---
title: "Apple Cider Vinegar"
year: 2025
kind: "series"
canonical: "https://film.one/tv/apple-cider-vinegar"
fi1m_id: "apple-cider-vinegar"
imdb_id: "tt30428143"
tmdb_id: 241501
wikidata_id: "Q131283460"
fi1m_score: 73
critics_score: 68
critics_reviews: 14
published: "2026-09-12"
updated: "2026-09-17T21:18:30.076170+00:00"
region: "EE"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Apple Cider Vinegar (2025)

Created by Samantha Strauss · 1h 00m · Drama, Crime

## Identity

Apple Cider Vinegar

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/tv/apple-cider-vinegar
- **Type:** Series
- **Fi1m ID:** apple-cider-vinegar
- **IMDb ID:** tt30428143
- **TMDB ID:** 241501
- **Wikidata ID:** Q131283460
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt30428143/, https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/241501, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q131283460

**Fi1m score: 73** · Critics 68 from 14 reviews

*In a sentence:* Kaitlyn Dever is alarmingly convincing for someone we spend six episodes trying not to believe

> Kaitlyn Dever makes this wellness-fraud drama worth watching, giving its central liar an unsettling plausibility. The attention paid to people harmed by misinformation matters, though the restless structure keeps interrupting the people we want to understand.

## Synopsis

Belle Gibson (Kaitlyn Dever) builds a public identity around wellness and a claim that she has cancer. The illness is a lie, but her story attracts belief, drawing other people into the consequences of her deception. As the drama moves between Belle and those affected by health misinformation, it follows the appeal of online reassurance and the difficulty of separating a persuasive personality from a reliable source. Alycia Debnam-Carey plays Milla Blake, Aisha Dee plays Chanelle and Tilda Cobham-Hervey plays Lucy in a six-part series about illness, influence and fraud.

## Review

*Apple Cider Vinegar* is an engrossing, uneven drama about a wellness fraud, worth watching for Kaitlyn Dever’s Belle Gibson. Across six episodes, it tries to explain the appeal of a woman who claims to have cancer while keeping the harm of her deception in view. That is a worthwhile choice for a scammer series: the people who believe the lie deserve attention too. The difficulty is that the programme keeps changing its approach before the people around Belle have quite had their say.

Dever understands how tiring it can be to watch someone working this hard to be liked. Her Belle is eager and charming in public, with a private coldness that makes the charm increasingly uncomfortable to witness. We were angrier than we expected to be, because the warmth she uses to win trust is so convincing. Dever makes it possible to understand why somebody would listen to Belle without making the deception any less repellent.

Alycia Debnam-Carey, as Milla Blake, gives the series another performance strong enough to compete with Dever’s. Moving attention away from Belle gives the people harmed by such claims a place in the story. The writing by Samantha Strauss, Angela Betzien and Anya Beyersdorf is strongest when it takes seriously the desire to believe a reassuring health claim. Fear makes that desire comprehensible, and the series is kinder to those who fall for misinformation than the genre’s appetite for exposing gullibility might suggest.

Jeffrey Walker directs, with music by Cornel Wilczek, and the glossy presentation suits a story about people being persuaded by appearances. The fourth-wall breaks make the telling playful, while the black humour allows some welcome irritation with the business of selling reassurance. Those choices work when they expose the effort that goes into being believed. When they crowd together, however, the series can seem too pleased with how entertaining it has made the fraud.

The larger problem is the jumping through time, which repeatedly interrupts our attention to the characters. Too often a change of direction asks us to catch up without making anyone’s behaviour clearer. Strauss, Betzien and Beyersdorf have plenty to cover, but the shifting structure makes their priorities difficult to follow. We wanted some stretches to settle long enough for a conversation or a consequence to carry its proper weight.

The limits become clearer when the programme turns from Belle to the wider culture that rewards her. It recognises the attraction of wellness promises and the authority a persuasive online personality can acquire, but its explanation of that authority stays fairly familiar. In this kind of crime drama, charm can take up so much attention that the businesses and audiences rewarding it receive only a quick inspection. The surrounding stories help, though they cannot answer every question the script raises about health and trust.

That leaves a series we would recommend to anyone drawn to dramas about deception, with a warning about its restless telling. Dever gives Belle enough recognisable human behaviour to make watching her uncomfortable, and the attention paid to those harmed prevents the subject becoming a simple exercise in spotting lies. Watch it for Dever, with some patience for the interruptions.

*Fi1m score 73, published 12 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics respond positively to Apple Cider Vinegar, with praise clustering around Kaitlyn Dever’s portrayal of Belle Gibson. The reviews repeatedly single out her ability to convey public charm alongside private coldness and deception. Supporters also value the black humour, brisk storytelling and attention to the people harmed by wellness misinformation. For these critics, the series makes Gibson’s lies compelling without treating their consequences lightly, while showing why vulnerable people might believe her.

The spread is wide, however, and the chief disagreement concerns how much the series explains beyond the fraud itself. More reserved reviews find its treatment of wellness culture and social media superficial, even when the performances hold their attention. Variety argues that the fractured chronology and composite characters muddle its message; The Hollywood Reporter finds the shifts in time, tone and theme scattershot. Even some favourable reviews acknowledge structural problems and a slow-building first half.

## Straight answers

**Is Apple Cider Vinegar worth watching?**

*Apple Cider Vinegar* is worth watching for anyone drawn to dramas about deception, and we scored it 73. Kaitlyn Dever makes the wellness fraudster Belle Gibson charming enough to be unsettling, and the series takes seriously the people harmed by her lie. The jumping through time keeps interrupting the characters we most want to understand, so bring some patience.

**How long is Apple Cider Vinegar, and what is it rated?**

*Apple Cider Vinegar* has episodes of about 1h 00m. It is a drama and crime series.

**Where can I watch Apple Cider Vinegar in Estonia?**

*Apple Cider Vinegar* is streaming on Netflix in Estonia. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Apple Cider Vinegar, and is it suitable for children?**

*Apple Cider Vinegar* is a 15 certificate in the UK and TV-MA in the US, so it is not for children. There is no violence to speak of; the discomfort comes from watching a woman fake cancer and from the illness and grief of those who believe her. Older teenagers who can handle a serious drama about health misinformation should be fine.

**How does Apple Cider Vinegar compare to The Dropout?**

*Apple Cider Vinegar* is the messier and more playful of the two, while [*The Dropout*](https://film.one/tv/the-dropout) is the tidier and more orderly. Both rest on a persuasive central performance, Kaitlyn Dever here and Amanda Seyfried there, and both make falling for a health fraud comprehensible rather than foolish. Choose *The Dropout* for a clear account of what happened, and *Apple Cider Vinegar* if you want more attention paid to the people who were harmed.

### Reviews we read (14)

- **The Guardian** (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the series as a fast, witty and furious dramatisation of Belle Gibson's story, highlighting Kaitlyn Dever's masterly central performance. It is commended for balancing understanding of the character's flaws with condemnation of the harms caused by wellness misinformation. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/06/apple-cider-vinegar-review-wellness-scammer-belle-gibson-netflix)
- **The Independent** (85/100, inferred): The critic deems it necessary viewing in an era of misinformation and health scammers, praising its smart, timely take on post-truth culture through the Belle Gibson story. It highlights the agile production style, fourth-wall breaking and strong performances, especially Kaitlyn Dever's. [Read](https://independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/apple-cider-vinegar-netflix-kaitlyn-dever-review-b2692801.html)
- **Radio Times**, David Craig (4/5): The attention-gripping miniseries embraces the surreality of the central lies without minimising the harm and heartbreak they caused, offset by well-pitched black humour. Kaitlyn Dever excels at conveying both the charming public persona and colder private side of the lead character. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/apple-cider-vinegar-review/)
- **The Telegraph** (80/100, inferred): The review calls it a superb depiction of the wellness blogger who faked cancer and an innovative retelling that shows how and why the fraud occurred. It succeeds through a sensational performance from Kaitlyn Dever and its focus on truth, lies and misinformation. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2025/02/03/apple-cider-vinegar-netflix-review/)
- **Empire**, Sophie Butcher (75/100, inferred): The glossy Netflix series about wellness influencers and deception offers plenty to enjoy thanks to its polished telling and magnetic central performance from Kaitlyn Dever, who captures the jittery, charming energy of the lead character. It decentres the main scammer effectively to highlight the tragic stories around her and shows empathy for why people fall for such claims. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/tv/reviews/apple-cider-vinegar/)
- **Evening Standard**, Hayley Spencer (70/100, inferred): The series offers a compelling look at a serial scammer through Kaitlyn Dever's convincing performance as Belle Gibson, blending farce with real teeth in its tale of lies and fame. It contrasts wellness delusions with mainstream medicine while underscoring the ongoing relevance of misinformation. [Read](https://standard.co.uk/culture/tvfilm/apple-cider-vinegar-netflix-review-kaitlyn-dever-b1208434.html)
- **The Times** (70/100, inferred): The series lays bare the devastating impact of online disinformation through its depiction of convicted scammer Belle Gibson. It presents an enraging portrait of a wellness guru who faked cancer. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/apple-cider-vinegar-review-netflix-belle-gibson-3hdsj9mp5)
- **IndieWire**, Proma Khosla (C+): The series benefits from Kaitlyn Dever's compelling lead performance as Belle Gibson but delivers a soapy, surface-level take on wellness culture and social media with timeline-jumping structure and familiar scammer tropes. [Read](https://indiewire.com/criticism/shows/apple-cider-vinegar-review-social-media-netflix-1235092289)
- **The AV Club**, Saloni Gajjar (C+): The limited series provides only skin-deep insights into the influencer industry and Munchausen syndrome despite strong performances from Dever and Alycia Debnam-Carey; it is an addictive but frustrating watch that feels like a slow-motion car crash. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/apple-cider-vinegar-review-netflix-tv)
- **Variety**, Alison Herman (50/100, inferred): Despite a strong central performance, the series ends up muddled due to an unfocused structure that fractures the narrative over time and fails to settle on a framing device, diffusing its message about wellness culture and medical misinformation. It surrounds the lead with composite characters that tend to muddle rather than augment the points being made. [Read](https://variety.com/2025/tv/tv-reviews/apple-cider-vinegar-review-netflix-belle-gibson-1236283534/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Angie Han (40/100, inferred): The based-on-a-true-story drama veers all over the place in time, tone and theme, serving up a little bit of everything but not enough of anything to fully sink its teeth into, making it feel scattershot and a bit stale. Dever's performance is persuasive, but the psychological portrait doesn't run deep and the multipronged approach gets frenetic without pushing hard enough on its smarter ideas about a toxic system. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/apple-cider-vinegar-review-netflix-kaitlyn-dever-1236123103/)
- **Vulture** (40/100, inferred): The Netflix series rehashes a familiar scammer story with structural flaws, over-explanatory dialogue, and superficial treatment of wellness culture and social media, adding little new insight beyond typical streaming fare. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/article/apple-cider-vinegar-netflix-review.html)
- **NME**, Rhian Daly (80/100, inferred): The critic finds the limited series a compelling, knotty tale that deftly combines true crime, drama and thriller elements into a timely reminder about the dangers of trusting social media wellness stories. It praises the strong central performance and nuanced exploration of the characters involved. [Read](https://www.nme.com/reviews/tv-reviews/apple-cider-vinegar-review-netflix-kaitlyn-dever-3834657)
- **Collider**, Jeff Ewing (7/10): Strong performances, especially Kaitlyn Dever's layered portrayal of the fraudster, elevate the emotional true-crime drama focused on victims, but structural issues and a slow-building first half blunt its impact and leave it short of its potential. [Read](https://collider.com/apple-cider-vinegar-netflix-review/)

## Details

- **Created by:** Samantha Strauss
- **Creator:** Samantha Strauss
- **Director:** Jeffrey Walker
- **Writer:** Samantha Strauss, Anya Beyersdorf, Angela Betzien
- **Music:** Cornel Wilczek
- **Producer:** Yvonne Collins
- **Cast:** Kaitlyn Dever as Belle Gibson; Alycia Debnam-Carey as Milla Blake; Aisha Dee as Chanelle; Mark Coles Smith as Justin; Tilda Cobham-Hervey as Lucy; Chai Hansen as Arlo; Matthew Nable as Joe; Ashley Zukerman as Clive
- **Runtime:** 1h 00m
- **Release (Estonia):** 6 February 2025
- **Genres:** Drama, Crime
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2Yj_rmCzhE

## Where to watch in Estonia

- Netflix: streaming

*Checked 2026-09-12.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, AZ, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## If you liked this

- *The Dropout* (2022), Fi1m 70: Another persuasive performance makes fraudulent health promises difficult to dismiss as simple foolishness. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/tv/the-dropout.md)
- *Shattered Glass* (2003): For the everyday charm and professional cowardice that let a liar continue.
- *The Imposter* (2012): A documentary that makes believing an unlikely story feel disturbingly understandable.
- *F for Fake* (1973): A playful examination of fraud that keeps our own credulity in view.
- *A Face in the Crowd* (1957): A sharper, angrier look at what happens when charm becomes public authority.

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/tv/apple-cider-vinegar