

Play trailer

2:27

May 2023

Biography

Drama

History

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

69%

Tomatometer

48 Reviews

68%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

"White House Plumbers" goes behind-the-scenes of the Watergate scandal as Nixon's political saboteurs, E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy, accidentally topple the presidency they were zealously trying to protect. Chronicling actions on the ground, this satirical drama begins in 1971 when the White House hires Hunt and Liddy, formerly of the CIA and FBI, respectively, to investigate the Pentagon Papers leak. After failing upward, the unlikely pair lands on the committee to reelect the president, plotting several unbelievable covert ops, including bugging the Democratic National Committee offices at the Watergate complex.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

White House Plumbers gets clogged up by its overstuffed adherence to real history, but with actors this appealing and material that truly is stranger than fiction, it flushes down easy enough.

Read Critics Reviews

Christian Holub

Entertainment Weekly

Dec 20, 2023

B-

White House Plumbers thus tells a clear, coherent story about a famous event in American history, and at just five episodes there's not much bloat to complain of.

Go to Full Review

Nick Hilton

Independent (UK)

Jun 1, 2023

3/5

White House Plumbers is not deadly serious. It is a farce that recognises the Watergate scandal as a political tragedy that has acquired the requisite historical distance to turn it into amiable, if not electric, comedy.

Go to Full Review

Ed Power

Daily Telegraph (UK)

May 31, 2023

4/5

Americans may find it depressing – but for everyone else, it is a period hoot begging to be binged.

Go to Full Review

Dónal Lynch

Sunday Independent (Ireland)

Jan 29, 2024

I would say most viewers will have long since tapped out and this is a rare flop from HBO’s hit factory.

Go to Full Review

Bill Brioux

Brioux.tv

Aug 18, 2023

Aside from the speculative nature of the portrayals of Hunt and Liddy, White House Plumbers sticks quite rigorously to the facts. At just five episodes, it’s well worth your time if you’re into history, politics and wild and crazy characters.

Go to Full Review

Michael Clark

Epoch Times

Aug 12, 2023

4/5

While “Plumbers” offers up nothing previously unknown about Watergate, it does so from a different angle and through a lens that points out its overall comic uselessness.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Gareth V

@geewah Oct 18, 2026

A few stretches drag, and the shifts in tone aren’t always smooth, but the mounting chaos keeps it engaging. Funny and unsettling in roughly equal measure.

Juris O

@Juris100 Sep 19, 2026

They wanted to make a comedy out of a serious topic, but in the end it turned out to be bad rubbish.

Avindu G

@RT86379654 Nov 8, 2025

A political drama that demonstrate how failing governance behave. How desperate the mighty structures would get under public scrutiny. Though the outcome of a fanatic plumber may vary, it's a reminder to question and be kind to our self intuition. It's a well acted movie. A great cast. Excellent visuals and music effects. A historic account that's politically enlightening.

Torin F

@nonlinearize Sep 22, 2024

WHITE HOUSE PLUMBERS brings exceptional comedic chops to the Watergate scandal, creating an elevated satirical political drama capable of accommodating the many stranger-than-fiction details of this major historical episode. At five episodes, this series operates with an efficiency that the perpetrators never managed, but does drag a bit in the last installment as it tries to survey the scandal's political import while also detailing the fallout for the principal characters. Still, a memorably entertaining limited series overall.

Benjamin H

@RT54005248 Sep 20, 2023

A political satirical drama that is accurately portrayed while also demonstrating a jazzy, campy and sometimes exaggerated behavior, White House Plumbers may not tackle the full scope of the real-life scandal and has a bit lackluster writing, but it is a pretty fascinating and well-packed miniseries that also displays good lead performances.

fred v

@RT56670822 Sep 8, 2023

One episode of this over-acted farce was enough. It gets an extra star because Lena Headey is in it...

Read all reviews

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Alex Gregory

Creator

Peter Huyck

Creator

David Mandel

Director

Woody Harrelson

E. Howard Hunt

Justin Theroux

G. Gordon Liddy

Lena Headey

Dorothy Hunt

Episode 1

Aired May 1, 2023

The Beverly Hills Burglary

E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy are tasked with investigating the Pentagon papers leak, gathering a team of Cubans to infiltrate whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg's psychiatrist's office; Hunt and his wife, Dorothy, get to know the Liddys.

Details

Episode 2

Aired May 8, 2023

Please Destroy This, Huh?

When a leaked memo from Dita Beard puts Attorney General John Mitchell in legal jeopardy, Liddy and Hunt get a shot at redemption.

Details

Episode 3

Aired May 15, 2023

Don't Drink the Whiskey at the Watergate

Hunt, Liddy and the Cubans attempt to break into the DNC offices at the Watergate to plant listening devices for the White House.

Details

Episode 4

Aired May 22, 2023

The Writer's Wife

Reeling from the arrests at the Watergate, Hunt enlists Saint John's help to dispose of evidence; Liddy warns the Attorney General that the burglaries can be tied back to President; Dorothy must take control to protect her family and the Liddys.

Details

Episode 5

Aired May 29, 2023

True Believers

Liddy shares his concerns about Hunt's stability with John Dean; Hunt's daughter leverages a secret notebook to convince her father to come clean in his Senate testimony; when the President resigns, lives are ruined.

Details

Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker

68%

66%

Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker

Death by Lightning

90%

87%

Death by Lightning

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Death by Lightning

Fosse/Verdon

80%

83%

Fosse/Verdon

Watchlist

Gentleman Jack

92%

93%

Gentleman Jack

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Gentleman Jack

Chernobyl

95%

97%

Chernobyl

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Chernobyl

Discover more movies and TV shows.

White House Plumbers: Limited Series Teaser

1:24

Now Playing

White House Plumbers: Limited Series Trailer

2:27

Now Playing

View more videos

View more photos

Director: David Mandel
Creator: Alex Gregory, Peter Huyck
Executive Producer: David Mandel, Alex Gregory, Peter Huyck, Frank Rich, David Bernad, Gregg Fienberg, Justin Theroux, Woody Harrelson, Len Amato, Ruben Fleischer, Paul Lee, Mark Roybal, Nne Ebong
Screenwriter: Alex Gregory, Peter Huyck
Network: HBO
Rating: TV-MA
Genre: Biography, Drama, History
Original Language: English
Release Date: May 1, 2023

Let's keep in touch!

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

Let's keep in touch!

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

Limited Series – White House Plumbers

Where to Watch

White House Plumbers — Limited Series

What to Know

Critics Reviews

Audience Reviews

My Rating

Cast & Crew

Episodes

More Like This

Videos

White House Plumbers — Limited Series

Photos

White House Plumbers — Limited Series

Season Info