Prime Video’s We Were Liars Opens to Mixed Reviews, Strong Summer Interest

Prime Video’s eight-episode We Were Liars opened on 18 June, bringing E. Lockhart’s 2014 young-adult bestseller to the screen for the first time. Candice King, re-teaming with longtime collaborator Julie Plec, plays Bess Sinclair alongside Emily Alyn Lind, Shubham Maheshwari, Esther McGregor and Joseph Zada in the fractured island dynasty at the story’s centre. The series anchors Amazon’s summer roster, which The New York Post flagged as one of the streamer’s marquee debuts.

Showrunners Julie Plec and Carina Adly MacKenzie recalled that their guiding rule in the writers’ room was “do not screw up that beautiful book,” a mantra born of what Plec called “big, huge feelings” tied to the novel’s passionate fan base.

The pair spent more than a decade pursuing screen rights until Amazon MGM Studios and Universal Television secured them in 2022, finally moving the project out of development limbo. MacKenzie said adapting Lockhart’s interior prose demanded new scenes that could “make people feel” without betraying the novel’s tone.

Principal photography wrapped in Nova Scotia last September, with veterans David Morse, Mamie Gummer and Caitlin FitzGerald joining the cast of Sinclairs. Early critical response sits at 61 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and 53 on Metacritic, signalling divided opinion yet solid curiosity for a YA mystery pitched to older audiences.

Time magazine praised the adaptation’s fidelity to the novel’s devastating twist while noting an added supernatural ripple involving Candice King’s on-screen sister, Carrie, that could steer future storylines.

That ripple matters: Plec and MacKenzie hold television rights to Lockhart’s prequel Family of Liars and confirm they have discussed a second season that would shift focus to an earlier Sinclair generation if data justifies renewal. Lockhart herself told People the series “is not a limited series,” underscoring Amazon’s option to continue the franchise. Forbes contributor Paul Tassi has suggested that a decision will hinge on sustained viewing over the next few weeks as Prime Video weighs the show’s staying power beyond its opening surge.