The Best Current TV Shows For Women, Ranked

Updated February 5, 2021 5.0k votes 1.6k voters 20.2k views73 items

List RulesSeries must be currently airing new episodes on TV or a streaming service.

Are there any good feminist series and positive female TV shows on air today? The television landscape is filled with feminist shows any strong woman will love. One of the goals of feminism is to place high profile female characters in television roles where they are in charge. The female protagonists on this list include women who are politicians, doctors, lawyers, CIA agents, writers, wanna-be Queens, scientists, and even superheroes - but which of these shows do feminists like the most?

What’s a feminist, you aks? The simplest definition of feminism is that it’s the pursuit of equality among the sexes. If you think of the traditional television roles of females 50 years ago, you can imagine a lot of doting housewives who stay at home and cater to the demands of their husbands. Even 10 years ago, you would have seen a lot of females scantily dressed playing inferior roles with limited speaking parts. But the times are a-changing, and more and more television shows star strong female characters in lead roles. The best feminist TV shows currently airing new episodes list here feature badass ladies who are getting sh*t done.

There’s still a long way to go in terms of gender equality. However, there are a slew of positive female characters currently on TV. Make your voice heard. Vote up the top current examples of feminist television, or add any other great shows for women that aren't already listed.

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Anne with an E
Amybeth McNulty, Geraldine James
Premiered: 2017
Genres (Tv): Drama, Coming of age
Anne with an E (Netflix, 2017) is a Canadian television series created by Moira... more
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Wynonna Earp
Melanie Scrofano, Shamier Anderson
Premiered: 2016
Genres (Tv): Dark fantasy, Drama, Horror, Western, Supernatural
Wynonna Earp (Syfy, 2016) is a Canadian-American supernatural Western horror television series... more
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The Handmaid's Tale
Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes
Premiered: 2017
Genres (Tv): Drama, Dystopian fiction
The Handmaid's Tale (Hulu, 2017) is an American web television series created by Bruce Miller,... more
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The Best Characters On 'The Handmaid's Tale'#8 of 56 The Best Drama TV Shows Airing Now
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The 100
Eliza Taylor, Paige Turco
Premiered: 2013
Genres (Tv): Drama, Dystopian, Sci-fi, Action
The 100 (The CW, 2014) is an American post-apocalyptic science fiction drama television series... more
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Big Little Lies
Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman
Premiered: 2017
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Big Little Lies (HBO, 2017) is an American dramatic miniseries created by David E. Kelley,... more
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The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Rachel Brosnahan, Michael Zegen
Premiered: 2017
Genres (Tv): Comedy-Drama, Period drama
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon Video, 2017) is an American period comedy-drama web... more
More
The Best Characters On 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'#6 of 46 New TV Shows of the Last Few Years with the Best Overall Acting
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Motherland: Fort Salem
Taylor Hickson, Ashley Nicole Williams
Premiered: 2020
Genres (Tv): Drama
Motherland: Fort Salem (Freeform, 2020) is an American supernatural drama series created by... more
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Grace and Frankie
Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Grace and Frankie (Netflix, 2015) is an American comedy-drama web television series created by... more
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Supergirl
Melissa Benoist, Mehcad Brooks
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Superhero, Drama, Action, Adventure, Sci-fi
Supergirl (The CW, 2015) is an American superhero action-adventure television series developed... more
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The Best Characters On 'Supergirl'#14 of 69 Sci-Fi Shows You Should Be Watching Now
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Mrs America
Uzo Aduba, Elizabeth Banks
Premiered: 2020
Genres (Tv): Drama
Mrs. America (Hulu, 2020) is a television drama series created by Dahvi Waller. Conservative... more
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Self Made
Octavia Spencer, Zahra Bentham
Premiered: 2020
Genres (Tv): Drama, Biography, Miniseries
Self Made: Inspired By The Life Of Madam C.J. Walker (Netflix, 2020) is an upcoming American... more
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Unorthodox
Jeff Wilbusch, Amit Rahav
Premiered: 2020
Genres (Tv): Drama
Unorthodox (Netflix, 2020) is a German drama television series created by Anna Winger and... more
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High Fidelity
Zoë Kravitz, David H. Holmes
Premiered: 2020
Genres (Tv): Comedy
High Fidelity (Hulu, 2020) is an American comedy television series adapted from the novel of... more
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Batwoman
Javicia Leslie, Meagan Tandy
Premiered: 2019
Genres (Tv): Superhero, Drama, Action, Crime, Mystery
Batwoman (The CW, 2019) is an American superhero television series originally based on the DC... more
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The Bold Type
Katie Stevens, Aisha Dee
Premiered: 2017
Genres (Tv): Comedy-drama
The Bold Type (Freeform, 2017) is an American comedy-drama television series created by Sarah... more
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First Wives Club
Michelle Buteau, Jill Scott
Premiered: 2019
Genres (Tv): Comedy
First Wives Club (BET+, 2019) is an American comedy television series based on the 1996 film.... more
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#246 of 284 The Best Female-Led TV Shows#17 of 71 The Best New Cable Dramas of the Last Few Years
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Grey's Anatomy
Ellen Pompeo, Justin Chambers
Premiered: 2005
Genres (Tv): Soap opera, Comedy, Medical drama
Grey's Anatomy (ABC, 2005) is an American medical soap opera television series created by... more
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Ariana Grande: Dangerous Woman Diaries
Ariana Grande, Scott Nicholson
Premiered: 2018
Genres (Tv): Documentary
Ariana Grande: Dangerous Woman Diaries (YouTube Premium, 2018) is an American documentary web... more
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The Goop Lab
Elise Loehnen, Gwyneth Paltrow
Premiered: 2020
Genres (Tv): Reality
The Goop Lab (Netflix, 2020) is a documentary mini-series starring Elisa Loehnen and Gwyneth... more
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#204 of 861 The Best New Shows That Have Premiered in the Last Few Years#112 of 452 The Best New Netflix Original Series of the Last Few Years
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Dollface
Kat Dennings, Beth Grant
Premiered: 2019
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Dollface (Hulu, 2019) is an American comedy television series created by Jordan Weiss. After... more
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#177 of 220 The Greatest TV Shows for Women#417 of 449 The Funniest TV Shows of All Time
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Sistas
Kj Smith, Mignon
Premiered: 2019
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Sistas (BET, 2019) is a comedy television series created by Tyler Perry. A group of single... more
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Younger
Sutton Foster, Debi Mazar
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Comedy-drama, Romantic comedy
Younger (TV Land, 2015) is an American comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star,... more
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#144 of 166 The Best TV Shows Returning In 2020#203 of 253 The Best TV Shows Streaming On Hulu
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Shrill
Aidy Bryant, Lolly Adefope
Premiered: 2019
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Shrill (Hulu, 2019) is an American comedy web television series, based on the book Shrill:... more

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Insecure
Issa Rae, Jay Ellis
Premiered: 2016
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Insecure (HBO, 2016) is an American comedy-drama series created by Issa Rae and Larry Wilmore,... more
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Madam Secretary
Téa Leoni, Tim Daly
Premiered: 2014
Genres (Tv): Drama
Madam Secretary is an American political drama television series created by Barbara Hall and... more
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The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel