Happy International Women’s Day to all women and female-empowerment allies in the world today!

I don’t really need an excuse to blog about #womeninfilm which I do frequently here at FlixChatter. One thing I haven’t blogged about is highlighting female-fronted TV series that’s created, written or directed women. I’m focusing mostly on shows that are kind of under the radar, though of course a couple of them are huge shows.

The first thing I saw this month happens to be a limited series The Dropout on Hulu, which chronicles the fraud scandal of Elizabeth Holmes, founder and CEO of the now-defunct THERANOS. Created by Elizabeth Meriwether, the series stars Amanda Seyfried as Holmes and Naveen Andrews as Sunny Balwani. It’s riveting stuff so far, I can’t wait to watch the rest of the episodes, there are only 3 available of the 8-part series.

So here are 10 series/limited series by women I highly recommend that’s available to stream right now:

1 | The Night Manager (2016) – Amazon Prime

Directed by Susanne Bier

Gotta love a great! spy series, especially those based on John le Carré‘s novel. It’s got a fantastic cast including Tom Hiddleston, Hugh Laurie, Olivia Colman, Tom Hollander and Elizabeth Debicki. Bier directed the series filled with suspense, intrigue and gorgeous locations in Britain, Morocco and Spain.

2 | The Pursuit of Love (2021) – Amazon Prime

Directed by Emily Mortimer

I was most curious because I like Mortimer as an actress and this is her directorial debut. Plus I love Lily James in most anything and there’s that cutie Assaad Bouab (Hicham in Call My Agent!). Both James and Emily Beecham are the leads and they did a great job here though overall the series is uneven and lacks emotional resonance. Still, it’s well worth checking out if you’re a fan of period dramas and the cast.

3 | The White Queen (2013) – Starz

Written by Emma Frost (based on Philippa Gregory’s novels)

This is the series that introduced me to the sublime Rebecca Ferguson. Set during England’s War of the Roses, she played one of the women vying for the throne. I got quite obsessed with the historical story, especially in regards to Richard III (played wonderfully by Aneurin Barnard) that I bought several books on the War of the Roses, ahah. You can read about my musings about the show here.

4 | Jane Eyre (2006) – HBO Max, HULU

Directed by Susanna White, Written by Sandy Welch

This is easily my favorite Jane Eyre miniseries to date. I think having the female lens certainly helps. Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens as Jane and Rochester are superb, they have a beautiful chemistry together. Stephens’ portrayal is a bit on the playful side at times, but he can be so heart-wrenching when the moments require him to be. I just rewatched bits of it recently and it always breaks my heart!

5 | Gold Digger (2019) – Amazon Prime

Directed by Marnie Dickens

A show about a wealthy older woman who falls in love with a younger man can easily be cheesy under less capable hands. But the performances, writing and direction made this one an intriguing and emotional one. I love Julia Ormond as the older woman and Ben Barnes is appropriately alluring as the enigmatic younger lover. Sebastian Armesto and Alex Jennings are memorable in the supporting roles.

6 | Beecham House (2019) – PBS Masterpiece

Created by Gurinder Chadha

I LOVE this series but so bummed it didn’t get renewed 😦 Set in New Delhi mansion at the cusp of the 19th Century. It’s created by the same director of Bride & Prejudice which I absolutely love, and the protagonist John Beecham is Tom Bateman, an actor I’ve been championing on this blog whose work I’d love to see more of. If you love period dramas with kind of an upstairs/downstairs relationship between the masters and the servants, kind of like Downton Abbey, then I highly recommend this one!

7 | Killing Eve (2018) – AMC

Created by Phoebe Waller-Bridge

There’s not a better duo in a thriller series than Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer! The two have such a fun chemistry and the tone is delightfully humorous despite the violent premise. Filled with thrilling cat-and-mouse games and witty dialog, and a lot of the series directors are women, too! I still need to catch up with the latest season though.

8 Westworld (2016) – HBO Max

Created by Lisa Joy & Jonathan Nolan

I’ve dedicated an entire blog post for season 2 recently and it’s till one of my favorite sci-fi shows. Westworld truly is one of the most bizarre, inventive, meta, enthralling, and addictive shows I’ve ever had the privilege of watching. The phenomenal cast, production design, action set pieces, score, etc. are top notch. 

9 | The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2017) – Amazon Prime

Created by Amy Sherman-Palladino

I love the premise of a housewife who wants to branch out as a stand-up comic. Rachel Brosnahan is fabulous in the lead, and the set design + clothes are a lot fun to look at. Love Alex Borstein here too as the tough talking friend-turned-manager. I love shows that highlights a woman’s passion to broaden her horizon, no matter how seemingly crazy that idea is to most people.

10 | Call My Agent! (2015) – Netflix

Created by Fanny Herrero

If you haven’t watched this French comedy-drama series on Netflix, well drop everything and binge it now! So far there are only four seasons, but I’m desperately hoping there’ll be a 5th one! The characters are all so fun to watch, whether the agents or the clients, filled with hilarious and crazy shenanigans. I LOVE all the regular cast, plus it’s fun to see the real stars like Isabelle Adjani, Juliette Binoche, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Jean Reno and most recently, Sigourney Weaver. Apparently there’s a British version that’s coming to Amazon Prime soon called Ten Percent. Hopefully it can live up to this French version!

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Shows by women that’s been recommended to me… hopefully I can get to them soon!

This Way Up

On The Verge

Good Girls

Unorthodox

Normal People

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Have you seen any of these series? Feel free to recommend a show in the comments!

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