List Rules Original series created by, which aired on, the Showtime network. Vote up the best Showtime original shows.
Showtime is an American premium paid cable television service that has produced a variety of well-known original series, kid’s programming, adult programming, documentaries, sports programs and even original movies. Showtime is a subsidiary of CBS and has over 28 million subscribers. What are the best Showtime original shows of all time? Vote up the shows you think are the best and see how your favorites rank!
Launched in 1976, Showtime has been going strong ever since, raking in award after award for best original series and movies and getting the attention of A-list Hollywood actors along the way. Showtime original series have featured some pretty famous actors, and have some incredible writers as well. The story lines of our favorite Showtime series are usually dark and dramatic in nature, but Showtime has also produced several well-known comedies.
This list features the best Showtime original shows, ranked as the best by the community, including, "Shameless," "Homeland," "Dexter," "Ray Donovan," and "Masters of Sex." Vote up the best Showtime original series below or add one you love that isn't already on the list.
list ordered by
1
DexterMichael C. Hall, Jennifer Carpenter, David Zayas
Dexter is an American television drama series. Set in Miami, the series centers on Dexter Morgan, a blood spatter pattern analyst for Miami Metro Police Department who also leads a secret life ...more
Homeland is an American political thriller television series developed by Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa based on the Israeli series Hatufim, which was created by Gideon Raff. The series stars ...more
3
ShamelessEmmy Rossum, William H. Macy, Ethan Cutkosky
Shameless is an American television comedy-drama which airs on Showtime. This remake of the award-winning British series is set in Chicago's Canaryville neighborhood on the South Side, although ...more
4
Ray DonovanLiev Schreiber, Paula Malcomson, Eddie Marsan
Ray Donovan is an American television drama series created by Ann Biderman for Showtime. The twelve-episode first season premiered on June 30, 2013. The pilot episode broke records of ...more
5
WeedsMary-Louise Parker, Hunter Parrish, Alexander Gould
Weeds is an American dark comedy-drama series created by Jenji Kohan and produced by Tilted Productions in association with Lionsgate Television. The central character is Nancy Botwin, a widowed ...more
Californication is an American comedy-drama television series created by Tom Kapinos, which aired for seven seasons on Showtime from August 13, 2007 to June 29, 2014. The show follows New Yorker ...more
7
Nurse JackieEdie Falco, Merritt Wever, Paul Schulze
Nurse Jackie is an American medical dark satirical comedy-drama series. It premiered on Showtime on June 8, 2009. The show's seventh and final season will premiere April 12, 2015. The show stars ...more
8
The TudorsJonathan Rhys Meyers, Henry Cavill, Anthony Brophy
The Tudors is a British-Irish-Canadian historical fiction television series set primarily in sixteenth-century England, created by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable ...more
Penny Dreadful (Showtime, 2014) is a British-American horror TV series created for Showtime and Sky by John Logan, who also acts as executive producer alongside Sam Mendes. The title refers to ...more
10
EpisodesMatt LeBlanc, Tamsin Greig, Stephen Mangan
Episodes is a British/American television sitcom created by David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik and produced by Hat Trick Productions. It premiered on Showtime in the United States on 9 January 2011 ...more
11
The Big CLaura Linney, Oliver Platt, Gabriel Basso
The Big C is a Showtime original television series which premiered on August 16, 2010. It drew the largest audience for a Showtime original series premiere. The second season premiered on June ...more
12
Black MondayDon Cheadle, Andrew Rannells, Regina Hall
Black Monday (Showtime, 2019) is an American comedy television series. A rag tag group of Wall Street outsiders take on the financial industry in the wake of the 1987 stock market crash.
City on a Hill (Showtime, 2019) is an American television series created by Chuck MacLean. District Attorney Decourcy Ward (Aldis Hodge) and corrupt yet venerated FBI veteran Jackie Rhodes ...more
Work in Progress (Showtime, 2019) is an American comedy television series co-created by Abby McEnay. The show features McEnany as a 45-year-old self-identified fat, queer dyke from Chicago whose ...more
15
Back to LifeDaisy Haggard, Geraldine James, Richard Durden
Back to Life (Showtime, 2019) is an American comedy-drama television series. After 18 years in prison, a woman returns to her small hometown wondering if anyone will let her move on.
The L Word: Generation Q (Showtime, 2019) is an American television drama and a revival-sequel to the 2004 series The L Word. Original characters Bette (Jennifer Beals), Alice (Leisha Hailey), ...more
The Loudest Voice (Showtime, 2019) is an American drama television miniseries, based on the book The Loudest Voice in the Room by Gabriel Sherman. The show tells the story of Roger Ailes who ...more
Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men (Showtime, 2019) is an American documentary television series. The show chronicles the history and cultural impact of hip hop artists, Wu-Tang Clan.
How I Met Your Mother is an American sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 19, 2005, to March 31, 2014. The series follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and his group of friends in ...more
20
The BorgiasJeremy Irons, François Arnaud, Holliday Grainger
The Borgias is an historical-fiction drama television series created by Neil Jordan; it debuted in 2011 and was canceled in 2013. The series is set around the turn of the 16th century and ...more
21
House of LiesKristen Bell, Ben Schwartz, Don Cheadle
House of Lies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Matthew Carnahan. It follows a group of management consultants who stop at nothing to get business deals done.
SMILF (Showtime, 2017) is an American television comedy series based on Frankie Shaw's short film. A single, 20-something mom (Shaw) struggles to find a happy work-life balance.
This show is an American comedy-drama television series starring Ellen Muth and Mandy Patinkin as grim reapers who reside and work in Seattle, Washington. Filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, ...more
United States of Tara is an American television comedy-drama created by Diablo Cody, which began airing on Showtime in 2009. The series follows the life of Tara, a suburban housewife and mother ...more
The Outer Limits is a US-Canadian television series that originally aired on Showtime, the Sci Fi Channel and in syndication between 1995 and 2002. The series is a revival of the original The ...more
