Apple TV doesn’t need the “Plus” in its name for me to write something positive about the streamer’s library. I could just let the 89 Emmy nominations Apple received this year do the talking. The streamer’s hits like Severance and Ted Lasso were not on this year’s Emmy list, though everyone’s favorite soccer coach will probably get some mentions next year.
Apple relies mostly on organic discovery and word of mouth for its titles to take off, so it’s not necessarily that you’re not paying attention. You haven’t seen commercials or marketing campaigns for shows like Widow’s Bay, because that’s just not how Apple rolls.
It’s an interesting way of putting movies and TV shows out into the world — and it’s made Apple TV feel way more like a secret club you’ve been let into.
To help you on your journey, I’ve compiled the guide below to the best shows Apple TV has to offer. I’ll be updating this list regularly, so please check back for additions. I put together a separate list of Apple TV’s best sci-fi TV shows, too. So check that out when you’re done here.
Cape Fear
Cape Fear, from show creator Nick Antosca and executive producers Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, differs from the 1991 and 1962 classics, but honors them both, as well as the original novel, The Executioners. It’s a modern-day noir that ramps up the tension and violence, keeping the stakes high throughout each episode. Javier Bardem’s Emmy-worthy turn as Max Cady, which somehow outdoes Robert De Niro’s, outshines everything else and is reason alone to watch.
Criminal Record
Criminal Record is a British crime series that follows two rival detectives – the older, jaded DCI Daniel Hegarty (Peter Capaldi) and the younger, motivated DS June Lenker (Cush Jumbo) – as they’re forced into an alliance to enforce justice amid the polarizing backdrop of modern-day London.
Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed
Apple TV’s Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is a comedy thriller about a woman who connects with a camboy online, only to become the victim of a twisty blackmail scheme. The series also stars Jake Johnson and Murray Bartlett, so it features sturdy talent throughout this bingeable show.
Margo’s Got Money Troubles
Based on the book of the same name by Rufi Thorpe, Margo’s Got Money Troubles follows the struggles of a young woman with a new baby who turns to cam girl work on the internet to help pay the bills. Elle Fanning stars opposite Nick Offerman and Michelle Pfeiffer, who really are a match made in comedy heaven.
Pluribus
What happens when a pandemic grips the globe, making everyone extremely happy? That’s the question at the center of Pluribus, Vince Gilligan’s latest TV project. The series, now the most-watched Apple TV show ever, follows a relatively unhappy woman named Carol (Rhea Seehorn) as she navigates this unsettling new reality. Can she find a way to save the world? Or will she eventually become a part of this odd hive mind?
Masters of the Air
Apple’s military drama is based on real events and takes inspiration from Donald L. Miller’s book of the same name. The series follows the members of the 100th Bomb Group (aka the Bloody Hundredth) as they battle the Nazis during World War II. It has a stacked cast, including the likes of Austin Butler, Callum Turner, Anthony Boyle and Barry Keoghan. Masters of the Air was produced by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.
Down Cemetery Road
This conspiracy thriller, inspired by Mick Herron’s first novel in his Zoë Boehm series, begins when a child goes missing after a house fire. A concerned neighbor (played by Ruth Wilson) forms an unlikely partnership with Zoë (the books’ titular private investigator, played by Emma Thompson) to look for the kid. In the process, a conspiracy is uncovered, leading the duo down an unexpectedly dark path.
Palm Royale
Kristen Wiig leads a phenomenal cast in Palm Royale, a campy satire that follows Maxine (Wiig), a woman who will do whatever it takes to get into the Palm Royale beach club. The series, which takes on classism, ambition, privilege and greed, also stars Ricky Martin, Josh Lucas, Leslie Bibb, Laura Dern, Allison Janney, Carol Burnett and John Stamos.
Hijack
Hijack, like 24 before it, is a real-time terrorist thriller. The series follows business negotiator Sam Nelson (played by Idris Elba) as he taps into his training to outsmart the hijackers who’ve taken over his flight. Thanks to Elba’s performance and the twisty narrative, this series proves to be a fun, edge-of-your-seat binge.
Mr. Scorsese
This five-episode documentary series shines a light on the personal and professional life of filmmaker Martin Scorsese. I was surprised by how heartfelt and engaging this series turned out to be. If you’ve ever wondered how Scorsese became the legendary director he is today, this program is for you. Aside from hearing the stories directly from the man’s mouth, the show features never-before-seen footage and interviews with Robert De Niro, Daniel Day-Lewis, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mick Jagger, Steven Spielberg, Jodie Foster and Sharon Stone.
The Studio
Seth Rogen co-created and stars in this dysfunctional comedy series about a movie studio’s attempt at staying relevant in Hollywood. Ike Barinholtz, Kathryn Hahn, Catherine O’Hara, Chase Sui Wonders and Bryan Cranston round out the cast. It’s the whopping list of celebrity cameos, though, that really sets this series apart from other comedies. Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, Anthony Mackie and more show up in the most unexpected and hilarious ways. There’s nothing else like The Studio on TV.
Loot follows Molly Wells (played by Maya Rudolph), who, after getting divorced from her tech billionaire husband (played by Adam Scott), discovers she is $87 billion richer. Instead of living a lavish life, relishing in her newfound status, she decides to lead a philanthropic organization with the goal of giving it all away. Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Nat Faxon, Ron Funches and Joel Kim Booster also star.
The Reluctant Traveler With Eugene Levy
The absence of Anthony Bourdain on TV has led me to flounder for a worthy host to fill the void. I didn’t expect Eugene Levy to be that guy. It’s all in the title of the show. He’s not a fan of traveling – but he’s taking himself out of his comfort zone and the result is an informative, heartwarming and entertaining series.
Manhunt
We all know about Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Apple has turned that historical event into a conspiracy thriller that is well worth your time. Manhunt, which is based on the book Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer, plunges us into the chase to track down John Wilkes Booth. Anthony Boyle, Tobias Menzies, Hamish Linklater, Betty Gabriel, Matt Walsh and Patton Oswalt star.
Trying
Trying follows Nikki (Esther Smith) and Jason (Rafe Spall), a couple who can’t have a baby. So, they move to adopt. But the process isn’t that simple – especially when you throw their off-beat families and daily chaos into the mix. Trying is a lot of things: a romance, a comedy, a drama. Whatever you want to call it, the Apple TV series is a thoroughly enjoyable watch.
Chief of War
Jason Momoa stars, served as writer and executive produced the period drama Chief of War. The series tells the story of the unification of the Hawaiian islands against the threat of colonization at the turn of the 18th century. The show features a predominantly Polynesian cast and explores this time in history from the perspective of Indigenous people.
Acapulco
Acapulco stars Eugenio Derbez as Maximo, a man reminiscing about his younger years working at a hotel in 1980s Acapulco. It’s a light-hearted, nostalgic series that’s full of heart, which feels like an anomaly in our current TV era. You want a bright and fun show, with low emotional stakes? This is the series for you.
Slow Horses
Slow Horses is the first television series starring Gary Oldman, and that detail, in and of itself, should be enough to get you to tune in. The program is inspired by Mick Herron’s Slough House book series and follows Jackson Lamb (Oldman) and his crew of low-level spies as they face espionage challenges and criminal conspiracies in each season. Three of the show’s five seasons have a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, which it absolutely deserves.
Smoke
Taron Egerton is Dave, an arson investigator, and Jurnee Smollett is Michelle, a police detective, who team up to track down a duo of arsonists wreaking havoc on their community. Smoke is a brooding drama series inspired by true events. There’s a twisty mystery fueling this program, and it boasts a strong cast, which also includes Greg Kinnear, Anna Chlumsky, John Leguizamo, Rafe Spall and Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine.
Stick
If you thought the return of Happy Gilmore was the only golf comedy worth watching, think again. Stick stars Owen Wilson as Pryce Cahill, a jaded ex-golfer who is given a second chance at the sport in the form of a 17-year-old golf prodigy named Santi (Peter Dager). If you’re looking for another feel-good sports series like Ted Lasso, you should definitely give this show a shot.
Dope Thief
Dope Thief is inspired by Dennis Tafoya’s 2009 novel and follows friends Ray and Manny, who decide to impersonate DEA agents so they can steal from drug dealers. Things go sideways when their tiny crime unveils a massive drug operation. Brian Tyree Henry and Wagner Moura lead the series, ensuring this enthralling drama is led by top-tier talent.
Your Friends & Neighbors
In this dark comedy, Jon Hamm plays defamed hedge fund manager Andrew “Coop” Cooper, who decides to try home invasions as a means of generating income. The twist on that twist? He’s robbing his wealthy neighbors. What he doesn’t expect through all this thievery is the dark secrets he uncovers about the members of this upper-crust community.
Black Bird
Black Bird is inspired by the true story of Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton), a man who made a deal with the FBI to go undercover in a maximum-security prison to shorten his sentence. I forgot to mention, this is a place that houses the criminally insane and his mission is to make friends with Larry Hall, a suspected serial killer, so he can discover information about where the bodies are buried. That is, if he can get a confession in the first place. Paul Walter Hauser gives a career-best performance as Hall.
Pachinko
Based on the novel by Min Jin Lee, Pachinko is a sweeping drama that follows multiple generations of a Korean family from the early 1900s through the 1980s. Seriously, it’s hard to sum up how beautiful and complex the storytelling is in this series in a few sentences. I’ll just say the performances (by Lee Min-ho, Jin Ha, Minha Kim and the rest of the cast), cinematography and conflicts featured here are absolutely fabulous. It’s probably the best show on this entire list, if I am being honest.
Shrinking
Jason Segel, Harrison Ford and Jessica Williams star in this dramedy series about a broken therapist who strives to piece his life and family back together after a heartbreaking loss. There’s an intriguing balance found when Jimmy (Segel) breaks from professional norms to help his clients heal while seeking to do the same for himself. It’s sad, hilarious, poignant and profound. To me, this is what mental health stories on TV should look like.
Bad Monkey
When you center a murder mystery in Florida, you have to expect things to get weird. And they do just that in Bad Monkey. It’s a quirky sort of drama that stars Vince Vaughn as Andrew Yancy, a detective-turned-restaurant inspector, who gets sucked into a murder case after fishing a severed arm out of the ocean. Bill Lawrence (of Ted Lasso, Scrubs and Shrinking fame) created the dark comedy, which is inspired by the book by Carl Hiaasen.
Presumed Innocent
Presumed Innocent, based on the novel by Scott Turow, hails from executive producer David E. Kelley and stars Jake Gyllenhaal as smarmy lawyer Rusty Sabich. Unlike the 1987 movie starring Harrison Ford, this series delves way deeper into the multilayered scandal that put Sabich in handcuffs. The exploration of every character, all of whom seem awful in some way, adds to a morally corrupt narrative that makes this a riveting, albeit sometimes frustrating, watch.
Lessons in Chemistry
Here we have yet another book adaptation to add to this list, and, thankfully, Lessons in Chemistry is a feel-good delight. Inspired by Bonnie Garmus’ book of the same name, the series follows a chemist named Elizabeth Zott (Brie Larson) who finds herself taking a job as host of a cooking show. Being a story that takes place in the ’50s, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Zott faces loads of sexism in the workplace. She perseveres, though, and brings a quirky scientific element to her Julia Childs-like role, making this period piece a fun show to dig into.
Platonic
I didn’t know what to expect when I clicked play on Platonic. Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne have co-starred in other projects together, but their delightfully oddball dynamic in this one stands out. The story follows two longtime friends who reconnect in their 40s only to find that, even though they live very different lives, they share common midlife struggles as they try to figure out where they fit in this rapidly changing world. It’s also nice to see a non-romantic exploration of a friendship between a man and a woman. Contrary to what When Harry Met Sally said, it is possible.
Bad Sisters
Sharon Horgan created this dark comedy series, which takes inspiration from the Belgian show Clan, about a group of sisters who deal with the fallout of the murder of JP, one of the women’s husbands, who, because of his distasteful behavior, is referred to throughout the show as “The Prick.” The series regularly shifts the narrative to reveal bits and pieces behind who killed the man, while showcasing the dysfunctional dynamic between these bad sisters. Horgan stars opposite Anne-Marie Duff, Eva Birthistle, Sarah Greene and Eve Hewson.
