Starz has proven since its inception that it can hang with larger competitors like Max. Although it’s now making television in an incredibly crowded landscape, Starz has managed to regularly launch shows that make an impact, and it speaks to the enduring quality of these shows that they’ve also stood the test of time.
These shows have also spanned a wide array of genres, making viewers laugh and weep, often in equal measure. Through it all, though, these Starz shows have proven that it can reliably make shows that touch viewers, and endure for years after its time on the air has concluded.
Party Down (2009)
3 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Ken Marino, Adam Scott, Lizzy Caplan
Created by
Paul Rudd, John Enbom, Rob Thomas, Dan Etheridge
There are plenty of great comedy series that everyone has seen, but there are also plenty of hilarious gems that deserve more eyeballs. Party Down is one such gem, and it tells the story of six Hollywood dreamers who are trying to make it big, passing the time until their big break by working for a high-end catering company. The show is frequently hilarious, but Party Down is a dark, cynical show underneath it all. It’s about waiting for your life to begin and coming to the sad realization that the life you’ve been living may be the only one you get. In 2023, the show came back for a long-delayed third season and was just as great as ever.
Black Sails (2014)
4 Seasons
Genre
Drama, Action & Adventure
Cast
Toby Stephens, Luke Arnold, Hannah New
Created by
Jonathan E. Steinberg, Robert Levine
Designed as a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, Black Sails tells the story of Captain Flint, a pirate who sails the high seas in the early 1700s, when pirating was at its peak. Flint’s story is ultimately about protecting his thieving, debauched way of life. That quest takes a more literal form as he attempts to defend New Providence Island, a piece of land that’s untamed the way that nothing in the modern world is. Flint is out to prove that the world can’t be tamed, and watching him fight that losing battle is one of the show’s chief pleasures.
Power (2014)
6 Seasons
Genre
Crime, Drama
Cast
Omari Hardwick, Joseph Sikora, Naturi Naughton
Created by
Courtney Kemp Agboh, Vladimir Cvetko
Some of the best shows on Starz fly under the radar, and Power is a great example of that trend. The series stars Omari Hardwick as James Patrick, an entrepreneur who’s achieved enormous success through his nightclub, but who also caters to a drug operation designed to serve only high-status clients. The series chronicles Patrick’s attempts to move away from the world of crime and into running a legitimate business full-time. As you might expect, though, it’s not as easy to get out of the game as it may sound.
Outlander (2014)
6 Seasons
Genre
Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Cast
Caitriona Balfe, Sam Heughan
Created by
Ronald D. Moore
Outlander may be the most popular Starz series of all time, and there’s good reason for that. In its early seasons, the story follows a love triangle that spans time and space, following a former nurse in the wake of World War II who finds herself transported back in time to the 1700s. Eventually, she finds herself torn between her husband in the 1900s and the man she married in the 1700s in order to survive. Outlander sprawls outward from there, but it’s the initial story of love and loss that got viewers hooked, and it keeps them coming back for more season after season.
America to Me (2018)
1 Season
Genre
Documentary
Cast
Brendan Barrette, Diane Barrios-Smith, Jada Buford
America’s schools are fundamentally broken, and fixing them isn’t as easy as it may seem. America to Me is a stunning indictment of the racial and social inequalities that have infected America’s education system. The docuseries follows a group of Black students at Oak Park and River Forest High School in a suburb of Chicago. The school is high performing and is thought to be one of the most progressive schools in the nation. In looking at the stories of individual students, though, it becomes clear that the systems around the school reinforce racial hierarchies even as individual teachers try to undo them.
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Howards End (2017)
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Hayley Atwell, Matthew Macfadyen, Julia Ormond
Created by
Hettie Macdonald
Based on the more-than-century old novel of the same name, Starz’s Howards End miniseries is one of the best adaptations that E.M. Forester’s novel has ever seen. The series tells a sprawling story over the course of its four episodes, focusing on three families as the world changes at the turn of the 20th century. Kenneth Lonergan, who has also directed acclaimed films like Margaret and Manchester by the Sea, adapted the series, and it features plenty of deft, articulate writing that burrows into the core of the novel, and it comes up with a few new ideas in the process.
Vida (2018)
3 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Melissa Barrera, Mishel Prada, Ser Anzoategui
Created by
Tanya Saracho
Even in an era where there’s more TV than ever, you still don’t get many shows like Vida. The series follows two Mexican-American siblings who clash in every way possible. One is a party girl, and the other is much more straight-laced, but they’re forced to reunite following their mother’s untimely death. From there, the sisters form a new relationship as adults and discover who their mother really was. It’s a subtle, moving series that focuses on what it’s like to live as a Latinx person in 21st-century Los Angeles. It may not have any dragons, but Vida is well worth checking out for its subtle, intricate character work.
Survivor's Remorse (2014)
4 Seasons
Genre
Drama
Cast
Teyonah Parris, Mike Epps, Jessie T. Usher
Created by
Mike O'Malley
Although it has a dour name, Survivor’s Remorse has plenty of comedy to counterbalance its more serious moments. The half-hour comedy follows Cam Calloway (Jessie Usher), a young basketball player who signs a massive contract with a team in Atlanta and suddenly feels burdened with the responsibilities that come with wealth and fame. What makes Survivor’s Remorse work is its ability to balance the lighter moments with grounded looks at what fame and stardom actually mean. Money solves plenty of problems, but it doesn’t fix everything.
American Gods (2017)
3 Seasons
Genre
Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Cast
Ricky Whittle, Ian McShane, Emily Browning
Created by
Michael Green, Bryan Fuller
Based on an epic Neil Gaiman novel of the same name, American Gods had a lot to live up to before the series even premiered. The series has a wildly fantastical premise, which involves a man named Shadow Moon who meets the mysterious Mr. Wednesday after being released from prison. Ultimately, Shadow finds himself embroiled in a war between the old gods and the new. American Gods is not a perfect show, but it took enormous swings over the course of its three-season run. Few shows tried to encompass more of what America was, and what it could be.
Gaslit (2022)
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Julia Roberts, Sean Penn, Dan Stevens
Created by
Robbie Pickering
Julia Roberts is one of the most charming and skilled actresses of her generation, and she’s at the center of the sprawling ensemble on Gaslit. This limited series tells the story of the Watergate scandal in a unique way, focusing on many of the characters that history has forgotten in the decades since. Based on plenty of real-world reporting, Gaslit also features wonderful performances from Roberts and the rest of its cast. It’s a show about the insidiousness at the heart of Washington, and about how easy it is to forget all the bit players even in history’s most famous scandals.
Blindspotting (2021)
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Jasmine Cephas Jones
Created by
Daveed Diggs, Rafael Casal
Telling a modern family story, Blindspotting follows a family matriarch in the aftermath of her partner’s sudden arrest. In order to keep her family together, she’s forced to move in with her in-laws. While that may sound like the premise of a sitcom, Blindspotting manages to find plenty of real tension and emotion in every interaction between its characters. Family stories are just as important today as they’ve always been, and Blindspotting brings them to the fore.
The White Queen (2013)
1 Season
Genre
Drama
Cast
Rebecca Ferguson, Max Irons, Amanda Hale
A decade after she starred in The White Queen, Rebecca Ferguson is rapidly becoming one of the most famous actresses alive. At the time, though, she was just one part of a sprawling ensemble in this Starz miniseries. The show tells the story of the war between the Lancasters and the Yorks for control of the crown of England. In choosing to tell this story from a distinctly feminine perspective, though, The White Queen reminds us that, even in a highly patriarchal system, women will still find ways to wield the limited power they possess to great ends.
Minx (2022)
2 Seasons
Genre
Comedy
Cast
Ophelia Lovibond, Jake Johnson, Jessica Lowe
Created by
Ellen Rapoport
Although it wasn’t originally a Starz series, Minx‘s second season has been airing on the channel after it was acquired from Warner Bros., and the show continues to fire on all cylinders. Telling the fictional story of an explicit magazine targeted at women and its creation in the 1970s, the show has really sharp, incisive things about gender and the way it does and doesn’t control who we become. Thanks to a pair of smart, specific lead performances and high production values, Minx is both a good time and the kind of thing you might put on if you want to do a little bit of thinking.
Men in Kilts: A Roadtrip with Sam and Graham (2021)
2 Seasons
Genre
Documentary
Created by
Graham McTavish, Sam Heughan, Alex Norouzi
A charming reality show, Men in Kilts follows Sam Heughan and Graham McTavish, two of the stars of Outlander, as they travel Scotland and explore its complex heritage. The show is a wonderful comedic companion for anyone who loves Outlander, but it’s also a smart look at the history of Scotland and its majesty. Sam and Graham make for a delightful pair of hosts, and their Scottish heritage makes the show feel genuine, instead of a much more common travel show.
Hightown (2020)
2 Seasons
Genre
Drama, Crime
Cast
Monica Raymund, James Badge Dale, Riley Voelkel
Created by
Rebecca Perry Cutter
Following a National Marine Fisheries Service agent who finds herself investigating serious crimes in her small, beachfront community, Hightown is both a classic procedural and a moving story about battling addiction. The show’s focus on drug-related crimes has made it a critical favorite, although it has been far less heralded among the public more generally. Hightown may not have the blockbuster ratings of some shows on Starz, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a valuable part of the network’s overall lineup.
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