An intriguing premise quickly becomes a run of the mill thriller in a Disney + offering that will no doubt become the next binge-watch….

There is nothing wrong with The Stolen Girl. It has a strong premise, held together by a great cast and tries to throw in enough twists and turns to surprise the average viewer, but those who binge-watch a lot of these shows, will no doubt see huge sign posts of what is around the next corner, which will leave you instantly forgetting the entire drama once the final credits roll.

We start off with a great hook. Elisa Blix (Denise Gough), a doting mother who arrives late from her job as a flight attendant to pick up her daughter Lucia from school. On arrival and having to apologise to the waiting teacher, she meets Rebecca (Holliday Grainger) and her daughter Josie whose kids have become close from which Lucia insists on a playdate followed by a sleepover at Josie’s house, that very day.

Unsure as she has only just met this mother and daughter, she relents after the insistence of her daughter and agrees, visiting the house herself later on, to give her daughter her comfort toy and finding a stunning home with the warmth of Rebecca putting her at ease. Its when Lucia doesn’t return home the next day, Elisa along with her husband, Fred (Jim Sturgess), who just happens to be a criminal lawyer, go to the same house and find it empty, apart from a cleaner who informs them that no one lives here and its in fact a holiday rental. Cue – the drama to begin!

For a story that dips its toes into some true life cases, its too much of an easy watch, the drama not quite raising the threat level or leaving you at all feeling uncomfortable, with the plot trying too hard to throw you in one direction before offering a twist that can easily fall into the far-fetched category. The character of Selma Desai (Ambika Mod), perfectly sums it up, a journalist who somehow shows the mentality of say, Sherlock Holmes himself, digging into the case and uncovering evidence, in at times head-scratching fashion, that show she’s clearly wasted as a writer and should be in charge of her own task force.

Thankfully with only a five-episode run, the show doesn’t outstay its welcome, with the plot moving quickly with each revelation becoming more sillier and by the time the last rug pull from the plot is revealed, you’ll probably sit there thinking “Yeah, guessed that two episodes back” and yet you’ll still find yourself watching to the very end.

The Stolen Girl doesn’t re-write the rule book on thrillers, the subject matter on-hand should have been more demanding for the viewer, but like many of these, it will no doubt find an audience and become the next “have you seen this?” binge-watch across social media.

2.5 HATCHETS OUT OF 5