Looking for a heart-pounding, gripping viewing experience to fill your weekend? Thrillers are the perfect genre to keep you hooked, with their fast-paced narratives, shocking twists and characters pushed to their limits. And when it comes to miniseries, you get all the thrills packed into a concise, binge-worthy format.
In this list, we’ve rounded up five of the best thriller miniseries you can dive into this weekend on some of the best streaming services. And with their short episode count, you don’t have to worry about committing to a long season — just pure, high-octane thrills in bite-sized servings. So grab your snacks, settle in and prepare for a weekend full of suspense.
‘Bodies’ (2023)
Now we have the British crime thriller “Bodies” on Netflix. This is an impressive show that weaves together multiple timelines and perspectives in a gripping narrative. The story begins when a detective in London discovers a murder victim in the same location over different time periods —1890, 1941, 2023, and 2053. This eerie phenomenon leads to a deep investigation that spans over a century, raising questions about time, fate and the consequences of actions across generations.
As the detectives from each timeline work to uncover the mystery behind the recurring murder, they find themselves questioning their understanding of justice and morality. Each character's story reveals different layers of the murder's impact on society.
Watch on Netflix
‘The Terror’ (2018)
“The Terror” is a historical dark thriller anthology series, meaning you can watch one season without seeing another. Season 1 is my personal favorite and I would recommend it to anyone who needs something to binge-watch.
The first season is inspired by the real-life events of the ill-fated 1845 Franklin Expedition. The expedition set out to explore the uncharted Arctic in search of the Northwest Passage, with two British Royal Navy ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, leading the way. However, the ships became trapped in ice, and the crew was left to survive in the harsh, frozen wilderness.
The show also has strong elements of historical drama with supernatural horror as the men face not only starvation, freezing temperatures and isolation but also an unknown, deadly force stalking them across the icy landscape. As the expedition members grow increasingly desperate, paranoia, madness, and internal conflict begin to destroy their sanity, leading to brutal, tragic outcomes.
Watch on Netflix
‘Black Bird’ (2022)
“Black Bird” is a gripping psychological crime thriller based on true events. It's actually one of the highest-rated shows on Apple TV Plus, holding a near-perfect score of 98% on Rotten Tomatoes (I think that says enough).
The show follows Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton), a former high school football star turned convicted drug dealer, who is offered a chance to reduce his 10-year prison sentence by entering a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane. His mission is to befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser) and elicit a confession about the locations of his victims' bodies.
The catch is that Larry Hall is highly manipulative and may not even be guilty, which leaves Jimmy in a perilous position. If he succeeds, Jimmy wins his freedom. If he fails, he risks staying behind bars — or worse, losing his life in the dangerous prison environment.
Watch on Apple TV Plus
‘Sharp Objects’ (2018)
“Sharp Objects” is a dark, psychological thriller based on the novel by Gillian Flynn, and it's perhaps one of the best thriller shows ever. Period. The story follows Camille Preaker (Amy Adams), a troubled journalist who returns to her small hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri, to investigate the murders of two young girls.
As she digs deeper into the mystery, Camille is forced to confront her own traumatic past and strained relationships, particularly with her overbearing mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson), and her half-sister, Amma (Eliza Scanlen).
The show explores the psychological toll of Camille's unresolved childhood trauma, which is compounded by her self-destructive tendencies. As she learns disturbing secrets about the town and her family, the lines between Camille’s personal demons and the investigation blur.
Watch on Max
‘Lady in the Lake’ (2024)
“Lady in the Lake” is a great mystery-thriller to delve into on a weekend, and it will definitely have you thinking for days after. It’s set in 1960s Baltimore and follows Maddie Schwartz (Natalie Portman), a housewife and mother who goes on a journey of self-discovery after becoming involved in the investigation of a murder.
Maddie is a determined and ambitious woman who becomes a newspaper reporter, driven by a desire to expose the truth behind the murder of a young Black woman, whose death is shrouded in mystery. Going deeper into the case, Maddie encounters complex social issues, including race, gender and class dynamics of the era. Her investigation not only uncovers dark secrets within the community but also forces her to confront her own identity and choices.
Watch on Apple TV Plus
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