Source: HBO / HBO
It’s Women’s History Month and not only are we celebrating the historical matriarchs who walked so we could run, we’re shining a light on the strong women of today. It might not seem important, but entertainment plays an essential part in how we see our world and the people in it. Michaela Coel, for example, used her art to spread awareness about sexual assault and consent in the critically acclaimed series I May Destroy You. Issa Rae’s Insecure addresses a range of topics, while making awkward Black girls feel at home in a way we never have.
Seeing women taking the lead, in any role, is crucial to our progression as a society, as we learn to truly love and appreciate women for the complex and beautiful beings we are. That said, here are 8 must-watch shows, starring strong women leads. From comedy to drama, there’s a little bit of everything on our list, complete with each show’s official synopsis and trailer. Enjoy!
Behind Her Eyes
Simona Brown plays Louise, a single mother who has an affair with her psychiatrist boss David (Tom Bateman). Her life takes a strange turn when she later befriends his wife Adele (Eve Hewson), and she finds “herself caught in a web of secrets and lies where nothing is what it seems.” – Netflix
Killing Eve
Eve is a bored, whip-smart security services operative whose desk-bound job doesn’t fulfill her fantasies of being a spy. Villanelle is a talented killer, who clings to the luxuries her violent job affords her. These two fierce women, equally obsessed with each other, will go head to head in an epic game of cat and mouse, toppling the typical spy-action thriller. – IMDB
Blood & Water
Set in the surroundings of Parkhurst College, the prestigious inner-city school for elite scholars and academic overachievers. Blood & Water follows the exploits of 16-year-old Puleng Khumalo, as she engineers her transfer to the school to investigate the 17-year-old cold case of the abducted-at-birth older sister she’s never met. – Netflix
A Handmaid’s Tale
A woman forced into sexual servitude struggles to survive in a terrifying, totalitarian society. – Hulu
I May Destroy You
A fearless, frank and provocative half-hour series exploring the question of sexual consent and where, in the new landscape of dating and relationships, the distinction between liberation and exploitation lies. Set in London, where gratification is only an app away, the story centers on Arabella (Michaela Coel), a carefree, self-assured Londoner with a group of great friends, a boyfriend in Italy, and a burgeoning writing career. But when her drink is spiked with a date-rape drug, she must question and rebuild every element of her life. – HBO
Big Little Lies
Based on Liane Moriarty’s bestselling book, and featuring Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern, Shailene Woodley, Zoe Kravitz and Meryl Streep, the darkly comedic Big Little Lies tells the tale of three mothers whose seemingly perfect lives unravel to the point of murder. – HBO
Insecure
Creator Issa Rae (The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl) stars as Issa Dee, who struggles to navigate the tricky professional and personal terrain of Los Angeles along with her best friend Molly (Yvonne Orji). – HBO
Ginny & Georgia
Angsty and awkward fifteen year old Ginny Miller often feels more mature than her thirty year old mother, the irresistible and dynamic Georgia Miller. After years on the run, Georgia desperately wants to put down roots in picturesque New England and give her family something they’ve never had… a normal life. But it’s not all carpool and Kombucha as Georgia’s past threatens her and her family’s new way of life… and Georgia will do anything to protect her family. – Netflix
Lovecraft Country
Based on Matt Ruff’s novel of the same name, Lovecraft Country follows Atticus Freeman (Jonathan Majors) as he meets up with his friend Letitia (Jurnee Smollett) and his uncle George (Courtney B. Vance) to embark on a road trip across 1950s Jim Crow America in search of his missing father (Michael Kenneth Williams). This begins a struggle to survive and overcome both the racist terrors of white America and the terrifying monsters that could be ripped from a Lovecraft paperback. – HBO
Westworld
Watchmen
Set in an alternate history where masked vigilantes are treated as outlaws, Watchmen embraces the nostalgia of the original groundbreaking graphic novel of the same name while attempting to break new ground of its own. – HBO
