Your life may be boring right now, but your TV shows don’t have to be. Netflix has tons of foreign thriller series available to stream, and there’s no better time to give them a try. As Parasite director Bong Joon-ho so wisely said after winning the best picture award at the 2020 Oscars: “Once you overcome the one-inch barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films.” Of course, this applies to TV shows as well. Whether you’re into psychological thrillers, gritty mysteries, or crime dramas, here are 18 foreign thriller series you should add to your must-watch list.
Related: Watch These Foreign Films on Netflix If You're Looking For Something New
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3%
Set in the distant future, this Brazilian dystopian series revolves around two communities: the impoverished Inland, and the three percent of the population who are lucky enough to live in a virtual paradise known as the Offshore. Michele Santana may be new to the Offshore and have no family of her own, but her strong sense of justice compels her to make the Inland a better place – even if that means resisting the Process, which can only spell trouble.
Watch 3% on Netflix.
Everett / Juan Pablo Gutiérrez/Netflix
Ingobernable
What happens when the first lady of Mexico, a woman of honor and ideals, starts to lose faith in her president husband? That’s exactly what happens in this Spanish-language crime drama, which follows Emilia Urquiza as she attempts to improve the conditions of her country and uncover some dark truths – even if it means going behind her husband’s back.
Watch Ingobernable on Netflix.
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Kingdom
Set in Korea’s medieval Joseon period, this South Korean drama follows a crown prince who is forced to investigate a mysterious plague spreading across his country and making the infected immune to death and hungry for flesh. It sounds weird, but trust us – it’s cool.
Watch Kingdom on Netflix.
Everett / Emanuela Scarpa/Netflix
Suburra: Blood on Rome
Inspired by a real-life political scandal, this Italian crime drama (which serves as a prequel to the 2015 film Suburra and the novel of the same name, by Giancarlo De Cataldo and Carlo Bonini) follows a battle between organized crime, corrupt politicians, and the Vatican over Rome’s underground crime scene. It seems too wild to be real, but you just have to see it to believe it.
Watch Suburra: Blood on Rome on Netflix.
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Omniscient
This eerie Brazilian series is set in the near future, revolving around a society under constant Big Brother-like surveillance. Despite the Omniscient system’s drones, a murder is somehow committed without the killer being monitored, and the deceased’s daughter – a tech intern named Nina – decides to risk everything in order to figure out how the murderer got away.
Watch Omniscient on Netflix.
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Ragnarok
Inspired by Norse mythology, this Norwegian coming-of-age series takes place in the fictitious town of Edda. As the town struggles with industrial pollution and melting glaciers, it becomes clear that only a teenager gifted with the embodiment of Thor can save the people of Edda.
Watch Ragnarok on Netflix.
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Puerta 7
Created by Martin Zimmerman, who also created Ozark and Narcos, this Argentine thriller revolves around the attempts of a woman to expose and dissolve the organized crime that exists within a soccer club. You don’t have to be a soccer fan to appreciate this gritty drama.
Watch Puerta 7 on Netflix.
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Queen Sono
Netflix’s first African original series stars Quantico‘s Pearl Thusi as the titular Queen Sono, a kickass South African field operative still reeling from the mysterious death of her mother, who was an anti-apartheid revolutionary leader and freedom fighter. Queen proves that you can take on terrorism and look incredible while doing it (even while battling your own inner demons).
Watch Queen Sono on Netflix.
