Television series

The Rain

Name: The Rain
Genre: Drama, Science Fiction, Thriller
Released: 2018
Cast: Alba August, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Lucas Lynggaard Tønnesen, Lukas Løkken, Johannes Kuhnke

Post-apocalyptic
Very dark

A post-apocalyptic thriller about siblings navigating a virus-ravaged Scandinavia with a ragtag group of young survivors. The Rain is tense and intimate by turns—less about spectacle than the slow erosion of trust and the impossible choices survival demands. Ideal for those who prefer character-driven dystopias to explosive action.

TVMaze rating

3.3

If you liked this

The Last of Us2023

HBO's adaptation captures the same blend of intimate human drama and existential dread, following characters through a hostile world where emotional bonds matter more than gunfire.

But It's considerably slower-paced and more focused on grief than on plot momentum, which can feel heavy-handed if you want propulsive entertainment.

Dark2017

A similarly ambitious European sci-fi series that rewards close attention and trusts its audience to follow complex mythology. Features the same atmosphere of mystery and claustrophobia.

But The plot becomes increasingly baroque and difficult to follow by season two; some find it more interested in being clever than in emotional clarity.

Snowpiercer2020

Another claustrophobic survival story where a sealed group must reckon with hierarchy and betrayal. It's grittier and more visceral, with strong performances and genuine moral complexity.

But The social commentary occasionally overwhelms character development, and it leans more toward action than The Rain's quieter tensions.

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

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Children of Men2006

Both understand that in a world ending, the smallest human act—protecting one person, keeping a promise—becomes the whole story.

A film of astonishing craft where a small group must protect one vulnerable person through a dying world. Like The Rain, it treats catastrophe as intimate and personal rather than spectacular.

But It's a 109-minute film, not a series—immersive but requiring sustained attention. Some find the handheld camera work disorienting, and the bleakness never relents.

Station Eleven2021

A post-plague narrative that prizes beauty and connection alongside catastrophe. Like The Rain, it understands that the real story is what people become when civilisation vanishes.

But It's deliberately meditative and often more interested in memory than plot; some viewers find it frustratingly slow.

Sweet Magnolias2020

If you connected with the cast dynamics and interpersonal drama in The Rain, this soap-like ensemble captures similar rhythms of loyalty tested and secrets unravelling within a tight group.

But It's set in contemporary South Carolina and entirely domestic—none of the apocalyptic stakes or genre framework that hooked you on The Rain.

Manifest2018

A mystery-box series where ordinary people find themselves in extraordinary circumstances and must solve an unfolding supernatural puzzle together, relying on each other in the process.

But The show prioritises mystery over logic; answers often feel arbitrary, and by later seasons, many viewers felt betrayed by the narrative choices.

The 1002014

Young survivors in a hostile world making brutal decisions. It has The Rain's willingness to kill characters and explore what survival costs morally, with high stakes throughout.

But The tone is more YA adventure than philosophical thriller, and some find the dialogue and plotting uneven across its long run.

Yellowjackets2021

A survival mystery with paranoia and group fracture at its core, alternating between past and present. It captures the dread of isolation and the damage secrets cause.

But It's deliberately opaque and puzzle-like; if you watch for clarity and resolution, you may find yourself frustrated.

Fringe2008

A science-fiction ensemble where a small group must confront terrifying threats while learning to function as a unit. It has mystery, strangeness, and genuine warmth between characters.

But It's American network television from 2008, which means it's more procedural and lighter in tone than the Scandinavian bleakness of The Rain.

The Beast2023

Both suggest that the real threat to a group isn't external danger but the darkness people carry with them—and that isolation reveals it.

A French folk-horror film about a group isolated by mysterious danger, forced to confront their own violence and desire. It's unsettling and strange in ways that reframe what survival means.

But It is elliptical and surreal, more interested in mood and symbol than plot. Some will find it pretentious or simply incomprehensible.