Slow Horses is a spy thriller dark comedy-drama series written by Will Smith, Morwenna Banks, Mark Denton, and Jonny Stockwood. Based on Mick Herron’s Slough House novel series, the Apple TV+ series follows River Cartwright (Jack Lowden) as he ends up in Slough House after a botched training mission. Slough House is a punishment posting for MI-5 agents who have royally screwed up. The agents working at Slough House are known as Slow Horses, and they are led by Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman), a grumpy old man who once was a brilliant field agent. The series follows Cartwright’s relentless drive to get out of Slough House. So, if you loved the dark humor, intensely thrilling story, and compelling characters in Slow Horses, here are some similar shows you should check out next.
Legends (Netflix)
Legends is a British crime thriller series created by Neil Forsyth. Based on Guy Stanton and Peter Walsh’s 2022 nonfiction book, the Netflix series is set in the early 1990s, and it revolves around a group of customs employees as they recruited into a top-secret organization to go undercover as criminals to stop dangerous gangs from smuggling drugs in Britain. Legends stars Tom Burke, Steve Coogan, Hayley Squires, Aml Ameen, Douglas Hodge, Charlotte Ritchie, and Tom Hughes.
Down Cemetery Road (Apple TV)
Down Cemetery Road is a British thriller drama series developed by Morwenna Banks. Based on Mick Herron’s 2003 book of the same name, the Apple TV series follows Sarah Tucker as she teams up with misanthropic private investigator Zoë Boehm to investigate the sudden disappearance of a neighborhood kid in the aftermath of an explosion. Down Cemetery Road stars Emma Thompson, Ruth Wilson, Adeel Akhtar, Darren Boyd, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, and Fehinti Balogun.
Dept. Q (Netflix)
Dept. Q is a British crime thriller and dark comedy-drama series co-developed by Scott Frank and Chandni Lakhani. The Netflix series follows top-rated detective Carl Morck as he returns to his work after an on-the-job shooting that left him injured and his partner paralyzed. After his return, he is sidelined as the head of a new cold case unit, where he begins investigating a high-profile disappearance. Dept. Q stars Matthew Goode, Kelly Macdonald, Chloe Pirrie, Alexej Manvelov, Leah Byrne, Steven Miller, Mark Bonnar, and Jamie Sives.
Patriot (Prime Video)
Patriot is a spy thriller, dark comedy-drama series created by Steven Conrad. The Prime Video series follows the story of intelligence officer John Tavner as he is recruited to take over a non-official cover of a mid-level employee at a Milwaukee industrial piping firm to prevent Iran from going nuclear. Patriot stars Michael Dorman in the lead role with Kurtwood Smith, Michael Chernus, Kathleen Munroe, Aliette Opheim, Chris Conrad, Terry O’Quinn, and Debra Winger starring in supporting roles.
Killing Eve (Netflix, AMC+, Britbox & Prime Video Add-On)
Killing Eve is a British spy thriller dark comedy-drama series created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Based on the Villanelle novel series by author Luke Jennings, the BBC America series follows the story of Eve, a bored MI5 agent, as an intelligence agency recruits her to hunt down a deadly but quirky assassin, Villanelle. Killing Eve stars Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer in the lead roles, with Fiona Shaw, Kim Bodnia, Owen McDonnell, Camille Cottin, Sean Delaney, and Edward Bluemel starring in supporting roles.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Prime Video)
Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a spy action and romantic comedy-drama series created by Francesca Sloane and Donald Glover. Based on the 2005 film of the same name by Simon Kinberg, the Prime Video series revolves around two strangers who agree to work for a secret spy organization. Soon, they find themselves in a fake marriage with each other and going on deadly missions, but it all soon changes when they really fall in love with each other. Mr. & Mrs. Smith stars Donald Glover and Maya Erskine in the lead roles, with Paul Dano, Ron Perlman, Sarah Paulson, Sharon Horgan, John Turturro, and Billy Campbell starring in supporting roles.
Chuck (Max & Prime Video)
Chuck is a spy action comedy-drama series created by Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak. The NBC series follows the story of Chuck Bartowski, a down-on-his-luck, brilliant young man working in a consumer-electronics chain store, as he is sent a ton of government secrets, which he downloads into his brain. Soon, he finds himself working with the beautiful CIA agent Sarah Walker and the deadly NSA agent John Casey to stop evil people around the world. Chuck stars Zachary Levi and Yvonne Strahovski in the lead roles with Joshua Gomez, Adam Baldwin, Sarah Lancaster, Ryan McPartlin, Scott Krinsky, and Vik Sahay in the lead roles starring in supporting roles.
The Family Man (Prime Video)
The Family Man is an Indian spy thriller dark comedy series created by Raj & DK. The Prime Video series follows the story of Srikant Tiwari, a middle-class family man who also works as a world-class spy. He gets embroiled in a dangerous plot against his nation while trying to fulfill his familial responsibilities. The Family Man stars Manoj Bajpayee in the lead role with Priyamani, Sharib Hashmi, Ashlesha Thakur, Vedant Sinha, and Shahab Ali starring in supporting roles.
Burn Notice (Hulu & Rent on Prime Video)
Burn Notice is an espionage action drama series created by Matt Nix. The USA Network series follows the story of US spy Michael Weston as he is burned (discredited) by his own agency and dropped in his hometown of Miami, Florida, after being put on the no-fly list. During his time in Miami, he teams up with a trigger-happy ex-girlfriend and best friend to help some people and also find out who in the agency burned him. Burn Notice stars Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, and Bruce Campbell in the lead roles, with Coby Bell, Sharon Gless, Paul Tei, Seth Peterson, Lauren Stamile, and Marc Macaulay starring in supporting roles.
Condor (MGM+ & Prime Video Add-On)
Condor is a spy thriller series created by Todd Katzberg, Jason Smilovic, and Ken Robinson. Based on a 1974 novel titled Six Days of the Condor by author James Grady and a 1975 film adaptation titled Three Days of the Condor directed by Sydney Pollack, the MGM+ series revolves around Joe Turner, an idealistic CIA analyst as he stumbles into an international conspiracy within the CIA, which gets all of his colleagues killed for which Joe is blamed and has to go on the run. Condor stars Max Irons in the lead role with Leem Lubany, Bob Balaban, Mira Sorvino, William Hurt, Brendan Fraser, Kristen Hager, Katherine Cunningham, and Angel Bonanni starring in supporting roles.