There's &34;The Sopranos&34; and &34;The Wire,&34; of course, but our list also highlights undertheradar gems like &34;Landscapers&34; and &34;Five Days.&34; 20 thriller series on HBO Max to keep you on the edge of your seat There's &34;The Sopranos&34; and &34;The Wire,&34; of course, but our list also highlights undertheradar gems like &34;Landscapers&34; and &34;Five Days.&34; By Declan Gallagher April 12, 2026 8:00 a.m. ET Leave a Comment :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/LastofUsPedroPascalWireMichaelKWilliamsSharpObjectsAmyAdams031126b123acb359df459c95687b769f7a253a.

There's "The Sopranos" and "The Wire," of course, but our list also highlights under-the-radar gems like "Landscapers" and "Five Days."

20 thriller series on HBO Max to keep you on the edge of your seat

There's "The Sopranos" and "The Wire," of course, but our list also highlights under-the-radar gems like "Landscapers" and "Five Days."

By Declan Gallagher

April 12, 2026 8:00 a.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Pedro Pascal on 'The Last of Us'; Michael K. Williams on 'The Wire'; Amy Adams on 'Sharp Objects'. Credit:

Liane Hentscher/HBO; Nicole Rivelli/HBO; Anne Marie Fox/HBO

HBO Max has built one of the most exciting thriller libraries in streaming, pairing era-defining classics with bold, unconventional gems. *The Sopranos* and *The Wire* remain its towering pillars — crime epics that reshaped television with their psychological depth, moral complexity, and unflinching look at American power structures.

But the streamer briefly known as Max also platforms smaller, stranger thrillers like *Landscapers*, a darkly comic true-crime fantasia that blends surreal style with emotional intimacy.

That mix of prestige heavyweights and inventive oddities gives the platform a rare range: sprawling sagas for viewers who want to sink into a well-built universe, and sharp, genre-bending stories for those craving something a bit more offbeat.

Together, they show how television’s most prestigious network continues to push the thriller genre into new, surprising territories. This is **’s rundown of the best thrillers HBO Max has to offer.

Barry (2018–2023)

Bill Hader gets bad news in season 2 of 'Barry'.

Aaron Epstein/HBO

Bill Hader wrote himself a role most actors would kill for… which is just as well, considering the role is a killer who decides to become an actor. This frequently laugh-out-loud comedic thriller walks a fine, Coen-esque line between bloodshed, absurdity, and human frailty.

Dissatisfied with life as a contract killer, Barry seeks refuge (literally and figuratively) in an L.A. acting class run by has-been actor Gene Cousineau (an Emmy-winning Henry Winkler). He even finds himself a maybe, sorta girlfriend (Sarah Goldberg). But he doesn’t exactly *fit* in the ordinary world; that his past keeps catching up with him, no matter what he does, is where the show’s disarming sense of tragedy sets in.

Where to watch *Barry*: HBO Max

Boardwalk Empire (2010–2014)

Steve Buscemi takes the pulpit in 'Boardwalk Empire'.

Macall B. Polay/HBO

From *Sopranos *writer Terence Winter comes this rich slice of Atlantic City pulp. Set during Prohibition in the shadow of World War I, *Boardwalk Empire* revolves around Nucky Thompson, a corrupt political figure who becomes a ruthless liquor runner, and the various relationships (and conflicting allegiances) in his personal and professional lives.

That includes his war-vet protégé (Michael Pitt), his wife (Kelly Macdonald), his brother (Shea Whigham), and the many organized crime figures in Nucky’s direct circle. *Boardwalk Empire *is both a terrific underworld epic and a fabulously melodramatic history lesson, with an ensemble cast that rivals any show ever made.

Where to watch *Boardwalk Empire*: HBO Max

Chernobyl (2019)

Ralph Ineson, Mark Bagnall, Stellan Skarsgård, and Jared Harris in 'Chernobyl'.

Liam Daniel/HBO

Craig Mazin’s stomach-churning docudrama explores the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe, one of the worst man-made disasters in history, and the subsequent bureaucratic fallout. *Chernobyl* is an immensely powerful series that can be hard to watch — and even harder to believe.

Mazin doesn’t give us a simple ticking-clock thriller. Rather, he and director Johan Renck meticulously detail the many fateful decisions made along the way, always treating them as choices made by actual people with distinct rationales and agendas. The whole event is a disaster of human folly and systemic incompetence, but *Chernobyl *keeps it grounded rather than scoldy or sensationalistic.

Where to watch *Chernobyl*: HBO Max

Deadwood (2004–2006)

Ian McShane inexplicably not swearing in 'Deadwood'.

Prashant Gupta/HBO

David Milch’s ultra-profane, ultra-violent, ultra-transfixing Western settles into life among the wily denizens of the eponymous post-Civil War mining town as they seek their corner of a newfound American dream — often climbing over one another to grab it. Sheriffs, saloon owners, card sharps, prostitutes, priests, actors, and garden-variety homesteaders are all treated with equal depth in this sprawling epic of civilization-building.

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*Deadwood* is oppressively dusty, dirty, and gritty; while watching, you might be tempted to shower. But that authentic ick factor makes Milch’s landmark series what it is. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more lived-in account of the wild, *wild* West than this sharp, devastating epic.

Where to watch *Deadwood*: HBO Max

Five Days (2007–2010)

Hugh Bonneville takes on a missing-persons case in 'Five Days'.

Nick Briggs/HBO

One of the best procedurals you’ve never heard of, *Five Days* is a higher-concept version of the countless Brit procedurals that have proliferated for years. It has an elegantly simple format: Each season covers the length of a missing-persons investigation, focusing exclusively on five days of the case. The narrowing of onscreen events disciplines the storytelling choices in a fascinating way.

The first season focuses on a young mother (Christine Tremarco) and her children who vanish without a trace from the side of the road during a family trip. Investigators Iain Barclay (Hugh Bonneville) and Amy Foster (Janet McTeer) tackle the case, which involves a close look at the missing woman’s husband (David Oyelowo).

Where to watch *Five Days*: HBO Max

Gomorrah (2014–2021)

Andrea Renzi and Salvatore Esposito in season 4 of 'Gomorrah'.

Gianni Fiorito/HBO Max

Adapted from Roberto Saviano’s non-fiction book, *Gomorrah* (which shares a title with Matteo Garrone’s celebrated 2008 film, but is otherwise unrelated) is a blistering document of organized crime in Naples, Italy, seen through the eyes of loyal soldier Ciro (Marco D’Amore).

*Gomorrah*’s emphasis is on the reality of its characters and their circumstances, and the series hums with an intimate, well-earned sense of place that jumps off the screen. There are Shakespearean bouts of backstabbing and bloodletting, but the series is less interested in pushing the melodramatic quotient. Here, it’s the characters and their fraught moral dilemmas that keep you riveted.

Where to watch *Gomorrah*: HBO Max

The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst (2015–2024)

Robert Durst, trying to stop himself from confessing to a crime, in 'The Jinx'.

Marc Smerling/HBO

By now, most of us know the punchline from the original installment of Andrew Jarecki’s startling true-crime documentary. If you don’t, we’ll keep it unspoiled. But if you skipped the series on the assumption you know all there is to know, please reconsider.

*The Jinx* is a riveting deep dive into the crimes of Robert Durst, a New York property tycoon turned murderer. The second season, a metatextual riff on crime docs that arrived nine years later, profiles the aftermath of the original documentary — not just Durst being thrust into mainstream fame, but put on trial for murder. (He was convicted in 2021.) All together, this is can’t-miss television.

Where to watch *The Jinx*: HBO Max

Landscapers (2021)

Olivia Colman having a normal one in 'Landscapers'.

Stefania Rosini/HBO

This is an exceptionally well-crafted true-crime thriller, based on a bizarre 1998 double-murder that wasn’t discovered until nearly 15 years later. Christopher and Susan Edwards (David Thewlis and Olivia Colman) were a seemingly ordinary British couple… until a pair of dead bodies (her parents) buried in their backyard thrust them into the spotlight.

*Landscapers *bypasses the typical trappings of the genre to tell a formally experimental examination of shared madness. It’s playful and thrilling, the way it gets into the heads of this uniquely codependent couple. Colman and Thewlis deliver the goods with two of their most dynamic performances.

Where to watch *Landscapers*: HBO Max

The Last of Us (2023–present)

Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal probably about to meet some zombies in 'The Last of Us'. Liane Hentscher/HBO

Based on the iconic video game,* The Last of Us* stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, two survivors of a zombie apocalypse who come together and trek across the country toward a safe haven. As episodes (and seasons, and locations) go on, we meet various survivors, all of them sketched with as much care and depth as our two heroes.

One of the buzziest shows in recent memory, this is as fine a piece of small-screen filmmaking as you’re likely to find. The big-budget adaptation is consistently unexpected and formally ambitious while never skimping on pure popcorn thrills.

Where to watch *The Last of Us*: HBO Max

Love & Death (2023)

Patrick Fugit and Elizabeth Olsen in a true-crime media frenzy of 'Love & Death'.

Courtesy of Max

This is a pulpy true-crime series about Candy Montgomery (Elizabeth Olsen), an ordinary Texas housewife who killed a fellow mom with an ax in 1980. She went to trial, where she claimed self-defense (and was acquitted).

The killing tied back to Candy’s affair with the other woman’s husband (Jesse Plemons). *Love & Death *focuses largely on the dynamics of that relationship before gradually shifting into courtroom drama mode. The whole thing soars on the strength of those two performances. This miniseries finds a clever way to frame the stranger-than-fiction details of the sordid crime while never losing track of the community at its center.

Where to watch *Love & Death*: HBO Max

Mare of Easttown (2021)

Kate Winslet thinking about how awesome her Philly accent is in 'Mare of Easttown'.

Michele K. Short/HBO

Kate Winslet won an Emmy for her performance as Mare Sheehan, a suburban Philadelphia detective tasked with investigating the murder of a teen mother — all while her very public failure to solve a girl’s disappearance a year earlier lingers over her. Meanwhile, Mare’s personal life is essentially leaving her behind; her ex-husband’s pending remarriage is only the tip of the iceberg.

Brad Ingelsby’s propulsive thriller boasts lights-out work from his ensemble, including Julianne Nicholson, Evan Peters, and Jean Smart. It’s a full-throated, keep-you-guessing murder mystery whose characters are weighed down by personal histories and suburban secrets.

Where to watch *Mare of Easttown*: HBO Max

The Night Of (2016)

Riz Ahmed, just before things get a whole lot worse, in 'The Night Of'.

Barry Wetcher/HBO

Riz Ahmed put himself on Hollywood’s map with his quietly heartbreaking performance as Naz, a Pakistani college student accused of murdering a young woman he spent the night with after “borrowing” his father’s taxi. Confined to New York’s notorious Rikers Island while awaiting trial, Naz has one real hope in defense attorney John Stone (John Turturro), a classical champion-of-the-underdog who is, of course, an underdog himself.

*The Night Of *is an enraging social drama. It's also a redemptive one. But true to prestige procedural form, it’s also a terrifically old-fashioned meat-and-potatoes legal thriller.

Where to watch *The Night Of*: HBO Max

The Penguin (2024)

Colin Farrell having violent thoughts in 'The Penguin'.

Macall Polay/HBO

*The Penguin* is the first HBO show in a dog’s age that feels as vital and game-changing as the network’s formative dramas. Here’s a slice of comic-book IP transformed into a heavy, pulpy gangland chronicle, with characters as psychologically robust as those we’ve come to expect from the network’s most prestigious series.

Colin Farrell reprises his scene-stealing role from Matt Reeves’ *The Batman* (2022) in an eight-episode saga that charts his evolution from disrespected flunkie to feared Gotham City mafioso. The real magic is the dynamic between him and Cristin Milioti’s shrewd, ruthless Sofia Falcone.

Where to watch *The Penguin*: HBO Max

Sharp Objects (2018)

Amy Adams and Chris Messina deal with the Missouri humidity in 'Sharp Objects'.

Anne Marie Fox/HBO

Adapted from Gillian Flynn’s novel and directed by Jean-Marc Vallée, *Sharp Objects *stars Amy Adams as hard-drinking, big-city journalist Camille Preaker. Summoned back to her hometown to investigate the murders of two teenage girls, Camille finds herself drawn back into the web of her Southern Gothic upbringing.

One of Flynn’s most straightforward novels is given an ethereal reworking here by Vallée, whose perverse and singular flourishes make this adaptation something more insidious than its source material. As Camille’s socialite mama bear, Patricia Clarkson gives one of her fiercest performances.

Where to watch *Sharp Objects*: HBO Max

The Sopranos (1999–2007)

Michael Imperioli, James Gandolfini, Tony Sirico and Steve Van Zandt in 'The Sopranos'.

Abbot Genser/HBO

David Chase’s landmark series revolutionized television and paved the way for its new golden age. The initial hook is simple: Mobster Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) has a panic attack and has to see a therapist, where he gripes about his mother, his “business associates,” his family, and his mother some more.

But that’s merely groundwork for a perpetually surprising and even experimental show. Yes, *The Sopranos* is a brutally violent gangland saga with your requisite betrayals, hits, informers, and power struggles. But it’s just as much a psychological character study, and a mournful portrait of a dying version of Americana. This is also, it must be said, one of the funniest shows ever made.

Where to watch *The Sopranos*: HBO Max

The Staircase (2022)

Colin Firth and Toni Collette in 'The Staircase'.

A true-crime case that still keeps armchair sleuths up at night (the owl theory, anyone?) is brought to vivid life in this sleek miniseries. After Kathleen Peterson (Toni Collette) dies from a mysterious fall down the stairs of her palatial home, her husband Michael (Colin Firth) is put on trial for her murder by zealous prosecutor Freda Black (a frightfully good Parker Posey). But is the case as simple as it seems?

If you’ve never heard of the case, this lightly fictionalized series is a good place to start — but expect more than a few sleepless nights. It hits the major beats without miring itself in the many theories, a pretty remarkable feat if you know the details.

Where to watch *The Staircase*: HBO Max

Task (2025)

Mark Ruffalo in the series premiere of 'Task'.

Peter Kramer/HBO

Another taut thriller from Ingelsby, *Task* follows Philadelphia FBI agent Tom Brandis (Mark Ruffalo) as he investigates a series of robberies. The case brings him into the orbit of Robbie Prendergast (Tom Pelphrey), a sort of modern Robin Hood ripping off drug dealers, making business very tough for a local biker gang.

*Task* is cut from the same cloth as *Mare of Easttown* — authentic in its grit and grime, while remaining emphatically heartfelt. Ruffalo’s down-in-the-dumps performance centers the entire series, but Pelphrey proves to be his equal. Ultimately the similarities between those two characters elevate an ostensible cat-and-mouse thriller into something more personal and tormented.

Where to watch *Task*: HBO Max

True Detective (2014–present)

Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson investigate the flat circle that is time itself in 'True Detective'.

Lacey Terrell/HBO

In Cary Joji Fukunawa’s hands, the first season of Nic Pizzolatto’s neo-noir anthology series is a wondrous exercise in atmosphere and genre deconstruction. Homicide detectives Marty Hart (Woody Harrelson) and Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) are called to investigate the seemingly ritualistic murder of a young woman, plunging them into a decades-long battle with the face of true evil.

Though *True Detective*’s subsequent installments haven’t quite matched the power of the first, they each have their pleasures. The most recent season, subtitled *Night Country*, took the action to small-town Alaska and landed Jodie Foster her first Emmy.

Where to watch *True Detective*: HBO Max

We Own This City (2022)

Jon Bernthal in the true-crime police drama, 'We Own This City'.

Paul Schiraldi/HBO

Based upon Justin Fenton’s non-fiction book, this one-season wonder from David Simon follows the saga of the Baltimore police department’s short-lived Gun Trace Task Force. At the center is Jon Bernthal as Wayne Jenkins, who turned the unit into a sort of uniformed gangster squad.

Fenton, a former reporter for *The Baltimore Sun*, reported on the task force before penning his book. That lived experience comes through in the series’ vital attention to detail. *We Own This City* functions as a gritty, hyper-realistic depiction of the kind of rot that can fester in the criminal justice system when the incentives allow it.

Where to watch *We Own This City*: HBO Max

The Wire (2002–2008)

Wendell Pierce and Michael K. Williams in season 4 of 'The Wire'.

Paul Schiraldi/HBO

This was all but ignored for years, only to become one of the defining works of the entire medium. David Simon’s *The Wire *is an immersive, unvarnished, poetic dive into the oft-violent world of Baltimore policemen and criminals, as well as the social and governmental forces that keep the status quo in place.

There’s never been a cop show with the same granular detail or moral scope. More than 20 years after its release, this is just as potent and raw as it was the day it premiered. Across five seasons, Simon plumbed typically unseen corners of Baltimore’s human tapestry, with his unforgiving eye offering viewers a lot of cold hard truth to go with the brilliant entertainment.

Where to watch *The Wire*: HBO Max

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Source: TV

Published: April 15, 2026 at 06:38PM on Source: RED MAG

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