10 Best Shows Like The Outsider That You Need Watching Update 04/2024

shows like the outsider

The Outsider, an upcoming 10-episode crime miniseries on HBO, will feature supernatural elements. Fans of the gritty show may be interested in some of the alternatives listed below.

Taking cues from the supernatural procedurals that came before, HBO’s ten-part crime miniseries The Outsider in 2020 will feature gritty and hallucinatory investigations, complicated authorities, and mysterious monsters. The series, based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, has a distinct Southern Gothic feel to it, with small-town values being upended by grisly murders.

Both the show and the book center on a string of increasingly bizarre child slayings. Cynthia Erivo plays a brilliant private investigator who leads Ben Mendelsohn’s by-the-book police chief to a mysterious creature at the source of all the mayhem. Despite this, he is forced to accept the unbelievable. These ten other supernatural crime series await your exploration now that the first one is over.

1. Dark (2017)

Dark (2017)

There are four families in the fictional town of Winden who are all connected to an old, unsolved mystery in Netflix’s Dark, its first German-language original series. In addition to Charlotte Doppler, a young boy named Jonas plays a major role, as does police officer Ulrich Nielsen.

In addition to time travel, the show explores issues such as family dysfunction and serial killers. A wormhole in a cave system that connects to a power plant owned by a wealthy family drives the plot forward.

2. Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974 – 1975)

Despite only having one season of broadcast, this ABC series has amassed a devoted following over the years. The series premiered in 1974 following the success of two television movies featuring the show’s titular character. In it, Darren McGavin plays Carl Kolchak, a Chicago reporter who looks into crimes that the police have either overlooked or failed to investigate properly. The majority of the cases involve elements of the paranormal, and the show features fantastical characters.

Classic monsters like zombies and werewolves sit alongside more futuristic foes like androids and aliens on this list. The X-Files was inspired by Kolchak.

3. Awake (2012)

Awake (2012)

To tell the story of a Los Angeles police officer whose life is forever altered by an automobile accident with his family, Awake uses elements of science fiction and fantasy, including dreams and supernatural alternate realities.

a British actor named Jason Isaacs plays Michael Britton, a police officer who has a difficult time separating his personal and professional lives after his wife and son are killed in a car accident. It becomes increasingly difficult for Britton to tell which reality is real as he spends more time in it. In the end, the show was canceled due to low ratings after only one season, leaving viewers hanging on every word.

4. Forever Knight (1992 – 1996)

Vampire detective shows like Angel and Blood Lines would not exist if it weren’t for the influential television series Forever Knight. Canadian supernatural procedural Forever Knight features a detective who also happens to be a vampire, but it’s a lot more fun because of it.

A 800-year-old vampire by the name of Nick Knight is fed up with his vampiric existence and wants nothing to do with it. He longs to be a normal person again, so he goes around solving homicides to earn that right. There were three seasons to the show, which helped pave the way for all of the subsequent popular creature feature melodramas.

5. Miracles (2003)

Miracles (2003)

Miracles is a long-forgotten procedural from the X-Files era that was likely ahead of its time despite only running for one season. An investigator hired by the Catholic Church to investigate alleged miracles plays Skeet Ulrich, who played notorious serial killer Billy in the first Scream movie.

There is no evidence to support Paul Callan’s claim after his character experiences a true miracle. As a result of his disappointment, Callan decides to join an organization that investigates strange occurrences: Sodalitas Quaerito. Angus Macfadyen and Marisa Ramirez also star in the show. When it was announced that the show would be scrapped, it was met with outrage from the audience.

6. Castle Rock (2018 – )

With a cast inspired by Stephen King’s characters and settings, Castle Rock is an anthology horror series on Hulu that centers on an engrossing mystery. The supernatural forces that make life difficult for the residents of this small Maine town are the focus of both seasons, which feature a diverse cast of characters and plotlines.

For the most part, Castle Rock stays true to Stephen King’s ideas while adding social and political intrigue to the mix. This allows the show to explore the human psyche while also searching for answers to life’s greatest mysteries. Sissy Spacek and Andre Holland star in the first season, while Lizzy Caplan and Tim Robbins star in the second.

7. Millennium (1996 – 1999)

Millennium (1996 - 1999)

Millennium, Chris Carter’s follow-up to The X-Files, is a much darker and more violent drama. It has Lance Henriksen in the lead role of Frank Black, a former FBI agent. Black is a consultant for the evasive Millennium Group who has a unique ability to peer into criminal minds.

The show is set in Seattle in the year 2000, and it takes advantage of the fear and trepidation surrounding the start of a new millennium. After three seasons on the air, the show was abruptly cancelled due to dwindling audience interest. Frank Black and the Millennium Group make an appearance in an episode of The X-Files from season 7 to bring the story full circle.

8. Pushing Daisies (2007 – 2009)

Pushing Daisies, like the other shows on this list, was a daring and unique series that was abruptly canceled. Lee Pace plays Ned, a man who can bring anything back to life with the touch of a finger. He can, however, only bring back the life of one dead thing at the cost of something else’s “life value”. Everything that Ned touches a second time is doomed.

Ned is employed by a private detective to put his skills to use solving crimes. Ned makes the most of his unique hands along with his reanimated ex-boyfriend Chuck.

9. Twin Peaks (1990 – 1991; 2017)

Twin Peaks (1990 - 1991; 2017)

The first two seasons of this ABC show, which centers on the mysterious death of a high school student named Laura Palmer, were extremely popular when they first aired in the early 1990s. Twin Peaks is about as outlandish and cryptic as a television show can be.

To help solve Laura’s murder, FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper arrives in Twin Peaks. Kyle MacLachlan plays Dale Cooper. This David Lynch cult series, framed as a small-town police procedural, explores the most twisted and depraved parts of the human psyche. As of 2017, Showtime has renewed the series for one season, which will allow the story to delve even deeper into its supernatural undercurrents.

10. The Lost Room (2006)

This Syfy show, which was a hidden gem, lasted only one season before being cancelled. The film stars Peter Krause from Six Feet Under as Pittsburg Detective Joe Miller, who is searching for his daughter Anna, who has gone missing inside the titular room. The Route 66 hotel room that used to be normal was transformed after an incident in 1961 into a place where time and geography don’t apply, and people and objects get trapped in its dark corners.

This film stars Julianna Margulies as Jennifer Bloom, a woman searching for answers about the Room, and Elle Fanning as Miller’s 8-year-old daughter. While some people found the show’s action and philosophy to be illogical, others lamented the show’s demise.

Megan is a public librarian by profession and a cultural anthropologist by passion. For her, the genres that excite the most are gothic horror, obscure memes, strange history, graphic novels, and science fiction.