Taboo (2017)
Adventurer James Keziah Delaney returns to London from Africa in 1814 along with fourteen stolen diamonds to seek vengeance after the death of his father.
| Type | TV series |
|---|---|
| First aired | 7 January 2017 |
| Status | Ended, last episode 25 February 2017 |
| Genre | Drama, Mystery |
| Created by | Steven Knight, Chips Hardy and Tom Hardy |
| Starring | Tom Hardy, David Hayman and Jonathan Pryce |
| Seasons | 1 season, 8 episodes |
| Episode length | about 60 min |
| Time to watch it all | about 8 hours |
| Rated | TV-MA |
| Scores | TMDB users 7.9/10 |
Where to watch Taboo
Taboo is streaming on Fubo in the US. It is also on Peacock ($16.99 a month) and Tubi. At ten hours a week, all of the series takes about 1 month of Peacock, or $16.99 at list price.
We check availability daily. Page last updated 25 October 2026. Prices are standard monthly plans and change often, so check with the service before you sign up.
Where to watch Taboo in 12 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Austria | Prime Video €8.99, Canal+ |
| Bermuda | Netflix about |
| Germany | Prime Video €8.99 |
| Gibraltar | Netflix about |
| Guernsey | Netflix |
| Ireland | Netflix €11.99, Skygo |
| Luxembourg | Prime Video €8.99 |
| South Korea | Watcha, Tving ₩10900 |
| Spain | Netflix €14.99, Prime Video €4.99 |
| Switzerland | Prime Video CHF8.90 |
| Turks & Caicos Islands | Netflix |
| United Kingdom | Netflix £13.99 GBP, Skygo |
Subscription, free and ad-supported services we track; prices where Binge Boss has a price list for the country. "About" marks a price the service bills in another currency, converted at the day's rate. All countries as data.
What kind of watch this is
Created by Steven Knight and Tom Hardy, Taboo is a period drama where the mystery is less about who did it and more about how much the truth costs to uncover. Tom Hardy plays James Keziah Delaney, a man who comes back to London with a grudge and a stash of stolen diamonds. The tone is cold, precise, and deeply unnerving. Jonathan Pryce and David Hayman anchor the ensemble with a kind of quiet menace that makes the 8-hour runtime feel both substantial and necessary. It is not a warm watch. It is a slow burn that relies on atmosphere and psychological tension rather than action. The series trusts its audience to sit with discomfort.
What the critics said
Rotten Tomatoes places it at 78% based on 45 reviews, with an average score of 7.03 out of 10. Metacritic sits lower at 67 out of 100, which it categorizes as generally favorable. The consensus praises Tom Hardy’s exceptional performance, though it notes the start feels sluggish. Ben Lawrence of The Telegraph called it "utterly original" despite borrowing from westerns and gangster films. Sam Wollaston of The Guardian admitted the dialogue "does make you wince," but argued Hardy’s presence makes up for it. Some historians questioned the depiction of the East India Company. Tirthankar Roy argued the view was excessively negative, while Nick Robins noted the organization had long outlived its usefulness by the time it was dissolved.
How it did with audiences
The production budget and box office figures remain unavailable, so the financial verdict stays open. Instead, the score speaks for itself. On TMDB, users rate it 7.9 out of 10. That is a solid number. It suggests the show landed with the people who actually watched it. No revenue streams to audit here, just a rating that holds its ground.
What came next for the cast
Tom Hardy stepped away from Inception and The Dark Knight Rises to face a symbiote in Venom, a franchise he has since expanded. Jonathan Pryce traded Game of Thrones and Pirates of the Caribbean for The Two Popes and 3 Body Problem. Oona Chaplin moved from Quantum of Solace to Avatar: Fire and Ash. David Hayman followed Jack Ryan with Blinded by the Light. These shifts mark a pivot. The timeline does not prove Taboo caused them.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched Taboo.
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Sources
- Taboo on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q17021920 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “Taboo (2017 TV series)” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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