Finished ‘Lord of the Flies’? Watch these survival dramas next
Finished ‘Lord of the Flies’? Watch these survival dramas next
These shows take the same survival panic and push it into wilderness horror, teen politics, island mystery, and full-on social collapse.
“Lord of the Flies” is the kind of survival story I’m always going to show up for. Life-and-death stakes are as high as it gets, and there’s something terrifying about watching a group of kids get cut off from the world and slowly realize no one is coming to save them. The limited series just dropped all episodes on Netflix, and the new series brings William Golding’s classic story back with a brutal modern edge.
This show isn’t just about being stranded somewhere dangerous — it’s about what happens when rules disappear, fear takes over, and young people have to build their own version of society from scratch. Sometimes that means teamwork. Sometimes that means everyone starts looking at each other like dinner. So if you finished “Lord of the Flies” and want more survival drama with panic, power struggles, secrets, and people pushed to the edge of the human limit, these are the shows I’d check out next.
Lord of the Flies
After a plane crash, a group of schoolboys find themselves stranded on a tropical island without adults. Ralph is elected leader and, with the help of the intelligent Piggy, strives to maintain order and civilization. Jack, responsible for the signal fire, becomes increasingly focused on hunting and power struggles. This leads to tensions within the group, gradually pushing the boys from hope and structure into chaos and tragedy.
Loved ‘Lord of the Flies’? Watch: ‘Yellowjackets’
Let me tell you something about “Yellowjackets” — it’s one of those shows that’s hard to look away from, even when things get really dark. A girls’ high school soccer team crashes in the wilderness, and what starts as a desperate fight to survive slowly turns into something much scarier. They’re hungry, scared, stranded, and completely cut off from the world. So yeah, things get ugly fast.
That’s why it’s the easiest next watch after “Lord of the Flies.” Both shows are about young people trying to stay alive after society disappears, and both understand that the biggest danger usually isn’t the wilderness — it’s the group. “Yellowjackets” is more graphic, more grown-up, and way more psychologically twisted, but the survival panic is coming from the same place. Plus, by jumping between the crash and the women 25 years later, it asks the question “Lord of the Flies” doesn’t really have time for: what happens after you survive something horrible?
Yellowjackets
This equal parts survival epic, psychological horror story and coming-of-age drama tells the saga of a team of wildly talented high school girls soccer players who become the (un)lucky survivors of a plane crash deep in the remote northern wilderness. The series chronicles their descent from a complicated but thriving team to savage clans, while also tracking the lives they’ve attempted to piece back together nearly 25 years later.
Check out: ‘The Society’
“The Society” is the pick if what grabbed you about “Lord of the Flies” was the whole “kids are in charge now, and wow, this is going badly” vibe. The show follows a group of wealthy Connecticut teenagers who return from a school trip and discover that every adult in town has vanished. Their homes are still there. The stores are still there. The lights still work. But the outside world is gone, a thick forest surrounds the town, and suddenly, these kids have to run everything themselves.
That’s where it lines up beautifully with “Lord of the Flies.” Both stories are about young people trying to copy adult society without fully understanding how fragile it is. They hold meetings, create rules, and choose leaders. Then fear, ego, resentment, and ambition start chewing through all of it. “The Society” is less about basic wilderness survival and more about government, control, romance, and teen politics turning into actual life-or-death stakes. And fair warning, it only ran one season, so not every question gets answered. But if you want a modern suburban spin on the same social-collapse nightmare, this one works.
The Society
When everyone else mysteriously vanishes from their wealthy town, the teen residents of West Ham must forge their own society to survive.
Watch next: ‘The Wilds’
“The Wilds” starts with one of the cleanest survival hooks you can ask for: a group of teenage girls survives a plane crash and ends up stranded on a deserted island. So right away, you’ve got the stuff you want after “Lord of the Flies.” Food is a problem, water is a problem, and shelter is a problem. And trust is a huge problem. Because these are teens instead of kids, everyone brings their own baggage to the island, so the emotional danger is just as intense as the physical danger.
The reason “The Wilds” is such a good follow-up is that it takes the island-survival setup and gives it a modern thriller twist. Everyone thinks they’re just trying to survive a random disaster, but the show quickly makes it clear there’s something much bigger and creepier happening behind the scenes. In “Lord of the Flies,” the horror comes from what kids become when no one is watching. In “The Wilds,” the horror comes from the growing feeling that nothing about this situation is as simple as it looks. It’s a survival drama with teen secrets, paranoia, and enough mystery to keep you hitting “next episode.”
The Wilds
A group of teen girls from different backgrounds must fight for survival after a plane crash strands them on a deserted island. The castaways both clash and bond as they learn more about each other, the secrets they keep, and the traumas they’ve all endured. But there’s just one twist… these girls did not end up on this island by accident.
Wildcard pick: ‘Lost’
“Lost” is basically a cultural touchstone. If we’re talking about stranded-on-an-island shows where a group of people tries to build a new life while everything gets weirder and more dangerous, you kind of have to talk about “Lost.” The show follows the survivors of Oceanic Flight 815 after they crash on a mysterious island, where they set up camp, search for rescue, fight over leadership, and slowly realize the island is not even close to normal.
That survival setup is where it connects to “Lord of the Flies.” Both stories start with people on a beach trying to make sense of a disaster. Both have leadership battles. Both have rescue as this glowing hope that keeps everyone moving. But the difference is scope — where “Lord of the Flies” is lean and savage, “Lost” is sprawling, emotional, and very weird in the best way. If you loved watching a group try to create order after a crash, this is basically the giant TV epic version of that idea, complete with moral choices, shifting alliances, hidden secrets, and one very stressful island.
Lost
Stripped of everything, the survivors of a horrific plane crash must work together to stay alive. But the island holds many secrets.
More to watch after finishing ‘Lord of the Flies’:
‘Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue’ | MGM+
Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue
Follow the tale of nine strangers who find themselves lost in a remote Mexican jungle after their small plane traveling from Guatemala to the U.S. crashes. One by one, the survivors are murdered, leaving the remaining passengers to solve the terrifying mystery before they too fall victim to the killer.
‘Society of the Snow’ | Netflix
Society of the Snow
On October 13, 1972, Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, chartered to take a rugby team to Chile, crashes into a glacier in the heart of the Andes.
‘Squid Game’ | Netflix
Squid Game
Hundreds of cash-strapped players accept a strange invitation to compete in children’s games. Inside, a tempting prize awaits — with deadly high stakes.
‘The Last of Us’ | HBO Max
The Last of Us
Twenty years after modern civilization has been destroyed, Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse the United States and depend on each other for survival.