8 Greatest Hidden Gem Miniseries You'll Wish You Watched Sooner

Image via FX Published Sep 3, 2026, 6:53 AM EDT Remus is a writer, editor, journalist, and author with an eye for detail and an extremely active imagination. He is an enthusiast of everything to do with the graphic medium, whether it's Western comics and their adaptations or manga and anime. Remus is also the author of the sci-fantasy novel Once Upon a Time in Hyperspace and several works of short fiction in the mystery, comedy, and horror genres. Sign in to your Collider account In recent years, many miniseries have earned awards and acclaim, hailed by audiences and critics alike as some of the best shows of all time. A few of them, like Netflix’s Emmy-winning drama Adolescence, have even gone on to have a significant social impact, sparking important conversations about society’s most pressing issues. But as much as we love these popular shows, there are also a ton of great miniseries that haven’t received the attention they deserve. Some of these are niche gems that flew under the radar, and others are acclaimed hits that were wildly popular at one point but have since faded from the limelight. But even though they may be underrated, these shows still have what it takes to truly enthrall an audience. Read on to discover our handpicked selection of underrated miniseries that you’ll wish you had watched sooner. 1 ‘The Underground Railroad’ (2021) Image via MoviestillsDB Based on Colson Whitehead’s eponymous 2016 novel, The Underground Railroad is a magical realist historical fantasy drama created and directed by Barry Jenkins. Set in the 1800s, the series reimagines the real-life Underground Railroad, the network of abolitionists who helped transport escaped slaves from the South to the North, as an actual subterranean train to freedom. Thuso Mbedu, Chase W. Dillon, Joel Edgerton, Fred Hechinger, Peter Mullan, Mychal-Bella Bowman, and Sheila Atim star in lead roles, with recurring characters played by Aaron Pierre, William Jackson Harper, Lily Rabe, Chukwudi Iwuji, Will Poulter, and more. A mesmerizing series adapted from a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, The Underground Railroad was universally acclaimed when it premiered in May 2021. With stellar performances and an unflinching narrative, it’s a television masterpiece that’s equal parts beautiful, horrifying, and painfully human. The series earned several accolades, including seven Emmy nominations, a BAFTA, a Peabody Award, and the Golden Globe for Best Limited or Anthology Series or Television Film, but it’s still sorely underwatched these days. 2 ‘Small Axe’ (2020) Image via Amazon A British anthology series that includes five films set across three decades, Small Axe was created and directed by Steve McQueen and explores the history of West Indian immigrants in London. Each of the films follows a separate story set against the backdrop of real-life events that happened in the 1960s, '70s, and '80s. The anthology is brought to life by an ensemble cast that includes the likes of Letitia Wright, John Boyega, Malachi Kirby, Micheal Ward, Shaun Parkes, and more. Small Axe premiered three of its episodes at the 2020 New York Film Festival and screened two at the Cannes Film Festival the same year, earning critical acclaim from both. A powerful, educational, and unapologetic series that movingly chronicles the political and personal experiences of London’s West Indian community, all five of these films have earned universal acclaim, as has the anthology as a whole. Though it isn’t quite as well-known internationally as it ought to be, the series garnered several accolades, including a Golden Globe, a Peabody Award, and six BAFTAs out of 15 nominations. 3 ‘Devs’ (2020) Image via FX on Hulu Created, written, and directed by Alex Garland, Devs is a sci-fi thriller miniseries that revolves around a ground-breaking quantum computing project and its enigmatic founder, Forest (Nick Offerman). Sonoya Mizuno stars as Lily Chan, a software engineer working at Forest’s tech company, who is pulled into a complex and dangerous investigation after the mysterious death of her boyfriend. The show also features Jin Ha, Zach Grenier, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Cailee Spaeny, Karl Glusman, and Alison Pill in lead roles. A truly mindboggling work of science fiction, Devs is a fascinating Silicon Valley thriller that explores themes of free will vs. determinism and the very nature of reality. A highly imaginative sci-fi drama, the series received four Emmy nominations and earned praise from critics and viewers alike for its cinematography, performances, writing, and direction. It’s a rather dense and complicated story, which may be why it hasn’t quite gotten the attention it deserves from wider audiences, but it’s also one of the best sci-fi shows of all time. Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Personality Quiz Which Sci-Fi Hero Are You Most Like? Paul Atreides · Captain Kirk · Princess Leia · Ellen Ripley · Max Rockatansky Five iconic heroes. Five completely different ways of facing an impossible universe. One of them shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of refusing to back down. Eight questions will tell you which one. 🏜️Paul Atreides 🖖Capt. Kirk ✊Princess Leia 🔦Ellen Ripley 🔥Max Rockatansky FIND YOUR HERO → 01 How do you lead when the stakes couldn't be higher? The way you lead under pressure is the most honest thing about you. AI absorb everything — every variable, every pattern — and move only when I know the path forward. BI read the room, make the call, and own the consequences. Hesitation costs more than mistakes. CI rally people. A cause needs a voice, and I refuse to let fear be louder than conviction. DI assess the threat, establish what needs doing, and get it done without waiting for permission. EI don't lead. I act. Others can follow or not — I'm already moving. NEXT QUESTION → 02 What is your greatest strength in a crisis? The quality that keeps you alive when everything else fails. APrescience — the ability to see further ahead than anyone else and plan accordingly. BImprovisation — I'm at my best when the plan falls apart and I have to invent a new one. CConviction — I know what I'm fighting for, and that certainty doesn't waver under fire. DComposure — I stay functional when everyone around me is falling apart. Panic is a luxury. EEndurance — I outlast things. I take the hit and keep moving long after others have stopped. NEXT QUESTION → 03 What is the thing you'd sacrifice everything else for? Your deepest motivation is your truest compass. AThe survival and dignity of my people — even if I have to become something frightening to ensure it. BThe safety of my crew — every single one of them. No one gets left behind. CFreedom — for my people, for every world still crushed under the weight of an empire. DThe truth — what actually happened, what's actually out there, whether anyone believes me or not. EThe one person — or the one memory — that still makes any of this worth surviving for. NEXT QUESTION → 04 How do you relate to the people around you? Who you are to others under pressure is who you really are. AWith intensity and distance — I care deeply, but the weight I carry makes closeness complicated. BWith warmth and irreverence — I take the mission seriously, not myself. CWith directness and trust — I say what I mean, and I expect the people I work with to rise to it. DWith professional care but clear limits — I'll protect you, but I won't pretend we're family. EWith wariness that slowly becomes loyalty — I don't trust easily, but when I do, it holds. NEXT QUESTION → 05 You're facing a threat that no one else believes is real. What do you do? How you respond when you're the only one who sees it defines everything. APrepare in silence. If they won't listen, I'll be ready when they finally have to. BKeep pushing until someone listens — and if no one does, handle it myself. CBuild the case, find the allies, and make the threat impossible to ignore. DDocument everything. The truth matters even if no one believes it yet. EStop trying to convince anyone. Survive it. That's the only argument that counts. NEXT QUESTION → 06 What has your heroism cost you personally? Every hero pays. The question is what — and whether they'd pay it again. AMy innocence — I've seen what I'm capable of, and I can't unsee it. BPeople I loved — the command chair has a view, but it's a lonely one. CA normal life — I gave up everything ordinary the moment I chose the cause. DMy sense of safety — I know exactly what's out there now, and I can't pretend otherwise. EAlmost everything — and I'm still not sure what I'm carrying it all for. But I keep going. NEXT QUESTION → 07 How do you feel about the rules of the world you're in? Every hero has a relationship with the system. What's yours? AI understand them deeply — and I know exactly which ones must be broken, and why. BI respect the spirit of them and bend the letter when the situation demands it. CThe system is the problem. I'm not here to work within it — I'm here to dismantle it. DI follow protocol until protocol stops being useful. Then I make the call myself. EThe rules collapsed a long time ago. What's left is instinct, and mine are reliable. NEXT QUESTION → 08 When everything is on the line, what keeps you going? The answer is the most honest thing about you. ADestiny — or something that feels so much like it that the difference no longer matters. BThe people on my ship — their faces, their trust, the fact that they're counting on me. CThe belief that what we're fighting for is worth every sacrifice, including this one. DSheer refusal to let it win — whatever it is. I don't stop. That's just who I am. EI'm not sure anymore. But the road is still there, and I'm still on it. REVEAL MY HERO → Your Hero Has Been Identified Your Sci-Fi Hero Is…Your answers point to the iconic sci-fi hero who shares your instincts, your values, and your particular way of facing the impossible. Paul AtreidesYou carry a weight most people would crumble under — the knowledge of what you're capable of, and the burden of what you might have to become. You see further ahead than others and you plan accordingly, even when the vision frightens you. You are driven by loyalty to your people and a sense of destiny you didn't ask for but can't escape. Paul Atreides is not simply a hero — he is someone who understands the cost of power and chooses to bear it anyway. That gravity, that willingness to carry what others won't, is exactly you. Captain KirkYou lead with instinct, warmth, and an absolute refusal to accept a no-win scenario — because you've always believed there's a third option nobody else has thought of yet. You take the mission seriously without ever taking yourself too seriously. Your crew would follow you anywhere, not because you demand it, but because you've earned it. Kirk's genius isn't tactical — it's human. He reads people, bends rules with purpose, and wills outcomes into existence through sheer conviction. That combination of warmth, audacity, and relentless optimism is unmistakably yours. Princess LeiaYou are the kind of person who holds the line when everyone else is losing faith — not because you're fearless, but because giving up simply isn't something you're capable of. You lead through conviction. Your voice carries because your belief is unshakeable. You gave up everything ordinary the moment you chose the cause, and you've never looked back. Leia is not a supporting character in her own story — she is the moral centre of the entire rebellion. That same fierce, principled, unbreakable core is what defines you. Ellen RipleyYou are not reckless, not grandiose, and not particularly interested in being anyone's hero — you just refuse to stop when it matters. You see threats clearly, you document the truth even when no one listens, and when the time comes you handle it yourself. Ripley's heroism is earned, not performed. She doesn't have a speech — she has a flamethrower and a plan. You share her composure under the worst possible pressure, and her refusal to pretend the monster isn't there. When it counts, you don't flinch. That's everything. Max RockatanskyYou have been through fire that would break most people — and what came out the other side is something the world underestimates at its peril. You don't ask for help, don't need validation, and don't wait for anyone to tell you the rules no longer apply. Your loyalty, when it finally arrives, is absolute — but it's earned in silence and tested in action, not in words. Max is not a nihilist. He is someone who lost everything and found, against his will, that he still has something worth protecting. That bruised, stubborn, ultimately human core is exactly yours. ↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ 4 ‘One Day’ (2024) Image Via Netflix A romantic drama limited series, One Day is an adaptation of the eponymous 2009 novel by David Nicholls, previously adapted as a 2011 film. The series version stars Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall as Emma Morley and Dexter Mayhew, two people from vastly different backgrounds who meet shortly after graduating from the University of Edinburgh and continue to catch up with each other on the same day every year for the next 20 years. The show also features Eleanor Tomlinson, Essie Davis, Tim McInnerny, Toby Stephens, and more in supporting roles. Released on Netflix just in time for Valentine’s Day 2024, One Day was a huge hit with streaming audiences at the time, but it’s far more than just an easily forgotten seasonal series. A sweeping, romantic story exploring intricate personal dynamics over a lifetime, the show is a grounded and heartwarming journey that’s enjoyable no matter the time of year. Though still a bit underrated outside of genre circles, One Day has earned praise from critics and fans for its writing, direction, and performances, especially those of its two leads. 5 ‘The English’ (2022) Image via Prime Video Written and directed by Hugo Blick, The English is a revisionist Western miniseries starring Emily Blunt and Chaske Spencer. The show follows Englishwoman Lady Cornelia Locke (Blunt), who arrives in the American West in 1890 seeking revenge on the man responsible for her son’s death, finding an unlikely ally in ex-cavalry scout Eli Whipp (Spencer), a member of the Pawnee Nation. Rafe Spall, Tom Hughes, Stephen Rea, Valerie Pachner, Toby Jones, Ciaran Hinds, and more appear in recurring roles. Easily one of the most underrated Western shows of recent years, The English may not have received the mainstream attention it deserves, but it did earn highly positive reviews from critics at the time of its release. A visually stunning drama anchored by the highly compelling performances of its lead stars, it’s an ambitious Western series that’s a delight to watch even when its plot runs into the occasional rough patch. The show garnered nominations for five British Academy Television Awards, winning the award for Best Costume Design, and Emily Blunt’s performance earned her a SAG Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series. 6 ‘A Very English Scandal’ (2018) A dramatized exploration of the real-life 1970s Thorpe scandal, A Very English Scandal is a British historical drama miniseries created and written by Russell T. Davies and based on John Preston's eponymous 2016 book. Hugh Grant stars as Liberal Party MP Jeremy Thorpe, who tries to get his former lover Norman (Ben Whishaw) killed for the sake of his political career. The show also stars Alex Jennings, Patricia Hodge, Monica Dolan, Paul Hilton, Jonathan Hyde, and more in key roles. Though it isn’t quite as widely discussed as it used to be, A Very English Scandal was quite popular when it premiered in 2018, earning highly positive reviews from critics and viewers. The show was awarded four BAFTAs out of 12 nominations, and its success led to the production of two more based-on-truth miniseries, A Very British Scandal (2021) and A Very Royal Scandal (2024). Anchored by its stellar performances, A Very English Scandal is a thoroughly engaging watch that may not be all that historically accurate but is still very entertaining in its exploration of sex, ambition, politics, and systemic homophobia. 7 ‘The Little Drummer Girl’ (2018) Image via BBC Based on John le Carré’s eponymous 1983 novel, The Little Drummer Girl is a British spy drama miniseries directed by Park Chan-wook. Set in 1979, the show stars Florence Pugh as a young aspiring actress who is recruited by Mossad agents to infiltrate a Palestinian group. Michael Shannon and Alexander Skarsgård co-star as the Israeli agents running the operation, with Michael Moshonov, Simona Brown, Clare Holman, and Charles Dance in other lead roles. A gripping geopolitical thriller that presents a nuanced and layered picture of the Israel-Palestine conflict, The Little Drummer Girl is a show that has taken on greater significance in light of the present political climate. A masterpiece of writing, direction, acting, and production, this slow-burning spy drama keeps things suspenseful while exploring the lasting impact of British foreign policy in the Middle East and the morally ambiguous motivations of characters on both sides. The series earned near-universal acclaim when it first premiered in 2018, and though it’s not as talked-about these days, it’s easily one of the most absorbing John le Carré adaptations ever made. 8 ‘Lovecraft Country’ (2020) Inspired by Matt Ruff’s eponymous 2016 novel, Lovecraft Country is a horror drama series developed by Misha Green that serves as a continuation of the book rather than a direct adaptation. Jonathan Majors stars as Atticus Black, a young Black man traveling across 1950s America in search of his missing father with his friend Letitia (Jurnee Smollett) and his uncle George (Courtney B. Vance). In the process, they face both the human horrors of racism and segregation and terrifying monsters pulled from the pages of H.P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft Country technically wasn’t planned as a miniseries, but it was sadly canceled after just one season. That one season, however, was highly acclaimed by critics and viewers, earning praise for its performances, writing, and historical narrative. Balancing social drama with riveting horror, this thrilling reimagining of Lovecraftian lore earned numerous accolades, including 18 Emmy nominations, and the series was named one of the top 10 TV shows of 2020 by the American Film Institute.