10 Best Action Thrillers Like The Night Agent

If you’re enjoying The Night Agent, one of the most popular action thrillers currently on television, here are 10 other shows you might like. Many viewers and critics agree that season 3 of The Night Agent is the strongest yet, with a more intricate storyline, well-developed characters, and surprising turns of events.

Honestly, after finishing season 3 of The Night Agent, I was totally hooked and immediately wanted more! Knowing we’ll have to wait for season 4 is going to be tough, but it’s good to remember there are plenty of other shows out there that can fill the void until then. As a movie and TV buff, I’m always on the lookout for something similar to keep me entertained!

Action thrillers have been incredibly popular lately, and shows like The Night Agent really capture what viewers love about the genre. Here are 10 similar shows – packed with political intrigue and plenty of other exciting elements – that you’re sure to enjoy.

Black Doves

Ludovic Robert / Netflix

If you enjoyed the spy thriller The Night Agent, you might also like Black Doves on Netflix. While similar in many ways, Black Doves adds a bit of playful humor. The show follows Keira Knightley as an agent for the Black Doves organization, who begins investigating a series of mysteries when her cover is blown.

The Black Doves operates similarly to an intelligence broker, reminding viewers of Jacob Monroe from The Night Agent. The dynamic between the two main spies is comparable to Peter’s relationships within the FBI, and the show delivers on the thrills of a spy story with a political backdrop. Ultimately, Black Doves is enjoyable and easy to watch, just like The Night Agent.

Slow Horses

Photo courtesy of Apple TV

Both Slow Horses and Black Doves are funnier than The Night Agent, but they share common themes. Both shows highlight the lesser-known, often overlooked divisions within intelligence agencies. While the characters in Slow Horses are considered more of a hindrance to MI5 than the Night Agent team is to the FBI, both groups struggle with limited resources and a lack of support.

Both Slow Horses and The Night Agent follow a similar storytelling pattern. While they continue the main characters’ stories over multiple seasons, each season usually centers around a fresh mystery or conspiracy. The main characters in both shows also share some common traits.

Both Slow Horses and The Night Agent feature characters dealing with family legacies tied to intelligence work, which often creates complications for them. River Cartwright from Slow Horses has relatives who used to work in MI5, and Peter Sutherland in The Night Agent has a father who betrayed the FBI. Despite their different styles, these shared themes suggest that viewers who enjoy The Night Agent will likely also appreciate Slow Horses.

Reacher

Many viewers see Netflix’s The Night Agent as a successor to Reacher because the shows share a lot in common. Both feature a male lead uncovering political conspiracies in a new, self-contained story each season, and both rely on exciting action sequences and familiar thriller elements. Each season also introduces a fresh set of supporting characters.

Both Reacher and The Night Agent share a lot of similarities. While they aren’t exactly the same, people who enjoy one of these shows usually end up liking the other as well.

Bodyguard

The six-episode series Bodyguard is a gripping political thriller. It centers on David Budd, a war veteran with PTSD, who is tasked with protecting a British Member of Parliament. David’s military background fuels the show’s intense action sequences, much like in The Night Agent, while his psychological struggles add layers to the political suspense.

Both Bodyguard and The Night Agent delve into the world of politics. Bodyguard focuses on the clashing beliefs between a bodyguard and the politician he’s protecting, and the potential consequences of those beliefs. The Night Agent explores similar themes through its protagonist’s connections to powerful figures like Diane Farr and even the President.

The Agency

Luke Varley / ©Paramount+ with Showtime/Viacom Intl. / Courtesy Everett Collection

At its heart, The Agency is a classic spy thriller, filled with political maneuvering, corporate secrets, exciting action, and personal moments between characters. If you enjoyed the Netflix series The Night Agent, which shares many of these same elements, that’s a great reason to check out The Agency.

Both shows also heavily feature central love stories. The Night Agent develops a relationship between Peter and Rose over two seasons, evolving from initial distrust to a strong romantic connection. Similarly, The Agency puts the relationship between two main characters front and center, creating a particularly strong parallel to The Night Agent.

Homeland

Image via Showtime

Many consider Homeland to be one of the most important political spy thrillers in recent television history. Though some feel the show lost momentum in its later seasons, its first season received widespread praise, and the series finale was highly regarded. Over eight seasons, Homeland set a high standard for spy thrillers on TV.

While The Night Agent doesn’t quite reach the same level of complexity or quality as Homeland, it shares a lot of the same themes. Both shows center around political conspiracies, protecting the US from terrorism, and how these events affect the main characters. If you enjoyed The Night Agent, Homeland is a more in-depth thriller you shouldn’t miss.

The Shield

Compared to The Night Agent, The Shield is a very different kind of action thriller. While The Night Agent focuses on political intrigue and espionage, The Shield is more of a realistic and intense police drama. However, both shows share plenty of action, and they’re connected by one important similarity.

Shawn Ryan, the creator of the hit show The Night Agent, also created The Shield. While the two shows are quite different, they share a common thread thanks to Ryan’s storytelling. Both explore themes of corruption within law enforcement and deliver exciting action and suspense.

The Night Manager

Although they share a similar name, The Night Manager and The Night Agent have quite a bit in common. Both shows center around men working with intelligence agencies to stop criminals, and both feature a network of helpers and opponents along the way.

While The Night Manager focuses more on classic spy thriller elements, The Night Agent blends that with political intrigue. Despite their differences, the two shows have a lot in common, and fans of The Night Agent will likely also enjoy The Night Manager.

​​​​​​The Diplomat

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I’ve been watching both shows, and what really strikes me is how different they are in focus. While The Night Agent is all about fast-paced action with an FBI agent at the center, The Diplomat is much more political, revolving around an ambassador to the UK. Honestly, The Diplomat doesn’t have nearly as much action, but both shows share a compelling sense of intrigue, even if they get there in different ways.

Both The Diplomat and The Night Agent feature engaging main characters navigating tricky political landscapes with global consequences. While The Night Agent leans more into action and suspense, The Diplomat delves much deeper into the political intricacies. However, if you enjoyed the political elements of The Night Agent, you’ll likely appreciate The Diplomat, which explores those themes in a more detailed and complex way.

The Americans

If you enjoyed The Night Agent, you should definitely check out The Americans. This show, set during the Cold War, centers on two KGB spies who are living undercover as ordinary Americans and working to gather intelligence on the US government. While The Americans delves into more complex themes than The Night Agent, both shows share a similar focus on political intrigue.

While it’s hard to make a direct comparison, like between The Shield and The Night Agent, fans of the political intrigue in Netflix’s The Night Agent will likely also enjoy The Americans.

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2026-02-27 20:41