HBO Max is turning up the heat this winter with a dangerous new six-part series that has become a huge global success for the streamer. The Seduction is a prequel and loose adaptation of the 250-year-old novel Les Liaisons dangereuses by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, better known to many by its translated English title, Dangerous Liaisons.
The Seduction, released in its native French as Merteuil, stars Anamaria Vartolomei, Diane Kruger, Vincent Lacoste, and Lucas Bravo and follows Isabelle de Mertruil as she attempts to exact revenge on the man who betrayed her, Vicomte de Valmont. The series was announced and filmed in late 2024, and was released under the HBO Originals banner on November 14, 2025. Since then, it has rocketed up the charts with its tale of lust and deception and, living up to its title, has seduced a worldwide audience. The synopsis of the series reads:
“The day after her marriage, Isabelle Dassonville discovers that the ceremony was fake and that her husband was in reality the Vicomte de Valmont who was manipulating her. Condemned to take a vow of silence in a convent, her only way to escape is to follow Valmont’s aunt, Madame de Rosemonde, who wants to use her to seduce the Comte de Gercourt in Paris for her own mysterious motives. But when Rosemonde’s plan fails, Isabelle decides to marry the Comte de Merteuil in order to become a Marquise and gain power to help her to get revenge on Valmont.”
Many will remember the 1988 movie version of the story, Dangerous Liaisons, which assembled an impressive cast including Glenn Close as Isabelle Merteuil, John Malkovich as Vicomte de Valmont, Michelle Pfieffer, Uma Thurman, Peter Capaldi, and Keanu Reeves in a steamy R-rated story of sexual politics that earned an impressive 94% critics score and grossed over $34 million at the box office. The question is, do we need another version of the story?
Is ‘The Seduction’ Worth Watching on HBO Max?
The source material of The Seduction has been plundered many times. Dangerous Liaisons recently received a makeover in a 2022 Starz TV series, which caused controversy by being renewed and then canceled, but one of the best known contemporary takes on the material is the 1999 Sarah Michelle Gellar movie Cruel Intentions, which relocated the story to a high school in modern New York City. So is The Seduction worth being entranced by?
The Seduction seems to be a reasonable effort to revive the centuries-old story of historical bodice-ripping, while keeping its setting very much as a period piece. The 60% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes is countered by just two audience reviews, both of which are gushing over the lavish, erotic series. Having watched several raunchy shows and movies dominate Netflix and other streaming platforms, it seems that HBO Max has found something of their own to entice viewers.
For some, the fact this is a French-language series, which means there are some moments when the mouths don’t match the English dub and there are people who just cannot abide subtitles, is a little off-putting. For others, it is just another “boring” period drama. If you don’t like period dramas and have not been caught up in the wave of Bridgerton adoration, then The Seduction probably is not going to change your mind, but if kinky 18th Century French scandal is your thing, then there could be worse ways to pass six hours of your time.
- Release Date
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November 14, 2025
- Network
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HBO Max
- Directors
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Jessica Palud
- Writers
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Jean-Baptiste Delafon, Choderlos de Laclos, Gaëlle Bellan, Jessica Palud
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Anamaria Vartolomei
Merteuil
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