The legal drama All’s Fair, co-created by television maestro Ryan Murphy and starring Kim Kardashian, is defying its nearly zero-percent critical rating to become a massive commercial hit for Hulu, with plans already underway for a second season. The series, which critics have controversially labeled a "crime against television" and "existentially terrible," is thriving on audience curiosity and its embrace of "camp" style, proving that bad reviews can translate directly into record-breaking viewership (The Guardian).

The show, which follows a team of fierce, high-powered female divorce attorneys in Los Angeles (Hulu Press), premiered earlier this month to an immediate and shocking critical backlash. Its initial Rotten Tomatoes critic score famously plummeted to 0% (TMZ) before fluctuating slightly to settle around a still-dismal 4-6% (Digital Spy). Critics did not hold back, with The Guardian calling it "fascinatingly, incomprehensibly, existentially terrible" and The Hollywood Reporter describing Kardashian's performance as "stiff and affectless without a single authentic note" (Digital Spy, The Hollywood Reporter).

Ratings Win Over Critical Acclaim

Despite the universal panning from professional reviewers, the show’s popularity with viewers has been exceptional. An insider close to the production confirmed that the ratings have been "incredible" for the streaming platform.

The source revealed to The U.S. Sun that All’s Fair has become the "biggest Hulu premiere drop in years and one of the biggest of all time." Hulu officially confirmed the commercial success, announcing that the show racked up 3.2 million global views in its first three days of streaming, making it the platform's biggest scripted series debut in three years (Blex Media).

This stark disconnect—where the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes sits dramatically higher at around 66%—has turned the show into a cultural talking point and a case study on celebrity influence and "hate-watching" (AV Club).

Camp, Chaos, and a Confident Creator

For Murphy, the show's creator known for hits like American Horror Story and Glee, the critical mauling appears to have only fueled the fire. The production insider noted that Hulu has already given the television titan the green light for another run, telling him they are "all in for a season two," and Murphy is "already writing and thinking of ideas for the second season" (India Times).

The show’s A-list cast, which includes Kim Kardashian (45) as attorney Allura Grant, alongside acting heavyweights Glenn Close, Sarah Paulson, Naomi Watts, Niecy Nash-Betts, and Teyana Taylor, is reportedly ready to return. "The cast would be invited back, they all love each other and loved the experience. They're in on the joke, they would happily return," the source added (Entertainment Daily).

Fans are largely embracing the show's perceived flaws, often using the term "camp" on social media to describe its over-the-top nature. One X (formerly Twitter) user posted, "All's Fair is for the fashion and the camp! Nobody was expecting the next Law and Order," while another wrote, "All's Fair is such a good bad show lmao. It's so fun! The outfits are amazing, and I love seeing all these women together but the script is awful lol" (Entertainment Daily).

The series is a stylish, hyper-glossy drama focused on the high-stakes divorces of the mega-rich, full of designer labels, outrageous dialogue, and themes of 'girlboss' empowerment, which TIME magazine argued can feel "half-baked" (TIME). Yet, its ability to generate massive buzz, led in part by Kardashian’s immense social media following—she even cheekily captioned an Instagram post with screenshots of the negative reviews, asking, "Have you tuned in to the most critically acclaimed show of the year!?!?!"—has proven that in the current streaming landscape, curiosity and controversy often translate more directly to success than critical praise (TV Insider).

All's Fair is currently streaming new episodes weekly on Hulu in the US and on Disney+ for UK viewers (Digital Spy).

---