Television series

The Mole

Name: The Mole
Genre: Adventure, Mystery
Released: 2022
Cast: Alex Wagner, Ari Shapiro

Other titles called The Mole: the 2000 series (Seven Network).

The Mole drops twelve strangers into high-stakes challenges where they're racing against time and each other to earn money—while one person sabotages everything. It's a psychological game show that transforms ordinary people into amateur detectives, paranoid allies, and strategic thinkers. Pure, unfiltered social chaos played for real stakes. Perfect for anyone who loves watching smart people crack under pressure.

TVMaze rating

3.5

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love watching strangers reason under pressure, sifting small behavioural tells and arguing over suspects while the tension builds through every challenge.

Skip it if you want a tight scripted mystery, since the puzzle is really a social game and the challenges can feel like filler between accusations.

What it asks of you: Roughly forty-five minutes an episode across twenty episodes, so a long commitment, but it moves briskly and rewards close attention to who says what.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Survivor2000

The gold standard of social elimination games. Survivor does what The Mole does but stretched across 39 days on an island: you're voting people out, reading intentions, and managing both survival and strategy simultaneously.

But The format is exhausting by design. Episodes stretch long, seasons blur together, and newer editions lean heavily on returnee players rather than fresh casting.

The Circle2020

Contestants live in isolation competing for money while one person infiltrates as a fake player. Like The Mole, it's entirely built on deception, paranoia, and trying to read people through fragmented information and strategic messaging.

But The emotional stakes feel thinner. Everyone's acutely aware they're on camera playing a game, which undercuts the raw tension that makes The Mole so compelling.

The Traitors2022

Dutch reality format where three 'traitors' secretly sabotage challenges while players try to identify them. The banishment scenes are absolutely brutal—genuine tears and betrayal. It's The Mole but with the pressure turned up several notches.

But Subtitled versions can feel sluggish if you're used to the brisk pace of hosted English-language shows. The format also repeats more obviously across episodes.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Mole

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Rashomon1950

Both operate on the principle that reading people's stories and contradictions is how you find the truth. The saboteur's lies in The Mole are what Rashomon is built entirely around.

A crime is described four different ways by four different witnesses, each account contradicting the others. It's The Mole's core insight—you're watching people lie, contradict themselves, and reveal themselves through what they say—but as a perfect 90-minute mystery.

But It's a 1950 Japanese film in black and white that moves slowly. The philosophical meditation on truth won't satisfy anyone wanting fast-paced elimination drama.

Are You the One?2014

Twenty singles are matched by producers; they have to figure out the ten perfect pairs while eliminating imposters. The mystery-solving element is sharper here—there's an actual puzzle to crack, not just a person to identify.

But The show is built partly on dating-show melodrama and manufactured interpersonal conflict. If you want pure strategic gameplay without the romantic subplot noise, this dilutes it.

Physical: 1002023

A hundred of South Korea's fittest people compete through grueling physical challenges with one eliminated each round. The athleticism is genuinely stunning, and unlike The Mole, you're rooting for people partly because they're remarkable at what they do.

But There's no mystery element or social game—it's pure physical competition. If you loved The Mole specifically for the psychological sabotage and mind games, this misses that entirely.

The Floor2024

A game show where contestants answer trivia questions to claim squares on a grid, competing against a team of champions. It's brisk, smart, and rewards both knowledge and strategic positioning rather than just being first.

But There's no elimination drama or personal stakes. It's a solid game show, but it lacks the social tension and paranoia that makes The Mole magnetic.

Love Is Blind2020

Strangers get engaged without seeing each other, then navigate real relationships and commitment. Like The Mole, it's built on reading people with incomplete information and high-stakes vulnerability, but the game here is actually emotional.

But It's a dating show first and a social experiment second. The manufactured drama and producer interference undercuts the authenticity that makes genuine elimination games compelling.

Squid Game2021

Hundreds of desperate people compete in children's games with lethal consequences. It has The Mole's paranoia and alliance-building, but rooted in real financial desperation and moral weight.

But It's heavy—genuinely disturbing in places. If you want the fun of watching people strategize, not the crushing weight of survival stakes, this goes somewhere much darker.

The Traitors2023

It's the same game as The Mole but with the betrayal element weaponized even further—less mystery-solving, more pure social warfare and alliance collapse.

Australia's take on the format runs shorter and meaner than most versions. The sabotage is vicious, the cash prizes enormous relative to Australian salaries, and the betrayals feel genuinely personal rather than performative.

But If you've already watched other Traitors versions, the format becomes predictable. The Australian accent and cultural references may also feel unfamiliar if you're not in the region.

The Midnight Gospel2020

Both are built on people revealing themselves in high-pressure scenarios. The Mole does it through paranoia and strategy; Midnight Gospel does it through philosophical honesty. Both are ultimately about watching people become real under pressure.

An animated miniseries where a man travels through dying worlds having profound conversations with strangers about meaning, death, and connection. Each episode is 25 minutes of genuine, vulnerable human dialogue animated gorgeously.

But It's deceptive. The trippy animation and sci-fi premise suggest comedy; the show is actually a meditation on mortality. Some find it beautiful; others find it aggressively heavy-handed.