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Defending Jacob poster

Shows that feel likeDefending Jacob (2020)

A family's lives are irreparably disrupted when the 14-year-old son is accused of murdering a fellow classmate.

If you loved Defending Jacob, the closest series we have are The Outsider (2020), The Chestnut Man (2021) and Mare of Easttown (2021). All three share Defending Jacob's contemplative and twisty feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Alienist (2018).

★ 7.7 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗1 season · Apple TVcreated by Mark Bombackcontemplativetwistygritty
11 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max · Amazon Prime Video
Stream it:Apple TV ↗

If Defending Jacob hit the spot, these will too

The Outsider poster
The Outsider
2020 · 1 season · HBO
★ 7.6drama · mystery · crimeMax

Two things both keep coming back to: detective and the investigation

When an insidious supernatural force edges its way into a seemingly straightforward investigation into the gruesome murder of a young boy, it leads a seasoned cop and an unorthodox investigator to question everything they believe in.

The Chestnut Man poster
The Chestnut Man
2021–2026 · 2 seasons · Netflix
★ 7.6drama · crime · mysteryNetflix

The same preoccupation in both: murder

At a grisly murder scene sits a figurine made of chestnuts. From this creepy clue, two detectives hunt a killer linked to a politician's missing child.

Mare of Easttown poster
Mare of Easttown
2021 · 1 season · HBO
★ 8.4drama · crime · mysteryMax

One thread runs through both: miniseries

A detective in a small Pennsylvania town investigates a local murder while trying to keep her life from falling apart.

Scream: The TV Series poster
Scream: The TV Series
2015–2019 · 3 seasons · MTV
★ 7drama · crime · mystery

Both keep coming back to the same thing: high school

What starts as a YouTube video going viral, soon leads to problems for the teenagers of Lakewood and serves as the catalyst for a murder that opens up a window to the town's troubled past. Everyone has secrets. Everyone tells lies. Everyone is fair game.

Elementary poster
Elementary
2012–2019 · 7 seasons · CBS
★ 7.9drama · mystery · crimePrime VideoHulu

Common ground: detective

A modern-day drama about a crime-solving duo that cracks the NYPD's most impossible cases. Following his fall from grace in London and a stint in rehab, eccentric Sherlock escapes to Manhattan where his wealthy father forces him to live with his worst nightmare - a sober companion, Dr. Watson.

The Night Of poster
The Night Of
2016 · 1 season · HBO
★ 8.4crime · drama · mysteryMax

Both are built on the same subject: lawyer

After a night of partying with a female stranger, a man wakes up to find her stabbed to death and is charged with her murder.

The Undoing poster
The Undoing
2020 · 1 season · HBO
★ 7.4drama · crime · mysteryMax

Different title, same corner of the shelf

Grace and Jonathan Fraser are living the only lives they ever wanted. Overnight a chasm opens in their lives: a violent death and a chain of terrible revelations. Left behind in the wake of a spreading and very public disaster, Grace must dismantle one life and create another for her child and her family.

How to Get Away with Murder poster
How to Get Away with Murder
2014–2020 · 6 seasons · ABC
★ 8.1crime · drama · mysteryHulu

Another one that scratches it

A sexy, suspense-driven legal thriller about a group of ambitious law students and their brilliant, mysterious criminal defense professor. They become entangled in a murder plot and will shake the entire university and change the course of their lives.

Girl from Nowhere poster
Girl from Nowhere
2018–2021 · 2 seasons · Netflix
★ 7.6drama · mystery · crimeNetflix

One thread runs through both: bullying

A mysterious, clever girl named Nanno transfers to different schools, exposing the lies and misdeeds of the students and faculty at every turn.

The Alienist poster
The Alienist
2018–2020 · 2 seasons · TNT
★ 7.7drama · crime · mystery

The same mix in both: stillness, then twists

New York, 1896. Police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt brings together criminal psychologist Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, newspaper illustrator John Moore and secretary Sara Howard to investigate several murders of male prostitutes.

Slow Horses poster
Slow Horses
2022– · 6 seasons · Apple TV
★ 8.4crime · drama · mysteryApple TV+

Gritty drama, and it commits to that

Follow a dysfunctional team of MI5 agents—and their obnoxious boss, the notorious Jackson Lamb—as they navigate the espionage world's smoke and mirrors to defend England from sinister forces.

The Killing poster
The Killing
2011–2014 · 4 seasons · AMC
★ 8.3drama · crime · mysteryHulu

Both lean on stillness more than on mystery

The Killing is an American crime drama television series based upon the Danish television series Forbrydelsen. Set in Seattle, Washington, the series follows the various murder investigations by homicide detectives Sarah Linden and Stephen Holder.

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The best-reviewed series that share Defending Jacob’s defining feeling.