Top 250 Tv Shows Like Charlie Wilson'S War

When the world wasn't looking, he changed it forever.

A list of the best tv shows similar to Charlie Wilson's War. If you liked Charlie Wilson's War then you may also like: Alias, The Americans, BrainDead, Bugs, Commander in Chief and many more great tv shows featured on this list.

Alias

Sydney Bristow, an agent who has been tricked to believe she is working for the U.S. government, is actually working for a criminal organization named the Alliance of Twelve. Upon learning this, Sydney becomes a double agent for the real CIA.

The Americans

Set during the Cold War period in the 1980s, The Americans is the story of Elizabeth and Philip Jennings, two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple in the suburbs of Washington D.C. and their neighbor, Stan Beeman, an FBI Counterintelligence agent.

BrainDead

A young fresh-faced Hill staffer gets her first job in Washington, D.C. and discovering two things: 1. The government has stopped working, and 2. alien spawn have come to earth and eaten the brains of a growing number of Congressmen and Hill staffers.

Bugs

Bugs was a British television drama series which ran for four series from April 1995 to August 1999. The programme, a mixture of action/adventure and science-fiction, involved a team of specialist independent crime-fighting technology experts, who faced a variety of threats based around computers and other modern technology. It was originally broadcast on Saturday evenings on BBC One, and was produced for the BBC by the independent production company Carnival Films.

Commander in Chief

Mackenzie Allen has a lot on her plate -- she has twin teenagers, a 6-year-old at home and an ambitious husband at the office, and she is about to become the first female president of the United States. Before that happens, however; Mackenzie, who serves as vice president, has to decide whether or not to go against the dying wishes of the current president, who has asked her to step down and let someone "more appropriate" fill his shoes in the Oval Office. Not only does the president want her to resign, so does the entire party that elected her in the first place. But when the moment of truth arrives, Mackenzie isn't willing to be a mere footnote in history. Instead of allowing her detractors to keep her down, she decides to trust her instincts and accept the most powerful job in the world.

Cover Up

Cover Up is an American action/adventure television series that aired for one season on CBS from September 22, 1984 to April 6, 1985. Created by Glen A. Larson, the series stars Jennifer O'Neill, Jon-Erik Hexum, Antony Hamilton, and Richard Anderson.

Danger Man

Danger Man is a British television series which was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again between 1964 and 1968. The series featured Patrick McGoohan as secret agent John Drake. Ralph Smart created the programme and wrote many of the scripts. Danger Man was financed by Lew Grade's ITC Entertainment.

Designated Survivor

Tom Kirkman, a low-level cabinet member is suddenly appointed President of the United States after a catastrophic attack during the State of the Union kills everyone above him in the Presidential line of succession.

The Diplomat

In the midst of an international crisis, a career diplomat lands in a high-profile job she’s unsuited for, with tectonic implications for her marriage and her political future.

Get Smart

Get Smart is an American comedy television series that satirizes the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks with Buck Henry, the show stars Don Adams, Barbara Feldon, and Edward Platt. Henry said they created the show by request of Daniel Melnick, who was a partner, along with Leonard Stern and David Susskind, of the show's production company, Talent Associates, to capitalize on "the two biggest things in the entertainment world today"—James Bond and Inspector Clouseau. Brooks said: "It's an insane combination of James Bond and Mel Brooks comedy." This is the only Mel Brooks production to feature a laugh track. The success of the show eventually spawned the follow-up films The Nude Bomb and Get Smart, Again!, as well as a 1995 revival series and a 2008 film remake. In 2010, TV Guide ranked Get Smart's opening title sequence at No. 2 on its list of TV's Top 10 Credits Sequences, as selected by readers.

Homeland

CIA officer Carrie Mathison is tops in her field despite being bipolar, which makes her volatile and unpredictable. With the help of her long-time mentor Saul Berenson, Carrie fearlessly risks everything, including her personal well-being and even sanity, at every turn.

House of Cards

Frustrated at a new moderate Conservative government and deprived of a promotion to a senior position, chief whip Francis Urquhart prepares a meticulous plot to bring down the Prime Minister then to take his place.

House of Cards

Set in present day Washington, D.C., House of Cards is the story of Frank Underwood, a ruthless and cunning politician, and his wife Claire who will stop at nothing to conquer everything. This wicked political drama penetrates the shadowy world of greed, sex and corruption in modern D.C.

It Takes a Thief

Convicted cat burglar Alexander Mundy gets an offer he can't refuse from the United States government: If he puts his formidable thieving skills to work for them, he'll be released from prison. Alexander's dad, Alister, sometimes comes out of retirement as a thief to help his son on special jobs.

Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan

When CIA analyst Jack Ryan stumbles upon a suspicious series of bank transfers his search for answers pulls him from the safety of his desk job and catapults him into a deadly game of cat and mouse throughout Europe and the Middle East, with a rising terrorist figurehead preparing for a massive attack against the US and her allies.

Madam Secretary

After years away from the CIA, Elizabeth McCord is pulled back into the political arena. The newly appointed Secretary of State is tough, fair, and smart, driving international diplomacy, wrangling office politics, and circumventing protocol as she negotiates global and domestic issues, both at the White House and at home.

The Night Manager

Former British soldier Jonathan Pine navigates the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington where an unholy alliance operates between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. To infiltrate the inner circle of lethal arms dealer Richard Onslow Roper, Pine must himself become a criminal.

The Old Man

Dan Chase absconded from the CIA decades ago and now lives off the grid. When an assassin arrives and tries to take Chase out, the old operative learns that to ensure his future he now must reconcile his past.

Pennyworth: The Origin of Batman's Butler

The origin story of Bruce Wayne's legendary butler, Alfred Pennyworth, a former British SAS soldier who forms a security company in 1960s London and goes to work with young billionaire Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha, before they become Bruce Wayne’s parents.

Marvel's The Punisher

A former Marine out to punish the criminals responsible for his family's murder finds himself ensnared in a military conspiracy.

Shooter

Bob Lee Swagger is an expert marksman living in exile who is coaxed back into action after learning of a plot to kill the president.

Snowfall

Los Angeles. 1983. A storm is coming and its name is crack. Set against the infancy of the crack cocaine epidemic and its ultimate radical impact on the culture as we know it, the story follows numerous characters on a violent collision course.

Spooks

Tense drama series about the different challenges faced by the British Security Service as they work against the clock to safeguard the nation. The title is a popular colloquialism for spies, and the series follows the work of a group of MI5 officers based at the service's Thames House headquarters, in a highly secure suite of offices known as The Grid.

Strike Back

The series follows John Porter, a former British Special Forces soldier, who is drafted back into service by Section 20, a fictional branch of the Secret Intelligence Service.

That's My Bush!

That's My Bush! is an American comedy television series that aired on Comedy Central from April 4 to May 23, 2001. Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, best known for also creating South Park, the series centers on the fictitious personal life of President George W. Bush, as played by Timothy Bottoms. Carrie Quinn Dolin played Laura Bush, and Kurt Fuller played Karl Rove. Despite the political overtones, the show itself was actually a broad lampoon of American sitcoms, including lame jokes, a laugh track, and stock characters such as klutzy bimbo secretary Princess, know-it-all maid Maggie, and supposedly helpful "wacky" next-door neighbor Larry.

Thunderbirds

Thunderbirds is a 1960s British science-fiction television series which was produced using a mixed method of marionette puppetry and scale-model special effects termed "Supermarionation". The series is set in the 21st century and follows the exploits of International Rescue, a secret organization formed to save people in mortal danger with the help of technologically advanced land, sea, air and space vehicles and equipment, launched from a hidden base on Tracy Island in the South Pacific Ocean.

Veep

A look into American politics, revolving around former Senator Selina Meyer who finds being Vice President of the United States is nothing like she expected and everything everyone ever warned her about.

The West Wing

The West Wing provides a glimpse into presidential politics in the nation's capital as it tells the stories of the members of a fictional presidential administration. These interesting characters have humor and dedication that touches the heart while the politics that they discuss touch on everyday life.

Yes Minister

Satirical sitcom set in the office of a UK Cabinet minister, Jim Hacker MP, who struggles with Civil Service bureaucracy and political machinations as he tries to get on with government business.

Acapulco H.E.A.T.

Acapulco H.E.A.T. is a 1993 syndicated television series that followed the Hemisphere Emergency Action Team [H.E.A.T.], a group of top-secret agents based in Acapulco, Mexico and recruited by C-5, a secret government coalition, to fight terrorism and international crime. The team kept a low profile, by acting as models and photographers who represented a Beach Fashion enterprise.

Airwolf

As part of a deal with an intelligence agency to look for his missing brother, a renegade pilot goes on missions with an advanced battle helicopter.

Callan

Callan is the title of a British television series set in the murky world of espionage. Originally produced by ABC Weekend Television and later Thames Television, it was aired on the ITV network over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972. The series starred Edward Woodward as David Callan, a reluctant professional killer for a shadowy branch of the British Government's intelligence services known as 'the Section'.

The Company

The Company tells the thrilling story of Cold War CIA agents imprisoned in double lives, fighting an amoral, elusive, formidable enemy – and each other – in an internecine battle within the Company itself.

I, Claudius

Acclaimed blackly comic historical drama series. Set amidst a web of power, corruption and lies, it chronicles the reigns of the Roman emperors - Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula and finally Claudius.

Pandora's Box

Pandora's Box is a six-part 1992 BBC documentary television series which examines the consequences of political and technocratic rationalism. The episodes deal, in order, with communism in The Soviet Union, systems analysis and game theory during the Cold War, economy in the United Kingdom during the 1970s, the insecticide DDT, Kwame Nkrumah's leadership in Ghana during the 1950s and 1960s and the history of nuclear power.

Covert One: The Hades Factor

While in a retrieve operation of a virus in Berlin, the Covert One agent Rachel Russell is double-crossed by two dirty agents; she kills them and escapes, trying to find a hiding place and someone to trust to protect the vials. Meanwhile, the former Covert One agent Dr. Jon Smith is also in Berlin with his beloved fiancée Sophie Amsden participating in a congress. When three persons die with bleeding, the doctors disclose a Hades virus outbreak, an extreme rare Ebola variant. Jon and Sophie return to the USA to research a cure, and Jon discovers a huge combination of bio-terrorism and conspiracy.

The Power of Nightmares

Examines how politicians have used our fears to increase their power and control over society.

The Death of Yugoslavia

The Death of Yugoslavia is a BAFTA-award winning BBC documentary series first broadcast in 1995. It covers the collapse of the former Yugoslavia. It is notable in its combination of never-before-seen archive footage interspersed with interviews of most of the main players in the conflict, including Slobodan Milošević, the then President of Serbia. Norma Percy won the 1996 BAFTA TV Award for 'Best Factual Series' for the documentary. However, it has been argued that it presents a potentially slightly biased point-of-view; for instance during the trial of Milošević before the ICTY in The Hague, Judge Bonomy called the nature of much of the commentary "tendentious" (partisan).

Mission: Impossible

Mission: Impossible is an American television series that chronicles the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force. The show is a revival of the 1966 TV series of the same name. The only actor to return for the series as a regular cast member was Peter Graves who played Jim Phelps, although two other cast members from the original series returned as guest stars. The only other regular cast member to return for every episode was the voice of "The Tape", Bob Johnson.

K Street

An experimental fusion of reality and fiction--a fly-on-the-wall look at government, filmed in and around the corridors of power in Washington. The series ventures inside the world of powerful political consultants--a world that few people ever experience first-hand. Produced on location in Washington, D.C., the largely improvised ten-episode series combines fictional characters with appearances by real-life political figures, all centered around the biggest political news of the week.

Reilly: Ace of Spies

Reilly, Ace of Spies is a 1983 television miniseries dramatizing the life of Sidney Reilly, a Russian Jew who became one of the greatest spies ever to work for the British. Among his exploits, in the early 20th century, were the infiltration of the German General Staff in 1917 and a near-overthrow of the Bolsheviks in 1918. His reputation with women was as legendary as his genius for espionage.

Washington: Behind Closed Doors

CIA director Bill Martin knows that an incoming president means a new direction for the country—and another set of eyes on the top secret Primula Report. Martin tries to build a rapport with his new boss, but President Richard Monckton is more interested in settling old scores and cleaning house with the help of the FBI.

XIII: The Series

After a plot to kill the president of the USA an agent with lost memories tries to recover his life and memories. Others use him to cover up some dirty business involving high ranking officials from the CIA and the White House.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

George Smiley, the aging master spy of the Cold War and once heir apparent to Control, is brought back out of retirement to flush out a top level mole within the Circus. Smiley must travel back through his life and murky workings of the Circus to unravel the net spun by his nemesis Karla 'The Sandman' of the KGB and reveal the identity of the mole before he disappears.

Prohibition

The history of the rise, rule and fall of the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and the entire era it encompassed (1920-33). After nearly a century of activism, Prohibition was intended to improve the lives of all citizens by protecting individuals, families and society at large from the devastating effects of alcohol abuse; but paradoxically it made millions of people rethink their definition of morality.

Political Animals

Former first lady and current Secretary of State Elaine Barrish Hammond try to keep her family together while simultaneously dealing with crises of the State Department and fending off the hungry DC journalist who is bent on destroying her career.

America's Book of Secrets

Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes of the most legendary monuments and powerful organizations in the United States? America’s Book of Secrets lifts the veil of mystery, giving you unparalleled access to historical narratives and insider information previously hidden from the public. Through in-depth research and exclusive channels, this series delves into a variety of familiar but enigmatic American institutions, from the FBI and the Pentagon to Fort Knox and Area 51. Go beyond the locked doors and security checkpoints of government agencies, famous landmarks and stealthy societies to glimpse the hidden worlds you were never intended to see.

Secret State

Secret State explores the relationship between a democratically elected government, big business and the banks.

The '80s: The Decade That Made Us

The defining biography of a decade, as told through exclusive interviews with more than 40 icons, entertainers and innovators who shaped its identity.

The Best Laid Plans

A humourous and satirical journey into the world of Canadian national politics.

Kim Philby - His Most Intimate Betrayal

In this two part special, best-selling author Ben Macintyre explores Kim Philby, the most famous double agent in history.

The Game

"The Game" is a 1970s Cold War spy thriller set in the world of espionage. It tells the story of the invisible war fought by MI5 as it battles to protect the nation from the threats of the Cold War.

Allegiance

Alex O'Connor, a young idealistic CIA analyst specializing in Russian affairs, learns a shocking secret and his close-knit, affluent family is about to be split apart when it's revealed that his parents, Mark and Katya, are covert Russian spies deactivated decades ago. But today the Kremlin has re-enlisted them into service as they plan a terrorist operation inside the U.S. border that will bring America to its knees.

Spin

The President of the French Republic, visiting Saint-Etienne in the Loire, in a striking plant dies, victim of a bomb attack. The political world is agitated: early presidential elections to be held within the next thirty-five days. There is no doubt that Philip Deleuvre, the prime minister, will run for the Elysee. But what few people know is that the leader of the government knows more things he claimed. This state causes lie back to business Kapita Simon, a former communications adviser (spin doctor) of the late president. Anxious to preserve the honor of his deceased friend and some form of political ethics, the man of the shadows has now set a goal: to find a candidate who will be able to beat Deleuvre.

Partners in Crime

Set in a 1950s Britain rising from the ashes of the Blitz into the grip of a new Cold War, our beekeeping duo stumble into a world of murder, undercover agents and cold war conspiracy. Tuppence is a woman who sees adventure round every corner, throwing herself head first into every mystery with passion and fervour, determined to get to the truth no matter what it takes, much to the dismay of her more cautious husband Tommy.

Counterpart

Howard Silk is a lowly cog in a bureaucratic UN agency who is turning the last corner of a life filled with regret when he discovers the agency he works for is guarding a secret: a crossing to a parallel dimension.

Inside Obama's White House

For millions, the election of Barack Obama marked a new era of hope. This four-part series tells the story of how he tried to reshape America as told by his inner circle - and the president himself.

Declassified: Untold Stories of American Spies

Explore the true stories of America's covert operations told firsthand by the agents who lived it, while getting unprecedented access to the riveting and secret world of espionage.

America's War on Drugs

The origins of the drug war in the United States, which spans five decades, and its unexpected effects on American culture, institutions and politics.

The Looming Tower

While Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda become a global threat, the rivalry between the CIA and FBI inadvertently sets the stage for the tragedy of 9/11 and the Iraq War.

The Vietnam War

An immersive 360-degree narrative telling the epic story of the Vietnam War as it has never before been told on film. Featuring testimony from nearly 80 witnesses, including many Americans who fought in the war and others who opposed it, as well as Vietnamese combatants and civilians from both the winning and losing sides.

A Very English Scandal

It's the late 1960s, homosexuality has only just been legalised and Jeremy Thorpe, the leader of the Liberal party, has a secret he's desperate to hide.

Liberty Crossing

A hapless young intelligence analyst at the National Counterterrorism Center must untangle a terror plot while navigating the office's petty backstabbing and bureaucracy - while also tolerating his meddling family.

Condor

Young CIA analyst Joe Turner has his idealism tested when he learns that the CIA has been using an algorithm he developed to spy on American citizens, leading the organization to a terrorist plot that threatens the lives of millions. Inspired by Sydney Pollack’s 1975 political thriller Three Days of the Condor.

The Little Drummer Girl

Brilliant young actress Charlie strikes up an acquaintance with an intriguing stranger while on holiday in Greece, but it rapidly becomes apparent that his intentions are far from romantic.

The Fourth Estate

Explore the process and progress of The New York Times and its journalists in covering the Trump administration. Through extraordinary access, on-the-scene filmmaking, and exclusive sit-down interviews, this documentary series illuminates critical issues facing journalism today – including the challenge to the bedrock concept of truth, the changing role of the media, and the Times’ response to President Trump’s war of words.

Bodyguard

A troubled war veteran is assigned to protect a controversial politician who may be the target of a terror plot.

Project Blue Book

A chronicle of the true top secret U.S. Air Force-sponsored investigations into UFO-related phenomena in the 1950s and ’60s, known as “Project Blue Book”.

The Lobby - USA

A four-part undercover investigation by Al Jazeera into Israel’s covert influence campaign in the United States. To get unprecedented access to the Israel lobby’s inner workings, undercover reporter “Tony” posed as a pro-Israel volunteer in Washington. The resulting film exposes the efforts of Israel and its lobbyists to spy on, smear and intimidate US citizens who support Palestinian human rights, especially BDS – the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement. It shows that Israel’s semi-covert black-ops government agency, the Ministry of Strategic Affairs, is operating this effort in collusion with an extensive network of US-based organizations.

Traitors

1945 London. Feef is seduced by a rogue American spy into spying on her own country. Her task? To uncover a Russian agent in the heart of the British Government.

The Loudest Voice

The rise and fall of Fox News founder Roger Ailes, focusing primarily on the past decade in which Ailes arguably became the Republican Party’s de facto leader, while flashing back to defining events in his life.

Tricky Dick

Explore Richard Nixon’s life and times; tracking his rise, fall, incredible comeback and political destruction during some of America’s most tumultuous decades. From his early political maneuvers in California, to the game-changing Kennedy-Nixon debates through his disgraceful Watergate exit, featuring never-before-seen footage this fully archive based series offers fresh insight into a riveting story of politics, power and scandal.

The Trial of Christine Keeler

The minister, his mistress, and her lover the spy. The story of the woman at the centre of one of the 20th century's biggest scandals – which changed Britain forever.

Fortunate Son

Spy drama set in the social and political chaos of 1968, inspired by a true story. Pursued into Canada by the FBI, the matriarch of an American activist family helps smuggle Vietnam war deserters and draft dodgers across the border. What she doesn't know is that one of the deserters is an agent of the CIA sent to spy on her.

Gaslit

A modern take on the 1970s political Watergate scandal centering on untold stories and forgotten characters of the time.

The Last Narc

In 1985, American DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena was kidnapped, tortured, and murdered by Mexico’s most notorious drug lords. Thirty-five years later, three former cartel insiders share unprecedented details. This is the story of Camarena, the drug cartel he infiltrated, and the narc who risked everything to discover the truth.

Debris

Two federal agents from two different continents, and two different mindsets, must work together to investigate when wreckage from a destroyed alien spacecraft has mysterious effects on humankind.

The Reagans

A four-part documentary series that explores the many surprisingly unexamined aspects of the Reagan White House, and how Nancy Reagan's paper-doll image was at odds with the power she ultimately wielded throughout her husband's presidency.

Once Upon a Time in Iraq

With unique personal archive from civilians and soldiers from both sides of the conflict, this series takes viewers closer to the realities of war and life under Isis than they have ever been before.

Glória

A small town in Portugal becomes engulfed in a web of political intrigue when a young engineer is recruited as a KGB spy in this historical thriller.

White House Plumbers

The true story of how Nixon’s own political saboteurs and Watergate masterminds accidentally toppled the Presidency they were zealously trying to protect.

Spy City

After a defector is murdered, British agent Fielding Scott is assigned to track down a mole in his own ranks in 1961 Berlin. His investigation leads him into a deadly web of crime, betrayal and paranoia. Who can Scott trust in the city of spies?

Secret Invasion

Nick Fury and Talos discover a faction of shapeshifting Skrulls who have been infiltrating Earth for years.

The Ipcress File

As the Cold War rages, ex-smuggler turned reluctant spy Harry Palmer finds himself at the centre of a dangerous undercover mission, on which he must use his links to find a missing British nuclear scientist.

Obama: In Pursuit of a More Perfect Union

Six-hour documentary series focused on the President’s personal story and his vision for America, set against the backdrop of the country’s racial history. It traces his own search for identity and his role shaping a more inclusive American identity that has been under attack since he left office. Through the words of some of the people who knew him best, and through some of his sharpest critics, the film ultimately reveals the fallacy of America as a post-racial society, and confronts the work still needed to achieve a more perfect union as the work of a country, not just one man.

The Sympathizer

An espionage thriller and cross-culture satire about the struggles of a half-French, half-Vietnamese communist spy during the final days of the Vietnam War and his resulting exile in the United States.

The Night Agent

While monitoring an emergency line, a vigilant FBI agent answers a call that plunges him into a deadly conspiracy involving a mole at the White House.

Mega Zoo

This new Australian factual series captures the special relationship between the extraordinary animals and their passionate keepers, at one of the planet's largest and oldest zoos, spread across three stunning locations in Victoria.

The Undeclared War

In the post-pandemic world of 2024 during an upcoming British general election involving the UK’s first Black Conservative prime minister, a leading team of analysts at the heart of the UK’s NSA-style spy agency GCHQ attempt to ward off a cyber-attack on the country’s electoral system.

JFK: Destiny Betrayed

Thirty years after his film JFK, filmmaker Oliver Stone takes viewers on a journey though recently declassified evidence in the assassination of President Kennedy - the most consequential American murder mystery of the twentieth century. Joined by Oscar-winning narrators Whoopi Goldberg and Donald Sutherland, as well as a distinguished team of forensics, medical and ballistics experts, historians, and witnesses, Stone presents compelling evidence that in the Kennedy case “conspiracy theory” is now “conspiracy fact.”

Munich Games

50 years after the Munich Massacre, Munich is hosting a soccer game between an Israeli and a German football club. When things start to fall apart, it seems history might be repeating all over again.

Watergate: Blueprint for a Scandal

An immersive look inside Nixon’s inner circle and the schemes that took place behind closed doors by the Committee to Re-Elect the President that would eventually unravel his presidency.

Putin vs the West

From the 2014 seizure of Crimea to the invasion of Ukraine, this is the inside story of a decade of clashes - as told by the Western leaders who traded blows with Putin's Russia.

Ghosts of Beirut

Told from the American, Israeli and Lebanese perspectives, discover one of the greatest espionage stories of modern times: the manhunt for Imad Mughniyeh, the elusive Lebanese terrorist who outwitted his adversaries in the CIA and Mossad for over two decades.

Kennedy

A chronicle of John F. Kennedy's life, including his youth, ascension into politics, presidency, and his lasting impact on history.

American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders

An investigative journalist pursuing a political conspiracy known as the Octopus is found dead in his hotel room. Decades later, new details emerge.

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