5 best shows like Severance
Apple TV+Severance Season 2 has started to heat up, and you’re no doubt desperate to find out what’s next for Mark and the MDR team… sadly you’ve got to wait another week to find out. So while you wait, why not watch one of these shows, like Severance?
We know, we know. It’s not the same, and we understand. Severance is one of the best Apple TV+ shows on Apple TV+ (if not one of the best TV shows ever), but do you really think we’re going to suggest that you watch any old rubbish?
No, we wouldn’t do that to you. Instead, our TV and Movie experts have used their encyclopedic knowledge of the small screen to pick five shows that share the same mysterious DNA as Severance so they’ll hopefully scratch the same itch.
Black Mirror
Netflix - Release date: December 4, 2011 – present
- Genre: Sci-fi/horror/thriller/comedy
- Cast: Bryce Dallas Howard, Jon Hamm, Anthony Mackie, Cristin Milioti, Jesse Plemons
- Where to watch? Netflix
- How long is it? 6 seasons (26 episodes and two specials)
What it’s about: Charlie Brooker’s twisted, dystopian anthology series shines a dark light on the world’s cliff-edge addiction to technology. Each episode is a cautionary tale with the same warning: obsession with innovation could be our undoing.
Why we like it: Severance doesn’t exist without Black Mirror; its premise could slot into a twisted trilogy with ‘The Entire History of You’ and ‘Playtest.’ While the former is undeniably easier to watch (the latter literally starts with a politician shagging a pig and contains some of the most harrowing stories ever aired on TV), there’s a clear link between them: they both question the lengths people will go to with technology make their life a little bit easier.
Written by Cameron Frew
Silo
Apple TV+- Release date:
- Genre: Sci-fi
- Cast: Rebecca Ferguson, David Oyelowo, Common, Tim Robbins
- Where to watch? Apple TV+
- How long is it? 2 seasons (20 episodes)
What’s it about: After an unknown cataclysm renders the Earth’s surface uninhabitable, a sliver of humanity survives in a giant underground silo. To maintain the protection of the silo, this community is bound by strict rules and laws which have helped to keep the peace for more than 100 years.
Why we like it: Like Severance, Silo is a compelling look at agency and autonomy, which also happens to explore salient and timely ideas around community, security, and authoritarianism. Basically, it’s a show that asks the viewer, what would you be willing to sacrifice to stay safe and would you fight for your freedoms?
What I like about Silo, though, is that it doesn’t give easy answers to those thorny ideas; there are no black-and-white solutions – it’s a world as grey as the Silo walls. Thankfully, just like Severance, there’s also plenty of intrigue, action, and devious politicking, so you don’t get lost in its musings on the philosophy of governance.
Written by Tom Percival
Westworld
HBO- Release date: October 2, 2016 – August 14, 2022
- Genre: Sci-fi
- Cast: Evan Rachel Wood, Thandiwe Newton, Jeffrey Wright, Ed Harris, Anthony Hopkins
- Where to watch?
- How long is it? 4 seasons (36 episodes)
What it’s about: An extraordinarily immersive, futuristic Wild West ‘experience’ attracts high-paying holidayers looking to cut loose like cowboys, shootouts, drinking whisky in saloons, brothels – the works. However, amid their wanton behavior, the park’s robot hosts start malfunctioning.
Why we like it: Westworld’s Delos Inc. could be a sister company of Severance’s Lumon. Both corporations corrupt the natural order ostensibly in aid of the human experience, and there’s something far more sinister bubbling under the surface – only in Westworld’s case, it’s less about a retro-futurist cult and more about the blood flooding its blind eye. Word to the wise: Season 2 is a headache-inducing slog, but it quickly recovers, so stay with it.
Written by Cameron Frew
Homecoming
Prime Video- Release date: November 2, 2018
- Genre: Thriller/Drama
- Cast: Julia Roberts, Stephan James, Bobby Cannavale, Shea Whigham
- Where to watch: Prime Video
- How long is it? 2 seasons (17 episodes)
What it’s about: A caseworker at a mysterious rehabilitation facility that helps soldiers transition to civilian life starts to question her own past when an investigator comes looking for answers.
Why we like it: If Severance made you question your workplace (and your sanity), Homecoming is for you. The first season is a masterclass in tension, with Hitchcockian framing and an unsettlingly sterile atmosphere that makes even the most mundane interactions feel sinister. Roberts is magnetic, and Esmail’s direction keeps you on edge. Sure, Season 2 didn’t quite match up, but that first season? Utterly gripping and very Lumon-coded.
Written by Daisy Phillipson
Mr. Robot
USA Network- Release date: June 24, 2015
- Genre: Thriller/Drama
- Cast: Rami Malek, Christian Slater, Carly Chaikin, Portia Doubleday, Tyrell Wellick
- Where to watch: On-demand
- How long is it? 4 seasons (45 episodes)
What it’s about: A socially anxious cybersecurity engineer is recruited by an underground hacking collective to take down the system – only to discover reality isn’t as stable as he thought.
Why we like it: If you love the corporate dystopia and psychological mind games of Severance, welcome to your next TV obsession. Mr. Robot is all-consuming, twisting your perception of reality with unreliable narration, fourth wall breaks, and jaw-dropping reveals. Malek delivers a haunting performance as Elliot, while Esmail crafts a world that feels both terrifyingly surreal and all too real. By the time you finish, you’ll be questioning everything – your job, your memories, and maybe even yourself.
Written by Daisy Phillipson
Looking more great recommendations? Check out our list of the best movies ever made or we have a list of the best sci-fi movies. If you’re looking for other small screen picks why not read our list of the best Netflix shows you can binge now.