Two years ago, it was the summer of Suits on Netflix, as USA Network’s legal dramedy became incredibly popular on the streamer.
In 2025, it could be the summer of hackers. Netflix just added Mr. Robot, another USA Network original series, which is about as tonally far away from Suits as it can possibly get. It’s also one of the best shows you’ve never seen.
Christian Slater plays the title character of Mr. Robot, but the real star of the series is Rami Malek. Malek also won an Emmy Award for Best Actor in a Drama for his turn as Elliot Alderson in this cyberpunk thriller.
And that’s just the first of many reasons why you should catch Mr. Robot on Netflix in July and beyond.
Rami Malek Is Riveting in ‘Mr. Robot’
Elliot isn’t just the main character of Mr. Robot; he’s also constantly breaking the fourth wall as the narrator for the audience. We see what he sees and know what he knows, which isn’t always the full picture of what’s going on. The show makes it clear pretty early on that Elliot isn’t the picture of mental stability, and he’s suffering from several mental illnesses, including extreme paranoia and depression.
Malek embodies those aspects of Elliot in a very believable way while also presenting his character as a credible cybersecurity expert. The only thing that Elliot is really good at is working with computers, and that includes his after-hours activities as a hacker. Elliot will hack anyone, anytime, just to know more about the people around him. It’s his way of connecting and also a window into his inability to follow social norms. He’s a tortured genius, and Mr. Robot is going to give him the chance to change the world.
‘Mr. Robot’ Presents a Very Realistic Look At Hacking
Early in the series, Mr. Robot convinces Elliot to join his hacktivist organization, fsociety, and help him implement a plan that could bring one of the wealthiest corporations in the world to its knees. In Hollywood, hacking is often treated like a magic trick, with actors pretending they know what they’re doing while pressing a lot of keys on a keyboard.
The team behind Mr. Robot took the unusual step of actually researching how hacks are done, hiring consultants who understand that world and presenting the most realistic presentation of hacking to date. The programming language glimpsed on screen may not mean much to people who aren’t programmers, but that added touch of authenticity helps sell the illusion of the hacks Elliot and other fsociety members pull off during the show. Mr. Robot does require the audience to make a few leaps of logic, and that’s a lot easier to do so with one foot in reality.
‘Mr. Robot’ Presents the Creative Vision of One Man From Beginning To End
It would do a disservice to Mr. Robot to spoil any of its surprises, especially for first-time viewers who are about to discover the series. Rather than ruin any of those twists, it’s better to tell you that this show was born out of a feature film script by Sam Esmail, who went on to become the showrunner of Mr. Robot.
Throughout four seasons, Esmail wrote 24 episodes of Mr. Robot and directed 38 of them. Other writers did contribute to the show, but Esmail successfully oversaw the entire 45-episode run and brought the series to a satisfying conclusion. When watching the first season, you may notice that Esmail was clearly inspired by a fan-favorite cult classic film from 1999.
But if we named that movie, it would definitely take away from an important moment for the show. And because this project came to life as a series, Esmail had plenty of time to explore the ramifications of the things Elliot learned along the way.
This was perhaps the darkest show on USA Network in a long time, and it’s not going to be for everybody. Regardless, Mr. Robot has the potential to break out again on Netflix six years after it concluded. If you love binge-watching great TV shows, make this one your next pick.
Mr. Robot is now streaming on Netflix.
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