Apple hasn’t been the only major force in the streaming wars. But is it actually one of the best? Since 2019, the Cupertino tech giant that makes your phones and computers has also signed blank checks for original TV shows and movies for Apple TV (formerly Apple TV+). Not everything has been a winner. But the ones that hit really hit hard to become must-watch television.
Big stars, big-name producers, and big budgets have been Apple's strategy for streaming. Years later, that strategy is paying off. In 2026, Apple TV leads the competition with Emmy winners like Widow’s Bay, The Studio, Pluribus, and Ted Lasso. Once upon a time, “Apple” and “TV” meant you were downloading episodes of The Office onto your iPod. Now, it’s watching some of the best TV has to offer.
Here are the 25 best shows currently on Apple TV.
Widow’s Bay
Welcome to Widow’s Bay—this is a trip you won’t soon forget. The Emmy-sweeping sensation from Katie Dippold stars Matthew Rhys (also an Emmy winner) as a hapless mayor of a small harbor town. His dreams of transforming his late wife’s hometown into a tourist destination run afoul of all the ghosts, demons, and masked killers that haunt the place. The show’s killer mixture of comedy and horror made it one of the most talked-about shows of 2026; if you haven’t paid a visit yet, trust us, you won’t regret it.
Foundation
Since its launch, Apple TV has quietly built up one of the strongest libraries of science fiction television not seen since the SciFi Channel. One of its leading shows is Foundation, adapted from Isaac Asimov’s operatic book series. Jared Harris anchors the show’s large ensemble cast as Hari Seldon, a brilliant mathematician whose algorithmic science has allowed him to predict the future and thus anticipate an imminent dark age for humanity. Foundation spans centuries as Seldon’s Foundation engages in direct conflict with the waning Galactic Empire. The politically minded Foundation hasn’t broken into the mainstream like Dune, but it’s frankly a miracle that a complex book series published more than 50 years ago has become a magnificent streaming-era TV show.
Sunny
The underrated black comedy Sunny is, sadly, a one-and-done deal; it was canceled after just one season in November 2024. But if you’re up for a weekend binge, Sunny is worth the dive. Based on the 2018 novel The Dark Manual by Colin O’Sullivan, the show stars Rashida Jones as an American in Japan whose husband and son are missing. Gifted a domestic helper robot by her father’s employer, she realizes “Sunny” (voiced by Joanna Sotomura) may be key to learning her husband’s secrets. While the show’s lingering questions will forever go unanswered, the ten episodes that do exist feature a wonderfully dry and foul-mouthed Rashida Jones who effortlessly balances comedy and drama, sometimes in a single line.
Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed
Tatiana Maslany has a habit of starring in addictive shows that make it too easy to hit “Play Next Episode.” Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed follows a divorced single mom (Maslany) who is pulled into a web of blackmail after she bears witness to a horrific crime involving her online boy-toy. While the buzzy Widow’s Bay soaked up all the attention when Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed premiered only weeks later, the show’s propulsive stakes and killer comedic timing by Maslany make it worth adding to your already too-large queue.
Margo’s Got Money Troubles
What do writers, professional wrestlers, and OnlyFans creators have in common? They know how to tell one hell of a story. Based on Rufi Thorpe’s 2024 novel, Margo’s Got Money Troubles sees Elle Fanning as a college dropout whose pregnancy—by her own English professor, no less—leads her to OnlyFans to make ends meet. But with the help of her best friend (Thaddea Graham) and her estranged parents (Michelle Pfeiffer and Nick Offerman), Margo will learn that it still takes a village to raise a child.
Murderbot
In Murderbot, Alexander Skarsgård plays an artificial construct who disables its own programming to obey orders; with newfound autonomy, it chooses a life of quiet to binge-watch endless TV shows. (Isn’t that the dream?) Based on The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells, this sci-fi comedy is all about how our bonds—the real ones—can make us feel alive.
Calls
Hey, got a new pair of noise-canceling headphones you wanna put to the test? Put on Calls. One of the most unusual shows you’ll ever watch—or rather, hear—this limited “animated” series, an English-language remake of a French series, takes place entirely over semi-connected phone calls between people whose lives suddenly change. Featuring an all-star cast that includes Pedro Pascal, Rosario Dawson, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Aubrey Plaza, Ben Schwartz, Judy Greer, Karen Gillan, Stephen Lang, and more, Calls is a one-night binge that will stay with you long after the line goes dead.
Pluribus
We love you, Carol. From Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul creator Vince Gilligan, Pluribus is the newest, shiniest show in the Apple TV catalog. Rhea Seehorn stars as an acerbic fantasy author who winds up one of the last few people on Earth who aren't absorbed into a shared hive mind from an alien virus. As Carol mourns the death of her partner, she tries to keep her selfhood in a world that has truly turned upside down.
Drops of God
If you’re the type to pair a bottle of rosé with your sofa binges, you’ll want to pour yourself a glass for Drops of God. Based on a Japanese manga, Drops of God chronicles the rivalry between the estranged daughter of a deceased wine expert and the expert’s star pupil, who compete for a vast inheritance. This multilingual offering is a feast for the senses and a delectable treat for refined palates.
The Studio
After years working at the highest levels of Hollywood, comedy partners Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg team up for a show that roasts their industry. With affection. In The Studio, Rogen stars as Matt Remick, the new head of the fictional Continental Studios. Caught between his love for movies and their demands as a big business—not to mention egos the size of superhero budgets—Remick seeks to etch his name in cinema history, no matter the cost. Come for the fine styling and stay for inside-baseball references that will make you feel like a legit Angeleno.
Your Friends & Neighbors
There was a time, not long ago, when Jon Hamm was the face of must-watch TV. Though Mad Men is now a memory, Your Friends & Neighbors is now one of the finest new shows sneaking its way to the top of everyone’s queues. Hamm stars as a laid-off New York financier who resorts to stealing from his wealthy neighbors, only to uncover a treasure trove of secrets. It’s a sterling social satire about the price of keeping up appearances.
Slow Horses
James Bond? More like James Bored. Based on the novels by Mick Herron, Slow Horses follows a unit made up of MI5 failures whose mistakes have led them to Slough House, a dismal back room for British intelligence overseen by the frumpy and flatulent Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman). But these double-0 zeroes become the real heroes when they take on cases that threaten Britannia. Slow Horses has been lauded for its storytelling and direction, with nary a sign of slowing down even after several seasons.
Shrinking
Can the worst therapist be your best friend? Jason Segel and an unbelievably game Harrison Ford lead this feel-good comedy about a therapist (Segel) who, in the midst of grieving his wife, takes a more—how do I put this?—personal approach to his work. While he initially draws the ire of his mentor and senior colleague (Ford), the men realize that loosening up is maybe what the doctor ordered.
For All Mankind
Ronald D. Moore, the creator of Battlestar Galactica and Outlander, imagines one of the biggest “What if?” questions in American history: What if we didn’t win the Space Race? Beginning in 1969 and spanning decades, For All Mankind traces what might have happened if America didn’t see the Moon as the last stop on the final frontier and kept trying to land among the stars. Perhaps we might have gone even further.
Trying
Esther Smith and Rafe Spall are Nikki and Jason, a couple who desperately want to have a baby. When they have fertility troubles, they decide to adopt. But before starting their family, they’ll have to convince an adoption panel that they’re ready to be parents. This series is equal parts heartwarming and hilarious—the perfect show to throw on after a long day.
Silo
You’ve seen post-apocalyptic conspiracy shows before, but do those shows have Rebecca Ferguson? Only Silo does. In Apple TV’s adaptation of the novels by Hugh Howey, the human race lives underground in large bunkers after Earth’s surface becomes uninhabitable. Or has it? As the survivors live under harsh rule and bodies start to pile up, the new sheriff (Ferguson) seeks the truth behind the lies keeping humanity underground.
Ted Lasso
Do you believe in "believe"? Hailed as one of the finest shows to emerge from the pandemic, Jason Sudeikis stars in Ted Lasso as the sickeningly optimistic title hero, a college football coach who moves to the UK to manage a far different football team. In its first few seasons, Ted Lasso was celebrated for its compassionate storytelling that champions our everyday opportunities to be a better person.
Severance
At first blush, a “return to the office” may not sound like the fare of an insightful dystopian drama. But Severance invented a loophole that its characters accept for simple job security: What if you could create the perfect work-life balance by separating your egos in half? Partly directed by Ben Stiller and starring Adam Scott, the sci-fi series twists the workplace sitcom genre to explore a much darker universe of deceit, control, and oppression.
Pachinko
Pitched as one of the streaming service’s flagship series, Pachinko is a multigenerational tale about a Korean woman searching for a better life during Japan’s occupation in the early 1900s. Get your tissues ready, because this sweeping, yearning story—whose star, Youn Yuh-jung, won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Minari—is full of returned lovers, political prisoners, and survival by hiding your true heritage.
Dickinson
This isn’t your high school English teacher’s Emily Dickinson. On this punchy half-hour comedy from playwright Alena Smith, the iconic poet is reinterpreted through a decisively modern lens. This version of Dickinson is a teenage rebel with an ax to grind against the patriarchy, chafing against a nineteenth-century society that demands she put aside her literary ambitions to become a dutiful homemaker. Interspersed are Billie Eilish needle drops, opium parties featuring improbable twerking, and Wiz Khalifa as the embodiment of death himself. The result is a tonally chaotic romp that improves dramatically over time. English teachers will sigh and literary purists will scoff, but hey, it’s a fun ride.
Servant
M. Night Shyamalan, you creep. You did it again. Starring Lauren Ambrose, Toby Kebbell, Rupert Grint, and the hauntingly perfect Nell Tiger Free, the series finished up its fourth and final season last year. A brief rundown: A couple who lost their baby in a tragic accident are dealing with the trauma by raising a fake baby. When they hire a nanny to take care of the doll, though? Oh, everything goes to hell. Maybe literally.
Mythic Quest
Rob McElhenney’s Mythic Quest sits at the intersection of full-of-shit and sincere. Set at a video game studio, Mythic Quest explores the behind-the-scenes adventures of the developers responsible for the world's most popular online game. But the show truly sparkles in its very human moments. A handful of one-off episodes will bring you to tears, and the show's quarantine special—made in lockdown in 2020—is a standout.
Masters of the Air
From the producers of Band of Brothers and The Pacific comes a World War II action-drama that takes to the skies. Masters of the Air, based on Donald L. Miller’s 2007 book, chronicles a group of young Air Force officers who undertake missions in German-occupied Europe. Austin Butler, Barry Keoghan, Callum Turner, and Anthony Boyle fly high as several real-life pilots.
Hijack
First it was a plane. Then it was a train. Where will Idris Elba be next? Until we see a third season, the first two volumes of the Apple TV thriller Hijack will have to satisfy the Speed-sized holes in our hearts. Elba stars as Sam Nelson, a corporate negotiator who, in the first season, must use his skills to broker a peaceful solution when terrorists take over a flight from Dubai to London. In season 2, Elba again winds up in the wrong place at the right time when he must again stop a high-stakes hostage situation in the U-Bahn in Berlin.
Dr. Brain
The first Korean-language series produced for Apple TV was the cerebral (literally!) sci-fi thriller Dr. Brain, starring the late Lee Sun-kyun (Parasite) in the lead role. Brain scientist Sewon Koh, hoping to solve the mystery of his family’s murders, hacks into the brains of the dead to piece together the puzzle himself. Plans for more Dr. Brain were scrapped after the passing of Lee Sun-kyun, leaving its one and only season to make our heads spin.