15 good shows like The Americans

If you love The Americans, these 15 shows are just up your alley!

One of the best recent spy shows would have to be FX's The Americans. The drama starred Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell as Phillip and Elizabeth Jennings, seemingly regular parents in 1980s suburban Washington D.C. In reality, they were deep-cover KGB agents working secret missions for Russia.

The series was amazing, not just in the spy thrills but also in how it showcased the pair's fake marriage turning into the real thing and their personal dynamics. Some spy shows have done the same, showing deep-cover agents wrestling with their jobs and loyalties. To narrow it down is tricky yet these 15 shows can appeal to The Americans fans and enjoy some great spy thrills with an interesting heart. 

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Loosely based on the 2005 Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie film, this Prime Video series puts a nice spin on the concept. Donald Glover and Maya Erskine are a pair of freelance operatives who are put into a fake marriage as "the Smiths" as cover for their operations. As they go around with their missions, they have to wonder if this fake marriage could become something real. 

The couple's chemistry is terrific and the idea of them heading to couples counseling in between planning assassinations is funny. The finale is a wild affair that shows quitting this life isn't that easy. While a planned second season may have a different cast, The Americans fans can enjoy seeing this strange marriage among a spy job play out. 

Streaming on Prime Video

Alias

When it comes to the best spy shows ever, Alias is near the top of the list. In her star-making role, Jennifer Garner is Sydney Bristow, a spy for what she thinks is a secret branch of the CIA. The premiere has Sydney making the shocking discovery that SD-6 are the bad guys and works to destroy them from within. Garner is sensational, showing Sydney in various disguises and terrific action sequences.

The great supporting cast includes Victor Garber, Ron Rifkin, Michael Vartan as Sydney's love Vaughn and more. J.J. Abrams builds on a strange mythology involving an ancient seer, and some wild twists abound as it goes. Its five-season run is a terrific affair any spy genre lover has to experience. 

Streaming on Disney+

FUBAR

Arnold Schwarzenegger coming to television is a huge deal and this Netflix series is a perfect vehicle for him. Arnie plays Luke, a veteran CIA operative who wants to retire and hopes to reunite with his divorced wife. So imagine the reaction when he learns that his daughter Emma (Monica Barbaro) is also a CIA operative and that they have to work together.

The strange father-daughter dynamic is the backbone of the show, and neither wants to admit how much alike they truly are. There's a lot of comedy with their supporting staff and an overall arc taking on an arms dealer. It's seeing Arnie playing on his action movie character and the family bonding that makes this show so fun.

Streaming on Netflix

Covert Affairs

This USA Network show may not be as gripping as other series, but it succeeds thanks to its leading lady. Piper Perabo is a smart choice for Annie Walker, who joins the CIA mostly to find out what happened to her ex-boyfriend. She goes from wide-eyed trainee to a trained operative with Christopher Gorham as her blind tech helper Auggie. 

The show isn't that serious yet Perabo is good in the action scenes, Annie undercover and also trying to maintain a personal life with her sister. The five-season run is fitting for the "blue sky" USA Network shows of the time and well worth watching.

Streaming on Peacock

In From The Cold

Slipping under the radar, this Netflix series takes what looks like a standard spy show and then pulls the rug out from under you. Jenny Franklin (Margarita Levieva) is a seemingly typical suburban mom taking her daughter to a skating competition in Madrid. She's kidnapped by the CIA who know of her past as a KGB agent and want her to work for them.

So far, it sounds standard, but the pilot ends with Jenny/Anya revealing her secret skill, which is too good to spoil. Suffice to say, it transforms the series with further twists even as Jenny tries to keep her daughter safe. Go in without spoilers and the first-episode twist will make you an instant fan.

Streaming on Netflix

Slow Horses

This Apple TV+ series is a bit more satirical than other shows, but that makes it more fun. Slough House is a place for MI5 to send agents who have massively screwed up, and whose careers are nearly over. Run by the slovenly, bullying, gaseous Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman), the "slow horses" are meant to be given loser assignments only to fall into more exciting threats.

The show is wonderful, first for Oldman's performance, as Lamb looks like a total loser, but only to show that he's still a sharp operative. There's also how the agents (especially River) keep thinking they're in a regular spy show and find out otherwise. The action is good, but the fact that these are total misfits rather than elite agents is what makes it so fantastic.

Streaming on Apple TV+

Tehran

This Israeli series is a superb watch, thanks to the lead character. Tamar (Niv Sultan) was born in Iran, raised in Israel and is a top Mossad agent. She's sent undercover to Iran to sabotage their systems, and when things go wrong, she has to reconnect with her estranged family. As she tries to find a way to escape, Tamar's dual heritage comes into play as she tries to decide whose side she's really on.

The show delves into the very complex issues of the Middle East with Tamar's religion at play. Season 2 gets better with Glenn Close as another Mossad agent and the tension growing. Seeing Sultan fighting her conflicting loyalty makes it worth reading the subtitles to grasp this exciting show.

Streaming on Apple TV+

A Spy Among Friends

Fictional spy stories are one thing, but they can often pale next to real life. In 1963, England was rocked by the revelation that Kim Philby, a long-time British agent, had been a Soviet spy for decades. The scandal nearly brought down MI6 and Philby's name is synonymous with treason in the U.K.

This series dramatizes events with Guy Pearce as Philby and Damian Lewis as his best friend, Nicholas Elliott, who's rocked to discover Philby's treason. The six-episode series explores what made Philby do it and his defection changing MI6. Yet it's the personal drama that's more captivating with Elliott, like many others, asking how they could have missed this man's true nature and making it hard to know who to trust. 

Streaming on MGM+

Traitors

Not to be confused with the Peacock reality show, this British series is set in 1945, just after the end of World War II. Emma Appleton plays a somewhat naive Cabinet Office worker who's recruited by the OSS (predecessor to the CIA) to find a possible Soviet mole inside British intelligence. 

The post-war setting gives the series a classic backdrop as the East and West are already at odds on taking power over Europe. Appleton does a fine job showcasing her character's battles against the various forces using her as a pawn and the six-episode length makes it feel like a longer film and a captivating spy series. 

Streaming on Netflix

The Veil

Already a TV veteran for Mad Men and The Handmaid's Tale, Elisabeth Moss adds spy shows to her credits in this FX series. She plays Imogen Slater, an MI6 agent sent to get close to a woman suspected of plotting a terrorist attack. Imogen believes there's more at play as MI6 and the CIA get involved. 

Moss is a compelling in the lead, able to pull off some action scenes and nails the British accent. The conflict of her befriending a possible terrorist is well done, and it's also good to explore the clashes between the dual agencies. At just six episodes, it flows well and gives Moss another great TV show on her resume. 

Streaming on Hulu

The Old Man

Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges makes a return to television in this terrific FX series. As it begins, Dan Chase (Bridges) is a hermit living alone who kills an attacker in self-defense. This soon exposes his past as a soldier turned CIA operative and he wonders if the agency itself is out to kill him. Bridges is perfect showing this man being far tougher and more capable than he seems and quite dangerous.

John Lithgow is great as ever as a CIA friend, with Amy Brenneman as the woman pulled into this mess. There's a huge turn involving another CIA operative and the current second season sends Bridges abroad for more exploits. His star power alone elevates this show to a must-watch.

Streaming on Hulu

Killing Eve

The finale of this BBC America series may not have been as good as hoped yet it shouldn't mar how great the first season was. Sandra Oh is the title role of Eve, a British intelligence officer tracking a master assassin, Villanelle (Jodie Comer). As they engage in a cat-and-mouse game, the two women are soon involved in a very bizarre relationship.

Comer won an Emmy for her role, and it's amazing watching Villanelle take on crazy disguises and go from sweet-natured to a ruthless killer. She and Oh sizzle on screen and never fail to enthrall. Even if the show didn't stick the landing, the strange relationship makes it a spy series like no other.

Streaming on Britbox and AMC+

Homeland

No spy show has been so honored as this Showtime series, which won Emmys for Best Drama and both its leads. The first season is a masterpiece thriller as CIA operative Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) is convinced rescued POW Nicholas Brody (Damien Lewis) is a terrorist plant. The search for answers is wonderfully written, and the audience wonders who the enemy truly is. 

Danes and Lewis spark in their scenes as both enemies and allies while delving into their troubled personal lives and minds. The later years didn't have quite the same impact yet the first two seasons alone are some of the best TV of the 2010s and still hold up today for a thriller made more complex by its characters.

Streaming on Hulu

Spooks

While it ran nine seasons, this British drama (marketed in the U.S. as MI-5) is rather underrated in terms of spy shows. The tone is set in the second episode when what looks like one major cast member is killed off in an undercover job gone wrong. While the focus is on the agents, there are touches on their personal lives, including balancing romance with their tough jobs.

Don't get too attached to characters as it's regular for agents to leave or even be killed off during the show's run. It's also notable for a cast of now-famous stars like Matthew MacFadyen, David Oyelowo, Keeley Hawes, Tobias Menzies, and more. It's a fantastic TV series that any spy show fan should add to their watch list.

Streaming on Prime Video and Tubi

Chuck

A true cult favorite, this NBC series is a love letter to both spies and geeks alike. Zachary Levi broke out as Chuck Bartowski, a goofy tech store worker who accidentally downloads a secret database, allowing him to discover top-secret information. He's thus recruited by the CIA with Yvonne Strahvoski as Sarah, his handler posing as his girlfriend. 

The show is delightful with the chemistry of the leads and possibly real romance building, while Strahovski is sensational in the action sequences. Adam Baldwin is also good as military aide Casey and each episode excellently balances the spy thrills with goofy comedy. Its five-season run ended on a cliffhanger but it's still loved by its fans and is waiting to be discovered for a fun spy romance. 

Streaming on Max