Freeform's spinoff series Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists debuts on March 20, transplanting former Pretty Little Liars mean girl Alison to the picturesque, scandal-free town of Beacon Heights, Oregon. At the prestigious local university, her work as a teaching assistant turns complex when a student she suspects to be dangerous is murdered. The show's creepy air accompanies an irresistible school setting reminiscent of several shows that give the horror of high school a whole new meaning. If those kind of elements are your TV kryptonite, these shows like The Perfectionists will fill your need for some creepy teen drama.
While The Perfectionists is set at a college, its tone is similar to teen shows packed with supernatural creatures, serial killers, or very deadly gossip. In case its back-to-school vibes have you craving a dose of scary academics, there are plenty of shows to keep you satisfied until The Perfectionists is back for more in future weeks. Whether you need to catch up with its Freeform predecessor Pretty Little Liars or hate-watch an even more twisted campus bully than The Perfectionists' Nolan, the picks below will hopefully satisfy your cravings.
So, which of these is bound to keep you up at night?
Available On: Netflix
The reference to PLL is The Perfectionists' title is no coincidence, as the new series involves two of the same actresses and the same showrunner. Both shows are also based on book series written by Sara Shepard. In case you missed Pretty Little Liars' seven-season run, the full series is on Netflix for you to digest if you'd rather go back to high school than college. When a group of friends disbands when their leader disappears, they find themselves back together a year later when they each start receiving mysterious messages threatening to reveal their darkest secrets.
At both its best and worst, Pretty Little Liars was the ideal soapy teen drama for anyone wanting all the cliches, whether they led to ridiculous surprises or genuine shock. Given its slightly older characters, The Perfectionists might have a more mature tone to it, but it already feels like a perfect homage to what Pretty Little Liars began.
Available On: Netflix
With a second season due out on April 5, Netflix's Chilling Adventures of Sabrina shows viewers that maintaining good grades is the least of some high school students' worries. When teenage witch Sabrina Spellman refuses to give up her mortal life and fully commit to the land of witches and warlocks, she upsets the Dark Lord and puts herself and her family at risk. She eventually strikes a compromise to split time between mortal school and the Academy of Unseen Arts, where Sabrina starts to learn more about the threats brewing within the magical realm.
Along with otherworldly dangers, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina has its share of romance, friendship, and family, making it one of the more well-balanced teen dramas.
Available On: Netflix
Like The Perfectionists, Riverdale introduces a town that has a dark history underneath its seemingly perfect facade. When it debuted on The CW in 2017, the show focused on the mystery of Jason Blossom's murder, but even a gruesome event like this is old news by now. With Riverdale now in its third season, you'll need to watch it from the beginning to fully understand what has happened since then.
Rather than having one isolated incident as in The Perfectionists, Riverdale continually introduces a lot of far-fetched accidents, surprises, scandals assuring viewers that it won't let them feel bored. Later seasons become even more prone to fantastical shocks that probably wouldn't happen past the town borders, but your teenage years can be a whirlwind, right?
Available On: Netflix
Set in the most grounded world of this list, 13 Reasons Why has just about any dark and dirty secret you'd see on a teen show. The first season focuses on the immediate aftermath of a girl's suicide and the audio tapes she dedicated to each person who contributed to her reasoning for killing herself. The second season delves more into the emotional ghosts the girl has left behind among her family and friends, but the upcoming third season promises to move away from the suicide and explore the other characters' traumas.
With its darker themes, this isn't exactly the kind of series you'd binge over the course of a weekend, But for a more emotional journey about the pitfalls of high school, 13 Reasons Why might be for you. Season 3 will premiere later this year, so new viewers still have time to catch up before the show returns.
Available On: Netflix
Based on Gerard Way's comic book series, The Umbrella Academy checks the boxes of a unique setting, intriguing backstory, and characters who are still trying to figure out who they are. A billionaire adopts several babies inexplicably born on the same day, knowing that they have superhero powers. When the billionaire dies years later, the estranged siblings team up to simultaneously discover the truth about his passing and save the world from apocalyptic destruction.
Leaning more toward the fantasy genre than that of a typical teen show, The Umbrella Academy also carries an older tone similar to The Perfectionists. You'll come for its Harry Potter-esque legend and lore and stay for the darkly whimsical visuals and humor.
Available On: Hulu
Concluding in 2017 after two seasons on FOX, Ryan Murphy's Scream Queens follows a group of sorority sisters who are in danger when a serial killer who peaked 20 years before returns to ignite terror across campus. The second season moves away from the school setting, but its unforgettable mix of horror and comedy is still strong.
Like with all of Murphy's TV projects, Scream Queens boasts an A-list cast filled with names like Emma Roberts, Abigail Breslin, Lea Michele, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Keke Palmer. Nick Jonas, Taylor Lautner, and Ariana Grande also pop up in smaller roles throughout the series. Even if a murder mystery isn't your thing, checking out these stars in Scream Queens is definitely worth it.
Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists premieres on Wednesday, March 20, at 8 p.m. ET on Freeform.
