7 Shows Like ‘Tell Me Lies’ to Watch While You Wait for Season 3
If you’re still reeling from the “Tell Me Lies” Season 2 finale, it might be time to time to turn your attention to some other equally as dramatic series while you wait for Season 3.
While “Tell Me Lies” hasn’t received the official Season 3 greenlight from Hulu, showrunner Meaghan Oppenheimer already has ideas for a third installment, which she hopes will include more of the 2015 storyline.
“I would definitely like to see more of 2015,” Oppenheimer told TheWrap. “I know what happens to Lucy and Stephen’s relationship — I know what their final breakup in college is, and how that very permanently damages her and sets her up to be the person we meet in 2015 and I have some ideas for what would happen, but … once we get into the room, ideas change and morph and grow.”
In the meantime, if you’re looking for a similarly soapy and high-stakes drama, “Pretty Little Liars,” “You” and “The Affair” might be next up on your viewing list, or you could opt for something a little bit less toxic with “Normal People” or “The O.C.”
Keep on reading to get the lowdown on the seven shows you should watch that might scratch the “Tell Me Lies” itch.
“Pretty Little Liars”
If your favorite part of “Tell Me Lies” is tracing the ripple effects of Macy’s death and how that and other secrets spiraled out of control, it might be time to revisit a classic soapy teen drama like “Pretty Little Liars,” where secrets and betrayal are everywhere you look. Just like how Stephen exploits his friends secrets for his own gain, the liars (played by Troian Bellisario, Ashley Benson, Lucy Hale and Shay Mitchell) are tormented by an anonymous antagonist who goes by “A,” and uses the teenage girls’ deepest secrets — from illicit affairs and family infidelity to illegal activity — against them at their lowest moments. Like “Tell Me Lies,” “Pretty Little Liars” also offers a built out ensemble of characters with questionable motives with secrets and relationship woes of their own. – Loree Seitz
“You”
Stephen DeMarco and Joe Goldberg wouldn’t necessarily get along, but they sure would have to respect each other’s game. Where Stephen is a merciless manipulator and social climber — and seemingly pretty self-aware when it comes to how no-good he is for the people around him — Joe is a more romantic sort, repeatedly pulled into his own personal delulu-land where love (as he imagines and defines it) comes before anything else, including the lives of the people around him. More outright comedic than “Tell Me Lies,” “You” excels when it’s satirizing the wealthy and privileged, from a bookstore in Brooklyn to the suburbs… all the way to a university in London. But it’s got all the steamy-meets-queasy appeal that makes “Tell Me Lies” so impossible to resist.
“Normal People”
Just as Lucy and Stephen are drawn back together each and every time (see: the Season 2 finale), so are “Normal People’s” Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Connell (Paul Mescal), except in a much less toxic way. If you’re looking for a break from the toxicity and backstabbing found in “Tell Me Lies,” “Normal People” provides just as much yearning and longing that might actually be more satisfying given Marianne and Connell’s pure intentions and love for one another. What gets in the way, however, is miscommunications and misunderstandings that weave their way from their high school crushes through their time at university and into young adulthood. — LS
“Gossip Girl”
Stephen’s schemes of holding onto secrets to pounce at just the right time is right out of the playbook of the Upper East Side elite teens in “Gossip Girl,” where queen bees Serena (Blake Lively) and Blair (Leighton Meester) take punches at each other to sabotage their love lives, friendships and even professional futures. Serena and Blair definitely have more love for one another than Stephen and Lucy, whose relationship is built solely off of lies and revenge, with Chuck (Ed Westwick) coming the closest to Stephen-levels of psychotic behavior. As viewers are plunged into the extravagant lifestyles of New York City’s most wealthy family, “Gossip Girl” gives a bit of escapism, with betrayals and secrets amped up so much that they’re almost campy. — LS
“The Affair”
If you’re looking for more steamy romance, deceit and betrayal, “The Affair” has you covered. Showtime’s intense, provocative romantic drama stars Ruth Wilson (“His Dark Materials) as waitress Alison Lockhart and Dominic West (“The Crown”) as struggling novelist Noah Solloway, who spark up an illicit affair that threatens to bring both of their marriages — and lives — crashing down around them with extreme consequences. Told through the different perspectives of both the cheaters and, eventually, their spouses (played by Maura Tierney and Joshua Jackson), “The Affair” offers more psychological torment and thrilling romance for fans of “Tell Me Lies” who want another look at the dark side of love. — HF
“The O.C.”
Set in the upper classes of Orange County, California, “The O.C.” sees sun-kissed teens testing their boundaries and loyalties, with a bit less malevolence than the characters in “Tell Me Lies.” Out of all the characters in “The O.C.” no one would fit into “Tell Me Lies” better than Marissa Cooper (Mischa Barton), whose tendency to fit herself in bad situations — from overdosing in Tijuana to getting involved with a psychotic friend while dating Ryan — fits right into Lucy’s M.O. of pursuing what might actually be worst for her in the moment. Plus, Ben McKenzie, Adam Brody, Rachel Bilson and Peter Gallagher add some lightness and humor to this 2000s classic. — LS
“Interview With a Vampire”
Admittedly, this one is a curve ball, but hear me out. If what you’re craving is more toxic seduction and torrential romance, and you don’t mind a bit of bloodshed and genre storytelling in the mix, “Interview With the Vampire” is a surprisingly good fit for fans of “Tell Me Lies.” Faithfully adapted from Anne Rice’s iconic vampire novel series while also paving its own path, AMC’s series is full of the kind of gasp-worthy twists of the knife between friends, lovers and enemies that make “Tell Me Lies” so addictive — they just happen to be between vampires and span centuries instead of a few years. Every bit as lusty and twisty as “Tell Me Lies,” “Interview With the Vampire” is also told across several nonlinear timelines through multiple perspectives, with such shocking secrets, betrayals and dastardly deeds, they would even make Stephen blush. — HF
