If you have decided to check out True Detective: Night Country and you like what you see, it’s worth watching the previous three seasons (if you haven’t already). Each season of the anthology crime drama tells a completely different story uniquely with a different A-list cast. If you’re already all caught up on every season and anxiously awaiting the next episodes of season 4, which are released weekly on Max), there are similar and equally compelling shows you can watch in the meantime.
Once you realize True Detective season 4 is right up your alley, watch these three thrilling shows as well. They’re all centered around crime, but each has its own interesting spin on the investigative story. They are similar in ways with one important common denominator: they will keep you hooked the entire way through.
A Murder at the End of the World (2023)
Released in late 2023, A Murder at the End of the World is a thought-provoking psychological thriller/drama that combines your traditional murder mystery with a tone reminiscent of Black Mirror. When Darby (Emma Corrin), a talented hacker and amateur detective, gets an invite to a swanky tech billionaire’s retreat, she feels like she doesn’t quite belong with the one percenters in attendance. But as soon as a mysterious murder occurs, she finds her purpose and puts her sleuthing skills to the test to uncover what’s going on.
You get the same whodunit thrills as you do with True Detective: Night Country, along with the unpacking of secrets and harrowing truths. Created by The OA’s Brit Marling, A Murder at the End of the World is just seven episodes long, but you’ll be gripped and guessing right up to the shocking ending.
Stream A Murder at the End of the World on Hulu.
The Outsider (2020)
Another psychological horror crime drama, The Outsider takes its criminal case in a more supernatural direction, but there’s still a core storyline that follows law enforcement investigating a death. The quest for an answer in the murder of a young boy fuels The Outsider‘s central mystery. No one can believe that family man, dad, and Little League coach Terry (Jason Bateman) did it, despite seemingly irrefutable evidence stacked against him.
The people involved, including detective Ralph Anderson (Ben Mendelsohn), are forced to face their own haunted pasts as well. The truth is unbelievable, but when others start dying by suspicious circumstances, detectives have no choice but to listen to the strange theories of private detective and eccentric savant Holly (Cynthia Erivo). Based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, The Outsider did not return for a second season, though there’s still a possibility that a new season, reportedly already written, could eventually find a home. Even without a return of the show, however, The Outsider will be a satisfying watch for fans of True Detective: Night Country.
Stream The Outsider on Max.
Mare of Easttown (2021)
Another female-led crime drama like True Detective season 4, Mare of Easttown stars Kate Winslet as Marianne “Mare” Sheehan, a detective sergeant investigating a murder and disappearance. Like True Detective: Night Country, the story takes place in a remote location. It also similarly centers around an authoritative woman with personal troubles and a desperate need to prove herself to the community and others who doubt her.
Mare of Easttown earned 16 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and won four, including Outstanding Lead Actress for Winslet. Both shows have Academy Award-winning female actors leading the casts and a puzzling case to solve that draws you deep into the plot.
Stream Mare of Easttown on Max.
