Scripted series · SundanceTV
Top of the Lake
No ordinary place. No ordinary crime.
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Elisabeth Moss
Det. Robin Griffin
13 eps
David Wenham
Det. Al Parker
7 eps
Peter Mullan
Matt Mitcham
7 eps
Holly Hunter
GJ
7 eps
Lucy Lawless
Caroline Platt
7 eps
Thomas M. Wright
Johnno Mitcham
7 eps
Skye Wansey
Grishina
7 eps
Geneviève Lemon
Bunny
7 eps
Robyn Malcolm
Anita
7 eps
David Dencik
Alexander "Puss"
6 eps
Nicole Kidman
Julia
6 eps
Gwendoline Christie
Miranda
6 eps
Alice Englert
Mary
6 eps
Linda Ngo
Sinn
6 eps
Jacqueline Joe
Tui
6 eps
Jenny Wu
Kiki
6 eps
Eddie Campbell
Putty
7 eps
Robyn Nevin
Jude Griffin
7 eps
Jay Ryan
Mark
6 eps
Edwin Wright
Scuzz
1 eps
Kirin Callinan
Liam
1 eps
Di Adams
Shelly
1 eps
Zoe Carides
Sylvia
1 eps
Michelle Lim Davidson
Linda
1 eps
Ling Cooper Tang
Dang
5 eps
Liv Hewson
Michaela
3 eps
Victoria Abbott
Kristy
1 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How Top of the Lake actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
Top of the Lake reads strongest on Tension, Cliffhanger Intensity and Bingeability.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
The story
What it's about
A woman haunted by her past, Detective Robin Griffin, investigates complex and unsettling cases.
The run
Seasons
2 seasons · 13 episodes.
- Poster unavailableSpecials
Season 0 · Unannounced
Specials
1 episode
Season 1 · Complete
Season 1
20137 episodes
7.2IMDbWhile visiting her dying mother in New Zealand, Detective Robin Griffin begins investigating the disappearance of Tui Mitcham, a twelve-year-old pregnant girl from the small town of Laketop.
Best episode · S01E07 Top of the Lake
Season 2 · Complete
Season 2: China Girl
20176 episodes
6.8IMDbSeason two begins four years on from the explosive ending of season one. Detective Robin Griffin has returned to Sydney attempting to rebuild her life. When the unidentified body of an Asian girl washes up onto Sydney’s Bondi Beach, the case seems hopeless, until detective Robin Griffin discovers that China Girl didn’t die alone.
Best episode · S02E06 The Battle of the Mothers
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S01E07
Top of the Lake
Tui is about to give birth. Matt reveals a secret that almost destroys Robin. The investigation reaches its shocking conclusion.
- Directed by Jane Campion
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S01E02
Searchers Search
As Tui's disappearance remains unsolved, fear for her survival increases, while her father solicits help, Robin has a run-in with the girl's half-brother and a perverted local.
- Directed by Jane Campion, Garth Davis
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E06
The Battle of the Mothers
Robin and Pyke are desperate to find out if hostage Mary is alive, while Adrian struggles to make sense of the crime scene at Silk 41. As dawn breaks, the gunman is on the loose in Bondi and the beach is about to be flooded with people.
- Directed by Jane Campion
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S01E04
A Rainbow Above Us
A violent indiscretion sees Robin thrown off the case but she cannot let go. Her passionate affair with Johnno, Tui's half-brother, intensifies and complicates.
- Directed by Jane Campion, Garth Davis
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S01E06
No Goodbyes Thanks
With fresh intelligence on where Tui’s hiding, Matt launches a full-scale search party. Before Robin can intervene, tragedy strikes.
- Directed by Jane Campion, Garth Davis
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E03
Surrogate
Robin is galvanised by her theory that China Girl is a surrogate and ignores the threat of Al Parker’s imminent case against her. Mary accuses Robin of being manipulated by Pyke and Julia into believing Alexander is dangerous.
- Directed by Ariel Kleiman
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
Recently aired
Latest Episodes
S02E06
The Battle of the Mothers
- Directed by Jane Campion
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E05
Who's Your Daddy?
- Directed by Jane Campion
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E04
Birthday
- Directed by Ariel Kleiman
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E03
Surrogate
- Directed by Ariel Kleiman
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E02
The Loved One
- Directed by Ariel Kleiman
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
S02E01
China Girl
- Directed by Jane Campion
- Written by Jane Campion, Gerard Lee
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Iain CanningExecutive Producer
- Philippa CampbellProducer
- Emile ShermanExecutive Producer
- Jane CampionExecutive Producer
Writing
- Jane CampionWriter
- Gerard LeeWriter
Direction
- Ariel KleimanDirector
- Jane CampionDirector
- Garth DavisDirector
Recognition
Awards
1 win
Golden Nymph for Best Mini Series
1 win · latest 2014
- WinnerGolden Nymph for Best Mini Series2014
Top of the Lake · Top of the Lake
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- HuluStreaming
- Amazon VideoBuy
- Apple TV StoreBuy
- Google Play MoviesBuy
- Fandango At HomeBuy
If you liked this
Similar Series
Series that share this one's texture, not just its genre tags.
Shetland
2013
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
The Killing
2011
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Vera
2011
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Unforgettable
2011
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Cold Case
2003
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Broadchurch
2013
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries
2012
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Ripper Street
2012
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Grantchester
2014
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
The Missing
2014
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
The Bridge
2011
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
River
2015
Moral complexity · Slow-burn mystery
Where to go from here
Watch Next
Our editors' suggestion for the show you should start tonight — and why.
The Rookie
2018
Another morally complex epic for anyone who wanted more grey.
Castle
2009
Watch this next if you like protagonists you can't quite defend.
The Mentalist
2008
A crime story told with the patience of a novel.
The Blacklist
2013
Another morally complex epic for anyone who wanted more grey.
Peaky Blinders
2013
Watch this next if you like protagonists you can't quite defend.
9-1-1
2018
A crime story told with the patience of a novel.
Never stop watching
Related Collections
No related collections yet
This title isn't in a published Nutevio collection yet. It will appear here automatically as soon as it is.
Join the conversation