Television series

The Audacity

The Audacity is a darkly comic drama about Silicon Valley's ego, ambition, and ethical blindspots. It follows a data-mining CEO navigating a world of billionaire visionaries, self-help gurus, and biohacked entrepreneurs, each convinced they're saving humanity while pursuing profit and power. Sharp, cynical, and pointed at the delusions we collectively enable.

TVMaze rating2.7

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Succession2018

Razor-sharp satire of power, succession, and the corrupting influence of massive wealth. Ensemble cast, intricate plotting, and dialogue that cuts like glass. If you love watching people with everything destroy themselves with ambition.

But Bleak and slow-burn; the satisfaction is mostly watching characters suffer, which works only if you're patient with that particular pleasure. Very long commitment.

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Halt and Catch Fire2014

A superior drama about ambition, innovation, and ego in the tech boom of the 1980s. Character-driven, gorgeously shot, and genuinely moving about the human cost of disruption and reinvention.

But Deliberately paced and introspective rather than sharply comedic. Takes its time and doesn't always reward impatience. Ended on a bittersweet note some found unsatisfying.

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The Morning Show2019

Inside-the-bubble drama about power, ambition, and moral compromise in a high-stakes industry. Sharp ensemble cast, slick production, and the same interest in how institutions protect their own.

But Occasionally veers into melodrama and self-importance. The satire can feel blunt compared to the sharp edge you might want. Some storylines feel like they're chasing headlines.

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HyperNormalisation2016

Both are deeply interested in how delusion and self-deception become systemic and profitable; Curtis shows you the machinery underneath the startup fantasy that The Audacity dramatizes.

Adam Curtis's hypnotic essay-film about how we've become trapped in a world of managed perception, corporate narratives, and collective delusion. Not a traditional story—it's a collage-argument that builds a genuinely unsettling thesis about the systems you're watching get satirized.

But No conventional narrative or characters; demands active attention and a tolerance for dense, meandering argument. Some find Curtis's delivery deadpan to the point of inaccessibility. Long and repetitive by design, which some experience as hypnotic and others as exhausting.

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More like this (8)

Veep2012

Relentlessly funny satire of ambition, ego, and the gap between public image and private chaos. Dense dialogue, perfectly calibrated performances, and an absolute commitment to the comedy of dysfunction.

But The humor is aggressive and sometimes cringe-heavy; the constant verbal sparring can exhaust rather than delight if you're not aligned with that register. Pretty cynical worldview throughout.

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Billions2016

High-stakes drama about power, money, and the cat-and-mouse game between a billionaire hedge-funder and federal prosecutors. Sleek, smart, and genuinely entertaining about greed and the systems that enable it.

But Peaks early and eventually loses the thread; later seasons lean too hard into wish-fulfillment fantasy. The tone can shift awkwardly between thriller and character study.

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Super Pumped2022

Dramatized history of Uber's founding, corruption, and the clash between Travis Kalanick's ambition and Silicon Valley's messianic delusions. Energetic, star-studded, and genuinely gripping about startup culture run amok.

But The dramatization sometimes oversimplifies complex situations. Can feel more like prestige showboating than deep engagement with the issues. A bit glossy for a story about real harm done.

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Severance2022

A thriller-drama that uses science fiction to anatomize corporate control, workplace alienation, and the systems designed to exploit workers. Beautiful production design and a genuine mystery that unfolds methodically.

But Deliberately oblique and withholding; can feel frustratingly slow if you want clear answers. Second season took years to arrive, and some viewers lost patience with the premise.

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The Dropout2022

Gripping dramatization of Elizabeth Holmes' Theranos fraud. Amanda Seyfried is magnetic as the charismatic entrepreneur, and it's a masterclass in how conviction and presentation can substitute for actual achievement in tech culture.

But Moves through a true story you might already know in detail. Occasionally plays it safer than it could; the satire sometimes softens into sympathetic portraiture.

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Made for Love2021

Dark comedy about escaping a controlling billionaire husband and rediscovering autonomy. Weird, inventive, and genuinely funny about power dynamics and the bizarre isolation of extreme wealth.

But Tonal whiplash between absurdist comedy and genuine darkness; not everyone vibes with that instability. Cult following rather than mainstream hit, and it got cancelled after two seasons.

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Damages2007

Both are fascinated by charismatic figures who've internalized the narrative that their ambition justifies their methods; both show how institutions enable and protect them.

Lean, efficient thriller about ambition, ruthlessness, and the moral compromises required to win. Non-linear structure keeps you off-balance, and Glenn Close is absolutely terrifying as a lawyer willing to destroy anyone in her path. Vindictive, smart, and genuinely suspenseful.

But Darker and more visceral than satirical; leans thriller over comedy. Later seasons dilute the focus and lose narrative control. Assumes you're comfortable watching people suffer consequences without redemptive arcs.

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American Psycho2000

Both examine how charisma and surface can substitute for substance; both are interested in the corruption that happens when a person becomes entirely a brand, with no interior life to ground them.

Pitch-black satire of ambition, status anxiety, and the emptiness behind the luxury surface. Darkly funny and genuinely disturbing, it's a portrait of a man so committed to a curated image that there's nothing underneath but hunger and rage.

But Violent and misogynistic by design; the satire doesn't excuse the content. Some read it as celebrating rather than critiquing the protagonist. Very much a film of its moment, and that moment was 1990s excess—can feel dated in its specific targets.

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