Best tv shows like Mad Men
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Mad Men is set in the 1960s, initially at the fictional Sterling Cooper advertising agency on Madison Avenue in New York City, and later at the newly created firm, Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, located nearby in the Time-Life Building, at 1271 Avenue of the Americas. According to the show's pilot, the phrase "mad men" was a slang term coined in the 1950s by advertisers working on Madison Avenue to refer to themselves. The focal point of the series is Don Draper, creative director at Sterling Cooper and a founding partner at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, and the people in his life, both in and out of the office. The plot focuses on the business of the agencies as well as the personal lives of the characters, regularly depicting the changing moods and social mores of the United States in the 1960s.
IMDB Rating: 8.7
IMDB Votes: 256000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 4400 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, atmospheric, stylized, clever, exciting, retro, sexy, thought provoking, touching
Best tv shows and movies like Mad Men (2007):
Similar in 85%
Good Girls Revolt (2015)
Plot Summary:
A look at the personal and professional lives of employees at an American news magazine in the late 1960s.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: touching, captivating, entertaining, realistic, witty, semi serious, period piece, erotic, romantic, anthology
Similar in 81%
Nip/Tuck (2003)
Plot Summary:
Hotshot plastic surgeons Dr. Sean McNamara and Dr. Christian Troy experience full-blown midlife crises as they confront career, family and romance problems.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 58000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: sexy, medical drama, realistic, erotic, sexual, exciting, bloody, entertaining, dramatic, controversial
Similar in 86%
The Slap (2015)
Plot Summary:
A family drama that explodes from one small incident where a man slaps another couple's misbehaving child. This seemingly minor domestic dispute pulls the family apart, exposes long-held secrets, and ignites a lawsuit that challenges the core values of all who are pulled into it.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, realistic, psychological, captivating
Similar in 87%
Satisfaction (2014)
Plot Summary:
A provocative drama that explores modern marriage at its midpoint. Through the lens of one couple, Neil Truman and his wife, Grace, this series answers the question, “What do you do when having it all is not enough?” by delving into their shocking and unconventional choices.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, tense, captivating, erotic, psychological, sexy, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 82%
Cashmere Mafia (2008)
Plot Summary:
Cashmere Mafia is an American television comedy-drama which ran on ABC from January 6, 2008 to February 20, 2008. The series was created by Kevin Wade, who also served as executive producer alongside Darren Star, Gail Katz, Jeff Rake and Michael Pressman, with Susie Fitzgerald co-executive producing. Peyton Reed directed the pilot. ABC decided not to renew the series for a second season. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released Cashmere Mafia on DVD.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: realistic, humorous, semi serious, sincere, anime, stylized, soap opera, sexy
Similar in 88%
The Hour (2011)
Plot Summary:
A behind-the-scenes drama and espionage thriller in Cold War-era England that centers on a journalist, a producer, and an anchorman for an investigative news programme.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, serious, realistic, stylized, historical drama, tense, political thriller, period drama
Similar in 87%
Mr Selfridge (2013)
Plot Summary:
Mr. Selfridge recounts the real life story of the flamboyant and visionary American founder of Selfridge's, London's lavish department store. Set in 1909 London, when women were reveling in a new sense of freedom and modernity, it follows Harry Gordon Selfridge ('Mile a Minute Harry'), a man with a mission to make shopping as thrilling as sex. Pioneering and reckless, with an almost manic energy, Harry created a theater of retail where any topic or trend that was new, exciting, entertaining - or just eccentric - was showcased.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: stylized, captivating, costume drama, serious, realistic, period piece, dark drama, historical drama, period drama, vintage
Similar in 88%
The $treet (2000)
Plot Summary:
The $treet is an American television drama series that aired on Fox in 2000. 11 episodes were produced and 6 aired in the U.S. The series was about a small brokerage house called Belmont Stevens located in New York and the lives of its employees. Freddie Sacker was one of the most notable characters played by Rick Hoffman.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 386
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, serious, captivating, realistic
Similar in 77%
August (2008)
Plot Summary:
August is a 2008 drama film directed by Austin Chick and produced by 57th & Irving. The screenplay by Howard A. Rodman focuses on two brothers, ambitious dot-com entrepreneurs attempting to keep their company afloat as the stock market begins to collapse in August 2001, one month prior to the 9/11 attacks.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: realistic, sincere, serious, touching, suspense
Similar in 79%
The Affair (2014)
Plot Summary:
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.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 48000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, emotional, captivating, realistic, erotic, gloomy, philosophical, bleak, grindhouse
Similar in 87%
Deadline (2000)
Plot Summary:
Deadline is a television series which was shown on NBC in the 2000–2001 season. It starred Oliver Platt as Wallace Benton, who worked for the fictional New York Ledger. This was a daily newspaper which was seen in many episodes of Law & Order.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 135
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, captivating
Similar in 83%
Trust Me (2009)
Plot Summary:
The series revolves around Rothman, Greene, and Moore, a fictional advertising firm. The storylines center on the difficulties of securing accounts and the characters' personal lives.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: realistic, captivating, psychological, atmospheric, humorous, witty, stylized, semi serious
Similar in 79%
The Astronaut Wives Club (2015)
Plot Summary:
Based on the book by Lily Koppel, this 10 episode limited series tells the story of the women who were key players behind some of the biggest events in American history. As America’s astronauts were launched on death-defying missions, Life Magazine documented the astronauts’ families, capturing the behind-the-scenes lives of their young wives. Overnight, these women were transformed from military spouses into American royalty. As their celebrity rose and tragedy began to touch their lives, they rallied together.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, psychological, period drama
Similar in 76%
Pan Am (2011)
Plot Summary:
Pan Am is an American period drama television series created by writer Jack Orman. Named for the iconic Pan American World Airways, the series features the pilots and stewardesses of the airline as it operated in the early 1960s at the beginning of the commercial Jet Age.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Drama, History, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: sentimental, realistic, stylized, serious, romantic, retro, entertaining, anime, costume drama, historical drama
Similar in 84%
Boss (2011)
Plot Summary:
Boss is an American political drama television serial created by Farhad Safinia. The series stars Kelsey Grammer as Tom Kane, the mayor of Chicago, who has recently been diagnosed with dementia with Lewy bodies, a degenerative neurological disorder.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 56 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, clever, captivating, political, cynical, realistic, erotic, psychological thriller, dramatic
Similar in 78%
Masters of Sex (2013)
Plot Summary:
William Masters and Virginia Johnson are real-life pioneers of the science of human sexuality. Their research touched off the sexual revolution and took them from a midwestern teaching hospital to the cover of Time magazine and multiple appearances on Johnny Carson's couch. He is a brilliant scientist out of touch with his own feelings, and she is a single working mother ahead of her time. The series chronicles their unusual lives, romance, and unlikely pop culture trajectory.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: sexual, sexy, erotic, realistic, captivating, sad, dramatic, soap opera, costume drama, sensual
Similar in 81%
Why Women Kill (2019)
Plot Summary:
Three women living in three different decades: a housewife in the '60s, a socialite in the '80s and a lawyer in 2018, deal with infidelity in their marriages.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 29000
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 984 min
Plot tags: captivating, witty, atmospheric, erotic, humorous, dark comedy, entertaining, light, funny, anthology
Similar in 79%
The Deep End (2010)
Plot Summary:
The Deep End is an American television series created by David Hemingson and produced by 20th Century Fox Television for the ABC television network. Starring Mehcad Brooks, Matt Long, Tina Majorino, Clancy Brown, and Billy Zane, the show follows five first-year associate attorneys from diverse backgrounds as they learn how to cope with the challenges of working at one of the most prestigious law firms in Los Angeles.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 788
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: realistic, semi serious, psychological, atmospheric, captivating, humorous, stylized
Similar in 88%
L.A. Law (1986)
Plot Summary:
L.A. Law is an American television legal drama series that ran for eight seasons on NBC from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994. Created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher, it contained many of Bochco's trademark features including a large number of parallel storylines, social drama and off-the-wall humor. It reflected the social and cultural ideologies of the 1980s and early 1990s, and many of the cases featured on the show dealt with hot-topic issues such as abortion, racism, gay rights, homophobia, sexual harassment, AIDS, and domestic violence. The series often also reflected social tensions between the wealthy senior lawyer protagonists and their less well-paid junior staff. The show was popular with audiences and critics, and won 15 Emmy Awards throughout its run, four of which were for Outstanding Drama Series.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 46 min
Plot tags: realistic, stylized, clever, serious, thrilling, detective, telenovela
Similar in 76%
Dirty Sexy Money (2007)
Plot Summary:
The Darling family's obscene wealth and enormous power makes them easy targets for their rivals, enemies, and the tabloids. Patriarch Tripp uses his money and influence to shield his five adult children from the prying eyes of the world. As the Darlings' reluctant personal lawyer, Nick George has barely begun to discover the legal - and illegal - needs of the family. Blackmail threats. Questionable deals. Illegitimate children. Illicit affairs. It will take every trick he can think of to keep them out of the tabloids - and out of jail. But if he can solve his father's mysterious death, it might be worth the hassle. Enter a seductive world of glamorous people, exclusive parties and delicious intrigue.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: sexy, realistic, serious, talky, stylized, sexual
Similar in 85%
The Newsroom (2012)
Plot Summary:
A behind-the-scenes look at the people who make a nightly cable-news program. Focusing on a network anchor, his new executive producer, the newsroom staff and their boss, the series tracks their quixotic mission to do the news well in the face of corporate and commercial obstacles-not to mention their own personal entanglements.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 123000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: clever, intellectual, political, sincere, realistic, dramatic, exciting, inspirational, thought provoking, controversial
Similar in 75%
The Paradise (2012)
Plot Summary:
An intoxicating love story set in England's first department store in the 1870s. The Paradise revolves around the lives of the people who live and work in the store, each bound in their own way by the power of the world they live in, and the pasts that follow them there. A love story, mystery, and social comedy all in one.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: captivating, costume drama, stylized, realistic, period piece, serious, intellectual, historical drama, historical romance, period drama
Similar in 80%
Mildred Pierce (2011)
Plot Summary:
A newly divorced, uniquely independent woman struggles to carve out a new life for herself and her family in Depression-era California.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 336 min
Plot tags: emotional, serious, costume drama, atmospheric, period piece, thought provoking, romantic, social, cute, clever
Similar in 80%
Billions (2016)
Plot Summary:
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.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 107000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: captivating, thought provoking, suspense, intellectual, political, smart, intelligent, entertaining, queer cinema
Similar in 80%
Halt and Catch Fire (2014)
Plot Summary:
Set in the early 1980s, and about a fictional visionary, an engineer and a prodigy whose innovations confronts the corporate behemoths of the time. Their personal and professional partnership will be challenged by greed and ego while charting the changing culture in Texas' Silicon Prairie.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 35000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: clever, realistic, serious, captivating, melancholic, retro, emotional, dramatic, crying, cerebral
Similar in 85%
House of Cards (2013)
Plot Summary:
Set in present day Washington, D.C., House of Cards is the story of Frank Underwood, a ruthless and cunning politician, and his wife Claire who will stop at nothing to conquer everything. This wicked political drama penetrates the shadowy world of greed, sex and corruption in modern D.C. House of Cards is an adaptation of a previous BBC miniseries of the same name, which is based on the novel by Michael Dobbs.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 524000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 3804 min
Plot tags: political, serious, clever, captivating, tense, talky, postmodern, cynical, intellectual, exciting
Similar in 86%
Las Vegas (2003)
Plot Summary:
Las Vegas is an American television series broadcast by NBC from September 22, 2003 to February 15, 2008. The show focuses on a team of people working at the fictional Montecito Resort & Casino dealing with issues that arise within the working environment, ranging from valet parking and restaurant management to casino security. The series originally aired on Monday nights, though NBC later moved the series to Friday nights first to 9 PM Eastern/8 PM Central and then to 10 PM Eastern/9 PM Central. The show ended syndication in the United States in July 2013 after a long run of weekday back to back episodes it was moved to a graveyard slot of 4 am- then removed totally from TNT's lineup. The series originally centered around Ed Deline, a strict ex-CIA officer who went from being Head of Security to becoming President of Operations of the Montecito, whose job is to run the day-to-day operations of the casino. Following his departure from the series in Season 5, former Marine Danny McCoy, Ed's former protégé, became the Montecito's new President of Operations. The series abruptly ended with a cliffhanger because NBC canceled Las Vegas in the offseason following season five.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 29000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: sexy, stylized, serious, realistic, suspenseful, bad ending, dramatic, action adventure, idiotic
Similar in 76%
Magic City (2012)
Plot Summary:
Set in 1959 Miami, Florida shortly after the Cuban Revolution, Magic City tells the story of Ike Evans, the owner of Miami's most glamorous hotel, the Miramar Playa. Evans is forced to make an ill-fated deal with Miami mob boss Ben Diamond to ensure the success of his glitzy establishment.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min
Plot tags: tense, atmospheric, serious, stylized, erotic, sexy, dramatic, anime, sensual, realistic
Similar in 81%
Suits (2011)
Plot Summary:
While running from a drug deal gone bad, Mike Ross, a brilliant young college-dropout, slips into a job interview with one of New York City's best legal closers, Harvey Specter. Tired of cookie-cutter law school grads, Harvey takes a gamble by hiring Mike on the spot after he recognizes his raw talent and photographic memory. Mike and Harvey are a winning team. Even though Mike is a genius, he still has a lot to learn about law. And while Harvey may seem like an emotionless, cold-blooded shark, Mike's sympathy and concern for their cases and clients will help remind Harvey why he went into law in the first place. Mike's other allies in the office include the firm's best paralegal Rachel and Harvey's no-nonsense assistant Donna to help him serve justice. Proving to be an irrepressible duo and invaluable to the practice, Mike and Harvey must keep their secret from everyone including managing partner Jessica and Harvey's arch nemesis Louis, who seems intent on making Mike's life as difficult as possible.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 461000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: stylized, captivating, witty, serious, talky, realistic, intellectual, dramatic, funny, sexy
Similar in 77%
The Queen's Gambit (2020)
Plot Summary:
In a Kentucky orphanage in the 1950s, a young girl discovers an astonishing talent for chess while struggling with addiction.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 525000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 397 min
Plot tags: captivating, psychological, period piece, historical drama, suspense, tense, unusual plot structure, visually appealing, inspirational, thought provoking