Top 50 Original Shows on Showtime
It’s always hard to find great shows, we’re luckily spoiled for choice. You can spend all night bombarded with options browsing Showtime, but never end up watching anything!
This is why we’ve curated this top 50 list of the best original shows on Showtime, using the power of Rivr and its users.
This list was last updated on Apr 15, 2024.
48. Homeland
CIA officer Carrie Mathison is tops in her field despite being bipolar, which makes her volatile and unpredictable. With the help of her long-time mentor Saul Berenson, Carrie fearlessly risks everything, including her personal well-being and even sanity, at every turn.
7.5 ⭐ • Drama • War & Politics • Crime • Released: Oct 2, 2011
47. Dexter
Dexter Morgan, a blood spatter pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police also leads a secret life as a serial killer, hunting down criminals who have slipped through the cracks of justice.
8.191 ⭐ • Crime • Drama • Mystery • Released: Oct 1, 2006
46. Stargate SG-1
The story of Stargate SG-1 begins about a year after the events of the feature film, when the United States government learns that an ancient alien device called the Stargate can access a network of such devices on a multitude of planets. SG-1 is an elite Air Force special operations team, one of more than two dozen teams from Earth who explore the galaxy and defend against alien threats such as the Goa'uld, Replicators, and the Ori.
8.234 ⭐ • Sci-Fi & Fantasy • Action & Adventure • Mystery • Released: Jul 27, 1997
45. Californication
A self-loathing, alcoholic writer attempts to repair his damaged relationships with his daughter and her mother while combating sex addiction, a budding drug problem, and the seeming inability to avoid making bad decisions.
7.7 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama • Released: Aug 13, 2007
44. The Affair
The Affair explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship between Noah Solloway and Alison Lockhart after the two meet in the resort town of Montauk in Long Island. Noah is a New York City schoolteacher with one novel published (book entitled A Person who Visits a Place) and he is struggling to write a second book. He is happily married with four children, but resents his dependence on his wealthy father-in-law. Alison is a young waitress trying to piece her life and marriage back together in the wake of the tragic death of her child. The story of the affair is told separately, complete with distinct memory biases, from the male and female perspectives.
6.6 ⭐ • Drama
43. The Tudors
The Tudors is a history-based drama series following the young, vibrant King Henry VIII, a competitive and lustful monarch who navigates the intrigues of the English court and the human heart with equal vigor and justifiable suspicion.
7.795 ⭐ • Drama • Romance • Released: Jun 20, 2010
42. The Borgias
Set in 15th century Italy at the height of the Renaissance, The Borgias chronicles the corrupt rise of patriarch Rodrigo Borgia to the papacy, where he proceeds to commit every sin in the book to amass and retain power, influence and enormous wealth for himself and his family.
7.611 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Jun 16, 2013
41. Secret Diary of a Call Girl
It's her business doing pleasure with you. A witty and provocative series based on the real-life adventures of a high-class escort. Juggling her own reality with her clients' fantasies can be difficult, but this savvy sweetheart knows every trick in the book, and she's doing it in style.
6.921 ⭐ • Drama • Comedy • Released: Sep 27, 2007
40. Kidding
Jeff, aka Mr. Pickles, is an icon of children's TV. But when his family begins to implode, Jeff finds no fairy tale or fable or puppet will guide him through this crisis, which advances faster than his means to cope. The result: a kind man in a cruel world faces a slow leak of sanity as hilarious as it is heartbreaking.
7.6 ⭐ • Drama • Comedy • Released: Sep 9, 2018
39. On Becoming a God in Central Florida
In the early 1990s, a recently widowed, impoverished Orlando water park employee schemes and cons her way up the ranks of the multi-billion dollar pyramid scheme which ruined her financially in the first place.
6.513 ⭐ • Comedy • Released: Aug 25, 2019
38. House of Lies
Charming, fast talking Marty Kaan and his crack team of management consultants know how to play the corporate game better than anyone, by using every dirty trick in the book to woo powerful CEOs and close huge deals. In the board rooms, barrooms, and bedrooms of the power elite, corruption is business as usual and everyone's out for themselves first. Nothing is sacred in this scathing, irreverent satire of corporate America today.
6.562 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama • Released: Jan 8, 2012
37. The Big C
A suburban mother faces her cancer diagnosis while trying to find humor and happiness as well.
7.157 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama • Released: Aug 16, 2010
36. I'm Dying Up Here
Set in LA’s celebrated, infamous stand-up comedy scene of the 1970s, this series delves into the inspired and damaged psyches that inhabit the hilarious, but complex business of making an audience laugh.
6.7 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama • Released: Jun 4, 2017
35. Brotherhood
A working-class Irish family rules a city built on loyalty and corruption. The Caffee brothers, Tommy, a rising politician desperate for reelection, and Michael, a hardened criminal returning from seven years on the run and eager to reclaim his turf, fight for survival on opposite sides of the law. In their ruthless quest for power, the entire Caffee family is driven to lies, betrayal and infidelity -- threatening to tear them and the city of Providence, RI apart.
6.953 ⭐ • Crime • Drama • Released: Jul 9, 2006
34. Sleeper Cell
A chilling and unflinching look at all sides of a complicated issue, focusing on an African-American Muslim who joins an Islamic sleeper terrorist cell in the United States while working undercover for the FBI.
7.5 ⭐ • Crime • Drama • Released: Dec 4, 2005
33. Poltergeist: The Legacy
The adventures of the members of a secret society known as the Legacy and their efforts to protect humankind from occult dangers.
6.3 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Apr 21, 1996
32. It's Garry Shandling's Show
It's Garry Shandling's Show is an American sitcom which was initially broadcast on Showtime from 1986 to 1990. It was created by Garry Shandling and Alan Zweibel. The show is notable for its frequent use of breaking the fourth wall to allow characters to speak directly to the audience. Its format inspired Sean Hughes to create Sean's Show in the UK.
7.267 ⭐ • Comedy • Released: Sep 10, 1986
31. The Putin Interviews
A revealing series of interviews between renowned filmmaker Oliver Stone and Vladimir Putin in which the Russian President speaks candidly on the US Election, Trump, Syria, Snowden and more.
6.655 ⭐ • Documentary • War & Politics • Released: Jun 12, 2017
30. Desus & Mero
The first ever weekly late-night talk show on Showtime features popular TV and podcast personalities Desus and Mero speaking off the cuff and chatting with guests at the intersection of pop culture, sports, music, politics and more.
5.1 ⭐ • Talk • Comedy • Released: Feb 21, 2019
29. More Tales of the City
Lonely inhabitants at 28 Barbary Lane search for love and identity, turning to each other in the hope of finding happiness in San Francisco.
7.4 ⭐ • Drama • Mystery • Released: Jun 7, 1998
28. RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars
The most celebrated competitors from RuPaul's Drag Race vie for a second chance to enter Drag Race herstory. This drag queen showdown is filled with plenty of heated competition, lip-syncing for the legacy, and, of course, the All-Stars Snatch Game.
7.5 ⭐ • Reality • Released: Oct 22, 2012
27. VICE
The Emmy®-winning documentary series is now on SHOWTIME, delivering immersive reporting from the frontlines of global conflicts, civil uprisings and beyond, and tackling untold and complex geopolitical stories from all corners of the globe.
8.3 ⭐ • Documentary • News • Released: Mar 29, 2020
26. Black Monday
Travel back to October 19, 1987 – aka Black Monday, the worst stock market crash in Wall Street history – this is the story of how a group of outsiders took on the blue-blood, old-boys club of Wall Street and ended up crashing the world’s largest financial system, a Lamborghini limousine, Don Henley’s birthday party and the glass ceiling.
7.2 ⭐ • Comedy • Crime • Released: Jan 20, 2019
25. Weeds
After the unexpected death of her husband, a suburban mom resorts to selling weed to support her family.
7.448 ⭐ • Comedy • Crime • Drama • Released: Aug 7, 2005
24. Twin Peaks
The body of Laura Palmer is washed up on a beach near the small Washington state town of Twin Peaks. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper is called in to investigate her strange demise only to uncover a web of mystery that ultimately leads him deep into the heart of the surrounding woodland and his very own soul.
8.3 ⭐ • Drama • Mystery • Released: Apr 8, 1990
23. City on a Hill
In early 90s Boston, an African-American District Attorney comes in from Brooklyn advocating change and forms an unlikely alliance with a corrupt yet venerated FBI veteran invested in maintaining the status quo. Together they take on a family of armored car robbers from Charlestown in a case that grows to encompass and eventually upend Boston’s city-wide criminal justice system.
7.472 ⭐ • Crime • Drama • Released: Jun 16, 2019
22. Ray Donovan
Set in the sprawling mecca of the rich and famous, Ray Donovan does the dirty work for LA's top power players, and makes their problems disappear. His father's unexpected release from prison sets off a chain of events that shakes the Donovan family to its core.
7.5 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Jun 30, 2013
21. Queer As Folk
Brash humor and genuine emotion make up this original series revolving around the lives, loves, ambitions, careers and friendships of a group of gay men and women living on Liberty Avenue in contemporary Pittsburgh, PA. The show offers an unapologetic look at modern, urban gay and lesbian lives while addressing the most critical health and political issues affecting the community. Sometimes racy, sometimes sensitive and always straight to the heart.
8.23 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Dec 3, 2000
20. Your Honor
New Orleans judge Michael Desiato is forced to confront his own deepest convictions when his son is involved in a hit and run that embroils an organized crime family.
8.146 ⭐ • Drama • Crime
19. Couples Therapy
Far from reality-show caricatures, this is true documentary filmmaking that brings viewers into the authentic and visceral experience of weekly therapy with four couples. World-class therapist Dr. Orna Guralnik deftly guides the couples through the minefield of honest confrontation with each other and with themselves, revealing the real-life struggles — and extraordinary breakthroughs — typically hidden behind closed doors.
6.8 ⭐ • Documentary • Reality • Released: Sep 6, 2019
18. Work in Progress
Abby is a 45-year-old self-identified fat, queer dyke whose misfortune and despair unexpectedly lead her to a vibrantly transformative relationship.
6.95 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama • Released: Dec 8, 2019
17. The L Word: Generation Q
In this sequel to The L Word, we continue to follow the intermingled lives of Bette Porter, Alice Pieszecki and Shane McCutcheon, along with a new generation of diverse, self-possessed LGBTQIA+ characters experiencing love, heartbreak, sex, setbacks and success in L.A.
7.668 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Dec 8, 2019
16. American Rust
A compelling family drama and a timeless story told through the eyes of complicated and compromised chief of police Del Harris of a Pennsylvania Rust Belt town full of good people making bad choices.
6.9 ⭐ • Drama • Crime • Released: Sep 12, 2021
15. Super Pumped
Each season of this anthology series explores a story that rocked the business world to its core and changed culture. The first season tells the story of Uber, one of Silicon Valley’s most successful and most destructive unicorns.
6.9 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Feb 27, 2022
14. Billions
A complex drama about power politics in the world of New York high finance.
Shrewd, savvy U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades and the brilliant, ambitious hedge fund king Bobby "Axe" Axelrod are on an explosive collision course, with each using all of his considerable smarts, power and influence to outmaneuver the other. The stakes are in the billions in this timely, provocative series.
7.742 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Jan 17, 2016
13. The Man Who Fell to Earth
An extraterrestrial alien arrives on Earth at a turning point in human evolution and must confront his own past to determine our future.
7.525 ⭐ • Sci-Fi & Fantasy • Released: Apr 24, 2022
12. Dexter: New Blood
10 years after Dexter went missing in the eye of Hurricane Laura, we find him living under an assumed name in the small town of Iron Lake, New York. Dexter may be embracing his new life, but in the wake of unexpected events in this close-knit community, his Dark Passenger beckons.
8.043 ⭐ • Drama • Crime • Released: Nov 7, 2021
11. The Trade
A visceral, rarely-seen look into the personal stories of those most affected by ongoing national emergencies.
7.2 ⭐ • Documentary • Crime • Released: Feb 2, 2018
10. American Gigolo
Julian Kaye has always been an object of desire, so much so that people are willing to destroy him in order to have him. Exonerated, after 15 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit, he now faces the challenge of picking up the pieces as the detective who put him behind bars tries to unravel the mystery that led to his wrongful incarceration.
7.226 ⭐ • Drama • Crime
9. The Circus
Come one, come all to The Circus. This real-time documentary series pulls back the curtain on the current political stories, revealing the intense, inspiring and infuriating stories behind the headlines. Key characters and events are presented in real time, as they are happening.
6.469 ⭐ • Documentary • Released: Jan 17, 2016
8. The Loudest Voice
The rise and fall of Fox News founder Roger Ailes, focusing primarily on the past decade in which Ailes arguably became the Republican Party’s de facto leader, while flashing back to defining events in his life.
7.7 ⭐ • War & Politics • Drama • Released: Jun 30, 2019
7. The Chi
A relevant, timely and distinctive coming-of-age story following a half dozen interrelated characters in the South Side of Chicago. The story centers on Brandon, an ambitious and confident young man who dreams about opening a restaurant of his own someday, but is conflicted between the promise of a new life and his responsibility to his mother and teenage brother back in the South Side.
8.1 ⭐ • Drama • Released: Jan 7, 2018
6. Fellow Travelers
Decades-long chronicle of the risky, volatile and steamy relationship between the charismatic and ambitious Hawk and the pious and idealistic Tim, two political staffers who fall in love at the height of the 1950s Lavender Scare. Through the Vietnam War protests of the 1960s, the drug-fueled disco culture of the 1970s and the AIDS crisis of the 1980s, the two men’s fiery affair only intensifies despite the constant threat of being exposed and losing everything.
8.3 ⭐ • Drama
5. Patrick Melrose
A critical and often humorous look at the upper class, tracking the protagonist's harrowing odyssey from a deeply traumatic childhood through adult substance abuse and, ultimately, toward recovery.
7.603 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama • Released: May 12, 2018
4. Shameless
Chicagoan Frank Gallagher is the proud single dad of six smart, industrious, independent kids, who without him would be... perhaps better off. When Frank's not at the bar spending what little money they have, he's passed out on the floor. But the kids have found ways to grow up in spite of him. They may not be like any family you know, but they make no apologies for being exactly who they are.
8.2 ⭐ • Drama • Comedy • Released: Jan 9, 2011
3. The Curse
An alleged curse disturbs the relationship of a newly married couple as they try to conceive a child while co-starring on their problematic new HGTV show.
7.2 ⭐ • Comedy • Drama
2. The Woman in the Wall
Lorna Brady wakes one morning to find a corpse in her house. Brady has no idea who the dead woman is or if she herself might be responsible for the apparent murder, because she has long suffered from extreme bouts of sleepwalking.
6.9 ⭐ • Crime • Mystery
1. Yellowjackets
This equal parts survival epic, psychological horror story and coming-of-age drama tells the saga of a team of wildly talented high school girls soccer players who become the (un)lucky survivors of a plane crash deep in the remote northern wilderness. The series chronicles their descent from a complicated but thriving team to savage clans, while also tracking the lives they’ve attempted to piece back together nearly 25 years later.
7.497 ⭐ • Drama • Mystery • Released: Nov 14, 2021
