Harry Potter is one of the most popular media franchises of all time, as the franchise based on J.K. Rowling’s novel series managed to have a firm grasp on popular culture for an entire decade. While not everyone who saw the Harry Potter films had read the books, the franchise was remarkably consistent in terms of quality, as all eight films can at least be considered to be “good.” Reactions to the prequel series, Fantastic Beasts, were much more mixed, but Warner Bros. Discovery is rolling forward with a new television series set to debut on HBO within the next few years.
Harry Potter fans have struggled within the last few years, as Rowling’s offensive comments have caused many to turn away from the franchise, as they do not want to offer financial support to someone who uses their resources for hateful reasons. However, there are many other great shows that may fill the Harry Potter-sized hole in their lives. Here are ten great shows to watch if you love Harry Potter.
10
‘Game of Thrones’ (2011–2019)
Created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
Game of Thrones is one of the biggest sensations in television history, as it successfully managed to adapt the dense source material from George R.R. Martin’s novels into an incredible series that captured the sheer depth of the world of Westeros. Although Martin’s novels had a sizable fan base, Game of Thrones became so popular that even non-readers could recognize beloved characters like Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) and Arya Stark (Maisie Williams).
Game of Thrones may now be at risk of being underrated when considering the incredibly negative response to the final season. Although the eighth season undercut a significant portion of the drama that the show had been building towards, the first seven seasons of the series are masterful, and include many all-time great Game of Thrones episodes like “Blackwater,” “The Rains of Castamere,” “The Mountain and the Viper,” “Hardhome,” “Battle of the the Bastards,” and “The Winds of Winter.”
9
‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ (1997–2003)
Created by Joss Whedon
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is one of the definitive coming-of-age stories of the late 1990s and early 21st century. Similar to Harry Potter, it combined a complex mythology of magical creatures and spells with relatable characters that deal with the inherent challenges of being a teenager. Although Sarah Michelle Gellar’s performance as the teenager “slayer,” Buffy Summers, has been recognized as being one of the greatest heroes in television history, fans fell in love with the amazing cast of supporting characters.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer was somewhat inconsistent in terms of quality, as it is really only the second, third, and fifth seasons that represent the show at its best. However, there is room to still be excited, as Gellar is in the midst of collaborating with Hulu for a new reboot that will introduce a young cast of characters.
8
‘Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance’ (2019)
Created by Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews, and Javier Grillo-Marxuach
Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance offers the type of fantasy spectacle that is not often seen outside of films like Harry Potter, as supernatural stories have often been replaced within popular culture by superhero and science fiction tales. Although it was based on the underrated classic The Dark Crystal from Jim Henson, which utilized groundbreaking puppetry effects that were ahead of their time, Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance expands the world to include a much broader set of characters, locations, and magic.
Like Harry Potter, Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance explores an elemental battle between heroes and villains, yet recognizes that not everyone can be easily classified as “good” and “bad.” Although Dark Crystal was sadly canceled after its first season, as the audience was not sizable and the viewership was too low, the show is a true achievement that will hold up for many years to come.
7
‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ (2008–2020)
Created by George Lucas and Dave Filoni
Star Wars: The Clone Wars helped create a new chapter in the Star Wars universe that appealed to fans of Harry Potter, as it was a coming-of-age story about a young character growing up within a crisis. Although it was the return of characters from the films, including Anakin Skywalker (Matt Lanter) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (James Arnold Taylor), the focus of Star Wars: The Clone Wars was on the young Jedi padawan Ahsoka Tano (Ashley Eckstein) and the Clone Captain Rex (Dee Bradley Baker).
Star Wars: The Clone Wars helped open up the Star Wars universe to new stories, as it established characters and events that would go on to factor into other shows, including Rebels, The Bad Batch, Tales of the Jedi, The Mandalorian, Andor, and more.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
- Release Date
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2008 – 2020-00-00
- Network
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Cartoon Network, Netflix, Disney+
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Tom Kane
Narrator / Yoda / Medical Droid / Yularen / Kraken (voice)
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Matt Lanter
Anakin Skywalker (voice)
6
‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ (2023–)
Created by Rick Riordan and Jonathan E. Steinberg
Percy Jackson and the Olympians is based on a novel series that was often compared to Harry Potter, as it was also a coming-of-age adventure story about a group of gifted children who are trained in a secret academy as they prepare to go on quests to save the world from evil. It was actually the second adaptation of the first novel in the series, as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets director Chris Columbus directed the 2010 film Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians worked much better as a television show than it did as a movie, as the series cast the characters at an appropriate age, and included the subtle worldbuilding and snarky sense of humor that had made the original novels by author Rick Riordan so beloved among readers around the world.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
- Release Date
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December 20, 2023
Cast
5
‘Cobra Kai’ (2018–2025)
Created by Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg
Cobra Kai explores the nature of training and competitive collaboration that is inherent to the Harry Potter series, but applies it to the world of the original The Karate Kid franchise that began in 1984 with the Oscar-nominated film of the same name by John G. Avildsen. Cobra Kai subverted expectations of what a legacy sequel should look like, as it was told from the perspective of Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka), the former bully who had been bested by Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) in the All-Valley tournament.
Cobra Kai was able to establish a new audience through its many new characters, all whilst having a cheeky sense of humor about itself. Although Sony Pictures recently released the new film Karate Kid: Legends starring Macchio and Jackie Chan, Cobra Kai is the better continuation of The Karate Kid universe, as it capped off six solid seasons with a very satisfying finale.
Cobra Kai
- Release Date
-
2018 – 2025-00-00
- Network
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Netflix, YouTube Premium
4
‘I Am Not Okay With This’ (2020)
Created by Jonathan Entwistle and Christy Hall
I Am Not Okay With This is a very underrated fantasy coming-of-age drama on Netflix that would certainly resonate with fans of Harry Potter who felt represented by the show, Sophia Lillis of It fame did a great job at playing a young teenage girl who discovers that she has superpowers, despite coming from a meager home that somewhat resembles what life was like for Harry when he was forced to live with his Muggle family.
I Am Not Okay With This was able to explore surprisingly dark material, yet retained the sharp comedic edge that had made the Harry Potter novels so beloved among young readers. It’s very unfortunate that I Am Not Okay With This was canceled after only one season, as the final episode set up a compelling hook for future installments that could have taken the series to greater emotional depths and included more spectacle.
3
‘Good Omens’ (2019–2023)
Created by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
Good Omens is another adaptation of a beloved fantasy novel series that managed to satisfy both fans of the original source material and viewers who simply wanted to be whisked away on a madcap adventure. Although David Tennant gave a memorable performance in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, he has one of the best roles of his career in Good Omens as the demon Crowley, who is obsessed with the music of Queen and Freddie Mercury.
Good Omens has unfortunately suffered similar controversies to Harry Potter, as momentum on a third and presumably final season of the show was stalled after disturbing allegations of sexual assault and trafficking were made against Neil Gaiman, the original author and producer of the show. Although it’s unclear if the show will be impossible, those capable of separating the art from the artist may still be able to enjoy the first two seasons.
Good Omens
- Release Date
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2019 – 2024
- Showrunner
-
Neil Gaiman, Douglas Mackinnon
2
‘Stranger Things’ (2016–2025)
Created by The Duffer Brothers
Stranger Things became one of the biggest television phenomena of all time for a reason, as it captured the imagination of young viewers in the same way that Harry Potter did. Although the show has many references to classic films from the 1980s, including Gremlins, Goonies, E.T. the Extra Terrestrial, Ghostbusters, and Beetlejuice, among others, it is also steeped in the fantasy lore that made Harry Potter so popular.
Similar to Harry Potter, part of the joy of watching Stranger Things is getting to see the young cast grow up, as the show has tracked their adolescence and development for almost ten years. The upcoming fifth and final season of Stranger Things, which is set to air in three installments this winter, is easily one of the most anticipated projects of any form within the entire history of Netflix streaming.
1
‘Legion’ (2017–2019)
Created by Noah Hawley
Legion is easily the most underrated television show ever based on a Marvel comic book series, as it is far more emotionally succinct, dramatically compelling, and visually dynamic than generic Disney+ shows like WandaVision, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and Moon Knight.
Similar to Harry Potter, Legion explores the challenges that come with being a “gifted” person, as the protagonist, David Haller (Dan Stevens), is a mutant who is sent to an asylum because he is deemed to be mentally unwell. Although it includes the type of action that one would expect from a series based on the X-Men comic books, Legion managed to go to some fairly dark and psychedelic places over the course of its three seasons. It’s one of the few shows not made by David Lynch in which the word “Lynchian” could apply.