After falling pregnant during an affair with her college professor, aspiring writer Margo (Elle Fanning) turns to OnlyFans to make ends meet.
Available on: Apple TV
Episodes viewed: 6 of 8
A stellar cast assembles for Margo’s Got Money Troubles, adapted from Rufi Thorpe’s bestselling 2024 novel of the same name, which follows young Margo Millet (Elle Fanning) as she ventures into the world of adult-content creation to provide for her newborn son. Alongside Fanning are Michelle Pfeiffer as her glamorous mother Shyanne, a former Hooters waitress who raised Margo alone; Greg Kinnear as Shyanne’s church-going husband-to-be Kenny; and a leather pants-clad Nick Offerman as Margo’s father James — or ‘Jinx’, as he was known in his pro-wrestler days.
With Big Little Lies showrunner David E. Kelley at the helm, and directors including Loki’s Kate Herron and Bad Sisters’ Dearbhla Walsh, the level of quality is clear. The show flits effortlessly between drama and comedy; weaves stylistic filmmaking with simple, tender moments; and gives its characters more than enough breathing room for this extended family to feel real, and their lives to feel rounded. The costumes are impeccable, as is the soundtrack, with modern bangers from Robyn, Clairo and CMAT popping up between sing-along and synthy classics.
Michelle Pfeiffer and Elle Fanning as mother and daughter is pure casting genius.
Fanning is excellent, committing to portraying every facet of Margo — the new mother ravaged by the challenges of breastfeeding; the sceptical daughter trying to reconnect with her father; the funny, creative oddbod with a ‘rich inner world’ — with complexity and radiance. Pfeiffer and Fanning as mother and daughter is pure casting genius, but it’s Fanning’s connection with Offerman that shines even brighter. The Parks And Recreation star brings an enormous amount of heart and soul to a guy who really did let his family down, but in his recovery from drug addiction is determined to do better. Despite his absence from Margo’s early life, they share a quiet intimacy and non-judgmental understanding that becomes the reliable underpinning of both the show and Margo’s increasingly tumultuous life.
Despite its somewhat raunchy core concept, Margo is fairly conventional, far more interested in exploring the nuances of flawed family dynamics and the identity that emerges from that than it is in exploiting the OnlyFans angle. The latter, though, is where moments of surrealism break through — most notably in the opening to Episode 6, where Margo’s kooky alien alter-ego ‘Hungry Ghost’ makes her online debut — but, along with Margo’s third-person narration from the first episode, these fantastical elements are (for the most part) set aside, making them feel a little disjointed. Still, fun as it would have been for the show to lean into those more, there is plenty of human drama to keep you invested in Margo’s weird and wonderful world.
This modern musing on motherhood, dysfunctional family and doing your best is a delight — grounded by lovely chemistry between the core trio of Fanning, Pfeiffer and Offerman.
