It’s no surprise that spy stories consistently entertain audiences and keep them on the edge of their seats, with interesting characters tapped for dangerous and thrilling missions. The genre first had a burst in popularity in the 1960s, and the drawn-out episodic nature of television means the genre can devote the time needed to tell a well-constructed spy story.
While the 2000s brought some of the best spy series on TV—quality which continues today—the spy shows of the ’90s laid the groundwork, from comedies having fun with the genre to influential, groundbreaking thrillers. Some of the decade’s early entries were spy shows in everything but name, masquerading as thrilling procedurals with all the elements spy shows have become known for, such as mysterious organizations with even more mysterious-sounding names, secret meetings, and characters with very unique and specialized skill sets.
10
‘Once a Thief’ (1996–1998)
Created by Glenn Davis and William Laurin
Once a Thief followed a group of three Canadian spies—Mac Ramsey (Ivan Sergei) and Li Ann Tsei (Sandrine Holt), thieves and lovers who attempted to fake their deaths in order to leave China. Li Ann successfully escaped, but Mac was arrested. The two eventually reunited in the same organization, after Li Ann had fallen for cop Victor Mansfield (Nicholas Lea). The show was inspired by the 1991 film of the same name by John Woo.
Spy stories are often associated with the thriller genre, but Once a Thief was more of a comedy and parody of famous spy movies. Although it was short-lived and ratings declined as the season progressed, it was an entertaining entry in the genre. Many of its episodes parodied famous movies and TV shows, including The X-Files, which was particularly fitting given that Lea appeared in the series as the infamous villain Krycek.
Once a Thief
- Release Date
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1996 – 1997
- Network
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CTV
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Nicholas Lea
Jackie Janczyk
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Shaun Majumder
Claire Holland
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9
‘Soldier of Fortune, Inc.’ (1997–1999)
Created by Dan Gordon
In Soldier of Fortune, Inc., an elite team of former military operatives, led by former Special Forces operative Major Shepherd (Brad Johnson), carried out unofficial missions for the United States government that the government wasn’t able to officially handle itself. The group’s members also included intelligence, surveillance, combat, and weapons specialists. For the show’s second and final season, it was renamed SOF: Special Ops Force and underwent some cast changes.
Soldier of Fortune, Inc. featured some of the best elements of spy shows—in addition to the crew’s covert missions, their unique skills and the fact that they would be executed as spies if caught, Shepherd ran a bar as a cover, complete with a secret room for planning missions and stashing weapons. After its change in name and certain core cast members, some audiences moved on, leading to its cancellation.
Soldier of Fortune, Inc.
- Release Date
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1997 – 1998
- Network
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Syndication
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Brad Johnson
Matthew Shepherd
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-
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Ramsey Faragallah
Uncredited
8
‘Mr. & Mrs. Smith’ (1996)
Created by Kerry Lenhart and John J. Sakmar
Two spies, played by Scott Bakula and Maria Bello, worked for an intelligence agency known as The Factory and posed as a married couple in Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Their missions for The Factory often involved protecting corporate America from espionage. Although they knew virtually nothing about each other at first, it didn’t take long for their relationship to turn romantic. The series lasted a single season in 1996 and aired on CBS.
The story of Mr. & Mrs. Smith has been told a few times—there was also a movie, with some differences in the premise, and a rebooted show, which premiered in 2024. And while the original 1996 series may not have been well-received or long-lasting, its premise was clearly interesting enough that not only was it remade, but the idea of spies posing as a married couple has been presented again and again in the genre.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
- Release Date
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1996 – 1995
- Network
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CBS
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Alexandra Wilson
Uncredited
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Ellen Wheeler
Arlene Parker
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-
7
‘Spy Game’ (1997)
Created by Sam Raimi and John McNamara
Spy Game, a parody of spy shows, followed two agents—weapons expert Max (Allison Smith) and former agent Lorne (Linden Ashby), who came out of retirement after the alleged death of his mentor—in their work for covert agency ECHO (Emergency Counter-Hostilities Organization). Much of their work focused on disgruntled former agents, like Lorne’s mentor, who had begun using their skills for evil. The series ran for a single season on ABC in 1997.
As a parody of classic ‘60s spy shows, Spy Game was a fun entry in the genre, with entertaining fight scenes and plot twists, such as one character being revealed as a triple-agent. And, of course, the series also played hilariously on the genre’s biggest clichés. It was also notable for being an early project of director Sam Raimi, who would go on to become known for directing The Evil Dead, the Spider-Man movies, and more.
6
‘Counterstrike’ (1990–1993)
Created by Stephen J. Cannell
After Alexander Addington’s (Christopher Plummer) wife was kidnapped and killed by a terrorist organization, he committed himself to ridding the world of terrorists in the Canadian series Counterstrike. He assembled a team of specialists, led by Scotland Yard inspector Peter Sinclair (Simon MacCorkindale), to help him with his goal. The series lasted three seasons and featured a few notable guest stars during its run, most notably Brigitte Nielsen and La Toya Jackson.
Counterstrike was a thrilling series with an interesting cast of characters. Star Plummer stood out as the wealthy Alex, with the same commanding screen presence and acting skill he was known for throughout his career. The crew also took on some exciting missions, with all the makings of spy shows which followed in the years after, and storylines often drew from events at the time, making them feel realistic and compelling.
Counterstrike
- Release Date
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1990 – 1992
- Network
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CTV
Cast
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Cyrielle Clair
Nicole Beaumont
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-
5
‘The Pretender’ (1996–2000)
Created by Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle
NBC drama series The Pretender followed Jarod (Michael T. Weiss), a genius who was kidnapped as a child and raised in—then escaped from—a secret facility called The Centre, which experimented on children. Jarod was capable of mastering any profession, and he used this unique skill set to help people, all while The Centre continued to pursue him. The series lasted four seasons and was followed up with two movies.
The Pretender was a spy show in everything but name, with a secretive organization, a main character with unique capabilities that allowed him to take on secret identities and more. And while it may not be remembered as one of the most famous shows to come out of the ‘90s, it still holds up as one of the best and most underrated. Jarod was a great character with a strong sense of justice.
4
‘Æon Flux’ (1991–1995)
Created by Peter Chung
Animated sci-fi spy thriller Æon Flux, set somewhere in the future, tells the story of the titular strange and immoral secret agent with mysterious motives and backstory from the fictional world of Monica. Her job included killing targets and stealing valuable items. The show aired in 1991 on MTV as a serial on Liquid Television, its experimental animation series, and early episodes often featured only music and sound effects, with no dialogue.
Æon Flux was a groundbreaking series with incredible animation and imagery and, most notably, visual storytelling. Its storylines could be unsettling, even downright disturbing, along with the animation, and episodes were largely unconnected to each other. It’s no surprise it’s still remembered as a beloved series today, decades after it first aired, and it’s not the only Liquid Television offering whose legacy lives on—the series also launched Beavis and Butt-Head.
Æon Flux
- Release Date
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1991 – 1994
- Network
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MTV
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Denise Poirier
Æon Flux (voice)
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Eric Singer
Additional Voices
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Jack Fletcher
Trevor Goodchild (voice)
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John Rafter Lee
Onan / Tweeka
3
‘MacGyver’ (1985–1992)
Created by Lee David Zlotoff
MacGyver followed the titular character (Richard Dean Anderson), a former special ops agent working for the fictional Phoenix Foundation, an independent think tank located in Los Angeles. He had a reputation for quick thinking in dangerous situations and was known to use his ingenuity rather than violence and force, as he refused to carry a gun. The series premiered in the mid-’80s and continued into the early ‘90s, and it was rebooted in 2016.
Like other famous shows, MacGyver has had a lasting impact on pop culture—“MacGyver” is often used as a verb to describe a creative way of making or fixing something, especially with limited resources. Although the show remained entertaining throughout its run, MacGyver’s situations and solutions became increasingly over-the-top. The series was parodied hilariously on Saturday Night Live with the “MacGruber” sketches, in which the similarly named agent was often too distracted to defuse a bomb.
MacGyver
- Release Date
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1985 – 1991
- Network
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ABC
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Alun Armstrong
Chief Superintendent Capshaw
-
2
‘Mission: Impossible’ (1988–1990)
Created by Bruce Geller
Mission: Impossible followed the sensitive work of the Impossible Missions Force (IMF) as they risked their lives to protect their country, especially in missions requiring maximum deniability—if operatives were caught or killed, their actions would be disavowed. The show was a continuation of the 1960s series of the same name and was set 15 years later, although the only cast member to return was Peter Graves, who played Jim Phelps.
Although it came to an end in 1990, Mission: Impossible was one of the decade’s best offerings when it comes to spy shows, with a theme song that’s become synonymous with the genre. One of the most fun elements of the genre was its tech and gadgets, and the series had plenty. The subsequent success of the film franchise tends to overshadow the series, and some fans consider the two to take place in separate universes.
Mission: Impossible
- Release Date
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1988 – 1990-00-00
- Network
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ABC
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Thaao Penghlis
Nicholas Black
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Antony Hamilton
Max Harte
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Phil Morris
Grant Collier
1
‘La Femme Nikita’ (1997–2001)
Created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran
When young homeless woman Nikita (Peta Wilson) was framed for the killing of a cop, she was given a choice to either join a mysterious organization called Section One or spend the rest of her life in prison in La Femme Nikita. After joining Section One, Nikita was trained to be an assassin in the fight against terrorism. The series was based on the French film of the same name.
Nikita walked so Sydney Bristow could run—it’s hard to imagine later spy shows like Alias without the influence of La Femme Nikita. When it comes to ‘90s spy shows, La Femme Nikita was the one, especially as similar shows which began their runs in the late ‘80s were already long gone by the time it hit the air. One of its best elements was its interesting characters and their dynamic with each other.