Ricky Gervais’ Netflix animated series ‘Alley Cats’ draws mixed reviews amid fan support

Ricky Gervais in 2019Ricky Gervais has dismissed some of the scathing criticism he has come under since the release of his new show Alley Cats.While the Office creator has long been a divisive figure in the comedy world, his animated Netflix series about a group of cynical feline friends living on the streets of London has received some of the worst reviews of his career.In the weeks since, Ricky has made it clear that he stands by the project, and in an X post, laughed off a piece in The Spectator about Alley Cats, which pondered: “What has happened to Ricky Gervais?”On Wednesday, he shared a graphic titled “25 years of Ricky Gervais being finished… critical headlines predicting his decline” which listed various publications’ harsher reviews of his work dating all the way back to 2001, alongside a laughing emoji.He then shared a follow-up post insisting that “word of mouth” has “really started to kick in” when it comes to Alley Cats.“[That’s] still the best marketing there is,” he claimed. “Give it a watch if you haven’t already and see what all the fuss is about. Oh, and post a photo of your cat watching too. I like that.”😂 pic.twitter.com/rWma0oLxl9— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) August 19, 2026'Word of mouth' has really started to kick in with #AlleyCats 👊 Still the best marketing there is. Give it a watch if you haven't already and see what all the fuss is about. Oh, and post a photo of your cat watching too. I like that 😂 pic.twitter.com/jN15r4Shwl— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) August 19, 2026Despite the scathing reviews, when Alley Cats premiered on Netflix at the beginning of this month, it slowly ascended the platform’s chart of most-watched series, before reaching the number one spot.At the time of writing, it has fallen out of the top 10, which currently includes the new season of Love Is Blind UK, the Harlan Coben mystery I Will Find You, and documentaries about football icon Jose Mourinho, cult leader Charles Manson and the murder of four students at an Idaho university in 2022.Ricky has a long-standing relationship with Netflix, with whom he’s previously collaborated on the award-winning series After Life and a number of stand-up specials.READ MORE:Wait... Could Ricky Gervais' Alley Cats Actually Get A Season 2 On Netflix?Martin Freeman Admits He Was 'Annoyed' At Ricky Gervais' Claim About The OfficeRicky Gervais Had A Unique Way Of Keeping The BBC At Bay When He Was Making The Office

He was once the king of comedy, but his new Netflix series Alley Cats shows just how far the creator of The Office has fallen

Ricky Gervais' new comedy Alley Cats centres around a group of animated feline friendsIt might not always have been for the reasons a creator would want, but Ricky Gervais’ new comedy Alley Cats has been one of the most talked-about TV shows around for the last couple of weeks.The animated Netflix sitcom centres around a group of surly, foul-mouthed cats living on the streets of London, featuring an all-star cast who’ve lent their voices to the show.Upon its release, Alley Cats was absolutely slated by critics, with a smattering of one- and even zero-star reviews going in on everything from its humour to its general tone – a stark contrast to the acclaim Ricky has become accustomed to for his TV shows like The Office, Extras and After Life.Meanwhile, the man himself has jumped to the defence of his latest comedy creation, hitting back at critics on social media, while pointing out that in the days after its release, it sprung to the top of Netflix’s most-watched chart (at the time of writing, in the UK, it has fallen to number four, behind the new episodes of My Life With The Walter Boys and documentaries about cult leader Charles Manson and football legend José Mourinho).As a result of its apparent popularity with Netflix users, some may now be speculating whether a second run of episodes could be on the cards.Will there be a season 2 of Alley Cats on Netflix?Well, Netflix hasn’t actually confirmed or denied whether Alley Cats will be returning at the moment, although Ricky has previously made clear that he’d like the show to run and run.“It’s the first thing I’ve ever created that I’d like to go on forever. I can see myself just making this show till I die,” he said in a YouTube video days after the series premiered.He pointed out: “The cats won’t age and it doesn’t matter how fat and old and bald I get. Someone can just put me in a chair with a microphone, surrounded by the rest of the cast, and off we go.“It won’t really matter when senility kicks in as I’m usually talking bollocks anyway. It’s the dream job.”Ricky GervaisAs for whether or not Netflix would actually greenlight more episodes, that remains to be seen.While on one thing, you might think the scathing reviews would be a deterrent, Netflix has repeatedly given multiple seasons to projects that have failed to impress critics, while a string of others have been axed in their primedespite glowing receptions.It’s also probably worth keeping in mind that Ricky has an existing relationship with Netflix, having previously collaborated with the streaming giant on his award-winning series After Life, recently voted the best comedy of modern times by Radio Times, as well as numerous stand-up comedy specials.Regardless of what happens next, Ricky has made it clear that he stands by Alley Cats, and has claimed that he’s “never been so happy” as he was to see it topping Netflix’s most-watched shows chart.READ MORE:Our Guide To The 11 Must-See TV Shows And Films Coming To Netflix In August 2026Ricky Gervais Shrugs Off Alley Cats Reviews As His New Comedy Is Mauled By Critics

Ricky Gervais was delighted to see Alley Cats in the number one slot on Netflix despite critics dismissing it

Ricky Gervais’ new animated TV series Alley Cats may have drawn fire from critics, but one comedy legend has come out to bat for the show. Critics have had their knives out for Netflix’s politically incorrect dark comedy, which debuted over the weekend. The show has only a 39% score on Metacritic with The Telegraph […]

Ricky Gervais pictured ahead of the Golden Globes in 2020Ricky Gervais is standing by his new comedy Alley Cats, despite the absolute slating it’s received from critics.The creator of The Office, Extras and After Life premiered his new animated series last week, depicting a group of foul-mouthed stray cats living on the streets of London.Upon its release, Alley Cats was near-unanimously mauled by critics, many of whom branded it “smug” and needlessly “crude” in a smattering of one- and even zero-star reviews.Ahead of its release on Friday morning, Ricky posted on X: “If you watch Alley Cats and you get offended at any point, just remember that 1, It’s just a cartoon about cats, and 2, you’re an adult, and can take it.”If you watch Alley Cats and you get offended at any point, just remember that 1, It’s just a cartoon about cats, and 2, you’re an adult, and can take it 😂 pic.twitter.com/RxwJutHO1I— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) August 7, 2026He then spent the next few days reposting praise for the show, including one comment by the actor James Dreyfus, who lambasted “pronoun wankers” he claimed were “raging about Alley Cats”, which he described as “a brilliant new cartoon series” and “wickedly funny, very rude and unexpectedly moving” (it’s perhaps worth noting in this instance that even more right-leaning outlets, such as The Telegraph and GB News, were heavily critical of Alley Cats upon its return).Eventually, once Alley Cats made it to the top spot on Netflix’s in-platform chart of most-watched shows, Ricky commented on Sunday morning: “Oh. My. God.  I’ve never been so happy. Best fans in the fucking world.”The following morning, he wrote: “Millions of you watched Alley Cats last night and kept it at number one. That has annoyed a few people. You should be ashamed of yourselves.”Oh. My. God. I’ve never been so happy. Best fans in the fucking world 🌎 #AlleyCats ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Y8VTngLLkR— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) August 9, 2026Millions of you watched #AlleyCats last night and kept it at number 1. That has annoyed a few people. You should be ashamed of yourselves. pic.twitter.com/wAhOxZNpEW— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) August 10, 2026In an interview with The Times – which gave Alley Cats a more forgiving three-star review, but questioned whether some might find it to be “too much” – published ahead of Alley Cats’ release, Ricky also remarked: “I’m sure many people will find many things to be offended by – with some people it’s their job.”He added: “It doesn’t bother me, no. It’s inevitable and a bit boring now. But the funny thing is they’ll have to say, ‘I was offended by what a fictional cartoon cat said.’ I can’t wait for that.”READ MORE:The Claws Are Out For Ricky Gervais' 'Abysmal' And 'Crude' New Netflix SeriesMartin Freeman Admits He Was 'Annoyed' At Ricky Gervais' Claim About The OfficeRicky Gervais Had A Unique Way Of Keeping The BBC At Bay When He Was Making The Office

Show has received a slew of one star reviews

The After Life creator, 65, returned to the box with the animated sitcom Ricky Gervais: Alley Cats, which centers around a rag-tag bunch of London street cats.

The After Life creator, 65, returned to the box with the animated sitcom Ricky Gervais: Alley Cats, which centers around a rag-tag bunch of London street cats.

There are six 15-minute episodes and, because it's Gervais, I kept waiting for it to get funny.  It'll get funny any moment now, I told myself, encouragingly. It never did.

There are six 15-minute episodes and, because it's Gervais, I kept waiting for it to get funny.  It'll get funny any moment now, I told myself, encouragingly. It never did.

Ricky Gervais' new comedy Alley Cats has not exactly gone down well with criticsRicky Gervais is back on Netflix – or, at least, his voice is.The creator of iconic comedies like The Office, Extras and Afterlife’s latest project is Alley Cats, a foul-mouthed feline-themed animated comedy.When a lost orphan kitten can’t find her way home, a group of cynical alley cats take her in and show her the ropes.Featuring voices from comedy like Diane Morgan, Tom Basden and Kerry Godliman, Alley Cats features all of Ricky’s trademark musings about religion, mortality and nihilism.On paper it has all the ingredients to be a hit, but the reviews for Alley Cats are less than positive.In fact, the general consensus is that Alley Cats is “abysmal”, “crude” and “smug”, with critics’ one- and even zero-star reviews suggesting that the series struggles to walk the line between its cynicism and its oversentimentality.So, just how bad is Alley Cats? Here is what the reviews are saying so far…The Telegraph (0/5)“Ricky Gervais’s abysmal Netflix cartoon is the worst thing to happen to cats since Cats.”Metro (1/5)“Alley Cats isn’t poor, it isn’t rubbish, it’s not shit (or even a shitcom to quote Andy Millman); it’s the worst thing I’ve watched on television this year. As such, I had absolutely no fun watching this – even to mock it.”Radio Times (1/5)“This makes other Ricky Gervais comedy dramas look like Tolstoy.”The i“You’ve heard of the manosphere? Well, somehow, via the medium of cartoon cats lounging about in a derelict house watching TV, Gervais has created the Catosphere, made up of a gang of miserable, offensive, toxic cats who have nothing better to do than spout their diatribe all day. “This is just an aimless Ricky Gervais podcast channelled through cartoon felines.”The Independent (1/5)“Watching the abrasive, smug and completely mirthless new Netflix cartoon from the British comedy titan, I found it genuinely impossible to tell. Is this the work of a man who has lost all creative mooring, awash in his own self-belief? Or is it the work of a canny grifter-cynic, a man who has watched audiences lap up all his crudest, hokiest impulses in projects like Derek and After Life, and thought, ‘let’s just give the people what they want’?”The Guardian (2/5)“There are glimmers of potential in this comedy about a potty-mouthed feline gang. But not even the great voice cast or a cute kitten can save it from being lazy, crude and boring.”One critic has called Alley Cats "the worst thing to happen to cats since Cats"Esquire“Alley Cats has two modes. There are bits where the cats sit around and riff on taboo subjects and swear a lot. And then there are emotional bits and folksy homilies to friends and family, sections which feel as badly undernourished as these poor strays.”The Hollywood Reporter“The show follows its own unhurried rhythm, turning on a dime between casually vicious and ooey-gooey sweet. But lacking the creative depth to make either tone land, it winds up a comedy of existential angst that’s rarely all that funny and only occasionally kind of moving.”Variety“Alley Cats doesn’t just revel in the nastiness of feral life. The show also depicts its hardships with disarming frankness, even verging on despondency. Sometimes, this undercurrent of gloom tips over into outright nihilism.”What’s On Netflix (3.5/5)“While this specific brand of comedy won’t be for everyone, it certainly landed for me. The meatier, angrier discussions elicited genuine laugh-out-loud moments evenly across all six episodes.”All six episodes of Alley Cats are now streaming on Netflix.READ MORE:Our Guide To The 11 Must-See TV Shows And Films Coming To Netflix In August 2026Martin Freeman Admits He Was 'Annoyed' At Ricky Gervais' Claim About The OfficeRicky Gervais Had A Unique Way Of Keeping The BBC At Bay When He Was Making The Office

There are glimmers of potential in this comedy about a potty-mouthed feline gang. But not even the great voice cast or a cute kitten can save it from being lazy, crude and boringI suppose the question is really: what do you do after redefining comedy for your era? After The Office, that exquisitely observed, agonising, heartbreaking, hilarious examination of the human condition co-created with Stephen Merchant, Ricky Gervais managed Extras – off-peak but still great – and then continued a downward trajectory that his latest offering, Alley Cats, does nothing to arrest.You can see what the six-episode animated series about a gang of homeless cats wants to be. It wants to be an exquisitely observed, agonising, heartbreaking, hilarious examination of the human condition. But it can’t be bothered. Easier by far, especially as it’s on Netflix and unshackled from mainstream broadcasters’ rules about swearing, to call everyone a C-word and sigh at the inevitability/sweet release of death every five minutes. Nihilism – gotcha! So dark, man, so edgy!Alley Cats is on Netflix Continue reading...

‘The Office’ and ‘After Life star’s new series features animation that’s as crude as the gags The post ‘Alley Cats’ review: look what Ricky Gervais has dragged in appeared first on NME.

Swear-laden cartoon series sees the former ‘Office’ co-creator indulge all his worst instincts