11 Unmissable Crime Dramas Coming In 2026 That Will Have You Completely Gripped

Nothing turns you on like a good crime drama – and luckily for fans of excellent TV, 2026 is going to be a bumper year. If you’re finishing your latest series and want to fill your sofa time, we’ve put together a list of the 11 most anticipated crime dramas coming in 2026.

On Netflix, BBC, ITV, Prime and Apple TV, there is a veritable feast of crime dramas arriving – both original and based on some of the best books around. We’ve got the return of Line of Duty, Nicole Kidman stepping into the role of an iconic crime character, and even a serious real-life-based drama based on a massive miscarriage of justice.

Whatever your fancy, there will be something to whet your appetite in this list of the best crime dramas of 2026.

‘Under the salt marsh’

Coming soon to Sky & Now TV (January 30), this is a crime drama featuring a multi-star cast. Yellowstone’s Kelly Reilly leads Rafe Spall, along with industry’s Harry Lotte and Sir Jonathan Pryce. Sky Under says about Salt Marsh: ‘Created, written and directed by Claire Oakley (Make Up), the six-part series begins as a once-in-a-generation storm hits the sea. Former detective turned teacher Jackie Ellis (Reilly) makes a shocking discovery that reopens the wounds of a three-year-old cold case that cost her both her career and her family’s trust. Forced to reconnect with her estranged police partner Eric Bull (Spall), Jackie is drawn back into an investigation that will shake Morpha Helen to the core. Together they must face a community shrouded in mystery and torn apart by grief before an approaching storm destroys the evidence forever.’ Count us out.

Watch on Sky and Now TV, 30 January.

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‘Scarpetta’

Patricia Cornwell fans will be thrilled to know that her famous medical examiner, Dr. Kay Scarpetta, will finally be coming to the screen – played by none other than Nicole Kidman. The show, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Bobby Cannavale and Ariana DeBose, is sure to garner plenty of attention when it airs on Prime in March. The streamer says: ‘With deft hands and haunted eyes, this incredible medical examiner is determined to become a voice for victims, expose a serial killer, and prove that her career-making case of 28 years ago isn’t ruining her. Set against the backdrop of modern forensic investigation, the series goes beyond the crime scene to explore the psychological complexities of both criminals and investigators, creating a multilayered thriller that examines the difficulties of pursuing justice at all costs.’

Watch it on Amazon Prime from March 11.

‘Missing’

We just got a trailer for this crime thriller starring Kaley Cuoco and Sam Claflin, but it looks right down our winding road. Amazon says of the plot: ‘When a couple’s trip to Paris takes a dark turn when her boyfriend Tom (Claflin) suddenly disappears from a train in the south of France, Alice (Cuoco) is caught in a web of intrigue and danger, and uncovers shocking secrets about the man she thought she knew.’ It’ll all go down at once, so set aside a weekend to enjoy it to the fullest.

Available on Amazon Prime from 27th February.

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‘Jo Nesbo’s Spy Hole’

Scandi crime lovers have been anticipating it for a while, and just before Christmas we got our first look at Netflix’s much-loved detective drama TV series, Jo Nesbø’s Detective Hole. There will be nine episodes, which will launch on March 26, and we’re promised a ‘serial killer mystery’. Netflix describes it as ‘a story of obsession, betrayal and the blurred lines between justice and revenge’. As Harry Hole faces off against his rival Tom Waller, audiences will be drawn into a game of cat and mouse where the stakes couldn’t be higher.’ Tobias Santelman will play the famous detective.

Watch it on Netflix from 26th March.

‘Imperfect Women’

The first look photo released in late December alone is enough to get us excited for this Apple TV thriller starring Elisabeth Moss, Kerry Washington, and Kate Mara. Apple says: ‘Based on the novel of the same name by Araminta Hall, Imperfect Women investigates a crime that shatters the lives of three women in the midst of a decades-long friendship. The unconventional thriller explores crime and revenge, love and betrayal and the compromises we make that change our lives irreversibly. As the investigation unfolds, so too does the truth about how even the closest friendships may not be what they seem.’

streaming on apple TV – The first two episodes will air on Wednesday, March 18, with new episodes airing every Wednesday thereafter until April 29.

‘I’ll find you’

Netflix’s love affair with Harlan Coben continues later this year. If you’ve already watched all the adaptations currently streaming (like the latest, Run Away, streaming now), get ready for I Will Find You. Based on the novel of the same name, the series will be US-based and star Sam Worthington, Severance’s Britt Lower and Milo Ventimiglia. The crime drama stars Worthington as David Burroughs, a man wrongfully sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his son, says Netflix’s Tudum. But when he receives news that his son may actually be alive, David must set out on a truth-finding mission that will take him out of prison and into a world of deception and despair.’

Coming to Netflix in 2o26.

‘cage’

Sheridan Smith and Michael Socha lead this BBC drama, whose premise is so good that you’ll be ready and waiting as soon as we get a release date. The BBC says: ‘When Leanne (Smith) and Matty (Socha) discover that they are both being robbed from the safe of the casino where they work, their lives are on a collision course; With each other, the local gangster they’re stealing from, and the police.’

Coming to BBC One in 2026.

‘Line of Duty’ series 7

The internet went into meltdown late last year when the BBC confirmed the news that none of us were expecting (since the previous ‘final episode’): there will be a seventh series of Line of Duty. The BBC says, ‘Series seven will begin with the disbandment of AC-12 and the renaming of the Inspectorate of Police Standards.’ He said the job ‘has never been so difficult, and, in this challenging environment, (the three) have been assigned the most sensitive case ever.’ With filming starting this spring, we’re postponing everything for a year-end release date.

Broadcast on BBC One, date TBD.

‘Trust me’

ITV’s Believe Me will tackle the horrific case of one of the most prolific sexual attackers in British history: John Worboys, focusing specifically on three of his victims. ITV says the drama starring Daniel Mayes will focus on the stories of two women who reported sexual assault by Worboys, and how the Metropolitan Police failed to fully investigate these women’s allegations, leaving them feeling they were not believed. Believe Me will explain how this left Worboys free to carry out attacks undetected for many years. ‘After his trial it was realized that he was linked to allegations of sexual crimes against more than a hundred women.’

Airing on ITV1 in 2026.

‘Good daughter’

Meghan Fahy and Rose Byrne star as sisters in this adaptation of Karin Slaughter’s novel of the same name, which is set to air on Sky and Now TV later this year. Sky says the sisters have ‘spent the last 20 years mending the lives that were broken by one night of violence.’ When another attack tears the small town of Pikeville apart, Charlotte, now a lawyer like her father, is the first witness on the scene. As the case unfolds and twists through painful memories and buried secrets, what emerges is not just a story of survival, but of the enduring relationship between a father and his daughters, and the complex bond between sisters.’

It is being shown on Sky and Now TV in 2026.

‘Went’

Gone promises to be a crime mystery that also includes ‘an intense exploration of trauma, faith and the legacy of elite institutions’. The plot certainly sounds appealing. ITV says: ‘Set against the backdrop of a prestigious private school, an eerie forest and the tranquil expanse of Bristol, Gone is a thrilling mystery centering on local headmaster Michael Pooley, played by David Morrissey, who becomes the prime suspect in the disappearance of his wife Sarah. A respected member of the community, Michael Polley is enigmatic and prefers order and precision in his working life. Until, that is, he encounters super bright, adventurous detective Annie Cassidy, played by Eve Miles, and an inevitable game of cat and mouse begins as she peels away his veneer in search of the truth.’

Being shown on ITV1 and ITVX in 2026.

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