Best tv shows like Prison Break
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Due to a political conspiracy, an innocent man is sent to death row and his only hope is his brother, who makes it his mission to deliberately get himself sent to the same prison in order to break the both of them out, from the inside out.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 569000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: exciting, tense, suspenseful, serious, rough, realistic, crime drama, thrilling, clever, enigmatic
Best tv shows and movies like Prison Break (2005):
Similar in 85%
Lock Up (1989)
Plot Summary:
Frank Leone is nearing the end of his prison term for a relatively minor crime. Just before he is paroled, however, Warden Drumgoole takes charge. Drumgoole was assigned to a hell-hole prison after his administration was publicly humiliated by Leone, and has now arrived on the scene to ensure that Leone never sees the light of day.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 46000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: suspense, intense, realistic, rough, serious, suspenseful, exciting, brutal, clever, cult classic
Similar in 88%
Alcatraz (2012)
Plot Summary:
Alcatraz is an American television series created by Elizabeth Sarnoff, Steven Lilien and Bryan Wynbrandt, and produced by J. J. Abrams and Bad Robot Productions. The series premiered on Fox on January 16, 2012, as a mid-season replacement. Switching between eras, the series focuses on the Alcatraz prison, which was allegedly shut down in 1963 due to unsafe conditions for its prisoners and guards. The show's premise is that both the prisoners and the guards disappeared in 1963 and have abruptly reappeared in modern-day San Francisco, where they are being tracked down by a government agency. The series starred Sarah Jones, Jorge Garcia, Sam Neill and Parminder Nagra. The show was cancelled on May 9, 2012.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 40000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, atmospheric, captivating, stylized, cliffhanger, serious, exciting, detective, mysterious, apocalyptic
Similar in 89%
U.S. Marshals (1998)
Plot Summary:
U.S. Marshal Sam Gerard is accompanying a plane load of convicts from Chicago to New York. The plane crashes spectacularly, and Mark Sheridan escapes. But when Diplomatic Security Agent John Royce is assigned to help Gerard recapture Sheridan, it becomes clear that Sheridan is more than just another murderer.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 112000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: exciting, suspense, suspenseful, serious, entertaining, rough, realistic, psychological, tense, detective
Similar in 87%
The Escapist (2002)
Plot Summary:
Denis Hopkins, a pilot, lives with his pregnant wife Valerie and has a comfortable lifestyle. When a gang of criminals led by the sadistic Ricky Barnes breaks into his home, he offers whatever the criminals want to protect his wife and unborn child, but the evil Ricky kills Valerie anyway. Their baby is saved, and later Barnes is arrested and sentenced to life in the maximum security prison, Sullen Voe. Denis fakes his own suicide, then assaults a police car in order to get himself arrested and sent to prison with the intention of tracking down and killing Ricky Barnes. He does not reveal his true name and is called John "What" by the prisoners and guards. Denis escapes from successive prisons, forcing his eventual transfer to Sullen Voe. When he reaches his objective, Ricky Barnes schedules a confrontation, but things do not quite turn out the way Denis had expected.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: realistic, suspenseful, tense, serious, rough
Similar in 81%
Justified (2010)
Plot Summary:
A character drama based on the 2001 Elmore Leonard short story "Fire in the Hole." Leonard's tale centers around U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens of Kentucky, a quiet but strong-willed official of the law. The tale covers his high-stakes job, as well as his strained relationships with his ex-wife and father.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 116000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Western
Country: USA
Duration: 3400 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, neo noir, dramatic, detective, southern gothic, crime drama, neo western, exciting
Similar in 88%
Anything for Her (2008)
Plot Summary:
Lisa and Julien are married and lead a happy uneventful life with their son Oscar. But their life radically changes one morning, when the police comes to arrest Lisa on murder charges. She's sentenced to 20 years of prison. Convinced of his wife's innocence, Julien decides to act. How far will he be willing to go for her?.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France, Spain
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: exciting, sentimental, serious, suspenseful, twisted, thrilling, neo noir, tense, realistic, fast
Similar in 81%
Burn Notice (2007)
Plot Summary:
A formerly blacklisted spy uses his unique skills and training to help people in desperate situations.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 78000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: exciting, semi serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized, detective, political, anime, grindhouse, crime drama
Similar in 78%
Healer (2014)
Plot Summary:
Kim Moon Ho is a successful reporter at a mainstream news station, but when he stumbles upon a 10-year-old mystery, he's forced to dive into a subversive underground news agency. On his journey to break open the case, Moon Ho teams up with Chae Young Shin, a second rate tabloid writer, and Healer, a mysterious internet-based journalist. With his career and his safety on the line, who can Moon Ho trust in a world full of unreliable sources?.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Romance, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, dorama, romantic, touching, humorous, captivating, disturbing, semi serious, romantic drama, suspense
Similar in 77%
Lupin (2021)
Plot Summary:
Inspired by the adventures of Arsène Lupin, gentleman thief Assane Diop sets out to avenge his father for an injustice inflicted by a wealthy family.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 133000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery
Country: France, USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspense, tense, suspenseful, exciting, captivating, disturbing, detective, intellectual, serious
Similar in 86%
Locked Up (2015)
Plot Summary:
Set up to take the blame for corporate fraud, young Macarena Ferreiro is locked up in a high-security women's prison surrounded by tough, ruthless criminals in this tense, provocative Spanish thriller.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 25000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Spain
Duration: 53 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, captivating, suspense, rough, disturbing, clever, suspenseful, queer cinema
Similar in 82%
Oz (1997)
Plot Summary:
The daily lives of prisoners in Emerald City, an experimental unit of the Oswald Maximum Security Prison where ingroups - Muslims, Latinos, Italians, Aryans - stick close to their mutual friends and terrorizes their mutual enemies.
IMDB Rating: 8.7
IMDB Votes: 105000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: rough, thought provoking, bleak, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing, serious, talky, dramatic, controversial
Similar in 82%
Quantico (2015)
Plot Summary:
A diverse group of recruits has arrived at the FBI Quantico Base for training. They are the best, the brightest and the most vetted, so it seems impossible that one of them is suspected of masterminding the biggest attack on New York City since 9/11.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 63000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, surprise ending, detective, exciting, captivating, disturbing, sitcom
Similar in 85%
El marginal (2016)
Plot Summary:
An ex-cop entered a prison as convicted under a false identity in order to infiltrate within a group of prisoners that has just kidnapped the teenage daughter of an important national judge.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Argentina
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: suspense, tense, serious, suspenseful, thought provoking, detective, hispanic, hood, exciting, interesting
Similar in 83%
Wentworth (2013)
Plot Summary:
Bea Smith is locked up while awaiting trial for the attempted murder of her husband and must learn how life works in prison. A modern adaptation and sequel of the iconic Prisoner series.
IMDB Rating: 8.6
IMDB Votes: 24000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Australia
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: serious, tense, suspenseful, rough, bleak, erotic, sexy, dark, dramatic, thrilling
Similar in 88%
Designated Survivor (2016)
Plot Summary:
Tom Kirkman, a low-level cabinet member is suddenly appointed President of the United States after a catastrophic attack during the State of the Union kills everyone above him in the Presidential line of succession.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 102000
Genere: Action, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: exciting, political, tense, captivating, suspenseful, apocalyptic, political thriller, interesting, political drama
Similar in 80%
Traveler (2007)
Plot Summary:
Traveler is a short-lived American television series that ran from May 10, 2007 until July 18, 2007 on ABC in the United States. The series was produced by Warner Bros. Television. Traveler was officially canceled after eight first-run episodes on July 18, 2007. Fans then tried to save the show but were unsuccessful. David DiGilio, the creator, posted an "answers blog" on September 28, 2007, which officially ended the show.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Action, Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, realistic, suspenseful, detective, spooky
Similar in 79%
Blindspot (2015)
Plot Summary:
A vast international plot explodes when a beautiful Jane Doe is discovered naked in Times Square, completely covered in mysterious, intricate tattoos with no memory of who she is or how she got there. But there's one tattoo that is impossible to miss: the name of FBI agent Kurt Weller, emblazoned across her back. "Jane," Agent Weller and the rest of the FBI quickly realize that each mark on her body is a crime to solve, leading them closer to the truth about her identity and the mysteries to be revealed.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 78000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, suspense, detective, exciting, intellectual, art house, deep, action adventure, idiotic
Similar in 88%
Prison Break: The Final Break (2009)
Plot Summary:
The movie covers the events which occurred in between the downfall of The Company and the finale of the series. It details the arrest and incarceration of Sara Tancredi, the final escape plan which Michael devises for Sara. It also reveals the ultimate fate of Gretchen Morgan.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 27000
Genere: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, suspense, clever, intense, exciting, rough, realistic, tense, serious, enigmatic
Similar in 87%
The Next Three Days (2010)
Plot Summary:
A married couple's life is turned upside down when the wife is accused of a murder. Lara Brennan is arrested for murdering her boss with whom she had an argument. It seems she was seen leaving the scene of the crime and her fingerprints were on the murder weapon. Her husband, John would spend the next few years trying to get her released, but there's no evidence that negates the evidence against her. And when the strain of being separated from her family, especially her son, gets to her, John decides to break her out. So he does a lot of research to find a way.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 204000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Romance, Thriller
Country: USA, France
Duration: 133 min
Plot tags: suspense, clever, suspenseful, romantic, serious, tense, psychological, exciting, sentimental, enigmatic
Similar in 83%
Prison Break: Proof of Innocence (2006)
Plot Summary:
The story of Amber McCall as she attempts to uncover evidence to exonerate her friend, L.J. Burrows. A low-budget spin-off series of Prison Break made exclusively for mobile phones with each episode being approximately 2 minutes long. Although the story of this mobisode series revolve around the conspiracy that put Lincoln Burrows in jail, the series does not feature any of the actors from the TV series. Additionally, these episodes were not written by the team of writers from the TV series and the TV series does not acknowledge the events that occurred in this spinoff.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 549
Genere: Short, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 2 min
Plot tags: unusual plot structure, suspense
Similar in 85%
Money Heist (2017)
Plot Summary:
To carry out the biggest heist in history, a mysterious man called The Professor recruits a band of eight robbers who have a single characteristic: none of them has anything to lose. Five months of seclusion - memorizing every step, every detail, every probability - culminate in eleven days locked up in the National Coinage and Stamp Factory of Spain, surrounded by police forces and with dozens of hostages in their power, to find out whether their suicide wager will lead to everything or nothing.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 516000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Spain
Duration: 70 min
Plot tags: suspense, exciting, intense, tense, suspenseful, epic, enigmatic, emotional, surprise ending, clever
Similar in 84%
24 (2001)
Plot Summary:
24 is an American television series produced for the Fox network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method of narration.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 195000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: exciting, cliffhanger, serious, stylized, realistic, suspenseful, rough, suspense, dramatic, crime drama
Similar in 90%
The Blacklist (2013)
Plot Summary:
Raymond "Red" Reddington, one of the FBI's most wanted fugitives, surrenders in person at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. He claims that he and the FBI have the same interests: bringing down dangerous criminals and terrorists. In the last two decades, he's made a list of criminals and terrorists that matter the most but the FBI cannot find because it does not know they exist. Reddington calls this "The Blacklist". Reddington will co-operate, but insists that he will speak only to Elizabeth Keen, a rookie FBI profiler.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 274000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: exciting, tense, serious, captivating, clever, detective, disturbing, realistic, intellectual, political
Similar in 82%
Escape Plan (2013)
Plot Summary:
Ray Breslin is the world's foremost authority on structural security. After analyzing every high security prison and learning a vast array of survival skills so he can design escape-proof prisons, his skills are put to the test. He's framed and incarcerated in a master prison he designed himself. He needs to escape and find the person who put him behind bars.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 254000
Genere: Action, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, exciting, suspense, twist ending, clever, entertaining, intense, serious, action packed, brutal
Similar in 83%
The Fugitive (1993)
Plot Summary:
Wrongfully accused of murdering his wife, Richard Kimble escapes from the law in an attempt to find her killer and clear his name. Pursuing him is a team of U.S. marshals led by Deputy Samuel Gerard, a determined detective who will not rest until Richard is captured. As Richard leads the team through a series of intricate chases, he discovers the secrets behind his wife's death and struggles to expose the killer before it is too late.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 313000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 130 min
Plot tags: suspense, suspenseful, detective, neo noir, exciting, tense, entertaining, intense, rough, serious
Similar in 89%
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
Plot Summary:
Bourne is brought out of hiding once again by reporter Simon Ross who is trying to unveil Operation Blackbriar, an upgrade to Project Treadstone, in a series of newspaper columns. Information from the reporter stirs a new set of memories, and Bourne must finally uncover his dark past while dodging The Company's best efforts to eradicate him.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 652000
Genere: Action, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany, France, Spain
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: exciting, intense, suspenseful, rough, suspense, entertaining, action packed, stylized, clever, tense
Similar in 88%
Escape from Alcatraz (1979)
Plot Summary:
Escape from Alcatraz tells the story of the only three men ever to escape from the infamous maximum security prison at Alcatraz. In 29 years, the seemingly impenetrable federal penitentiary, which housed Al Capone and "Birdman" Robert Stroud, was only broken once - by three men never heard of again.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 145000
Genere: Action, Biography, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: suspense, atmospheric, suspenseful, realistic, exciting, motivational, inspirational, neo noir, non fiction, crime drama
Similar in 90%
Person of Interest (2011)
Plot Summary:
Person of Interest follows former CIA paramilitary operative, John Reese, who is presumed dead and teams up with reclusive billionaire Finch to prevent violent crimes in New York City by initiating their own type of justice. With the special training that Reese has had in Covert Operations and Finch's genius software inventing mind, the two are a perfect match for the job that they have to complete. With the help of surveillance equipment, they work "outside the law" and get the right criminal behind bars. .
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 186000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: exciting, captivating, serious, clever, detective, cyber, heroic, surprise ending, atmospheric, mysterious
Similar in 76%
Breaking Bad (2008)
Plot Summary:
When Walter White, a New Mexico chemistry teacher, is diagnosed with Stage III cancer and given a prognosis of only two years left to live, he becomes filled with a sense of fearlessness and an unrelenting desire to secure his family's financial future at any cost as he enters the dangerous world of drugs and crime.
IMDB Rating: 9.5
IMDB Votes: 21000000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 3030 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, tense, psychological, rough, cynical, neo noir, clever, dramatic, bleak
Similar in 81%
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Plot Summary:
Framed in the 1940s for the double murder of his wife and her lover, upstanding banker Andy Dufresne begins a new life at the Shawshank prison, where he puts his accounting skills to work for an amoral warden. During his long stretch in prison, Dufresne comes to be admired by the other inmates -- including an older prisoner named Red -- for his integrity and unquenchable sense of hope.
IMDB Rating: 9.3
IMDB Votes: 28000000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 142 min
Plot tags: clever, inspirational, touching, twist ending, sentimental, uplifting, emotional, philosophical, suspense, serious