Interested in streaming Tom Holland’s new thriller series The Crowded Room, on Apple TV Plus? You might want to rethink that.
The TV show, which debuts with a three-episode premiere on June 9, hasn’t been well received by critics. In fact, based on its early (and absolutely brutal) 8% Rotten Tomatoes score, The Crowded Room is one of Apple’s biggest TV Original duds. Maybe the popular Marvel actor should stick to swinging through the Manhattan skyline as Spider-Man instead.
Still, while The Crowded Room might not be worth watching, there are numerous other mind-bending thrillers that are must-see television. Below, we’ve rounded up six of the best, which you can stream right now on Netflix, Max, Prime Video, and more. You can thank us later.
You (Netflix)
Originally a Lifetime TV Original, this psychological thriller series made the leap to Netflix after its critically acclaimed first season and hasn’t looked back.
Based on Caroline Kepnes’ book of the same name, You follows Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley), a bookstore manager/serial killer who becomes obsessed with aspiring writer Guinevere Beck (Elizabeth Leil). Cue a toxic infatuation that leads to social media and in-person stalking, as well as Joe removing any obstacles in the way of him being with Guinevere.
Things only escalate – and get more sinister – from there. Subsequent seasons see Joe attempt to escape his past and start over (with a new identity in a new country) with each 10-episode installment. There’s a reason this is one of the best Netflix shows ever made. Take it from us: you’ll be hooked after You’s opening episode.
Seasons on Netflix: 4
Dead Ringers (Prime Video)
A remake of David Cronenberg’s beloved 1988 psychological thriller, this Prime Video TV show is a chilling, gory, and dark comedy-style series that proves – if there was doubt – how talented Rachel Weisz is.
The Mummy and Black Widow alumnus stars as twin sisters Beverly and Elliot Mantle, gynecologists who share everything: drugs, lovers, and an unashamed desire to push the boundaries of medical ethics.
To say much more about Dead Ringers would be to spoil its best and most shocking moments. Rest assured, though, it’s a fantastically unpredictable story, which Weisz revels in as the show’s dual leads. It’s not one for the faint of heart and/or those of a squeamish disposition, however, so watch the trailer above first to see if this is the type of thrilling TV series you’d be macabrely entertained by. One to watch out for on our best Prime Video shows list.
Seasons on Prime Video: 1
The Flight Attendant (Max)
After spending a decade as The Big Bang Theory’s Penny, Kaley Cuoco proved her acting mettle with a stunning lead performance in this dark-comedy mystery thriller.
In The Flight Attendant, Cuoco portrays Cassie Bowden, a reckless alcoholic who drinks on the job and regularly has sex with strangers, including passengers on the flights she works on. However, when she wakes up in a Bangkok hotel room, after one such fling, next to a dead body, Cassie embarks on a quest to determine what happened and who the killer is. Oh, and stay out of the reach of the FBI, who have installed her as the number one suspect. No pressure, then.
A terrific thriller that deserves its place on our best Max shows list (and more than the two awards it’s scooped up since its late 2020 debut), The Flight Attendant is an underrated, suspense-filled, and amusing series that soars high.
Seasons on Max: 2 (also available on Now TV in the UK and Binge in Australia)
Killing Eve (Disney Plus)
Based on Luke Jennings’ Villanelle novel series, this multi-award-winning BBC spy thriller is one of the greatest TV shows to be made on British shores in years.
Sandra Oh plays Eve Polastri, a British Intelligence investigator tasked with catching Villanelle (Jodie Comer), a psychopathic assassin. However, the ensuing game of cat and mouse sees a mutual obsession develop between the two, which threatens the separate missions they’re on.
A surprisingly seductive, audacious, and at times extremely witty thriller, Killing Eve takes big, ambitious swings with its storytelling, themes, and action that deliver at every turn. Seasons 3 and 4 aren’t as strong as those preceding them, but there are enough thrills and spills – coupled with what transpires in its electrifying first two entries – that make it absolutely worth streaming on Disney Plus.
Seasons on Disney Plus: 2 (also available on Netflix (2 seasons) and BBC iPlayer (4 seasons) in the UK, Hulu (4 seasons) in the US, and Stan (4 seasons) in Australia)
Yellowjackets (Paramount Plus)
Embodying the spirit of early 2000s megahit Lost, this Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson-developed Paramount Plus series is satisfyingly multifaceted in its makeup.
Yellowjackets tells the 1996 story of a group of New Jersey high schoolers who, after their plane crashes in the Canadian wilderness, are forced to survive by any gruesome and unethical means necessary. Like Lost, the show also flashes forward to 2021, following the lives of those who were eventually rescued.
Equal parts horror, mystery-thriller, and psychological drama, the spellbindingly fantastic Yellowjackets has proven to be a big hit among viewers. Its primarily female cast, including Arcane’s Ella Purnell, The Last of Us’ Melanie Lynskey, and The Addams Family’s Christina Ricci, are all on top form in a show that’ll shock you in numerous ways. Stick one of the best Paramount Plus shows on your watchlist ASAP.
Seasons on Paramount Plus: 2 (also streamable on Now TV in the UK, and Showtime and Fubo in the US)
Homeland (Hulu)
The oldest entry on this list (and a Showtime Original), Homeland is a stone-cold classic political thriller series that’s a must-see show for every kind of TV fan.
Claire Danes stars as Carrie Mathison, a CIA operative who conducts an unauthorized mission in Iraq and is subsequently transferred to the organization’s counterterrorism center. There, she begins to unravel the mysterious case surrounding Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis), a US sergeant reported missing in action in 2003 who, after being rescued, is hailed a war hero by the press and the wider US population.
A twisting and turning eight-season show, Homeland is an expertly crafted thriller that spoke to the politically-charged global atmosphere of the late 2000s and early 2010s. A tense and ground-breakingly intriguing series that asks audiences to solve its multi-sided puzzle before Mathison can, Homeland raised the bar for the espionage-based political thrillers that followed. Some seasons are more middling than others but, as an overall package, it’s a mesmeric piece of television and easily one of the best Hulu shows around.
Seasons on Hulu: 8 (also watchable on Showtime and Fubo in the US, Disney Plus in Australia, and Netflix in the UK)
