Best tv shows like Dollhouse
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Dollhouse is an American science fiction television series that revolves around a corporation running numerous underground establishments across the globe which program individuals referred to as "Actives" with temporary personalities and skills. Wealthy clients hire Actives from Dollhouses at great expense for various purposes. The series primarily follows the Active known as Echo, played by Eliza Dushku, on her journey towards self-awareness.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 51000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, cyber, psychological thriller, mysterious, exciting, tense, suspense, offbeat, sweet
Best tv shows and movies like Dollhouse (2009):
Similar in 82%
John Doe (2002)
Plot Summary:
John Doe is an American science fiction drama television series that aired on Fox during the 2002–2003 TV season.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, enigmatic, detective, mind bending
Similar in 76%
The Pretender (1996)
Plot Summary:
The Pretender is an American television series that aired on NBC from 1996 to 2000. The series starred Michael T. Weiss as Jarod, a genius and former child prodigy with the ability to become anyone he wants to be, i.e., to flawlessly impersonate anyone in virtually any line of work. Patrick Bauchau and Andrea Parker co-starred as Sydney, Jarod's childhood teacher and mentor, and Miss Parker, a childhood friend. They are both operatives for a mysterious organization called "The Centre", which took Jarod from his parents as a child and developed his special talents with the intention of making him one of their agents, while also using his brilliant intellect for their own evil purposes. After escaping from their custody, Jarod begins traveling the country, searching for clues to his true identity while posing as a doctor, police officer, attorney, or some other character who helps those in trouble. The Centre's directors are determined to return Jarod to The Centre to further their mysterious plan. A team of operatives, led by Miss Parker, attempts to find and capture The Pretender. Jarod's extreme intelligence combined with his childlike innocence create a memorable and endearing character that was popular with viewers.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, atmospheric, serious, disturbing, bleak, suspense, detective, action adventure, suspenseful, vintage
Similar in 79%
The Inside (2005)
Plot Summary:
The Inside is an American crime drama television series created by Tim Minear and Howard Gordon and produced by Imagine Television. The Inside follows the work of the FBI's Los Angeles Violent Crimes Unit, a division dedicated to investigating particularly dangerous crimes. The Inside initially aired on the Fox Network from June 8 to July 13, 2005. Although thirteen episodes were produced, Fox aired only seven episodes before canceling the series. All thirteen episodes were subsequently aired on Britain's ITV4 in 2006.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: exciting, realistic, serious, suspenseful, mind bending, detective
Similar in 82%
Revenge (2011)
Plot Summary:
When Emily Thorne moves to the Hamptons, everyone wonders about the new girl, but she knows everything about them, including what they did to her family. Years ago, they took everything from her. Now, one by one, she's going to make them pay.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 124000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: captivating, serious, soap opera, realistic, suspenseful, thrilling, exciting, deep, psychological, psychological thriller
Similar in 82%
Cult (2013)
Plot Summary:
After a rash of disappearances and a likely murder, an inquisitive, young female production assistant on a wildly popular television show called Cult joins a journalist blogger in investigating the rabid fans of the series who might be re-creating crimes seen on the program, in real life.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, suspenseful, tense, suspense, captivating, psychological thriller, exciting, surreal, detective
Similar in 89%
Travelers (2016)
Plot Summary:
Hundreds of years from now, the last surviving humans discover the means of sending consciousness back through time, directly into people in the 21st century. These "travelers" assume the lives of seemingly random people, while secretly working as teams to perform missions in order to save humanity from a terrible future.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 62000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: exciting, tense, captivating, suspenseful, intellectual, spiritual, detective, smart, mind blowing, interactive
Similar in 80%
The Andromeda Strain (2008)
Plot Summary:
A U.S. satellite crash-lands near a small town in Utah, unleashing a deadly plague that kills virtually everyone except two survivors, who may provide clues to immunizing the population. As the military attempts to quarantine the area, a team of highly specialized scientists is assembled to find a cure and stop the spread of the alien pathogen, code-named Andromeda.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 174 min
Plot tags: serious, tense, suspenseful, futuristic, melancholic, harsh, stylized, apocalyptic, exciting, suspense
Similar in 77%
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008)
Plot Summary:
The series picks up four years after the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day with John and Sarah Connor trying to stay under-the-radar from the government, as they plot to destroy the computer network, Skynet, in hopes of preventing Armageddon.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 62000
Genere: Action, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, suspenseful, apocalyptic, tense, cyber, futuristic, bad ending, dark, saga
Similar in 76%
Total Recall 2070 (1999)
Plot Summary:
Total Recall 2070 is a science fiction television series first broadcast in 1999 on the Canadian television channel CHCH-TV and later the same year on the American Showtime channel. It was later syndicated in the United States with some editing to remove scenes of nudity, violence and strong language. The series was inspired by the 1990 film Total Recall, based on Philip K. Dick's short story "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale", and by Dick's novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, with a visual style heavily influenced by the film Blade Runner, itself very loosely based on the same novel. However, other than the Rekall company and the concept of virtual vacations, the series shares no major plot points or characters with any of these works. Philip K. Dick is not credited in any way on the series main or end titles. The series was filmed in Toronto. It was a Canadian/German co-production. Only one season, consisting of 22 episodes, was produced.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Action, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada, Germany, USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: cyber, tech noir, detective, relaxing, atmospheric, bleak, serious, futuristic, suspenseful, neo noir
Similar in 88%
Dark Angel (2000)
Plot Summary:
Super soldier Max Guevera tries to live a normal life in post-apocalyptic Seattle while eluding capture by government agents from the covert biotech facility she escaped from as a child and searching for her genetically-enhanced brothers and sisters who have dispersed after escape.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 34000
Genere: Action, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, serious, suspenseful, stylized, apocalyptic, cyber, bleak, heroic, action thriller, action adventure
Similar in 82%
Nikita (2010)
Plot Summary:
Nikita will stop at nothing to expose and destroy Division, the secret U.S. agency who trained her as a spy and assassin.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 53000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspenseful, stylized, serious, realistic, thrilling, interesting
Similar in 84%
Alias (2001)
Plot Summary:
Sydney Bristow, an agent who has been tricked to believe she is working for the U.S. government, is actually working for a criminal organization named the Alliance of Twelve. Upon learning this, Sydney becomes a double agent for the real CIA.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 54000
Genere: Action, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: exciting, tense, captivating, cliffhanger, heroic, detective, action thriller, action adventure, thrilling, stylized
Similar in 81%
Orphan Black (2013)
Plot Summary:
A streetwise hustler is pulled into a compelling conspiracy after witnessing the suicide of a girl who looks just like her.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 116000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, suspenseful, mind bending, psychological thriller, atmospheric, thought provoking, intellectual, humorous, dramatic
Similar in 87%
The Event (2010)
Plot Summary:
The Event is an emotional, high-octane conspiracy thriller that follows Sean Walker, an everyman who investigates the mysterious disappearance of his would-be fiancée Leila, and unwittingly begins to expose the biggest cover-up in U.S. history.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 27000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: exciting, captivating, mind bending, serious, suspenseful, non-linear, intellectual, detective, cliffhanger, atmospheric
Similar in 87%
The 4400 (2004)
Plot Summary:
4400 centers on the return of 4400 people who, previously presumed dead or reported missing, reappear on Earth. Though they have not aged physically, some of them seem to have deeper alterations ranging from superhuman strength to an unexplained healing touch. A government agency is formed to track the 4400 people after one of them commits a murder.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 47000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, serious, tense, suspense, exciting, atmospheric, bad ending, anthology, apocalyptic, spooky
Similar in 83%
Flashforward (2009)
Plot Summary:
When the entire world blacks out for two minutes and seventeen seconds, everyone sees a flash of their own future 6 months from the present. For some, the future is hopeful, while for others, it is unexpected. For a few, it doesn't seem to exist. Knowing their fate will alter each person's life, destinies will be changed.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 62000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: mind bending, suspenseful, stylized, surreal, apocalyptic, tense, thought provoking, captivating, futuristic, cliffhanger
Similar in 86%
Warehouse 13 (2009)
Plot Summary:
After saving the life of the President, two secret service agents - Myka Bering and Pete Lattimer - find themselves assigned to the top secret Warehouse 13. The Warehouse is a massive, top secret facility that houses dangerous and fantastical objects. Together, Pete and Myka along with fellow agents Claudia, Steve Jinks and Warehouse caretaker Artie, must recover artifacts from around the globe before they can cause catastrophic damage.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 57000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, humorous, funny, thrilling, suspenseful, supernatural thriller, bleak, interesting, urban fantasy
Similar in 89%
Heroes (2006)
Plot Summary:
Common people discover that they have super powers. Their lives intertwine as a devastating event must be prevented.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 249000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, exciting, psychological thriller, intellectual, bad ending, saga, dramatic, apocalyptic, anime, mythical
Similar in 89%
Extant (2014)
Plot Summary:
An astronaut returns home from a year long solo mission in space. She tries to reconnect with her husband and son in their everyday life. Her experiences in space and home lead to events that ultimately will change the course of human history.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 25000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: tense, suspenseful, stylized, futuristic, serious, spooky, exciting, apocalyptic, atmospheric, mind bending
Similar in 86%
Dark Matter (2015)
Plot Summary:
The six-person crew of a derelict spaceship awakens from stasis in the farthest reaches of space. Their memories wiped clean, they have no recollection of who they are or how they got on board. The only clue to their identities is a cargo bay full of weaponry and a destination: a remote mining colony that is about to become a war zone. With no idea whose side they are on, they face a deadly decision. Will these amnesiacs turn their backs on history, or will their pasts catch up with them?.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 44000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspenseful, semi serious, action adventure, mind blowing, ambiguous ending, serious, bleak, interesting, canadian science fiction
Similar in 76%
The Expanse (2015)
Plot Summary:
A thriller set two hundred years in the future following the case of a missing young woman who brings a hardened detective and a rogue ship's captain together in a race across the solar system to expose the greatest conspiracy in human history.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 168000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: futuristic, exciting, captivating, suspenseful, tense, erotic, spiritual, political, satirical, detective
Similar in 85%
12 Monkeys (2015)
Plot Summary:
The provocative story of Cole, a time traveler from a decimated future in a high-stakes race against the clock. Utilizing a dangerous and untested method of time travel, he journeys from 2043 to the present day on a mission to locate and eradicate the source of a deadly plague that will all but annihilate the human race.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 48000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: futuristic, mind bending, atmospheric, serious, suspenseful, mindfuck, intense, suspense, exciting, spiritual
Similar in 90%
The Peripheral (2022)
Plot Summary:
Stuck in a small Appalachian town, a young woman’s only escape from the daily grind is playing advanced video games. She is such a good player that a company sends her a new video game system to test…but it has a surprise in store. It unlocks all of her dreams of finding a purpose, romance, and glamour in what seems like a game…but it also puts her and her family in real danger.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 77000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration:
Plot tags: futuristic, exciting, thrilling, smart, dark, clever
Similar in 86%
Severance (2022)
Plot Summary:
Mark leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. When a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.
IMDB Rating: 8.7
IMDB Votes: 181000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: breathtaking, captivating, tense, experimental, philosophical, semi serious, intellectual, apocalyptic, sitcom, deep
Similar in 89%
Under the Dome (2013)
Plot Summary:
Under the Dome is based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. It tells the story of the residents of the small town of Chester's Mill in Maine, where a massive, transparent, indestructible dome suddenly cuts them off from the rest of the world. With no Internet access, no mobile signals and limited radio communication, the people trapped inside must find their own ways to survive with diminishing resources and rising tensions. While military forces, the government and the media positioned outside of this surrounding barrier attempt to break it down, a small group of people inside attempt to figure out what the dome is, where it came from, and when (and if) it will go away.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 111000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: exciting, mind bending, surreal, teen, tense, atmospheric, sitcom, grindhouse, action packed, suspenseful
Similar in 80%
The Rain (2018)
Plot Summary:
After a brutal virus wipes out most of the population, two young siblings embark on a perilous search for safety. A Scandinavian thriller series.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 41000
Genere: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: Denmark, USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: captivating, atmospheric, exciting, apocalyptic, tense, bleak, suspenseful, stylized, compassionate, sitcom
Similar in 76%
Westworld (2016)
Plot Summary:
A dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the evolution of sin. Set at the intersection of the near future and the reimagined past, it explores a world in which every human appetite, no matter how noble or depraved, can be indulged.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 525000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 62 min
Plot tags: stylized, serious, thought provoking, psychological thriller, apocalyptic, suspense, futuristic, intellectual, spiritual, mind blowing
Similar in 75%
Fringe (2008)
Plot Summary:
FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham, brilliant but formerly institutionalized scientist Walter Bishop and his scheming, reluctant son Peter uncover a deadly mystery involving a series of unbelievable events and realize they may be a part of a larger, more disturbing pattern that blurs the line between science fiction and technology.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 254000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 46 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, scary, surreal, detective, thrilling, exciting, dramatic, psychological thriller, inspirational
Similar in 88%
The 100 (2014)
Plot Summary:
Based on the books by Kass Morgan, this show takes place 100 years in the future, when the Earth has been abandoned due to radioactivity. The last surviving humans live on an ark orbiting the planet — but the ark won't last forever. So the repressive regime picks 100 expendable juvenile delinquents to send down to Earth to see if the planet is still habitable.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 270000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, suspenseful, futuristic, stylized, intellectual, humorous, sitcom, juvenile, action packed
Similar in 81%
Black Mirror (2011)
Plot Summary:
A contemporary British re-working of The Twilight Zone with stories that tap into the collective unease about our modern world. Over the last ten years, technology has transformed almost every aspect of our lives before we've had time to stop and question it. In every home; on every desk; in every palm - a plasma screen; a monitor; a smartphone - a black mirror of our 21st Century existence.
IMDB Rating: 8.7
IMDB Votes: 622000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: philosophical, serious, thought provoking, anthology, clever, bleak, stylized, cynical, disturbing, biting