Taylor Sheridan, the co-creator of the award-winning show, Yellowstone, has returned with Special Ops: Lioness. The show centers on Joe (Zoe Saldaña), a CIA officer who recruits Cruz (Laysla De Oliveira), a female special operations Marine, as an undercover agent in the Lioness Program.
The issue of espionage, risky clandestine missions, as well as the psychological impact on those involved, are explored in the show. Thus, there are several options with similar themes and approaches for viewers who are already hooked to kill time while waiting for the next episode of Lioness to drop.
25
‘The Terminal List’ (2022–)
Created by David DiGilio
Based on Jack Karr’s eponymous novel, The Terminal List tells the story of Navy SEAL James Reece, whose entire platoon gets ambushed on a covert mission. After he returns home, James discovers that there are dark and dangerous entities conspiring against him and threatening his and the lives of his loved ones. The Terminal List quickly became a network hit, which can be attributed to the show’s stacked cast featuring Chris Pratt as protagonist James Reece, along with Constance Wu, Taylor Kitsch, Riley Keough, Arlo Mertz, and Jeanne Tripplehorn in the main roles.
Despite its mixed reviews, The Terminal List became a popular show in the genre and quickly became a Prime Video hit. Special Ops: Lioness fans might enjoy the twisty plot arcs and hardcore action set pieces in The Terminal List, and the fact that both James and Joe have similar training, makes them equally formidable and gritty.
24
‘Taken’ (2017–2018)
Created by Alexander Cary
The NBC series is based on the action-thriller film series of the same name, and serves as the prequel to the films starring Liam Neeson as the protagonist, and narrates his origin story. In Taken, Clive Standen steps into the shoes of Neeson’s character, Bryan Mills, a former Green Beret, whose life takes a drastic turn after his sister is killed in a train shootout. Bryan sets out to seek revenge on those who caused the tragedy while becoming a CIA agent.
As a crime action thriller, Taken manages to hit the right notes, with Standen delivering quite a compelling Bryan Mills, but it did not gain acclaim or popularity like the film series or that of Neeson’s protagonist. While there are extensive action pieces and vivid violence to satisfy action fans, Taken fails to be as convincing and engaging in its narrative as its source material.
Taken
- Release Date
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2017 – 2017
- Network
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NBC
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-
Arlen Aguayo-Stewart
Lucia
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Benz Antoine
Senator McDermott
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Billy Parrott
U.S. Customs & Patrol Officer
23
‘Liaison’ (2023)
Directed by Stephen Hopkins
Eva Green and Vincent Cassel lead the cast of this first French-English Apple TV+ original series. Liaison follows Gabriel Delage (Cassel) and Alison Rowdy (Green), two intelligent agents and former lovers who are teamed up for a task force to combat major international cyberattacks. As they work towards eliminating outside threats, the two skilled agents find themselves battling a bigger, internal demon, where their dark history and long-buried secrets of their personal lives can damage their future and risk their mission.
Liaison, like Lioness, is also a high-stakes contemporary thriller with multilayered characters, a high-tension plotline, and exciting espionage elements. The show’s narrative is more character-driven, focusing on Gabriel and Alison’s relationship, beyond their intelligence roles, as a couple with an intense past. While critics have mixed reviews of the show’s clichéd tropes and unexciting narrative of Liaison, Green and Cassel’s on-screen chemistry earned high praise.
Liaison
- Release Date
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2023 – 2023
- Network
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Apple TV+
22
‘SIX’ (2017–2018)
Created by William Broyles and David Broyles
A military drama inspired by the US Navy’s SEAL Team Six, Six comes from the Oscar-nominated writer of Apollo 13 and military special operations veteran David Broyles. The series chronicles the daily lives and operations of the members of the counter-terrorism unit as they engage in a covert endeavor to eliminate a Taliban leader in Afghanistan. But the team finds themselves navigating a more complex hurdle when they learn that an American citizen is collaborating with the terrorists as one of the fighters. Barry Sloane, Edwin Hodge, Juan Pablo Raba, and Walton Goggins star in various roles.
Six has been praised for its well-staged action pieces and engaging character arcs, with Goggins’ character garnering popularity among genre fans. Despite its common premise and clichéd plotlines, Six succeeds in its nuanced examination of violence and its impact, depicting the constant danger of covert operations. Though canceled after two seasons, the action thriller series earned a generally positive reception during its run.
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‘SEAL Team’ (2017–2024)
Created by Benjamin Cavell
Created by Benjamin Cavell, the military procedural drama follows the Bravo Team, an elite unit of the United States Navy SEALs, where they strategize and undertake dangerous missions across the world while navigating the risk and the toll it takes on their personal lives. Bones star David Boreanaz helms the cast of SEAL Team as the Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Jason Hayes, the leader of the Bravo Team, with Max Thieriot, Jessica Paré, Neil Brown Jr., A. J. Buckley, and Toni Trucks portraying various members of the team.
SEAL Team‘s Jason Hayes might differ a great deal from Special Ops: Lioness‘s Joe, but they both undertake perilous tasks to ward off national threats. Along with high ratings and viewership, the series has earned two Primetime Emmy nominations for stunt coordination and music. The series has been praised for its compelling characters and authenticity to real-life experiences, contributed by former Navy SEALs, special operators, and veterans, included in its production.
SEAL Team
- Release Date
-
2017 – 2024-00-00
- Network
-
CBS, Paramount
20
‘Alex Rider’ (2020–2024)
Created by Guy Burt
Alex Rider follows the titular teenager (Otto Farrant) from London, who is recruited as a spy by a special department of MI6 to investigate his uncle’s death and infiltrate a controversial corrective academy. Based on the eponymous novel series by Anthony Horowitz, the British thriller TV series marks the second screen adaptation of Horowitz’s novels, following the 2006 film, Stormbreaker, based on the first book in the series. While Alex is no James Bond or Jason Bourne, the series is as stylish as a classic spy title.
Targeting a younger audience, Alex Rider focuses on the titular teenager enlisted for espionage missions, using skills he did not know he had, thus becoming more of a coming-of-age story. Alex Rider is a solid thriller series that fans of high-stakes espionage like Special Ops: Lioness are likely to find engaging. It nicely balances the adrenaline-pumping action and deep character-building, making the narrative exciting and thought-provoking at the same time.
19
‘The Night Agent’ (2023–)
Created by Shawn Ryan
Created by Shawn Ryan (S.W.A.T), The Night Agent follows Gabriel Basso as the titular protagonist, Peter Sutherland, an FBI agent who works the night shift in the White House basement. Peter’s only job is to monitor the phone line for undercover agents, which barely ever rings, until one night, he answers a call sparking a chain of dangerous events and a major government conspiracy. Luciane Buchanan, Fola Evans-Akingbola, Hong Chau, and D.B. Woodside also feature in prominent roles.
Based on Matthew Quirk’s eponymous book, The Night Agent bears resemblance to similar action-packed political thrillers like Jack Ryan and/or Jack Reacher. While Basso’s Peter might not be the classic gentleman spy, it is his naivety, sincerity, and honesty that drive his character and the story’s narrative. The Night Agent opened to a great reception, becoming Netflix’s sixth-most-viewed series.
The Night Agent
- Release Date
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March 23, 2023
- Network
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Netflix
Cast
-
-
Hiro Kanagawa
FBI Director Willett
18
‘Rabbit Hole’ (2023)
Created by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa
Headlined by 24-star Kiefer Sutherland as the compelling protagonist, John Weir, Rabbit Hole is a political espionage series created by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra of This is Us fame. The series sees Sutherland’s John as an elite spy, who is known for his sharp skills and tactics, but when one of his missions goes wrong, John finds himself being accused of a crime he didn’t commit. In his attempt to clear his name and find the truth, John goes down a rabbit hole of a global-level political conspiracy that could shatter the very foundations of society.
While John Weir and Joe might not have much in common, they both have the same goal – to do the right thing, and it feels like a welcome return for Sutherland to the genre. With political corruption and conspiracy, deception, and high-level corporate espionage, Rabbit Hole has all the elements of a twisted political thriller.
Rabbit Hole
- Release Date
-
2023 – 2022
- Showrunner
-
Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
17
‘Condor’ (2018–2020)
Created by Todd Katzberg, Ken Robinson, and Jason Smilovic
A spy series based on the novel Six Days of the Condor by James Grady and the 1975 film adaptation Three Days of the Condor, Condor follows a young CIA analyst named Joe Turner (Max Irons). Joe becomes a lone survivor after discovering a diabolical government plot, which results in the deaths of all of his coworkers. He must navigate a dangerous world of espionage, treachery, and betrayal while on the run and unsure of whom to trust.
Although the two series appear to have nothing in common at first glance, they both focus on the world of intelligence agencies and the difficulties operators encounter in learning the truth and avoiding danger. Themes of treachery, betrayal of trust, and the personal cost of taking part in high-stakes operations may also be touched within both.
16
‘Homeland’ (2011–2020)
Created by Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon
Homeland follows CIA officer Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) who becomes convinced that Nicholas Brody (Damian Lewis), a U.S. Marine Sergeant who has been held captive by Al-Qaeda for eight years, has been turned and now poses a threat to national security.
Both shows feature strong female protagonists who struggle with personal concerns while attempting to achieve their mission. Thus, Homeland is the best option if you’re seeking a female-led show in the genre of thriller. Moreover, the complexity of intelligence work, the hazy line between devotion and betrayal, and the psychological toll that such high-stakes missions may have on those involved are explored in Homeland, which is similar to Lioness.
Homeland
- Release Date
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2011 – 2019
- Network
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Showtime