Guy Ritchie's The Gentlemen has a very specific kind of appeal. It takes the British criminal underworld, throws in aristocrats, gangsters, dealers, and schemers, and somehow makes all of them feel like they're part of the same gloriously messy social ecosystem. But just when one character thinks they've gained the upper hand, someone else walks into the room with a better plan, a worse attitude, or possibly even both.
Fortunately, there are plenty of shows that understand the pleasure of watching morally dubious people navigate even more morally dubious situations. So, whether you're looking for dysfunctional crime families, ruthless antiheroes, or elaborate power struggles, these shows should hit the spot—especially if you (like me) binged The Gentlemen's second season in a single day.
Dept. Q (2025–Present)
After a near-fatal shooting leaves his partner paralyzed and a young officer dead, abrasive Edinburgh detective Carl Morck (Matthew Goode) is pushed into a newly created cold-case unit. But what's supposed to be little more than a PR exercise for the struggling police department soon becomes a genuine investigation when Carl takes on the disappearance of prosecutor Merritt Lingard (Chloe Pirrie).
There may be fewer aristocrats and drug dealers here, but Dept. Q scratches the same itch for characters who are far more complicated than their job descriptions suggest. Morck is cutting, emotionally damaged, and frequently a nightmare to work with, yet his intelligence makes him impossible to dismiss. The dysfunctional team dynamic at least gives the show a welcome streak of dark humor, while the cold-case mystery supplies the kind of escalating complications that The Gentlemen fans will appreciate.
Animal Kingdom (2016–2022)
After his mother dies, 17-year-old Joshua "J" Cody (Finn Cole) moves in with his estranged relatives in Southern California, only to discover that his family lives off a lucrative criminal enterprise. At the center of it all is his grandmother, Janine "Smurf" Cody (Ellen Barkin), the fiercely protective matriarch who controls her sons and their increasingly dangerous operations—leaving J to figure out where he fits within the Codys and their business.
If The Gentlemen's combination of criminal schemes and dysfunctional families was your favorite part, Animal Kingdom takes that idea and turns the danger up by a thousand. The Codys are every bit as entertaining when they're fighting among themselves as they are brutal when they're taking on another criminal operation. But fair warning, it's darker and considerably more intense than Ritchie's show—especially when the in-family tension showcases deep-seated psychological abuse.
Succession (2018–2023)
When aging media mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox) begins contemplating the future of his global entertainment empire, his four children immediately start positioning themselves to take over. But Kendall (Jeremy Strong), Roman (Kieran Culkin), and Shiv (Sarah Snook) all have very different ideas about what should happen to the company, and their father's reluctance to actually relinquish control only makes things more chaotic.
Of course, the Roys aren't gangsters, but Succession understands that billionaires can be just as ruthless as criminals when there's something valuable at stake. Unsurprisingly, the show's greatest weapon is its sharp dialogue, with characters constantly negotiating, threatening, and insulting each other under the guise of business. Better still, like The Gentlemen, this HBO show finds plenty of dark humor in watching powerful people backstab their way through ridiculous situations. Because who says wealth and influence eliminates dysfunction?
Mr Inbetween (2018–2021)
Ray Shoesmith (Scott Ryan) is a father, boyfriend, ex-husband, friend, and, unfortunately for everyone around him, a criminal for hire—whether that be by collecting debts, intimidation, or killing people when a situation calls for it. The challenge is keeping his work separate from his personal life, particularly as he tries to maintain a relationship with his loved ones.
Where The Gentlemen makes crime look slick and occasionally absurd, Mr Inbetween strips away much of the glamor (even as it retains much of its dark humor). Ray can be charming one minute and terrifying the next, and the show is at its best when it refuses to make those two sides of him feel incompatible. Ryan's wonderfully understated performance gives the show its own peculiar rhythm, making Ray the kind of questionable protagonist you somehow end up rooting for anyway. It's Australian television at its best.
Lock, Stock... (2000)
Four friends attempt to make money in London's criminal underworld, only for them to routinely find themselves in much deeper trouble than they expected. With dodgy schemes, debts, gangsters, and double-crosses piling up around them, the group has to find increasingly creative ways to survive their own bad decisions.
As the story some would argue as the predecessor to Guy Ritchie's Gentlemen universe, Lock, Stock... showcases just where his signature style took shape. Based on his own film, this show features rapid-fire dialogue, eccentric characters, elaborate plots, along with a particular brand of British swagger that would later become so recognizable in Ritchie's work. Sure, it may not have the posh polish of The Gentlemen, but it's a must-watch for any fan of the filmmaker's early style.
If you're still hungry for more crime drama after these, you might also enjoy Sons of Anarchy, which blends family loyalty with outlaw biker mayhem, or the darkly funny Deadloch for a different kind of mystery. And if you want to see how The Gentlemen itself is performing, check out the latest viewership numbers.
