7 best shows like Jack Ryan on Netflix, Apple TV Plus, Prime Video and more
Jack Ryan season 4 wrapped up Prime Video’s hit action thriller starring John Krasinski in the titular role. The final season of the Tom Clancy spy series may have even been its best, with now acting CIA Deputy Director Ryan tasked with taking down a global crime ring known as “The Triad.”
Without getting into spoilers, the fourth and final season of Prime Video’s Jack Ryan delivers what people love about a good spy thriller — mystery, intrigue, conspiracies and action, all with an incredible cast that includes Wendell Pierce returning as James Greer and bringing in Michael Pe?a as former Navy SEAL and current CIA operative Domingo Chavez. Unfortunately, it also concludes the series, so if you need your exciting espionage fix, you’ll now need to look elsewhere.
Luckily for you, we have you covered. Here’s a list of shows like Jack Ryan that you can watch now that season 4 is over and the series has concluded.
Reacher
If you’re like me, you’ve probably accidentally confused Jack Ryan for Jack Reacher once or twice. But let me assure you that Reacher, starring Alan Ritchson as the titular Jack Reacher, is a different show — even if both are Prime Originals. The latter only has one season so far, but it’s an excellent, eight-episode tale of former U.S. Army military policeman Jack Reacher’s quest to uncover a web of corruption in Margrave, Georgia and “burn it all to the ground.”
Like Jack Ryan, Reacher is based on a series of popular books, in this case, written by Lee Child, and each season follows the storyline of a book in the series. Fans of Jack Ryan will be enthralled by the depths of corruption in Margrave, and while Ritchson’s Jack Reacher may be a little rougher around the edges than Krasinski’s Jack Ryan, you’ll come to love him and the rest of Reacher’s cast all the same.
Watch on Prime Video
Slow Horses
Slow Horses may be the best spy thriller on TV right now. The Apple TV Plus series stars Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb, a washed-up spy babysitting MI5’s rejects. The Slough House chief wants nothing more than to sit at his desk, drink, smoke and spew insults at his subordinates — all of which would be worth watching on its own. But with the arrival of new “slow horse” River Cartwright (Jack Lowden), Lamb finds him drawn into doing actual spycraft again as he and his team take down one conspiracy after another.
Watching Oldman in a role perfect for him is worth the price of admission alone, but where Slow Horses really excels is the tightness of each season. Season 1 and season 2 are only six episodes each and this finely-tuned format keeps you on the edge of your seat and off your phone the entire time. Each season follows the plot of one of Mick Herron’s Slough House books and Slow Horses has already been renewed for a third and fourth season. Given there are 13 Slough House books in total, don’t expect it to end anytime soon — not that you’ll want it to.
Watch on Apple TV Plus
Bodyguard
For those who love a no-nonsense political thriller, Netflix’s Bodyguard will leave you more than satisfied. The six-episode series (though a second season is rumored) follows Richard Madden as former army veteran and current police sergeant David Budd. After foiling a suicide bombing in the British capital he is promoted to protection officer for Home Secretary Julia Montague (Keeley Hawes). The twist? Budd despises her politics, which range from government monitoring of private data and continued intervention in Afghanistan.
Madden’s performance is the star of the show, and his chemistry with Hawes’ Home Secretary Montague is electric. His portrayal of a former soldier suffering from PTSD forced to defend a politician he despises makes for a character that audiences will easily connect with. Bodyguard is an excellent choice for those who love deep conspiracy wrapped in a dark thriller.
Watch on Netflix
The Recruit
The Recruit may be a spy thriller but you wouldn’t call it overly serious. The show stars Noah Centineo as newly-hired CIA lawyer Owen Hendricks who goes through a first week from hell at his new job. The workplace dramedy quickly transforms into an international conspiracy thriller as Hendricks is tasked with getting former CIA asset Max Meladze (Laura Haddock) out of prison before she can expose the entire agency.
Fans of Jack Ryan will appreciate the “out of the frying pan into the fire” experience Hendricks goes through, which is reminiscent of Jack Ryan’s transition from analyst to field agent — though at least Ryan had his military service to fall back on. This charming thriller is great for those who want something a little lighter but still crave action and intrigue.
Watch on Netflix
The Blacklist
NBC’s long-running, now-concluded crime thriller follows Raymond ‘Red’ Reddington (James Spader), one of the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted fugitives. But Reddington and the FBI become unlikely allies as Reddington recruits the bureau’s help in taking down a list of Reddington’s criminal associates of the past 20 years. Further complicating things, Reddington will only work with rookie FBI criminal profiler Elizabeth ‘Liz’ Keen (Megan Boone), for reasons known only to him.
While the latter seasons of The Blacklist don’t quite measure up to the show's first several seasons, Spader’s performance as the criminal mastermind Reddington is reason enough to watch the procedural crime thriller. And with 10 seasons of content, you’ll be able to binge-watch to your heart's content.
Watch on Netflix
The Night Manager
When it comes to spy thrillers, nobody does it better than John le Carré. And there may not be a better le Carré adaptation than The Night Manager. The six-part miniseries follows Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston), a former military officer turned Cairo hotel night manager as he is swept up in an international conspiracy involving infamous arms dealer Richard ‘Dicky’ Onslow Roper (Hugh Laurie).
The intrigue of The Night Manager’s winding plot is enough to satisfy any espionage drama fan, but the star-studded cast is what really sets the show apart. Alongside Hiddlestone and Laurie are Olivia Colman as Angela Burr, manager of a Foreign Office task force tasked with bringing down Roper, as well as Elizabeth Debicki as Roper’s mistress and Tom Hollander as Roper’s right-hand man. It’s no surprise that The Night Manager won numerous awards, including Golden Globes for its three biggest stars.
Watch on Prime Video
Homeland
“Because of you, an American hero is coming home.” These are some of the first words from the trailer for season 1 of Homeland, and if only things were that simple. Instead, CIA officer Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) is convinced that America just welcomed a terrorist into its midst in the form of newly-freed Marine Corps sniper Nicholas Brody (Damien Lewis). What starts as a covert operation to prove her suspicions turns into a full-blown spy thriller about America’s involvement in the Middle East.
Danes's acclaimed performance as the bipolar Mathison is part of what makes Homeland a quintessential spy thriller TV series, but it's not just her performance that will keep you watching. Lewis as Brody and Mandy Patinkin as Carrie’s mentor Saul also give incredible performances over the show’s eight-season run. If you need a dark conspiracy drama now that Jack Ryan is over, look no further than Homeland.
Watch on Paramount Plus With Showtime
