10 TV Shows Like “Splinters” That You Should Watch in the Future.
I’m a little worried about Ryan Murphy. He hasn’t released a new series in literally weeks, and Hulu’s “Splinters” is only his third new show this year. On the other hand, it’s as wild (and complimentary) as you’d expect, considering the prolific producer is teaming up with controversial author Bret Easton Ellis ( Less Than Zero , American Psycho ) to adapt his 2023 book—part high school memoir, part serial killer thriller. With the season (series?) finale airing this week, here are 10 more shows about rich kids worth watching.
Pretty Little Liars (2010–2017)
Four former best friends reunite at Rosewood High School a year after the leader of their small group disappears. They’ve all received threatening messages from a mysterious “A” who knows everything they did last summer… and practically everything else. Shoplifting, parental affairs, student-teacher affairs—it’s all happening in town, and “A” knows everything. After the prime suspect is found dead, the girls find themselves caught in a killer’s web, trying to keep their secrets under wraps. If seven gripping seasons and three “A”s aren’t enough, there are three spinoffs. Watch Pretty Little Liars on Hulu and HBO Max .
One of Us is Lying (2021–2022)
Murder and mystery among some rather shockingly well-dressed high school students? Check. This series is based on a young adult novel by Karen M. McManus, in which a group of five high school students show up in a classroom for troublemakers, and one of them dies of what initially appears to be an allergic reaction. But this isn’t “My Girl “: Simon apparently kept a blog where he uncovered everyone’s secrets, meaning almost everyone had a motive for the murder. It’s a solid, effectively twisted detective series that’s settling into a surprisingly good second season. Watch “One of Us Is Lying” on Peacock .
Blood and Water (2020–2024)
In this top-notch teen drama, Ama Kamata plays Puleng Khumalo, a teenager who has lived her entire life in the shadow of her sister, who was kidnapped as a baby by human traffickers (Puleng’s parents still throw her sister a birthday party every year). When Puleng is invited to a party by the popular Fikile Bele (Khosi Ngema), a student at an elite Cape Town school, she can’t help but notice the resemblance to her missing sister. Puleng transfers to the school to get to the bottom of the situation, uncovering a wealth of gripping school drama and family secrets along the way. The series benefits from unexpected dramatic depth and a multitude of characters and storylines relevant to the LGBT community.Watch Blood & Water on Netflix.
Extracurricular activities (2020)
Another drama about a seemingly boring, straight-A student who works nightly as a security guard for a prostitution ring. Okay, this one is pretty unique, combining dark humor and action with hints of relationship drama and, you know, the Korean sex industry. Needing extra cash, Oh Ji-soo takes this particular job when he’s not in school, but otherwise, he’s a typical teenage dropout. His girlfriend, Gyu-ri, is from a wealthy family but still wants to join them after learning about Ji-soo’s part-time job. Soon, rivals and the police begin pursuing them, and the teens’ lives become significantly more complicated, violent, and dangerous.Watch “Extracurricular Activities” on Netflix.
Elite (2018–2024)
The gripping series Elite follows a group of working-class friends who receive scholarships to Las Encinas, a fictional private school that, within the show’s universe, is the most exclusive in Spain. There, they discover snobbery, secrets, murder, and a whole lot of sex (between characters of varying sexual orientations and numbers). This clever, delightfully kitschy series ran for eight seasons (a remarkable feat in our modern age of streaming), with a couple of regional remakes.Watch Elite on Netflix .
Cruel Summer (2021 – )
When beautiful and popular Kate Wallis (Olivia Holt) disappears without a trace in 1993, clumsy Jeanette Turner (Chiara Aurelia) takes her place, emulating Kate by infiltrating her social circle and becoming close to her boyfriend. Everything is going well until Kate reappears two years later, accusing Jeanette of witnessing the events surrounding her disappearance and keeping quiet. Trouble. And that’s not all: the series switches between 1993, 1994, and 1995, gradually revealing missing details. Season two tells a different story, set in 1999 and 2000, and the upcoming third season will upend everything again. Watch Cruel Summer on Hulu.
Gossip Girl (2007–2012)
Teen drama at its best and most scathing, Gossip Girl chronicles the multiple scandals of a group of young Upper East Side socialites and their hangers-on. The tangled teenage lives of Serena van der Woodsen (Blake Lively), her rival-best friend Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester), scholarship student Dan Humphrey (Penn Badgley), and other pretty young men and women are chronicled in detail by the mysterious and omnipresent blogger Gossip Girl (voiced by Kristen Bell). While it may be a bit more subdued compared to Splinters , the series nonetheless blazed a trail, shocking parents in the mid-2000s and reaching incredible heights before its conclusion. (A two-season 2021 sequel is also available on HBO Max.) Watch Gossip Girl on HBO Max andNetflix .
Bates Motel (2013–2017)
Unlike the glossy high school drama “Splinters,” this film primarily tackles pop culture’s most troubling mother-son relationships, but there’s something very Ryan Murphy about its over-the-top, operatic nastiness. Freddie Highmore plays Norman Bates (writer Robert Bloch based the character on serial killer Ed Gein), and Vera Farmiga is his mother, Norma (before she became a desiccated corpse). Like many other films based on Alfred Hitchcock’s cult classic “Psycho,” it’s better than expected, with compelling character development and a few surprises, even if we already more or less know where it’s all heading. Watch “Bates Motel” on Prime Video .
Riverdale (2017–2023)
Riverdale , as wild as Splinters (and even more so), is a wild take on the once perfectly placid Archie Comics universe, veering wildly between genres. It starts out as a coming-of-age drama for those who love abs, with a detective story and an intimate connection between a student and a teacher. There’s plenty of that before it gets weirder, from supernatural adventures to alternate universes. Luckily, the show knows what it’s doing, and taking itself seriously in the face of completely crazy plot twists is part of the fun.Watch Riverdale onNetflix.
Scream Queens (2015–2016)
This is one of Ryan Murphy’s earliest examples of wackiness, more of a straight-up satire—though given the producer’s over-the-top eccentricity, the line between comedy and drama is always a bit blurry. It features an all-star cast: Emma Roberts, Ariana Grande, Billie Lourd, and Abigail Breslin as students confronting a menacing and downright cruel dean (Jamie Lee Curtis, impeccably cast), as well as a serial killer who dresses up as their university’s mascot, the Red Devil. It all echoes the insane events that took place back in 1995. Watch Scream Queens on Hulu.