HBO Max has steadily accumulated a backlog of TV episodes worth binge-watching. Each week, they provide you with brand-new programming. The 10 best TV shows on HBO Max are listed here, focusing on the original HBO show, which has helped the channel win several Emmy awards.
And things will only get better from here since there are many more beloved classic programs that will ultimately be added to the service, along with several intriguing original series that, fingers crossed, will be completed in time to be included in this list.
The List of the 10 Best TV Shows on HBO Max
HBO Max has acquired all of the top-notch TV series HBO has created over the years, including movies. With hundreds of millions of dollars invested in some of the greatest original TV series, HBO has always been recognized for creating the highest quality programming. The 10 best TV shows on HBO Max, along with their premiere date and rating, are listed below.
TV Show Name | Release Date | IMDb Rating | Rotten Tomatoes |
| Chernobyl | May 6 – June 3, 2019 | 9.4/10 | 95% |
| Game of Thrones | April 17, 2011 | 9.2/10 | 89% |
| The Sopranos | January 10, 1999 | 9.2/10 | 92% |
| Succession | June 3, 2018 | 8.8/10 | 94% |
| Curb Your Enthusiasm | October 15, 2000 | 8.8/10 | 92% |
| The Rehearsal | July 15, 2022 | 8.6/10 | 96% |
| House Of The Dragon | August 21, 2022 | 8.5/10 | 93% |
| Euphoria | June 16, 2019 | 8.4/10 | 88% |
| Selena + Chef | August 13, 2020 | 8.4/10 | 90% |
| The White Lotus | July 11, 2021 | 7.9/10 | 91% |
1. Chernobyl
Genre: Tragedy, Historical Drama
Director: Johan Renck
Cast:
- Jared Harris
- Stellan Skarsgard
- Emily Watson
- Paul Ritterplays
- Jessie Buckley
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 41-50 minutes long per episode.
The Chernobyl accident of 1986 and the subsequent cleanup activities are the focus of the 2019 historical drama television miniseries Chernobyl. This show tells the tales of the men and women who sought to control the disaster and the individuals who sacrificed their lives to save a worse one from happening.
The five-hour “Chernobyl” miniseries on HBO Max is wonderful. It concludes with the phrase, “In remembrance of those who suffered and sacrificed.” It’s a fitting coda for a show that skillfully honors only those individuals—the employees who perished in the explosion, the others who struggled to control it, and the scientists who have spoken up to ensure it won’t occur again.
The show highlights less well-known events surrounding the catastrophe, such as the attempts of the firefighters who were on the scene immediately, volunteers, and groups of miners who excavated a vital tunnel beneath Reactor 4. The conclusion of a fantastic TV trip seems satisfying in “Chernobyl,” which alternates between learning about what occurred on that fateful day and the catastrophe itself.
2. Game Of Thrones
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Director: David Benioff and D. B. Weiss
Cast:
- Emilia Clarke
- Sean Bean
- Kit Harington
- Mark Addy
- Lena Headey
- Peter Dinklage
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 50-82 minutes long per episode.
There are television programs that more individuals have enjoyed and watched, that have explicitly contributed to our society’s development, which have better highlighted a single show, or that have more distinctly established a model for subsequent shows to follow.
But “Game of Thrones,” which D.B. Weiss and David Benioff developed for HBO from the George R.R. Martin book series, is the only tv show classified as epic. No other series has ever created a world with as much intricate depth and diversity in its geography, social structures, religions, and languages.
Three tales may be separated from the entire Game of Thrones series. The book’s longest section describes how the aristocratic Stark family navigates conspiracies and court intrigue in the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, focusing on Eddard Stark, the family’s patriarch and head of household. The exiled princess Daenerys, one of the final members of the former royal family, is followed as she grows up in a second narrative.
A third tale recounts the upbringing of Eddard Stark’s adopted son Jon Snow in the north of Westeros. He is a member of the Night’s Watch, an elite military group whose mission is to defend the Seven Kingdoms’ advanced civilization from threats beyond the Wall.
3. The Sopranos
Director: David Chase
Genre: Crime drama, Serial drama, Dark comedy
Cast:
- James Gandolfini
- Edie Falco
- Jamie-Lynn Sigler
- Robert Iler
- Lorraine Bracco
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 43 – 75 minutes long per episode.
The Sopranos, the show that started the present TV boom, is unlike anything else in cinematic history, to put it simply. In one of the most moving performances in any media, Tony Soprano, an Italian American mobster with roots in New Jersey, serves as the central character. It’s a marvel that you can’t help but adore Tony, even though he becomes nastier each season.
Tony can frighten the living daylights out of you with a shift in how violently he’s inhaling through his nostrils. The Sopranos remains the classic core of HBO’s original slate thanks to some of the best writing ever written and a shifting ensemble of immediately recognizable supporting characters.
4. Succession
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Genre: Comedy-drama, Black comedy, Family drama, Satire.
Cast:
- Hiam Abbass
- Nicholas Braun
- Brian Cox
- Roman Roy
- Peter Friedman
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 56 – 70 minutes long per episode.
You will grow to love every character on Succession like your own family, even though they are all five-alarm garbage factories in their special ways. Logan Roy, the patriarch, becomes ill, attracting various vultures, including Logan’s cunning offspring Kendall, Shiv, and Roman.
Strangely, it was reassuring to see the Roy family stab one another in the back while no blood was shed. It’s a morality drama for our times that critiques media control, advanced capitalism, and the ultra-rich. It’s much more entertaining when seen as a high-end super-soap with ornate profanity.
This sitcom takes off after a rough first episode. It never looks back, developing into a backstabbing pleasure with more memorable lines than most straight comedies. The cast as a whole is top-notch. The writing is so incisive that it might cut you. He is at least nine feet tall, Nicholas Braun.
5. House of The Dragon
Director: Ryan J. Condal, George R.R. Martin
Genre: Fantasy, Drama, Action, Adventure
Cast:
- Paddy Considine
- Matt Smith
- Emma D’Arcy
- Olivia Cooke
- Rhys Ifans
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 54 – 68 minutes per episode.
Another one of the 10 best TV shows on HBO Max is House Of The Dragons. You’ll be enthralled by the return to Westeros and the universe of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones by the time the recognizable theme tune begins. It’s exciting to be back in such a completely developed fantasy world. House of the Dragon spares no punches in demonstrating the cruelty, sex, bloodshed, and political drama that engrossed its antecedent.
Compared to some of the earlier seasons of its predecessor, House of the Dragon moves forward considerably more quickly. It is set 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones. It focuses on House Targaryen and their dragons.
6. Curb Your Enthusiasm
Director: Larry David
Genre: Improvisational comedy, Cringe comedy, Dark comedy
Cast:
- Larry David
- Jeff Garlin
- Cheryl Hines
- Susie Essman
- J. B. Smoove
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 26 – 58 minutes long per episode.
Curb Your Enthusiasm is one of the finest comedy programs ever produced if you’re looking for something fun and a touch awkward. Not long after leaving Seinfeld, Larry David developed the program in which he portrays a fictitious version of himself in settings that are both commonplace and accessible.
Every episode is completely improvised, and while the narrative is generally ridiculous, David’s reaction and acting are so hilarious that it aches. Come for the humor, but stay for the Seinfeld reunion episode staged for Season 7, which succeeds as an actual Seinfeld reunion episode.
The show’s actors knew there were cameras and a crew around since it was mockumentary-styled. Despite not being a documentary, the series was shot in a manner resembling cinéma vérité.
7. The Rehearsal
Director: Nathan Fielder
Genre: Comedy
Cast:
- Nathan Fielder
- Anna Lamadrid
- Joshua James Benrad
- Gigi Burgdorf
- Thomas McNamara
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 40 minutes long per episode.
This new HBO series is written, directed, and starred by Nathan Fielder, best known for his Humor Central program Nathan For You (and cringe comedy). In the performance, the comic makes great efforts to allow people to practice reactions in advance. In the pilot, Fielder assists a man in getting ready to confess to a buddy and creates a precise copy of the pub they’re about to meet in.
After preparing for each improbable scenario, we see how the conversation between the two friends unfolds. The Rehearsal must spend some time on your screen since it is bizarre and very intriguing. One of the 10 best TV shows on HBO Max is The Rehearsal.
8. Euphoria
Director: Sam Levinson
Genre: Teen drama
Cast:
- Zendaya. She is the narrator of the show
- Maude Apatow
- Angus Cloud
- Eric Dane
- Alexa Demie
- Jacob Elordi
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 46- 65 minutes long per episode.
The HBO original adolescent drama Euphoria has seen a remarkable instant and passionate resonance with its target audience. The director of Assassination Nation has carried over his cutting style and talent for stunning revelations to freshen up the clichéd stories of coming-of-age drama, with superstar Zendaya leading a stellar cast of up-and-comers.
Contrary to its title, Euphoria takes a raw look at what it’s like to become a kid in the era of cyberbullying, dating apps, and the commodification of culture rather than opting for the feel-good coating that so many of the most popular teen stories have.
Euphoria became a smashing success and one of those exceptional moments in pop culture that started a genuine cultural movement because it resonated with the people it was designed for. It’s easy to understand why this aesthetically spectacular series has garnered a sizable following; the compelling acting, photography, and treatment of mature subjects make this program sparkle.
9. Selena + Chef
Director: Selena Gomez
Genre: Cooking show
Cast:
- Selena Gomez is the series’ star and host
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 22-33 minutes long per episode.
Selena has spent more time in the kitchen than anticipated since social distancing at home. It has yet to be seen, however, if cooking is one of her numerous abilities.
A different expert chef will join Selena remotely for each episode of this shamelessly real cook-along. Together, they will take on various culinary challenges, provide helpful advice, and cope with everything from smoke ovens to missing items.
This informal, humorous, and educational series will celebrate the joy and the hardship of learning to cook while enabling viewers to follow along at home. Each episode will showcase a food-related charity.
10. The White Lotus
Director: Mike White
Genre: Comedy-drama, Satire, Black comedy, Anthology
Cast:
- Murray Bartlett
- Connie Britton
- Jennifer Coolidge
- Alexandra Daddario
- Fred Hechinger
Official Trailer:
Runtime: 54 – 77 minutes long per episode.
One of the 10 best TV shows on HBO Max is The Black Comedy-Drama Anthology Television Series the White Lotus is American. Six episodes of this HBO miniseries, which premiered in the summer of 2021, follow several visitors to the exotic White Lotus resort over a week.
The program examines the resort’s employees’ viewpoint, contrasting the affluent visitors’ views and prejudices with those employed to look after them. The entire season is filled with fear but also gripping and darkly humorous.
Conclusion
The home of highbrow TV is HBO. Of course, choosing which episodes to watch on the massive streaming service may be challenging with so much high-quality content available. Suppose you’re a latecomer to the HBO party.
In that case, you might have much catching up to do if you want to keep up with some of the most highly praised cultural touchstones from the past couple of decades. It’s a great place to start for anyone looking to make the most of their HBO Max membership with the 10 best TV shows on HBO Max.
- Related: 10 Best TV Shows on Netflix
