If you like action dramas and police procedurals, you'll love these shows streaming on Netflix, Hulu, Paramount+ and more.
After 18 seasons, NCIS (Naval Crime Scene Investigation) is still one of the highest rated shows on CBS. The show stars Mark Harmon as NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jehtro Gibbs, a former Marine gunnery sergeant who leads an investigation team who solve military crimes like it is nobody’s business. Over the span of two decades, the all-star cast has included Sean Murray, Emily Wickersham, Wilmer Valderrama, Pauley Perrette, Michael Weatherly and Maria Bello. The police procedural is so wildly popular that it has even spun off into NCIS: Los Angeles and NCIS: New Orleans.
If you have already watched the 400-plus episodes of NCIS available to stream on Hulu and are looking for your next show to binge-on, ET has rounded up some of like-minded suspenseful crime series and police procedurals that should be on the list of every NCIS fan.
NCIS: Los Angeles (Paramount +)
The obvious follow up to NCIS is NCIS: Los Angeles, the first spinoff of the OG series. Instead of Washington D.C., the show is set in the glitz, glamour and grime of Los Angeles and stars LL Cool J and Chris O’Donnell as Sam Hanna and G. Callen, special agents who work in the Office of Special Projects (OSP), an elite division of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service specializing in undercover assignments. Like the original, this CBS series has been such a smashing success it has been running 12 seasons and was recently renewed for a 13th.
ET and Paramount+ are both subsidiaries of ViacomCBS.
NCIS: New Orleans (Paramount +)
This second NCIS spinoff takes place in the Big Easy and stars Scott Bakula as Supervisory Special Agent Dwayne Cassius, who along with his Assistant Supervisory Special Agent Hannah Khoury (Necar Zadegan) are tasked with solving military crimes taking place anywhere from the Mississippi River to the Texas Panhandle. There are seven total seasons of the show, which recently aired its series finale in May 2021.
Chicago P.D. (Peacock)
An offshoot of Chicago Fire, Chicago P.D. explores criminal activity in the Windy City and the uniformed cops as well as the Intelligence Unit who fights it. In addition to drug trafficking, organized crime, high-profile murders and other large-scale felonies, there is also corruption within the force, making it impossible for those on the inside to trust one another. All 8 seasons are streaming on Peacock.
Criminal Minds (Paramount +)
Criminal Minds centers around a group of criminal profilers in the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit (BAU) who profile some of the most notorious crimes imaginable in hopes of catching the people who committed them. The revolving cast has included Mandy Pantikin, Shemar Moore, Thomas Gibson, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Aisha Tyler and Jeanne Trippehorn amongst other top names in Hollywood. The American police procedural drama wrapped up in 2020, but all 15 seasons are streaming on Paramount+.
Bones (Hulu)
While many crime shows focus on the living, Bones is all about the dead. Forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance "Bones" Brennan, played by Emily Deschanel, works with F.B.I. Special Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanz) to investigate murders via the human remains left behind. The Fox series aired for 12 seasons starting in the early aughts, captivating audiences with its quirky characters and unique visual effects.
S.W.A.T. (Hulu, Paramount +)
In this CBS drama, inspired by both the 1975 television show and movie by the same name, Shemar Moore plays Daniel "Hondo" Harrelson, a South Los Angeles native who must lead his S.W.A.T. team and uphold justice. However, he grew up in the same close knit community he is responsible for protecting, which complicates things a bit as many of his old neighbors don’t trust anyone with a badge. And, like any good law enforcement show, the battles aren’t always between the cops and the community they are fighting to protect, but within the team itself. Seasons 1 through 3 are on Hulu, Season 4 is streaming on Paramount+.
L.A.’s Finest (Netflix)
Following the success of Bad Boys, this two-season series attempted to add a little comedic timing into the cop show formula. Jessica Alba and Gabrielle Union played LAPD detectives who chase after kidnappers, killers, robbers, and drug dealers on the mean streets of Los Angeles, while infusing girl power into the male-dominated genre.
Blue Bloods (Hulu, Paramount +)
This CBS cop show takes place in New York City and centers around the Irish Catholic Reagan family, in which joining law enforcement is a rite of passage. Tom Selleck plays the patriarch of the family, New York City Police Commissioner Frank Reagan, oldest son Danny (Donnie Wahlberg) is an NYPD Detective, youngest Jamie (Will Estes) is a Sergeant and daughter, Erin Bridget Moynahan, the assistant DA. And, while ample drama is happening out on the streets, the familial turmoil is equally suspenseful, as the Reagan’s gather together every week for Sunday dinner.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (Peacock)
The only live-action scripted series to last longer than Law & Order, which aired for 20 seasons from 1990 to 2010, is its spinoff Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, often referred to as SVU. Currently in its 22nd season, the cast has been led by Mariska Hargitay since the pilot, with other actors, including Christopher Melloni, Ice-T and Richard Belzer, playing crucial roles over the year. It’s who-dun-it plotlines are seriously addictive and skew on the high-brow side, as the show is one of the most critically acclaimed on television, earning a whopping 91 award nominations.
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (Hulu)
Procedural forensics crime drama television CSI: Crime Scene Investigation spanned 15 seasons and spawned three separate spinoffs, CSI: Miami, CSI: New York and CSI: Cyber, on its way to becoming one of the most watched shows in the world. While all are equally addictive, the original is a great place to start binging. The show takes place in Las Vegas where forensic crime scene investigator Gil Grissom (William Petersen), leads a team who walks through every crime exploring various scenarios in order to solve them. His second-in-command is Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger), a stripper-turned-cop who specializes in blood splatter. Other notable actors who appear throughout the series include Gary Dourdan, Laurence Fishburne and Jorja Fox. In the final seasons, Ted Danson was featured as a lead actor on the show.
The Rookie (Hulu)
This ABC police procedural, currently in its third season, stars Nathan Fillion. He plays John Nolan, who closes up his construction company in Pennsylvania and joins the Los Angeles Police Department at 45, becoming the oldest rookie of all time. Not only does he have to solve crimes and catch bad guys, but prove himself to all the skeptics in the LAPD who think he is too old for the job. The show isn’t all fiction, as it is based on real-life LAPD officer William Norcross, who joined the department in his mid-40s and happens to be an executive producer on the show.
JAG (Paramount+)
This 1990s series centers around the officers-turned-lawyers of the U.S. Navy's Judge Advocate General's office. Former Navy fighter pilot Harmon Rabb (played by David James Elliott) is the main character in the series, and is tasked with investigating, prosecuting and defending crimes and criminals that take place within the military. Like many of the popular crime shows, JAG attempted to incorporate current events into their plotlines. (NCIS is a spinoff of the show, with many characters making their debut in the show’s eighth season.)
Rizzoli & Isles (Hulu)
While many crime shows can be rather dark, this TNT series based on the book series by the same name about two women solving crimes adds a dash of humor. The show centers around Boston Homicide police detective Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) and Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander), two enigmatic women who work together despite their opposite personalities to solve cases. All seven seasons of the buddy drama can be streamed on Hulu.
Hawaii Five-O (Paramount +)
The rebooted Hawaii Five-O takes place in the same universe as CBS's other '80s era reboots, MacGyver and Magnum P.I., so there are plenty of crossovers between the trio. This show takes place on the island, where a special crimes task force answers to the Governor and investigates murder, robberies, kidnapping and even acts of terrorism. It ended after a successful 10 season run in 2020.
Miami Vice (Starz)
This 1984 series only ran for five seasons, but has become one of the most iconic television shows of all time and a cultural phenomenon. It stars Don Johnson as James "Sonny" Crockett and Philip Michael Thomas as Ricardo "Rico" Tubbs, two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives. The unlikely duo must go undercover to solve crimes in the seedy Miami underworld, while helping to keep each other alive. Miami Vice is known for its truly ‘80s vibe, from the eclectic fashion to the trademark tunes to its cinematic feel. One of the most memorable scenes of the show was set to the Phil Collins tune “In the Air Tonight” and has serious music video vibes.
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