One of the surprise TV shows of 2024 is Baby Reindeer. Richard Gadd’s drama about a female stalker and how it unearthed one man’s deep-rooted trauma has garnered nearly universal praise. In the series, Jessica Gunning plays Martha, the woman who stalks Gadd’s Donny Dunn. On Friday, Netflix released Gunn’s stunning audition tape.
In the chilling video, Gunning is reading the scene where Martha displays anger and hostility toward Donny when they go for a cup of coffee.
See Jessica Gunning's audition tape for her powerful role as Martha in the limited series, BABY REINDEER. From creator and writer Richard Gadd. pic.twitter.com/jzvSPHl78F
— Netflix (@netflix) June 7, 2024
Baby Reindeer is based on Gadd’s award-winning one-man play inspired by real-life experiences. “Baby Reindeer follows struggling comedian Donny Dunn’s warped relationship with his female stalker and the impact it has on him as he is ultimately forced to face a deeply buried trauma,” the Netflix logline reads. Nava Mau and Tom Goodman-Hill also star.
Released on April 11, Baby Reindeer spent seven weeks in Netflix’s top 10 in the United States, including three consecutive weeks at No. 1. The word-of-mouth hit could become one of the streamer’s most popular TV shows of 2024. Because of ts overwhelming popularity and widespread critical acclaim, Baby Reindeer will be one of the favorites at the Emmys in the limited series categories. Baby Reindeer could score double-digit nominations, including acting nominations for Gaad, Gunning, and Mau.
Baby Reindeer has had its detractors, including Fiona Harvey, the real-life inspiration for Martha in the series. After an interview with Piers Morgan, Harvey began to assemble a legal team to fight back against the “dishonest and false picture” of her in the series.
On June 6, Harvey officially filed a $170 million defamation and negligence lawsuit against Netflix. In response to the lawsuit, Netflix said, “We intend to defend this matter vigorously and to stand by Richard Gadd’s right to tell his story.”
Stream all episodes of Baby Reindeer on Netflix now.
