Top 250 Tv Shows Like Jail Busters

YARD-BOIDS in a GILDED CAGE!

A list of the best tv shows similar to Jail Busters. If you liked Jail Busters then you may also like: The Wire, Tokyo Vice, Bad Girls, The Big Story, The Black Donnellys and many more great tv shows featured on this list.

The Wire

Told from the points of view of both the Baltimore homicide and narcotics detectives and their targets, the series captures a universe in which the national war on drugs has become a permanent, self-sustaining bureaucracy, and distinctions between good and evil are routinely obliterated.

Tokyo Vice

A first-hand account of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police beat following Jake Adelstein, an American journalist who embeds himself into the Tokyo Vice police squad to reveal corruption. Based on Jake Adelstein’s non-fiction book of the same name.

Bad Girls

Bad Girls is a British television drama series that was broadcast on ITV from 1 June 1999 to 20 December 2006 and starred Simone Lahbib, Mandana Jones, Debra Stephenson, Linda Henry, Jack Ellis and many more throughout the eight-year run. The series was broadcast in 17 countries and was produced by Shed Productions, the company which later produced Footballers' Wives and Waterloo Road. It is set in the fictional women's prison of Larkhall, and features a mixture of serious and light storylines focusing on the prisoners and staff of G Wing. From 2010, the UK broadcast rights were bought by CBS Drama, and is repeated regularly – as of September 2012, the channel is re-running the series again in a late-night time slot.

The Big Story

Based on a popular radio series, each show tells a different reporter's Big Story, a true story selected from newspapers across the United States. Comments from the actual reporter open and close each show but the permanent narrator drives the plot line and a featured actor dramatizes the reporter's role.

The Black Donnellys

Meet the Donnelly brothers: Tommy, Jimmy, Kevin and Sean. There is nothing these four Irish brothers wouldn't do to protect each other, and for them that means lying, cheating, stealing and, occasionally, calling the cops. Narrated by wannabe gangster Joey "Ice Cream," this gritty series bears witness to the Donnelly brothers' sudden involvement in organized crime, focusing on how they go from boys to mobsters, and showing how their new life affects their relationships with friends, family and lovers.

Iron Man

When Tony Stark branches his company into Japan, he is opposed by the nefarious Zodiac organization. It's up to Stark's Iron Man to defeat the Zodiac, and defend Japan.

Breakout Kings

Driven by the fact that there are few things more dangerous than a prisoner who has just escaped, and tired of following protocol and resorting to outdated methods of law enforcement, veteran U.S. Marshals Charlie Duchamp and Ray Zancanelli are taking an unorthodox approach to their work: using former fugitives to catch fugitives.

Marvel's Daredevil

Lawyer-by-day Matt Murdock uses his heightened senses from being blinded as a young boy to fight crime at night on the streets of Hell’s Kitchen as Daredevil.

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.

Kolchak: The Night Stalker

Kolchak: The Night Stalker is an American television series that aired on ABC during the 1974–1975 season. It featured a fictional Chicago newspaper reporter who investigated mysterious crimes with unlikely causes, particularly those that law enforcement authorities would not follow up. These often involved the supernatural or even science fiction, including fantastic creatures.

Making a Murderer

Filmed over 10 years, this real-life thriller follows a DNA exoneree who, while exposing police corruption, becomes a suspect in a grisly new crime.

My Adventures with Superman

Twenty-somethings Clark Kent, the bright and driven Lois Lane, and their best friend Jimmy Olsen begin to discover who they are and everything they can accomplish together as an investigative reporting team at the Daily Planet.

The Night Shift

The stories of the men and women who work the overnight shift at San Antonio Memorial Hospital. They are an irreverent and special breed, particularly adrenaline junkie T.C. Callahan.

Oliver Beene

Oliver Beene is an American sitcom. Set in 1962 and 1963, the show chronicled the trials and tribulations of the 11-to-12-year-old Oliver Beene, in first person perspective. Oliver Beene's other main characters are his parents Jerry and Charlotte Beene, his brother Ted Beene, and his two friends Joyce and Michael. The narrator, an older Oliver reflecting on his experience, is voiced by David Cross. Often in episodes, the story is interrupted by flashbacks and flash-forwards.

Orange Is the New Black

A crime she committed in her youthful past sends Piper Chapman to a women's prison, where she trades her comfortable New York life for one of unexpected camaraderie and conflict in an eccentric group of fellow inmates.

Prison Break

Due to a political conspiracy, an innocent man is sent to death row and his only hope is his brother, who makes it his mission to deliberately get himself sent to the same prison in order to break the both of them out, from the inside out.

Sex and the City

Based on the bestselling book by Candace Bushnell, Sex and the City tells the story of four best friends, all single and in their late thirties, as they pursue their careers and talk about their sex lives, all while trying to survive the New York social scene. 

Time Trax

Time Trax is an American/Australian co-produced science fiction television series that first aired in 1993. A police officer, sent through time into the past, has to track down and return convicted criminals who have escaped prison in the future. This was the last new production from Lorimar Television.

Undercover Boss

Reality series that follows high-level executives as they slip anonymously into the rank-and-file of their own organizations. Each week, a different leader will sacrifice the comfort of their corner office for an undercover mission to examine the inner workings of their operation.

Ink

Ink is a television sitcom which aired on CBS from 1996-1997 that starred real-life husband and wife Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen as newspaper journalists, allegedly inspired by the film His Girl Friday. The show was also produced by Danson and Steenburgen. The show was canceled after one season due to lower than expected ratings. The distribution rights to the series are currently owned by Disney-ABC Domestic Television. The show's pilot was drastically changed and reshot from the original version. Ink was filmed at the soundstages of CBS Studio City in the Studio City area of Los Angeles. Outdoor scenes were usually shot at the small backlot streets of the same studio.

NYPD Blue

Police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwined several plots involving an ensemble cast.

Matlock

Matlock is an American television legal drama, starring Andy Griffith in the title role of criminal defense attorney Ben Matlock. The show, produced by The Fred Silverman Company, Dean Hargrove Productions, Viacom Productions and Paramount Television originally aired from September 23, 1986 to May 8, 1992 on NBC; and from November 5, 1992 until May 7, 1995 on ABC. The show's format is similar to that of CBS's Perry Mason, with Matlock identifying the perpetrators and then confronting them in dramatic courtroom scenes. One difference, however, was that whereas Mason usually exculpated his clients at a pretrial hearing, Matlock usually secured an acquittal at trial, from the jury.

Superjail!

An eccentric warden and his staff run a bizarre maximum security prison full of dangerous prisoners.

Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer

Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer is the title used for two syndicated television series that followed the adventures of fictional private detective Mike Hammer. The gritty, crime fighting detective—created by American crime author Mickey Spillane—has also inspired several feature films and made-for-TV movies.

NewsRadio

The office politics and interpersonal relationships among the staff of WNYX NewsRadio, New York's #2 news radio station.

State of Play

The murder of Sonia Baker, a young political researcher, leads journalist Cal McCaffrey to uncover complex links between government and big business.

Rumpole of the Bailey

Rumpole of the Bailey is a British television series created and written by the British writer and barrister John Mortimer. It stars Leo McKern as Horace Rumpole, an aging London barrister who defends any and all clients, and has been spun off into a series of short stories, novels, and radio programmes.

Meadowlands

The Brogan family enters a witness protection program and are moved to a bucolic neighborhood to begin a new life, but they soon realize that it's not so easy to escape the past.

Spider-Woman

When Jessica Drew was bitten by a poisonous spider as a child, her father saved her life by injecting her with an experimental "spider serum," which also granted her superhuman powers. As an adult, Jessica works as editor of Justice Magazine but when trouble arises, Jessica slips away to change into her secret identity of Spider-Woman.

The Commander

Determined and ambitious detective, Commander Clare Blake takes charge of the Serious Crime Group within the Metropolitan Police.

The Insiders

The Insiders is a mid-1980s American television detective series starring Nicholas Campbell, Stoney Jackson and Gail Strickland.

Read All About It!

Read All About It! was a Canadian educational television series that was produced from 1979 to 1983 by TVOntario that aired during the early to mid-1980s; It also aired in repeats in the 1990s. It starred David Craig Collard as Chris, Lydia Zajc as Lynne, Stacey Arnold as Samantha, and Sean Hewitt as Duneedon, ruler of the galaxy Trialviron. In the second season Michael Dwyer joined the cast as Alex. The main goal of the show was to educate viewers in reading, writing and history. Each episode ran for approximately 15 minutes. Eric Robertson composed the music for the show.

The Restless Gun

The Restless Gun is an American western television series that appeared on NBC between 1957 and 1959, with John Payne in the role of Vint Bonner, a wandering cowboy in the era after the American Civil War. A skilled gunfighter, Bonner is an idealistic person who prefers peaceful resolutions of conflict wherever possible. He is gregarious, intelligent, and public-spirited. The half-hour black-and-white program aired seventy-eight episodes. Jeanne Bates appeared in varying roles with Payne in five episodes of The Restless Gun. The Restless Gun theme song begins: "I ride with the wind, my eyes on the sun, and my hand on my restless gun..." The song composer is probably Paul Dunlap, credited as the primary series composer, but could have been contributed to by either of the two other series composers, Dave Kahn and Stanley Wilson, also. Two versions are currently posted on YouTube, but neither posting lists any composer or performance credits.

Facing Evil with Candice DeLong

Former FBI profiler Candice DeLong interviews convicted killers from prison about their crimes.

The Infinite Worlds of H.G. Wells

On a night in London in 1946, newspaper reporter Ellen McGillivray arrives at the home of legendary literary figure, Herbert George Wells. Expecting to hear of the events and people who formed his prophetic imagination, she is informed of a world in which known scientific boundaries no longer exist. It begins a half-century earlier at London's Imperial College of Science where Wells meets Jane Robbins, a scientist equally fascinated by unnatural phenomenon, and a woman who immediately captures Wells' heart. Through midnight experiments and secret investigations into the paranormal, through the follies of chance and the miracles of fate, Wells and Robbins find themselves slipping into whirlpools of time, both past and present.

Banshee

Banshee is an American drama television series set in a small town in Pennsylvania Amish country and features an enigmatic ex-con posing as a murdered sheriff who imposes his own brand of justice while also cooking up plans that serve his own interests.

The Knick

Set in downtown New York in 1900, 'The Knick' is centered on the Knickerbocker Hospital and its staff, notably Dr. John Thackery, the hospital's brilliant chief surgeon who pushes medicine's boundaries, pioneering new procedures despite a severe drug addiction.

10.5

Dr. Samantha Hill is an earthquake research scientist at a noted university in Washington State. Her alternative theories and her take-charge attitude cause friction with her peers. When the controversial Dr. Hill is ultimately put in charge, she is effectively entrusted with saving the entire population of the West Coast from a series of earthquakes that threaten to permanently fracture the West Coast from the rest of North America.

Quarry

The story of Mac Conway, a Marine who returns home to Memphis from Vietnam in 1972 and finds himself shunned by those he loves and demonized by the public. As he struggles to cope with his experiences at war, Conway is drawn into a network of killing and corruption that spans the length of the Mississippi River.

Bonnie & Clyde

Miniseries based on the true story of Clyde Barrow, a charismatic convicted armed robber who sweeps Bonnie Parker, an impressionable, petite, small-town waitress, off her feet, and the two embark on one one of most infamous bank-robbing sprees in history.

Arthur Hailey's The Moneychangers

Two ambitious vice presidents become rivals when an imminent board room vacancy arises.

Critical

The Major Trauma Centre is a state-of-the-art unit which treats only the most gravely ill or seriously injured. Whether that patient lives or dies is determined by knife-edge decisions and procedures, but can the diverse team of medical professionals knit together and rise to the challenge? Our team hold a life in their hands but in every case they face the agonisingly real fear that it could slip through their fingers.

Wake Up

After taking the blame for a patient death, an anesthesiologist battling psychiatric trauma fights to stay afloat in the corrupt hospital system.

The Forgotten Toys

The Forgotten Toys is an animated series made by Hibbert Ralph Entertainment, featuring the voices of Joanna Lumley and Bob Hoskins. The voice of Andrew Sachs is also featured. It is a poignant tale of abandoned toys who are searching for a child to love them.

Billionaire Boys Club

Billionaire Boys Club is a two-part TV movie that aired on NBC in 1987. It told the story of the Billionaire Boys Club, and its founder, Joe Hunt, who was convicted in 1987 of murdering con-man Ron Levin. The film was written Gy Waldron and directed by Marvin J. Chomsky.

Feed the Beast

For two friends on the brink of losing everything, a dusty pipe dream of opening up an upscale restaurant in their hometown of the Bronx is all they have left to turn their lives around. Together, they take on the insanity of the New York restaurant world, and navigate its underbelly of petty criminals, corrupt officials and violent mobsters.

Scoop

Follow both the professional and personal lives of reporters working for The Express, a daily Montréal Newspaper.

People Magazine Investigates

Uncover the heart-wrenching true stories behind crimes that transcended headlines and became part of popular culture. Exclusive first hand interviews reveal shocking twists, new evidence, and unexpected resolutions.

La Doña

A story of revenge and ambition, seduction and betrayal; all told from the perspective of an offended and abused woman named Altagracia. Altagracia represents the hundreds of thousands of Mexican women who have been victims of the violence by faceless men who are protected by impunity. But Altagracia, transformed into a strong-willed, ruthless man-eater known as La Doña, will seek out each and every one of these men to bring them to justice.

The Good Karma Hospital

The story of British-Asian junior doctor Ruby Walker who arrives at the run-down Good Karma Hospital to join a dedicated team of over-worked medics. Run by a gloriously eccentric Englishwoman, Lydia Fonseca, this under-funded but creatively resourceful cottage hospital is the beating heart of the local community. It’s much more than just a medical outpost - it’s a home.

The Alienist

New York, 1896. Police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt brings together criminal psychologist Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, newspaper illustrator John Moore and secretary Sara Howard to investigate several murders of male prostitutes.

The Last O.G.

An ex-felon is shocked to see just how much the world has changed when he is released from prison for good behavior after a 15-year stint and returns to his newly gentrified Brooklyn neighborhood.

Hatton Garden

The story of the audacious jewellery, gold and cash burglary at the heart of London's diamond district executed by an elderly gang of career criminals across the Easter Bank Holiday weekend in April 2015.

Dirty Money

From crippling payday loans to cars that cheat emissions tests, this investigative series exposes brazen acts of corporate greed and corruption.

Love After Lockup

Couples finally meet their fiancé upon prison release. Once the bars are gone, will their love survive after lockup on the rocky road to the altar? Will the inmates ditch their mate as they face shocking "firsts", fights & family drama! Is it true love or just a con?

Serial Killer with Piers Morgan

Through intense prison interviews, Piers Morgan revisits the crimes of three convicted serial killers and learns more about their motives.

Conspiracy of Silence

Robert Kastell returns to Sweden after having been presumed dead for thirty years. A personal tragedy has made him leave his exile, and sent him on a last journey of revenge

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.

Press

The lives of the editors and journalists working at a left-leaning broadsheet and a populist tabloid.

Escape at Dannemora

The stranger-than-fiction account of a prison break in upstate New York in the summer of 2015, which spawned a massive manhunt for two convicted murderers who were aided in their escape by a married female prison employee with whom they both became sexually entangled.

I Am a Killer

Death row inmates convicted of capital murder give a firsthand account of their crimes in this documentary series.

I Am the Night

Fauna Hodel, who was given away by her teenage birth mother, begins to investigate the secrets to her past, following a sinister trail that swirls ever closer to an infamous Hollywood gynecologist connected to the legendary Black Dahlia murder.

Bitter Lands

The love story of Zuleyha, ​​who grew up without a father and works with Yilmaz as an auxiliary weaver in order to earn money for her brother, a gambler. The lives of these two young people blinded by the love of one ordinary night will turn into a dark nightmare. This nightmare will take them first from Istanbul and far away, and later to the estate of the Yaman family. In the first episode of the series, Yilmaz and Zuleyha set out to work on the Yaman estate. However, because of one of Zuleyha's lies - the lives of all of them will change radically.

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.

Modern Love

An unlikely friendship. A lost love resurfaced. A marriage at its turning point. A date that might not have been a date. An unconventional new family. These are unique stories about the joys and tribulations of love, each inspired by true events.

Kids Behind Bars: Life or Parole

The individual stories of previously convicted child offenders sentenced to mandatory life terms, without parole, who are now seeking resentencing on the heels of a recent United States Supreme Court ruling. While some may be resentenced to life, others could be immediately released or given a new sentence that makes them eligible for parole.

ZeroZeroZero

Based on the book of the same name by bestselling author Roberto Saviano, ZeroZeroZero is an unforgettable exploration of the inner workings of the global cocaine trade.

Shantaram

Escaped convict Lin Ford flees to the teeming streets of 1980s Bombay, looking to disappear. Working as a medic for the city’s poor and neglected, Lin finds unexpected love, connection, and courage on the long road to redemption.

The Dropout

The story of Elizabeth Holmes, the enigmatic Stanford dropout who founded medical testing start-up Theranos. Lauded as a Steve Jobs for the next tech generation and once worth billions of dollars, the myth crumbled when it was revealed that none of the tech actually worked, putting thousands of people's health in grave danger.

The Pembrokeshire Murders

Detective superintendent reopens two unsolved murder cases from the 1980s. Forensic methods link the crimes to a string of burglaries. Steve's team has to find more evidence before the perpetrator is released from prison.

El Presidente

Sergio Jadue, a lowly director of a small-town soccer club in Chile, unexpectedly finds himself at the head of the Chilean soccer association. Drunk with power, he becomes the protégé of soccer godfather Julio Grondona, as well as the FBI’s key to undoing the largest corruption scheme in the world of soccer.

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich

Stories from survivors fuel this docuseries examining how convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein used his wealth and power to carry out his abuses.

Torn from the Headlines: The New York Post Reports

Some of the New York City's most dramatic true-crime stories from the perspective of the New York Post journalists who covered the cases.

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.

Outcry

A five-part documentary series examining the gripping story of high school football star Greg Kelley who was convicted of sexual assault of a four-year-old boy, and sentenced to 25 years in prison with no possibility for parole. But a groundswell of support emerged for Kelley, calling into question the investigation, the prosecution's tactics and ultimately, the validity of the conviction.

A Killer Uncaged

In this crime docuseries spinoff, a convict is paroled 30 years after being sentenced to death for murder. Then he makes a stunning confession.

Mayor of Kingstown

In a small Michigan town where the business of incarceration is the only thriving industry, the McClusky family are the power brokers between the police, criminals, inmates, prison guards and politicians in a city completely dependent on prisons and the prisoners they contain.

Around the World in 80 Days

Following an outrageous bet, Fogg and his valet, Passepartout, take on the legendary journey of circumnavigating the globe in just 80 days, swiftly joined by aspiring journalist Abigail Fix, who seizes the chance to report on this extraordinary story.

Intergalactic

The story of fearless young cop and galactic pilot, Ash Harper, who has her glittering career ripped away from her after being wrongly convicted of a treasonous crime and exiled to a distant prison colony.

Time

Guilt, violence and impossible choices – what does it take to survive? Tense, gritty and heartbreaking – Jimmy McGovern's award-winning prison drama, with an all-star cast.

John Wayne Gacy: Devil in Disguise

The chilling story of one of the world’s most notorious serial killers told through the words of Gacy himself, those who were forever changed by his unspeakable deeds and those who believe that the full truth remains concealed to this day.

Wild West Chronicles

Once a feared lawman, the legendary Bat Masterson trades his sheriff's badge for a pen and becomes a newspaper reporter. He now travels the frontier to chronicle the amazing true stories of the Wild West and bring them to life once more.

The World's Funniest Weather

Video clips of weather related mishaps including weather reporters struggling through everything nature can throw at them, coping with technical issues while reporting from the studio. Slips of the tongue and giggle attacks.

My True Crime Story

Rapper and host Remy Ma profiles ordinary people who reveal how they got mixed up in criminal acts, from bank robberies to jewelry heists, and share their road to redemption in this true crime series.

Inside Man

A prisoner on death row in the US, a vicar in a quiet English town, and a maths teacher trapped in a cellar cross paths in the most unexpected way.

Shining Girls

Years after a brutal attack left her in a constantly shifting reality, Kirby Mazrachi learns that a recent murder is linked to her assault. She teams with veteran reporter Dan Velazquez to understand her ever-changing present—and confront her past.

Mike

Explore the wild, tragic and controversial life and career of heavyweight champion Mike Tyson - one of the most polarizing figures in sports culture.

Sex & Murder

Sex and murder are often tied together in criminal investigations; and detectives uncover dirty secrets, scandalous sex affairs, online sex addictions, jealousy and stunning twisted fantasies when looking for motives for murder.

Hard Cell

A Netflix comedy series written and directed by Catherine Tate set in a women's prison. Tate plays multiple characters as a documentary crew follows the inmates and staff of HMP Woldsley capturing the penal system at its brutal humorous best.

The Rape of Britain

Investigation which scratches the surface of the child grooming gangs in Telford, U.K. Allegations of police corruption and bribery between senior officers and local businessmen.

The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe

The extraordinary and compelling story of how John Darwin faked his own death to claim life insurance and avoid bankruptcy will be told in The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe. The drama relates how Anne Darwin's husband, a prison officer, came up with the hare-brained scheme to defraud insurance companies, unbeknownst to their two sons.

Sprung

A convicted criminal is determined to turn his life around after serving more than two decades in prison. When he is released unexpectedly from prison due to the pandemic with no place to live and the world on lockdown, Jack shelters-in-place with an unlikely group of former inmates, who band together and use their criminal expertise for good.

The Vanishing Triangle

After investigative journalist Lisa Wallace publishes an article about her mother's murder, other girls start to disappear; she and Detective David Burkely investigate across Ireland, searching for the missing girls while the killer taunts Lisa. Inspired by true events.

FIFA Uncovered

From power struggles to global politics, an exploration of FIFA reveals the organization's checkered history — and what it takes to host a World Cup.

Live to Lead

Leaders committed to making a difference in the world share their inspiring life stories in this series executive produced by Prince Harry and Meghan.

CSI on Trial

Host Molly Hermann reveals the lack of science behind some of the most well-known crime scene investigation tools, and tells the stories of the wrongfully convicted who went to prison for years.

Accomplice to Murder

In this new original series, Court TV’s Vinnie Politan travels across the country to speak with accomplices — the convicted, condemned and exonerated — who share a unique look into cases and verdicts that might not be as clear-cut as initially thought. The series is told using Court TV’s unrivaled coverage of trials spanning nearly two decades. Each episode features unique stories and a cast of characters who face life in prison for crimes they may or may not have committed.

Sort results by:

X close
Clear filters
...