Some of the most engrossing shows only have a handful of episodes, as is clearly shown by the greatest thriller miniseries. They may be compact, but these high-intensity shows pack a powerful punch, with their creators building nail-biting tension and introducing characters worth rooting for in time frames that make them perfect for a weekend binge or a late-night watch.
From the harrowing true events depicted in Chernobyl to the intense psychological unraveling in Sharp Objects, the best thriller limited series are designed to keep viewers hooked from start to finish. No second goes to waste in these short shows, with these must-see series proving that riveting tales can come in small packages.
7. The Little Drummer Girl (2018)
Of the many adaptations of bestselling novels by John le Carré, the British spy drama The Little Drummer Girl is among the best. Set in the late 1970s, it’s centered on the inexperienced actress Charlie (Florence Pugh), who is recruited by intelligence officer Gadi Becker (Alexander Skarsgård) after a seemingly chance meeting on a beach. Tasked with infiltrating a terrorist group, Charlie has to learn as she works across multiple countries while also struggling with her growing feelings for Becker.
With just six episodes, the 2018 show packs in a series of tense and increasingly risky operations its protagonist is forced to survive. Director Park Chan-wook, known for acclaimed South Korean movies like Oldboy and Decision to Leave, infuses the miniseries with his trademark style, attention to detail, and character-driven storytelling. Pugh’s underrated performance as Charlie is also noteworthy, with her character anchoring the series until its climactic ending.
6. Unbelievable (2019)
Based on a true story recounted by the Pulitzer Prize-winning article “An Unbelievable Story of Rape,” Unbelievable is a hard-hitting limited series that depicts the experiences of Marie Adler (The Last of Us season 2‘s Kaitlyn Dever), a teenager who reports her rape to the police, only to be charged with a crime for it. As the public shaming worsens Marie’s already painful situation, two female detectives, Grace Rasmussen (Toni Collette) and Karen Duvall (Merritt Wever), begin investigating a series of remarkably similar cases that soon lead them to Marie.
Unbelievable is not an easy watch, especially because its realistic scenes portray what it’s like to be failed by the system that’s supposed to protect vulnerable women. Marie’s heartbreaking recounting of her traumatic rape and the subsequent dismissive treatment she receives is gut-wrenching. This is then contrasted with the two determined detectives whose empathetic and thorough approach underscores the importance of individuals striving to right the system’s wrongs. The 2019 miniseries expertly balances its police procedural elements with the heavy drama of its core story.
5. Bodyguard (2018)
Richard Madden stars as David Budd, a war veteran turned Specialist Protection Officer for the London Metropolitan Police Service, in Bodyguard. The gripping British crime thriller series revolves around Budd’s experiences when he’s assigned to protect the ambitious and controversial Home Secretary Julia Montague (Scoop‘s Keeley Hawes), who he’s not a big fan of. His own conflicting loyalties and PTSD become the least of his problems when he realizes that a major conspiracy and threats of terrorism could put Montague’s life in danger.
Bodyguard soars thanks to Madden’s emotional portrayal of the complex protagonist, whose mental health worsens as the chaos around him escalates. His professional duties and personal life collide when an unexpected relationship forms between him and Montague, raising the stakes even more. This is all told in a tight and fast-paced fashion in just six short episodes, making the 2018 miniseries perfect for binge-watching.
4. Black Bird (2019)
Black Bird is a six-episode Apple TV+ miniseries based on the 2010 autobiographical novel by James Keene. The psychological thriller follows Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton), who was once a high school football her,o but is now a small-time criminal. When he is offered a chance to reduce his 10-year prison sentence, Jimmy risks it all and enters a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriends suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser). Jimmy’s task is to extract a confession about the whereabouts of several missing girls.
The cat-and-mouse dynamic between Jimmy and Hall quickly turns dangerous as the protagonist realizes it’ll be much harder than he thought to get the confession. Egerton and Hauser are impeccably cast as the duo, with their chilling conversations soon turning into the stuff of nightmares. It’s Hall’s twisted mind games that will have true crime fans glued to their screens, though, with the disturbing revelations making it unnerving to recall that it’s based on a true story
3. Mare of Easttown (2021)
Kate Winslet portrays troubled detective Mare Sheehan in Mare of Easttown, a character-driven thriller miniseries set in small-town Pennsylvania. Mare is a local hero who struggles with her personal life and tarnished reputation following her inability to solve the case of a missing girl from the previous year. When another young girl is victimized, Mare is driven close to her breaking point, with everyone around her realizing it and pointing out the heavy toll the protagonist’s job has taken.
Mare of Easttown uses its seven well-crafted episodes to tell an absorbing story that soon becomes more about its complicated protagonist than the missing girls. Winslet gives a fantastic performance as Mare, with her compelling portrayal of the flawed lead character being the true star of the show. Beyond being a murder mystery, the 2021 series takes small-town drama to a whole new level with unflinching portrayals of grief, addiction, and suicide.
2. Sharp Objects (2018)
Never absent in any discussion of the best modern miniseries, Sharp Objects is a renowned psychological thriller based on the eponymous novel by Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn. The 2018 HBO show follows uneasy investigative reporter Camille Preaker (Amy Adams), who returns to her hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri, to write about the brutal murders of two young girls. There, she’s forced to face her overbearing mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson), and her strange half-sister, Amma (Eliza Scanlen). As she investigates the murders, moments from her past begin to haunt her.
Sharp Objects is a dark series with a slow-burn narrative that leads to a truly shocking and unexpected twist. It tells a layered story by using flashbacks interweaved with the present-day murder investigation. The protagonist’s past is soon revealed as being inextricably linked with current events. Adams shines as Camille in the eight-episode show, with the actress conveying the heartache of a miserable childhood courtesy of Adora, who is also masterfully portrayed by Clarkson.
1. Chernobyl (2019)
Chernobyl is an award-winning miniseries that dramatizes the catastrophic nuclear disaster of April 1986 in the Soviet Union. The 2019 HBO miniseries meticulously reconstructs the events leading up to, during, and after the explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. It primarily follows Soviet inorganic chemist Valery Legasov (Jared Harris) as he works alongside government official Boris Shcherbina (Stellan Skarsgård) to uncover the truth behind the disaster. Along the way, they discover the harrowing human and environmental toll of the disaster and are forced to make tough decisions to prevent even worse effects.
Chernobyl gained widespread praise for its raw and brutally honest portrayal of the event, with its creators going to great lengths to ensure historical accuracy. From its detailed Soviet-era settings to the realistic depiction of radiation sickness, its five episodes capture the horrors so many had to live through. Alongside this truthful retelling is a bold showcase of the cost of negligence, with the limited series emphasizing the bureaucratic denial and corruption that would be exposed during the subsequent investigations and criminal trial.
