These are the best drama shows to binge on Paramount+ right now
These are the best drama shows to binge on Paramount+ right now
Whether you want crime, family fallout, power games, or legal drama, these are the shows worth settling into.
Paramount+ has a really strong drama bench, but what I like most about it is that these shows all binge differently. Some of them pull you through with cliffhangers and dangerous turns, some work because the characters are so messy and watchable you just want to stay in their orbit, and some do both at once. The four shows below all have very different energy, but they share one huge thing: once they get their hooks in, good luck stopping. And all four have enough seasons and episodes to fully take over your life for a while. So, here are my picks for the best binge-worthy drama TV shows streaming on Paramount+ right now.
Best binge-worthy drama shows streaming on Paramount+
Best antihero binge: ‘Dexter’
“Dexter” is an all-timer for me. It follows Dexter Morgan, a Miami blood-spatter analyst who also happens to be a serial killer, except he only kills people he believes deserve it. Which is obviously a totally insane premise, and that’s exactly why it works so well. The show builds each season around a new killer, threat, or person getting too close to the truth, and that structure makes it incredibly easy to fly through. Michael C. Hall is so good in this role because he never pushes too hard. He plays Dexter with this great calm detachment that somehow makes him funny, creepy, and oddly sympathetic all at once. And when the show hits its peak, especially in the Trinity Killer season with John Lithgow, it’s ridiculously good.
What makes it such a killer binge is the pressure. Every episode feels like Dexter is one bad lie away from everything blowing up in his face. He’s trying to keep the murder hobby hidden while also playing brother, boyfriend, husband, dad, and functioning member of society, and obviously, that balancing act can only hold for so long. That’s the hook. You’re watching to see if he gets caught, but you’re also watching because the relationships really matter. Deb is a huge part of that. So are Rita and Harrison. The show keeps finding ways to make Dexter feel more human without ever letting you forget what he is, and that tension is what makes the binge so hard to stop. Yes, the later seasons wobble, but when “Dexter” is on, it’s one of the most addictive shows ever made.
Dexter
Dexter Morgan, a blood spatter pattern analyst for the Miami Metro Police also leads a secret life as a serial killer, hunting down criminals who have slipped through the cracks of justice.
Best power binge: ‘Billions’
I find Paul Giamatti endlessly watchable, and he’s a big reason why “Billions” is on this list. Plus, everyone in this show is morally ambiguous, and it has a lot of fun pulling out the dark, weird sides of these characters. “Billions” follows hedge fund king Bobby Axelrod (Damian Lewis) and U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades (Giamatti) as they basically spend season after season trying to destroy each other in increasingly elaborate ways. It’s all money, ego, revenge, leverage, and power moves, with Wendy right in the middle of it as both Chuck’s wife and Axe’s performance coach. That alone is enough to make the whole thing messy. Then you add in Wags, Taylor, all the betrayals, all the deals, all the shifting loyalties, and the show becomes this giant machine built to keep escalating.
The binge value comes from the fact that every episode feels like another move in a war. Somebody gains the upper hand, somebody gets humiliated, somebody pulls a sneaky move behind the scenes, and suddenly you need to know what the other side is going to do about it. Giamatti and Lewis are the real engine here. They’re both so locked in, and the show knows exactly how to use their chemistry. It also helps that “Billions” has this fast, glossy, slightly ridiculous energy that makes even the finance-heavy stuff go down easy. The stakes are always huge, the people are always scheming, and the show is constantly teeing up the next betrayal. And it’s a lot of fun as it does it.
Billions
Shrewd, savvy U.S. Attorney Chuck Rhoades and the brilliant, ambitious hedge fund king Bobby “Axe” Axelrod are on an explosive collision course, with each using all of his considerable smarts, power and influence to outmaneuver the other. The stakes are in the billions in this timely, provocative series.
Best legal binge: ‘The Good Fight’
“The Good Fight” is one of those rare spinoffs that is worthy in and of itself. It spins out of “The Good Wife” by following Diane Lockhart after the events of that series, while also carrying over the legal-world DNA, sharp writing, and some familiar faces. The setup is great right away: Lockhart gets financially wrecked by a scandal tied to her goddaughter, Maia, which forces both of them into a new law firm and a totally different phase of life. From there, the show becomes this mix of legal drama, office politics, political satire, and occasional full-on chaos. Christine Baranski is incredible as Diane — she’s sharp, furious, elegant, funny, and completely commanding. And the cast around her, especially Audra McDonald and Cush Jumbo, keeps the whole thing humming.
Why is it such a good binge? Because it keeps things fresh without losing its rhythm. One episode gives you a satisfying legal case, the next gives you a personal blowup, then suddenly the show gets weird, topical, funny, or kind of surreal, and somehow it all still works. It keeps throwing new tensions at Diane and the firm, and it stays smart, biting, and angry in a really entertaining way. If you’re looking for a legal binge, check it (and watch “The Good Wife” also on Paramount+).
The Good Fight
Picking up one year after the events of the final broadcast episode of “The Good Wife”, an enormous financial scam has destroyed the reputation of a young lawyer, Maia Rindell, while simultaneously wiping out her mentor and godmother Diane Lockhart’s savings. Forced out of her law firm, now called “Lockhart, Deckler, Gussman, Lee, Lyman, Gilbert, Lurie, Kagan, Tannebaum & Associates”, they join Lucca Quinn at one of Chicago’s preeminent law firms.
Best family binge: ‘Ray Donovan’
“Ray Donovan” is a crime drama, but what really makes it hit is the family stuff. Ray works as a fixer in Los Angeles, which means rich and powerful people call him when they need ugly problems to go away. He handles messes for everyone else while his own life is basically held together with duct tape. Then his father, Mickey, gets out of prison and drops back into the family like a wrecking ball. That’s when the show really starts cooking. Liev Schreiber plays Ray with this tight, clenched, barely-contained energy that works perfectly for the character, and Jon Voight is absolute chaos as Mickey. Every scene with the two of them feels like it could explode.
That’s what makes it such a strong binge. The show keeps piling pressure onto Ray from every direction — there’s the job, there’s the criminals, there’s his wife Abby and the kids, there are his brothers, who are carrying their own pain and damage. And sitting underneath all of it is this mountain of family history that never really stays buried for long. So even when Ray is doing classic fixer stuff, the emotional stakes are always right there. You’re not just watching to see how he solves the next problem. You’re watching to see what all of this is doing to him and whether his family can survive being this broken for this long. It’s dark, bruising, and super easy to get hooked on.
Ray Donovan
Set in the sprawling mecca of the rich and famous, Ray Donovan does the dirty work for LA’s top power players, and makes their problems disappear. His father’s unexpected release from prison sets off a chain of events that shakes the Donovan family to its core.
More binge worthy drama TV shows on Paramount+:
‘Evil’
Evil
Skeptical forensic psychologist Kristen Bouchard joins priest-in-training David Acosta and technology expert Ben Shakir as they investigate supposed miracles, demonic possessions, and other extraordinary occurrences to assess for a scientific explanation or if something truly supernatural is at work.
‘Mayor of Kingstown’
Mayor of Kingstown
In a small Michigan town where the business of incarceration is the only thriving industry, the McClusky family are the power brokers between the police, criminals, inmates, prison guards and politicians in a city completely dependent on prisons and the prisoners they contain.
‘Tulsa King’
Tulsa King
New York mafia capo Dwight “The General” Manfredi is released from prison after 25 years and exiled by his boss to set up shop in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Realizing that his mob family may not have his best interests in mind, Dwight slowly builds a crew.
‘The Good Wife’
The Good Wife
Alicia Florrick boldly assumes full responsibility for her family and re-enters the workforce after her husband’s very public sex and political corruption scandal lands him in jail.