15 Starz Shows You Really Should be Watch Watching—From Outlander to Power
For the past seven years, Starz has generously provided viewers with their regular fix of shirtless Sam Heughan. Prior to becoming the home of everyone’s favorite historical-fantasy drama Outlander, the Starz network was known mainly as a destination for movie lovers. But over the past decade, they’ve upped their original-programming game, premiering costume dramas (The White Queen), documentary series (Warriors of Liberty City), crime dramas (the upcoming Hightown), comedies (the under-watched Survivor’s Remorse) and some truly wild shows (Now Apocalypse, American Gods, Flesh and Bone) that you won’t find anywhere else. Here’s a list of the 15 best Starz series and shows. To watch without cable, subscribe via Starz.com or add Starz to your Amazon Prime or Hulu subscription.
Vida (2018-present)
Lively, thought-provoking and addictive, this groundbreaking series is written and directed almost entirely by Latina women. Vida tells the story of two grown sisters, a free spirit and a repressed professional, who move back to their old neighborhood after their mother dies–leaving the daughters her apartment, the bar she owned and the revelation that she had been married to a woman for years.
Party Down (2009-10)
Now considered a cult classic, this two-season comedy about a Hollywood catering company boasts an unbelievable cast, including quite a few rising stars (like a pre-Glee Jane Lynch). Among the regulars: Adam Scott, Lizzy Caplan, Martin Starr, Megan Mullally, J.K. Simmons, Ken Jeong, Kristen Bell and Jennifer Coolidge.
Hightown (premieres May 17, 2020)
The “cop who doesn’t follow the rules” crime show gets a novel twist in this excellent new series, set in the opioid-ravaged, blue-collar fishing towns of Cape Cod. Procedural veteran Monica Raymund plays Jackie Quiñones, a National Marine Fisheries Service agent and hard-partying lesbian who becomes obsessed with a local murder case.
Survivor’s Remorse (2014-2017)
Produced by LeBron James, this hidden gem of a comedy series explores the pitfalls of fame through the idea of “survivor’s remorse”: a pro athlete’s guilt for becoming rich and famous when his friends from the old neighborhood are still struggling. Jessie T. Usher leads a very funny cast, playing a basketball player from a crime-ridden section of Boston who signs a lucrative contract to play for Atlanta.
Howards End (2018)
It doesn’t have the lush romance of the 1992 Merchant-Ivory film, but Starz’s four-part adaptation of the Edwardian-era novel (starring the dazzling Hayley Atwell) is a masterpiece in its own right: a witty, insightful story about love and friendship between three families of different classes, and the ways our destiny is shaped from the very moment we are born.
Warriors of Liberty City (2018)
A riveting documentary series about much more than football, this emotional drama spends time with young players and cheerleaders–from ages 4 to 18–who live in the crime-ridden neighborhood of Liberty City. Despite its poverty and high murder rate, this small section of Miami has apparently produced more NFL players than anywhere else in the world.
American Gods (2017)
Inspired by Neil Gaiman’s fantasy novel, this modern-day mythological epic follows the battle between the Old Gods (of magic, myth and human sacrifice) and New Gods (of technology and media) for the soul of America. The wild first season is a must-see for Gillian Anderson’s performance as the god Media, who channels a new entertainment icon (including David Bowie and Lucille Ball) every time she appears.
Black Sails (2014-2017)
Bold and bloody, Starz’s historical pirate saga (which borrows a few characters from Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island) is a gorgeously shot tale of power and greed on the high seas.
Now Apocalypse (2019)
This crazy, color-drenched comedy, about millennials in Los Angeles who receive harbingers of the end times, is surreal, stylized and very, very sexy. Nineties indie provocateur Gregg Araki cowrote and directed all ten episodes.
Flesh and Bone (2015)
This ballet miniseries, from Breaking Bad writer and Anne with an E creator Moira Walley-Beckett, takes a grisly look at the physical and emotional tortures of the professional dance world. The drama sometimes gets too extreme, but the ethereal dancing (by a cast of undeniable professionals) is storytelling at its finest.
Related: Author Diana Gabaldon Reveals Why One Death in Season 5 of Outlander Is a 'Turning Point' for Jamie
The Girlfriend Experience (2015 - 2017)
Through the lives of three different female characters, this smart, voyeuristic half-hour drama explores the complicated power dynamics, money issues and emotional entanglements involved in being an escort.
America to Me (2018)
One of the best-reviewed documentary shows of 2018, this ten-episode series is a vital, eye-opening look at how race and class affect the experiences of students at a suburban Chicago high school.
The White Queen (2013)
A deliciously decadent historical drama with a feminist twist, The White Queen tells the story of three English noblewomen who plotted their way to power during the 15th century War of the Roses. Rather than going on for a second season, the ten-episode series continues with two other stories based on Philippa Gregory’s historical novels, The White Princess (2017) and The Spanish Princess (which premiered in 2019 and will conclude in 2020).
Power (2014-2020)
The first season of this NYC crime drama, created by and featuring Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, feels a bit like every gangster movie you’ve ever seen. Stick with it, because the story of a drug dealer (Omari Hardwick) trying to go straight as a nightclub owner gets richer, sexier and more addictive as it goes along.
Outlander (2014-present)
Last but certainly not least is Outlander, which you’re likely already watching. If not, let us convince you: the sexiest of historical dramas, the most romantic of war stories, the time-travel show that even sci-fi haters love, Starz’s signature series, about a brilliant WWII-era nurse (Caitriona Balfe) caught between centuries with her Highland warrior husband (Sam Heughan), is in its fifth season and remains worthy of its obsessive fan following.
Brianna shot Stephen Bonnet on a recent Outlander episode, and Diana Gabaldon explained why.
