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The Best Television Shows of the 2000s

Updated October 29, 2020 155.7k votes 9.1k voters 205.8k views265 items

List RulesOnly TV series that aired between 2000 and 2009

Some great TV shows came out of the 2000s, while some have even lived on. Here's a list of the best shows that aired from 2000-2009, as ranked by television fanatics and critics. Television has been steadily evolving over the past few decades. What used to be simply an entertaining way to spend a half hour with the family has transformed into an elevated art form. Movies have been usurped by the television medium due to a continued rise in content quality. Starting in the 2000s, when cable networks like HBO and Showtime were introduced, the focus moved to quality in writing, directing, and acting more than ever before. People in the entertainment business who used to focus on movies began to move into television.

In the '00s, there were more quality television shows on the air than ever before. Cable networks introduced shows like Six Feet Under, Dexter, and The Sopranos that revolutionized the way television was made. Other shows, like Lost, Battlestar Galactica, and Supernatural, changed the way people watched television, by including fan involvement and discussion as part of the experience. Comedies like Arrested Development and The Office and reality shows like American Idol also reigned supreme in the television universe.

What are your favorite TV shows from 2000-2009? This list includes the top shows from the 2000s from a variety of genres from sitcoms to science fiction.

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1,273
Breaking Bad
2008-2013
Actors: Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn, Dean Norris, Betsy Brandt
Genres (Tv): Crime drama, Thriller, Neo-western, Tragedy
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2
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The Office
2005-2013
Actors: Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, B. J. Novak
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Mockumentary
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3
1,464
1,011
The Simpsons
1989
Actors: Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, Julie Kavner
Genres (Tv): Animation, Television comedy, Comedy, Family Film
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4
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Friends
1994-2004
Actors: Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow
Genres (Tv): Sitcom
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995
Parks and Recreation
2009-present
Actors: Amy Poehler, Jim O'Heir, Nick Offerman
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Mockumentary, Satire, Romance TV, Comedy-drama
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The Sopranos
1999-2007
Actors: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco
Genres (Tv): Crime drama
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7
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795
SpongeBob SquarePants
1999
Actors: Tom Kenny, Rodger Bumpass, Bill Fagerbakke
Genres (Tv): Animation, Comedy, Family Film
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1,268
1,144
Dexter
2006-2013
Actors: Michael C. Hall, Jennifer Carpenter, David Zayas
Genres (Tv): Crime drama, Psychological thriller, Mystery, Dark comedy, Police procedural
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How I Met Your Mother
2005-2014
Actors: Josh Radnor, Jason Segel, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Romantic comedy
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881
South Park
1997-present
Actors: Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Mary Kay Bergman, Isaac Hayes, Eliza Schneider
Genres (Tv): Animation, Television comedy, Sitcom, Satire, Animated cartoon
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Prison Break
2005-2009
Actors: Dominic Purcell, Wentworth Miller, Amaury Nolasco
Genres (Tv): Crime Fiction, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
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House
2004-2012
Actors: Hugh Laurie, Omar Epps, Robert Sean Leonard
Genres (Tv): Medical drama
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Supernatural
2005-present
Actors: Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Katie Cassidy, Lauren Cohan, Misha Collins
Genres (Tv): Supernatural drama, Black comedy, Drama, Horror Film, Mystery
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Family Guy
1999-present
Actors: Seth MacFarlane, Alex Borstein, Seth Green, Mila Kunis
Genres (Tv): Black comedy, Animation, Sitcom, Animated cartoon, Comedy
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The Office
2001
Actors: Ricky Gervais, Martin Freeman, Mackenzie Crook
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Mockumentary, Satire, Drama, Comedy
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883
689
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
1997-2003
Actors: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Alyson Hannigan, James Marsters
Genres (Tv): Supernatural, Horror, Comedy-drama, Teen drama, Action
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1,154
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Scrubs
2001-2010
Actors: Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Medical drama
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The Big Bang Theory
2007-present
Actors: Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar
Genres (Tv): Sitcom
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1,234
1,180
Modern Family
2009-present
Actors: Ed O'Neill, Sofía Vergara, Julie Bowen, Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Mockumentary, Family, Comedy, Family Film
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803
677
Drake & Josh
2004
Actors: Drake Bell, Josh Peck, Miranda Cosgrove
Genres (Tv): Teen sitcom
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21
530
486
My Name Is Earl
2005
Actors: Jason Lee, Ethan Suplee, Jaime Pressly
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
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22
1,460
800
That '70s Show
1998
Actors: Topher Grace, Laura Prepon, Mila Kunis
Genres (Tv): Romance Film, Sitcom, Comedy
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85
52
Chernobyl
2019
Actors: Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson
Genres (Tv): Historical drama
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Futurama
1999
Actors: Billy West, John DiMaggio, Katey Sagal
Genres (Tv): Animation, Sitcom, Comedy, Science Fiction
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681
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Rugrats
1991
Actors: Elizabeth Daily, Christine Cavanaugh, Nancy Cartwright
Genres (Tv): Animation, Animated cartoon, Children's television series, Animated series
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