10 Great Shows To Watch if You Love 'One Battle After Another'

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Leonardo DiCaprio driving a car and looking in the rearview mirror in One Battle After Another. Image via Warner Bros.

Michael Block is a 14 time GLAM Award nominated writer, producer, and host of the podcast Block Talk. Throughout his time in the entertainment industry, he has worked on and off Broadway as a stage manager, written several produced plays, critiqued hundreds of theatrical performances, drag and cabaret shows, and has produced events randing from drag competitoons to variety concerts! 
On Block Talk, he interviews nightlife personalities, covers the wide world of entertainment through features, ranking episodes, and recaps ALL of Drag Race, as well as Dragula and Survivor. He has interviewed hundreds of RuGirls that span the globe at DragCon NYC, DragCon LA, and DragCon UK. 
In his free time, he makes one-of-a-kind jewelry and gift baskets with his mom. He is a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community. 

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Now that we've officially entered award season, one major masterpiece of 2025 continues to be on everybody's lips: One Battle After Another. Written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, the film follows an ex-revolutionary, Bob Ferguson (Leonardo DiCaprio), who is forced to return to his combative lifestyle when he and his daughter, Willa (Chase Infiniti), are pursued by a corrupt military officer, Colonel Steven J. Lockjaw (Sean Penn). A dark comedy action thriller, One Battle After Another, has had the world buzzing. But what do you watch next if you've finished?

While there are certainly many movies you could seek out after finishing the film, if you're looking for something in serial form, these ten titles may suit your needs. From dark comedies with a man on the run to series that featured some of the stars of One Battle After Another, these titles are destined to keep you equally entertained with the action, adventure, and uncomfortable laughs.

1 'Barry' (2018–2023)

Bill Hader running through the woods in 'Barry' Season 2. Image via HBO

Just like Leonardo DiCaprio, Bill Hader is more than what you perceive him to be. In One Battle After Another, DiCaprio stretched his comic chops. In Barry, Hader added some action and drama to his repertoire. Running for four seasons, the series, created by Hader and Alec Berg, follows the titular character, a former U.S. Marine from Cleveland who works as a hitman while grappling with loneliness and depression. With his work taking him to Los Angeles, Barry finds himself joining an acting class taught by Gene Cousineau (Henry Winkler), where he meets aspiring actress Sally Reed (Sarah Goldberg), causing him to question his path and begin one as an actor, all while as he struggles to keep his past a secret.

An endearing and subversive comedy with just enough of an edge, Barry allows for Hader and the entire ensemble, which also included Stephen Root and Anthony Carrigan, to do some extraordinary character work. It's dark and macabre, but it will easily leave you on the floor laughing. With a mantle filled with accolades, Barry was very much a show that deserved what it earned. Barry and One Battle After Another may have different auras, but both lead characters certainly could occupy the same universe in their search for purpose beyond their means.

2 'Black Rabbit' (2025)

Jason Bateman and Jude Law having a discussion outside in a city in Black Rabbit. Image via Netflix

Blood is thicker than water, but sometimes it's so thick, it can still ruin your life. The gripping crime thriller Black Rabbit is centered on estranged brothers, when successful restaurant owner Jake Fredken (Jude Law), brings his troubled brother, Vince (Jason Bateman), back into the business. Only, when the past catches up with them, it opens a Pandora's box of criminal trouble and forces them down a dangerous path. Vince's gambling debts to dangerous loan sharks pull them into the city's criminal underworld, forcing them to confront past trauma and codependency as their lives spiral into chaos. An action-packed thriller, Black Rabbit proves that some family counseling might have prevented complete and utter destruction.

With only eight high-octane episodes, the slippery slope of a plot that gets messier with every action serves as a brilliant watch if you're seeking a story about an individual pulled back into their past. With a sensational cast that spans the restaurantand the criminals, including Amaka Okafur as Roxie andForrest Weber as Junior, the character-driven story is wonderfully unrelenting. Though Bateman and Law have expanded their genre reach over the years, they are natural dramatic actors who ease into the plot's natural action.

3 'The Lowdown' (2025–)

If you're looking for a hero that's a bit rough around the edges, yet completely entertaining to watch, look no further than Ethan Hawke as Lee Raybon in the brilliant The Lowdown. Created by Sterlin Harjo, the series follows Lee, a Tulsa bookseller and citizen journalist, who uncovers a local conspiracy while investigating a powerful family, getting pulled into the city's dark underbelly with his daughter, Francis (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), in tow. The Lowdown, which is inspired by the real-life truthstorian Lee Roy Chapman, the crime-filled mystery is hilarious with just enough of a bite to make it edgy.

Like DiCaprio, Hawke has aged into a new demographic of characters. No longer are they playing young heartthrobs, shifting into devoted fathers on a mission to protect their children. All with an eccentric edge that would make any offspring embarrassed of their father. Hawke serves as a brilliant central character alongside a wonderful cast, including Keith David, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Tim Blake Nelson, and even guest star Peter Dinklage. With just enough corruption to keep you hoping for justice, The Lowdown is a wonderful series that develops Lee into an engaging character, even as he never stays put and is always on the run.

4 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' (2024–)

Maya Erskine and Donald Glover looking disheveled after a fight and staring ahead in Mr. & Mrs. Smith. Image via Prime Video

Audiences love a fascinating spy thriller with a touch of humor. Such is the case for the brilliant Mr. & Mrs. Smith. The first season stars Donald Glover and Maya Erskine as two strangers who are paired as spies and must live undercover as a married couple. Adopting the aliases John and Jane Smith, they encounter other agents with the same names, take on new missions, and attempt to balance a marital relationship to keep the neighbors off their scent. An utterly entertaining series that is much better than its film inspiration, Mr. & Mrs. Smith changed the game by bringing in the typical spy hijinks into a genuinely strong relationship drama.

With each episode inviting the duo to embark on a new mission, the elements help shape their personalities, both individually and as one. If you love love, you want them to succeed as a pair. If you're a practical person, you know that attempting anything romantic will compromise their mission. It's more fun watching the spats over the sexual tension. With Season 2 set to feature a new pair, Mark Eydelshteyn and Sophie Thatcher, in the titular roles, audiences can expect another thrilling adventure.

5 'Killing Eve' (2018–2022)

Jodie Comer as Villanelle holds a knife to Sandra Oh as Eve in the kitchen in Killing Eve. Image via BBC America

Perhaps one of the most brazen spy thrillers of the 21st century was Killing Eve. Inspired by the Villanelle novel series by Luke Jennings, the series follows the heated cat-and-mouse chase as Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh), a British intelligence investigator, is tasked with capturing psychopathic assassin Villanelle (Jodie Comer), all while developing a mutual obsession with one another. With each season run by a different female head writer—Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Emerald Fennell, Suzanne Heathcote, and Laura NealKilling Eve evolved, shaped by a different vision. And yet, it's the two leads that keep the action moving, allowing Killing Eve to be our own obsession.

Like One Battle After Another, Killing Eve is on the run. There's little rest for the weary. That said, when characters are stationary, it serves as a crucial storytelling moment that becomes key to the action. Oh and Comer are brilliant in their respective roles, with the latter proving herself as one of the best character actresses at the moment. It's meta, but she's playing a woman who plays an array of personalities, each with a signature and flawless accent. The series also features solid performances from Fiona Shaw and Kim Bodnia. Killing Eve is essentially four films in one, making it a wonderful binge-watch.

6 'Sneaky Pete' (2015–2019)

Giovanni Ribisi talking on a phone and walking across a street in 'Sneaky Pete'. Image via Prime Video

As one of the first Prime Video series, Sneaky Pete had all the right people attached to make it brilliant. Originally created by David Shore and Bryan Cranston, with Graham Yost coming in as showrunner, Marius Josipovic (Giovanni Ribisi) has nowhere to turn, so he assumes the identity of his cellmate, Pete, and takes his life as he "reunites" with Pete's family, who have no reason not to believe he's not actually Pete. For three seasons, Sneaky Pete puts a conman on the run from the vicious gangsters he once robbed.

Like the film, Sneaky Pete brought humor into the action, providing a thrilling and suspenseful adventure. By incorporating a comedic edge into the crime caper, the series struck a balance between dark and light. Perhaps the timing and being a new show on a fledgling streamer, Sneaky Pete, may be one of those programs you forgot to watch in real time and have since kept waiting on your watch list. A crime comedy on the run, Sneaky Pete is an eccentric and twisted crime caper that easily satisfies. And yes, Cranston will pop up in Season 1.

7 'Escape at Dannemora' (2018)

Paul Dano and Benicio del Toro talking in a prison in 'Escape at Dannemora.' Image via Showtime

Sometimes it's the series based on true stories that are the most thrilling. Such is the case for the Showtime crime drama, Escape at Dannemora. Based on the 2015 Clinton Correctional Facility escape, the series follows two murderers, Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano), who escaped with the help of a married prison employee, Joyce "Tilly" Mitchell (Patricia Arquette), with whom they both had sexual relationships. Detailing the elaborate escape, a massive manhunt, and the complicated love triangle/power dynamics involving Tilly, her husband Lyle (Eric Lange), and the inmates, Escape at Dannemora is a slow burn that is worth the wait.

With an utterly talented cast and chilling mystery, Escape at Dannemora is a story that keeps you on your toes. Not a series that was underrated simply because of the award nominations it earned, Escape at Dannemora seems to have been left in the past. What better time than now to see del Toro in a truly understated performance? Rather than being an accomplice and sidekick like Sensei Sergio in One Battle After Another, he's the brilliant mastermind. That said, it's Arquette who is completely transformative as Tilly. A truly fascinating ripped-from-the-headlines tale, Escape at Dannemora is worth all seven episodes.

8 'Archer' (2009–2023)

Archer holds someone by the neck and prepares to punch him in a scene from Archer on FX. Image via FX

Who says you need to be a live-action TV show to watch some great action? Archer, the adult animated series created by Adam Reed, follows the exploits of secret agent Sterling Archer (voiced by H. Jon Benjamin), the world's most "dangerous" and self-centered spy, and his dysfunctional colleagues. Similar to the range of DiCaprio's character, Archer, despite his exceptional skills, is an alcoholic, womanizer, and emotionally stunted man-child. And like DiCaprio's character, Archer's incompetence, mixed moral compass, and chaotic personality keep the action-packed series alive for 14 sensational seasons.

Smart and strange, Archer helped define 21st-century adult animation. Tonally, a wide-ranging series, the moments of crass and juvenile humor have made it a fan favorite for a decade and a half. An office comedy as if James Bond were an alcoholic, Archer is a subversive comedy that was pure brilliant escapism.

9 'Presumed Innocent' (2024)

Kingston Rumi Southwick, Chase Infiniti, and Ruth Negga sitting in a courtroom in Presumed Innocent. Image via Apple TV

There are very few similarities between One Battle After Another and Presumed Innocent. The main comparison between the two is the extraordinary performance of Chase Infiniti. Based on the 1987 novel, the series created by David E. Kelley follows Rusty Sabich (Jake Gyllenhaal), a prosecutor who becomes the prime suspect in the murder of his colleague with whom he was having an affair. Exploring themes of obsession, betrayal, political corruption, and the strain on his family as he fights to clear his name, Presumed Innocent sets itself apart from the previous film.

A captivating legal thriller, Presumed Innocent is slick. The series features strong performances, especially from Infiniti. A breakout performance from the young actress, Infniti brought strength, assuredness, and emotional depth to the role. Like she had done with the big-name stars in One Battle After Another, the rising star was able to hold her own next to Gyllenhaal's powerhouse performance. Though there is more stability in the drama, Presumed Innocent still keeps you glued to your seat as Kelley knows his way around a courtroom dramaa.

10 'The Outlaws' (2021–2024)

Christopher Walken in a reflective vest looking toward a graffiti-covered wall in 'The Outlaws'. Image via Prime Video

Sometimes, juxtaposing a big star into an unfamiliar territory provides for a brilliant concept. Christopher Walken has played numerous roles, but in The Outlaws, he continued his reign as the king of eccentricity. Created by Elgin James and Stephen Merchant, The Outlaws follows seven strangers from different walks of life who are forced to complete a Community Payback sentence in Bristol. Their luck changes when they discover a bag full of money, unaware that the bag's true owners are dangerous drug dealers and criminals. Perhaps you only know of the series after it made headlines when the American acting legend painted over a Banksy work of art. If that's not enough to intrigue you to watch, I don't know what is!

A genuine ensemble series, The Outlaws is more than just a funny concept. It's a genuinely smart series that strives thanks to the conglomeration of random individuals. With Merchant's signature comedy stylings, The Outlaws is a smart blend of irony, self-deprecation, and clever wit. The Outlaws is a dramedy that hits the right tone on social disparity and the allure of getting out of a rut, even if the result can be equally dismal. And yes, Walken is a delight.

the outlaws
The Outlaws

Release Date October 25, 2021

Network Amazon Prime Video

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