As we steam ahead into New Year celebrations, there is plenty of exciting content to watch on Netflix, both when it comes to films and TV shows.
The streamer’s current big hit is Black Doves, which offers some Christmassy visuals, if you’re still in the Yuletide spirit, which follows Keira Knightley’s spy as she goes on a mission to get vengeance.
However a new instalment of Squid Game has also joined the streamer, which could prove some competition for the spy thriller in the top 10.
Of course, you may well want a break from all of the festive options, and Netflix has you sorted there too, with recent additions to the platform including originals like A Man on the Inside, Senna and The Madness, as well as some great acquisitions.
Recently, the platform has acquired some stellar under-the-radar dramas that were originally broadcast on linear TV, including series on ITV, BBC, Sky and Channel 5.
Other big releases from across 2024 include new seasons of hit shows such as The Diplomat, The Lincoln Lawyer, Cobra Kai and Outer Banks, while new shows such as Territory and Nobody Wants This have also made their mark.
Scroll on for our latest suggestions of the best TV series on Netflix, so you can stop searching and start watching ASAP. Alternatively, you can check out our line-up of the best Netflix movies for other recommendations.
You can also tweet us @RadioTimes if we’ve missed your favourite off the list – otherwise, happy streaming!
Best series to watch on Netflix right now
Squid Game
Lee Jung-jae as Seong Gi-hun in Squid Game season 2 No Ju-han/NetflixIf anything can reignite the mania of late 2021, it’s the season 2 premiere, which kicks off this latest chapter on a remarkably strong note and ends with a knockout scene for returning star Lee Jung-jae.
His character, Squid Game champion Seong Gi-hun, is found three years on from his victory, living a reclusive life in an empty, eroding hotel and using his enormous winnings for one simple mission: revenge. – David Craig
Black Doves
Ben Whishaw as Sam Young. NetflixMissing Bond? Well, Black Doves may be just the tonic if you’re looking for a gripping spy drama, and while it isn’t the most cheery of festive watches, it is set in London at Christmas – so it ticks that Yuletide box. The new series boasts a cast full of familiar British acting talent and centres on deep-undercover agent Helen (Keira Knightley), whose life is turned upside down when her secret lover is killed in a targeted assassination.
From screenwriter Joe Barton – who is known for Giri/Haji, The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself and The Lazarus Project – it’s safe to say that the writing and tension of this is well-executed, although unevenly paced at times. But for a binge watch that’s set to keep you guessing, it sure is the ideal kind of series to get stuck into for these longer evenings. – Morgan Cormack
The Madness
Colman Domingo as Muncie Daniels in The Madness. NetflixIf you’re looking for the kind of gritty thriller that will keep you steadily hooked, Colman Domingo’s latest leading production could be right up your street. The series follows Domingo’s Muncie Daniels, an activist turned TV pundit who takes a sabbatical in the Poconos woods, only for his life to be upended when he’s framed for the murder of a popular white supremacist.
What ensues is a race to the truth and also for his own life as the mysterious wider network at play in this crime is also after Muncie himself. While some of the episodes can feel a little drawn out and the pacing is slightly uneven, Domingo’s performance carries this drama enough to ensure you’ll want to find out what (strangely lifelike) powers have been pulling the strings all along. – Morgan Cormack
A Man on the Inside
Ted Danson as Charles in A Man on the Inside. Colleen E. Hayes/NetflixThis charming little comedy from the creator of The Good Place is based on an acclaimed documentary, and follows Ted Danson’s Charles, a widower and retired professor who is hired by a private detective to go undercover in a retirement village. There, as he investigates a potential theft from one of the residents, he gets involved with the community, struggling to not get attached.
It may not be the funniest thing you’ll see all year, and is admittedly light on the jokes, but what it does have is heart in spades, and an emotional core which will no doubt bring a tear to your eye on more than one occasion. It is also filled with delightful, nuanced performances from Danson, Stephanie Beatriz, Stephen McKinley Henderson and more, and has plenty to say on themes such as grief, ageing and familial communication.
It has already been renewed for a second season, meaning it’s the perfect time to get stuck into this very bingeable first batch of episodes. – James Hibbs
The Diplomat
Keri Russell and Rufus Sewell in The Diplomat. NetflixAfter an acclaimed run on FX’s The Americans (now streaming on Disney Plus), celebrated actor Keri Russell has landed herself another hit political thriller with The Diplomat.
The series follows Kate Wyler – the newly appointed US ambassador to the UK – as she adjusts to her new life in London, while handling the pressures that her job regularly throws at her. From responding to international crises to forging essential political alliances, she’ll have a lot on her plate as a sinister threat from within the British government begins to take root.
As discussed in our The Diplomat season 2 review, this is a show that sometimes pushes the boundaries of believability, but it is easily elevated by a stellar cast that includes Russell, Rufus Sewell (Scoop), David Gyasi (Carnival Row), Ali Ahn (Agatha All Along), Rory Kinnear (No Time to Die) and T’Nia Miller (The Haunting of Bly Manor).
Academy Award winner Allison Janney joins that ensemble in season 2, which dropped in October, playing the vice president of the United States Grace Penn, who will be causing some major headaches for Kate in the latest run. And good news: a third season is already confirmed! – David Craig
Love Is Blind
Love is Blind. NetflixThere truly is no dating show with quite as wild a concept as Love Is Blind, and it’s now spawned numerous spin-offs in other countries. But nothing quite beats the original, right? Now in its seventh season, the show sees individuals date each other in ‘pods’, not knowing what one another looks like in a bid to find out if you can fall in love sight unseen.
Like any good reality show, Love Is Blind delivers plot twists, surprises and revelations galore throughout all the episodes and only gets more dramatic as the couples have to reckon with the possibility of tying the knot at the end of it all. An ideal binge-watch pick, if ever there was one. – Morgan Cormack
The Lincoln Lawyer
Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller in The Lincoln Lawyer. Lara Solanki/NetflixBased on the novels by Michael Connelly, this series follows the life and cases of Mickey Haller (played by Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), a recovering addict and criminal defence lawyer who runs his practice in the back of his car – a Lincoln Navigator, hence the title. Don’t let his humble HQ fool you, however, because Mickey is great at what he does, which is just as well because his cases are never easy to put together.
That’s particularly true in season 3, based on Connelly’s The Gods of Guilt, in which Mickey is wrestling with the grief of losing a close friend – but ultimately comes to the aid of the man thought to be responsible. It sets the stage for some tense and compelling scenes as the lawyer attempts to keep his strong emotions in check, with Dexter and Nope star Devon Graye providing an effective foil as the accused.
It’s not all grim, however, as The Lincoln Lawyer also carries a quirky sense of humour in its earlier seasons, which also feature the talents of Scream icon Neve Campbell, How I Met Your Mother’s Becky Newton and Insidious star Angus Sampson. No, it’s not a reinvention of the genre, but if you enjoy a legal drama with some memorable characters and exciting moments, you could do a lot worse than The Lincoln Lawyer. – David Craig
Outer Banks
Madelyn Cline as Sarah Cameron, Jonathan Daviss as Pope and Chase Stokes as John B in Outer Banks. Jackson Lee Davis/NetflixSomething of a surprise mega-hit, Outer Banks has grown into one of Netflix’s most popular continuing shows – particularly among young people.
Set in the Outer Banks region of North Carolina, the series follows a gang of adventurers known as the Pogues, who go on perilous expeditions in search of lost treasure. They face opposition from the area’s wealthy seasonal residents (known as ‘Kooks’), often finding themselves in a race to find their bounty before their bitter rivals.
While Outer Banks contains the usual elements that you’d expect from a young adult drama – romance, melodrama and, sometimes, slightly questionable acting and dialogue – it has found great success in deviating from its competitors. There’s something novel and exciting about seeing this ...
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