REVIEW: 'Steal' Delivers A Clever Heist Thriller With Missed Potential
- Moriba Forde
- 4 minutes ago
- 4 min read
When you find yourself wondering how an ordinary day can become the worst day of your life, look at Steal, the new series on Prime Video.
Prime Video's new crime thriller follows Zara Dunne, a mild-mannered employee at Lochmill Capital, a pension fund investment company, who becomes entangled in a grand heist to rob 4 billion pounds of pensions. She and her best friend, Luke, become persons of interest for DCI Rhys Covac, who discovers the nature of the crime goes deeper than anything he could have expected. Created and written by Sotiris Nikias, Steal stars Sophie Turner as Zara Dunne, Archie Madekwe as Luke, and Jacob Fortune-Lloyd as DCI Rhys Covac.
The series boasts a brilliant plot with striking realism and excellent performances from the cast, led by the amazing Sophie Turner. Unfortunately, after starting with a bang in the pilot episode, Steal becomes stagnant and struggles to regain momentum.
Steal Ignites A Spark To No Explosion
The pilot feels like a prologue to a Die Hard movie, with the notable exception of John McClain. There are no heroes; only villains and victims. Palpable dread ensues when we see these ordinary employees going about their day-to-day business, being held at gunpoint by heartless criminals conspiring to rob billions of pension funds. The entire episode is a breathtaking introduction to a crime thriller that has something unique to offer. Given the excellence of the story, performances, and gripping suspense, this should have been a movie by all accounts. Unfortunately, the following episodes travel through uncertain terrain.
Steal, initially presenting itself as a heist epic, is revealed to be an ambitious conspiracy thriller that ironically peaks with its introduction, only to get lost in the pursuit of its potential. Sotiris Nikias and his creative team are undoubtedly rich in talent, but it feels like their ideas were left depleted after outdoing themselves in episode 1.
Without going into spoiler territory, Steal's first episode ends with a jaw-dropping twist that can whet anyone's appetite for an exciting freshman season; however, the story moves backward when it should have been moving forward. While there are sporadic glimpses of similar energy to the pilot, they fade quickly. The series mostly drags on, following a non-linear approach from episode 2 onwards.
Our Faces In The Crowd
Although the narrative loses momentum, the performances by Sophie Turner, Archie Madekwe, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, and the supporting cast remain consistent. Their performances are thoughtful and precise, so audiences can see themselves in their characters and experience the severity of this nightmare scenario.
Sophie Turner stands out as the protagonist, Zara Dunne. She is a terrified social butterfly caught in a messy web between life and death. As mentioned earlier, there are no heroes. Zara is anything but John McClain. She is simply trying to survive and minimize the risks of her friends and colleagues getting hurt. Zara, being front and center, showcases Turner's range and ability to lead a series of this genre. Her screen presence adds a redeeming quality to Steal, allowing viewers to remain invested in her character throughout the first season.
Archie Madekwe is also convincing as Luke, Zara's best friend. He presents an interesting contrast to her as he reacts differently to the crisis without compromising natural human instincts. He is understandably a mess, as Madekwe makes us fear for his character's life by being frantic 95% of his screen time.
As Steal shifts into a grander corporate conspiracy, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd's DCI Rhys Covac arguably becomes the protagonist. Fortunate-Lloyd does a great job of conveying the weight of the world on Cavac's shoulders through his character portrayal. Underneath his bravado is a detective who takes the case personally. Pardon the third Die Hard reference, but Covac feels like he wishes he were John McClain so he could have been there to stop the villains.
Steal Starts Strong But Misses The Mark
The heist thriller is worth watching for Sophie Turner, Archie Madekwe, and Jacob Fortune-Lloyd's acting. The cast reacts how any of us would in a disaster that no one should be in, while having identities they can call their own.
Steal should have been a great series. The elements for making a hit are present: a solid hook, a unique plot, an unpredictable twist, high stakes, and amazing talent from the cast. Keeping those elements together proves to be a challenge, considering how inconsistent the story structure became following the brilliance of the first episode. Hope is not lost; the potential is still there, waiting to be fully realized.
All six episodes of Steal, Season 1, will be released on January 21 on Prime Video.
About Steal
Premiere Date: January 21, 2026
Episode Count: 6
Executive Producers: Greg Brenman, Rebecca de Souza
Writers: Sotiris Nikias
Director: Hettie Macdonald, Sam Miller
Production: Amazon MGM Studios, & Drama Republic
Distribution: Prime Video
Cast: Sophie Turner, Archie Madekwe, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd
Synopsis: A high-octane, heart-pounding thriller about the heist of the century. A typical day at Lochmill Capital is upended when armed thieves burst in and force Zara (Sophie Turner) and her best friend Luke (Archie Madekwe) to execute their demands. In the aftermath, conflicted detective Rhys (Jacob Fortune-Lloyd) races against time to find out who stole 4 billion pounds of people’s pensions and why.
