If You Love You, Here's What To Watch While You Wait For Season 3
Gimme *all* the drama.
Although Lonely Boy turned bad (or worse, depending on where your Gossip Girl loyalties lie) in Netflix's You, viewers were immediately drawn to the nail-biting show starring Penn Badgley. While the first two seasons were vastly different — one was in Los Angeles while the other took place in Dan Humphrey's stomping grounds of New York — one thing remained consistent: how captivating the series is. While yes, the St. Jude’s alumnus-turned-killer made for some great television, there are a lot of other shows out there to fulfill your cravings for twisted tales if you need a break from Joe the serial killer before your next rewatch.
Spoiler alert: This post contains spoilers from You Season 2. The series, which centered around a charming and chilling serial killer named Joe Goldberg (who goes by Will Bettelheim for most of Season 2), was officially renewed for a third season in January 2020. Fans rejoiced, since the finale left things on a pretty big cliffhanger with lots of unanswered questions. After moving to the suburbs with Love (who's pregnant, presumably with his baby), it's pretty clear Joe hasn't exactly turned over a new leaf. The second season ends as Joe finds a new object of fixation: the next-door neighbor.
While fans have to wait until the third season to find out who, exactly, is on the other side of the fence (Badgley already denied the most promising fan theory out there) as well as what's in store for Joe, Love, and their soon-to-be child, there are plenty of shows like You to keep even the most discerning viewer busy until Joe/Will returns.
01How To Get Away With Murder
While it's not confirmed that Joe watched How To Get Away With Murder, considering he — you know — gets away with murder, there's a decent chance he did. The characters of this Shonda Rhimes series are almost as sneaky at offing people and getting away with it as Joe is.
02Dirty John
This anthology series, based on the podcast by Christopher Goffard, follows the true story of a businesswoman named Debra Newell, who falls in love with a serial manipulator and con-man John Meehan. All eight episodes of Dirty John are on Netflix and run about 45 minutes each, which makes it the perfect "finish in a weekend" thriller.
03Dexter
Meet your next problematic TV boyfriend, a forensic technician whose side hustle is murdering bad guys. With twisted love stories and clever retorts from the main character, it's easy to see why this series still has such a strong following even after the finale aired in 2013.
All eight seasons of Dexter can be streamed on Netflix, which will keep you occupied for a long time and giving you confusing daydreams about Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) for even longer. Plus, with a Dexter revival in the works, now’s the perfect time to go back and rewatch the iconic series.
04The Wilds
When a group of eight teen girls find themselves not-so-accidentally stranded on a deserted island after their plane crashes, they have to fight to survive… even if they don’t know what (or who) they’re fighting against. Part dystopian drama, part psychological thriller, part dark teen comedy, The Wilds is like Gossip Girl meets Lost with plenty of unreliable characters. Plus, it was renewed for a second season, so there’s more mystery on the way. Until then, you can watch Season 1 on Amazon Prime Video.
05The Stranger
The Stranger is about to become your favorite limited series thriller. Between dark family secrets getting exposed and nonstop twists, odds are you won't move from your couch before finishing all eight episodes on Netflix. Joe from You might be charming, but he doesn't come close to unleashing the drama this series' lead lets loose.
06Black Mirror
If you're ready to kick things up a notch, Black Mirror takes Joe's interesting opinions about social media to a whole other level. The five-season dystopian anthology on Netflix explores society's dependence on technology in a so-horrifying-you-can't-stop-watching kind of way. Since each episode stands alone, you can skip around to ones that catch your eye, such as episodes with celebs like Jon Hamm, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Miley Cyrus.
Plus, thanks to the viral success of the series, it seems likely Season 6 will happen sometime in the future, even if it might be a little different than past installments.
07Bates Motel
Complicated relationship with mom? Charming personality? Painfully cute smile? Check, check, check. A&E's Bates Motel acts as a prelude to Psycho, showing the early life of Norman Bates, who grew up to become one of the most famous serial killers in fictional history. Watch it on Netflix and be ready to sleep with the lights on.
08Cruel Summer
What happens when a popular teen girl goes missing and an outsider mysteriously fills her shoes? A massive legal battle, a whole lot of secrets, and some pretty twisted characters you can’t help but love. The Freeform series premiered in April and is definitely one of the most interesting new shows of 2021. Stream Season 1 on Hulu and cast your votes for who — if anyone — is telling the truth.
09Behind Her Eyes
OK, it’s hard to explain this limited series (which is actually based on the novel of the same name by author Sarah Pinborough) without giving too much away because it’s so. very. strange. Basically, it follows a single mom named Louise who has an affair with her new boss while secretly befriending his wife, Adele. While that alone is twisted, once you start watching, you realize that’s just the beginning. Get ready for a psychological story unlike any other when you watch Behind Her Eyes on Netflix.
10Breaking Bad
If you happened to miss out on all the Breaking Bad hype the first time around, now's the time to dive into one of the most popular shows of the decade — because yes, it's that good. Whether you're a fan of seeing a seemingly good guy turn bad, rooting for the underdog, or just suspending your morals for a complicated villain, you'll likely agree this five-season series — available on Netflix — raked in awards and recognition for good reason.
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