We’re proud to recommend thrillers. There’s nothing more satisfying than feeling on the edge of your seat with tension interspersed by action sequences or high-stakes romance. It’s even better when it’s available in the Bingeable TV Shows format right on Netflix.
Fauda (2015- ).
Fauda is an action thriller about an elite team of undercover Israeli commandos in Palestine. It’s a fast-paced, politically charged melodrama that draws its inspiration from Homeland and 24. Fauda, unlike spy dramas, spends almost as much time on Palestinians than it does on its gun-toting heroes. It has a moral complexity that is often lacking in its simpler American counterparts.
Frontier (2016-2018)
Frontier, a co-production of Discovery Channel Canada and Netflix, is a rousing Netflix documentary on the (literally!) brutal 18th-century North American fur trading. This adventure series shares more similarities with breezy syndicated fare such as Hercules than with Momoa’s star-making Game of Thrones. But if you look closely enough, you will swear that it is Khal Drogo cutting off the poor sap’s ear.
How To Get Away with Murder (2014-2020).
This one is bound to be hot with a title like this. The show, which was created by Peter Nowalk and aired under the Shondaland banner, is about Annalise Keating (a criminal defense lawyer and law professor) and her circle of law students who get entwined with a murder. It’s a legal thriller that packs a punch. The show’s long, multi-Emmy-nominated run produced a steady stream of complicated mysteries, amazing performances, and unexpected twists as Annalise, her friends, and all of them, attempted to evade the law and shed light on conspiracies by the government. They also made peace with their inner demons. This network show is a binge-worthy treat.
Manhunt: Unabomber (2017)
It doesn’t help you remember how to spell Ted Kaczynski. Sometimes you can’t resist binging on a well-paced dramatization of true crime with unlikely actors. We have Avatar‘s Sam Worthington, a determined FBI agent who uses language to find the Unabomber), Avengers Age of Ultron_’s Paul Bettany, a heretic, manifesto-writing Mad Bomber, and Party down_’s Jane Lynch, as Janet Reno.
Marcella (2016- )
Are you a fan of British mysteries that end in eight tightly wound episodes lasting 45 minutes? This is the show for you. This series stars Anna Friel ( pushing Daisies), a London detective who is trying to bounce back from a bad split and turbulent entry into single parenthood. The hard-nosed series combines serial killer investigation with familial struggle.
Mindhunter (2017-2019)
David Fincher is a fan of serial killers. The director of 7, Zodiac and Girl With the Dragon Tattoo helped launch Netflix into original TV. He applied his dark, brooding aesthetics to another kind of sociopath, Francis Underwood, the focal point of House of Cards. In Mindhunter, Fincher (who directed a handful of episodes) follows a young, self-assured FBI agent, Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff); his mentor, Bill Tench (Holt McCallany); and psychologist-turned-consultant Dr. Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) as they establish a division of the Bureau tasked with solving a “new kind of crime” that lacks what most law enforcers think of as rational motives. The best moments are more introspective and meditative. However, the show’s crime-chasing is enough to get your blood pumping.
Money Heist (2017- )
The Spanish-language series is not only one of the most popular non-English series on Netflix. It has also become a global phenomenon that inspired Netflix to create a documentary. The show is about a group of robbers who plan a massive heist. It has inspired many viewers to wear the signature ensemble worn by the cast to pull off various pranks and try to imitate their actions in real life. This kind of pull is rare. Money heist is a great heist thriller. It shows a plot to take hostages at the Royal Mint of Spain to steal and print money. The heist unfolds in thrilling detail. Each character behind the masks is a source of emotional turmoil and makes the series both entertaining and heart-pounding. The Money Heistobsession will inspire you to not only rob a bank but take control.
Narcos (2015-2017)
The story of the drug-stretched history of Colombia under the rule of Pablo Escobar is a thrilling thriller. Wagner Moura, who plays Escobar, is both frightening and compelling. His opposition, two DEA agents, are fighting through a complex mystery to give a terrifying sense of America’s efforts to end the war against drugs. Narcos‘ blend of contemporary fiction and archival footage keeps you interested and reminds you that a literal genocide must have occurred just so that yuppies could drink coke in Hamptons during the ’80s.
The OA (2016-2019).
Stranger Things may seem a bit too simple for you. This sci-fi series by Brit Marling, Zal Batmanglij, and Zal Battglij will make your life a lot more interesting. Marling plays Prairie, a blind woman who is freed from captivity after many years, and starts a youth group for troubled teenagers. The fun doesn’t stop there. Yes, interpretive dancing is possible. Yes, Russia is a subject of strange flashbacks. It will make you wonder and search the internet for answers. Sometimes the most entertaining shows are the ones that you enjoy the most.
Ozark (2017- )
It’s not hard to understand why early critics compared Ozark with Breaking Bad. Both have drug money and morally grey characters. Marty Byrde, a brilliant Chicago-based financial adviser who moves his family to Missouri to cash in on the life or death deadline for Mexico’s second-largest drug cartel, is Jason Bateman’s only real role. He creeps closer to this line as the season progresses. As someone who has been in the underworld for decades and isn’t trying to get it over, his main motivation to do anything is to protect his family. Laura Linney (Marty’s wife), Jason Butler Harner, an undercover cop, and Julia Garner (one of the sketchy families’ substitute dons) all make memorable turns that help this slow-burn story shine over its tense (literally–it seems so black) runtime. Although the Byrde saga may not be as great as its spiritual father, it is still better than many of its cousins (even bloodline). It would be a mistake not to give it a try.
Peaky Blinders (2013- )
Cillian Murphy stars in this early-20th-century period drama as Thomas Shelby, a World War I vet-turned-patriarchal crime boss who wants to up his family’s social and financial status in England. The Shelbys’ story is historical fiction. It was loosely inspired by the exploits of real-life gangs that were based in Birmingham in the late 1800s and early 2000s. Rival bands of thugs fight for underworld influence in a manner that is similar to Game of Thrones. However, the scale of the action here is smaller: there are high-stakes power plays, dirty back-room dealings, gritty tussles, and political power games. The show’s name is derived from the flat caps worn by the Shelbys that had razor blades.
Riverdale (2017- )
Riverdale is a modern CW version of the yuk-yuk teen comic Archie. Although it may sound like a shot at arsenic for prestige TV binge-watchers Riverdale has a murder mystery undercurrent and soap drama worthy Of The O.C. With a sheen that looks similar to Twin Peaks, Riverdale is worth your time. Every young actor is a discovery. Watch Riverdale see how quickly you can browse the comics shelves at your local grocery store within a week.
Snabba Cash (2021- )
Snabba Cash is a Swedish series that was inspired by the 2010 Swedish crime drama Simple Money. It follows Leya (Evin Ahmed) as she attempts to escape the dangerous world of start-ups. A predatory loan can make it difficult to become a “unicorn.” It is a mix of Ozark -style suspense and intrigue. This show might appeal to you if you enjoy either of these shows.
The Sinner (2017- ).
The first episode of The Sinner sees Jessica Biel as Cora Tannetti, who stabs a man in broad daylight while her family is nearby. This series, which was nominated for a Golden Globe, is about the reasons she committed such a horrific act. Cora is awaiting her court appearance. A detective becomes enticed to discover what drove her madness and uncovers an extremely troubled past. As the series unfolds, you will be kept on your toes by an unreliable narration that leads you into a history of events that constantly changes from fact to fiction while remaining horrifying as the truth emerges. Only Bill Pullman’s Detective Harry Ambrose is left, and the series turns into an anthology, but it continues to be focused on cases that inspire ordinary people to commit horrible acts.
Unbelievable (2019)
Merritt Weaver and Toni Collette lead a talented cast. This miniseries adapts the Pulitzer Prize-winning story about a hunt for a serial killer and the frustrating police lapses that could reduce the severity of the crimes. Booksmartbreakout Marie Adler is a victim of rape who pleads guilty to making a false police reporting after authorities question her story. This allows her attacker to continue to operate in another state. Unbelievable is a series that takes a non-judgmental view of the injustices of the justice system, and the struggles many survivors have to go through to be taken seriously. It’s one of your most harrowing viewing experiences on Netflix.
You (2018)
You feel like the Lifetime-best Lifetime show because it was once Lifetime’s original show and only gained its audience when the network sold Netflix the streaming rights, making it a binge-worthy hit. The show’s addictiveness is largely due to your Youunderstanding of how to make any TV show good or bad, right down to its characters (ie. Peach Salinger–yes, like J.D.) cringe freshman English Lit major bookishness to its seriousness. yet juicy serial killer story. Joe, the serial killer with a Dark Past, is a book store employee. He slithers into the lives of a girl and her strange friends before heading to LA, where he will be caught. The best episode is probably the one that features a huge country house, a nearly-threesome, fake suicide, and a character who leaves a jar on a shelf. This is just one episode.
