Netflix is the home of one of the most creative sci-fi thriller series in recent years, and subscribers who have not yet checked it out can do so through a weekend binge, as the show easily lends itself to it. Netflix is one of the biggest streaming services in the world, which means it has found success with many genres.
That said, many of Netflix’s best TV shows come from two genres: Sci-Fi and Thriller. As Netflix subscribers can attest to, the genres have led to both surprising Netflix Original series and adaptations of beloved franchises. For instance, Black Mirror, Stranger Things, You, His & Hers, The Night Agent, The Lincoln Lawyer, and many more come from those genres. Most Netflix subscribers love them.
There is a reason for that, as they lend themselves well to the streaming format. After all, Netflix, Apple TV, HBO Max, and other streamers have been responsible for increasing the CGI budget of sci-fi shows, allowing them to craft immersive worlds, advanced technology, and more. As for thrillers, detective and crime stories with a dark tone, an intriguing mystery, and plot twists make for the ultimate binges.
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🎭Squid GamePlayer 456
👑The CrownLong live the Queen
🕸WednesdayNevermore Academy
🌹BridgertonDearest readers
01
Squid Game shattered records on launch in 2021, becoming Netflix’s biggest-ever series debut. Hwang Dong-hyuk’s South Korean thriller centres on a desperate gambler named Seong Gi-hun. What is his player number?
✓ Correct! Gi-hun is Player 456 — the last number drawn. Kang Sae-byeok (the North Korean defector) is 067, Cho Sang-woo (the Stanford-educated finance crook) is 218, and the mysterious elderly Oh Il-nam is 001. Squid Game became Netflix’s first show to hit #1 in every country it launched in, amassing over 1.6 billion hours watched in its first month alone.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is 456. Gi-hun’s number is the very last of the 456 players. 067 is Sae-byeok the defector, 218 is Sang-woo the Stanford grad, and 001 is the mysterious old man Oh Il-nam whose identity becomes the series’ biggest reveal. Squid Game became Netflix’s most-watched launch ever, hitting #1 in 94 countries.
02
The Tim Burton-directed Addams Family spin-off set at Nevermore Academy became Netflix’s second-biggest English-language debut in 2022 and launched a TikTok dance craze. Which young actress plays the deadpan title character?
✓ Correct! Jenna Ortega — a Disney Channel graduate and indie-horror favourite (X, Scream VI) — took the role Christina Ricci made iconic in the 1990s films and made it entirely her own. Her now-famous cello-accompanied dance scene became an overnight TikTok phenomenon, and her performance earned Wednesday two Emmy nominations despite airing mid-season.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Jenna Ortega. Millie Bobby Brown is Eleven on Stranger Things, Sadie Sink plays Max Mayfield (also Stranger Things), and Maya Hawke plays Robin. Ortega’s deadpan Wednesday Addams — and her viral cello-dance scene — turned the show into a global phenomenon in late 2022.
03
In 2013, Netflix released a dark political thriller starring Kevin Spacey as a ruthless congressman breaking the fourth wall. It became the first major streaming original to land a Primetime Emmy nomination and effectively invented prestige streaming TV. Which show was it?
✓ Correct! House of Cards — adapted by Beau Willimon from the 1990 BBC series — became Netflix’s first prestige original and proved a streaming service could go toe-to-toe with HBO. Kevin Spacey’s Frank Underwood and his asides to camera defined early streaming TV. Orange Is the New Black followed months later in July 2013 and became Netflix’s longest-running original at the time.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is House of Cards (February 2013). Orange Is the New Black launched five months later (July 2013), Arrested Development’s Netflix revival came in May 2013, and Hemlock Grove was a horror effort the same spring. House of Cards was the flagship — the first streaming original to earn a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series.
04
Peter Morgan’s The Crown famously recast its entire ensemble every two seasons to age the royal family. After Claire Foy played Queen Elizabeth II in seasons 1-2, which Oscar-winning actress took the crown for seasons 3-4?
✓ Correct! Olivia Colman — fresh off her Best Actress Oscar for The Favourite — played the Queen across seasons 3 and 4, covering the late 1960s through the early Thatcher years. Imelda Staunton took over for seasons 5-6, Helena Bonham Carter played Princess Margaret in seasons 3-4, and Gillian Anderson stole the show as Margaret Thatcher in season 4.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Olivia Colman. Imelda Staunton took over for the final two seasons (5-6). Helena Bonham Carter played the chain-smoking Princess Margaret during seasons 3-4 alongside Colman. Gillian Anderson delivered an Emmy-winning Margaret Thatcher in season 4. Colman anchored the show’s middle era fresh off her 2019 Oscar win.
05
The Duffer Brothers’ 1980s nostalgia juggernaut sees Eleven and the gang battle inter-dimensional horrors from a portal beneath the town’s Hawkins National Laboratory. In which fictional US town and state is the series set?
✓ Correct! Hawkins, Indiana — a fictional Midwestern small town that became one of TV’s most iconic settings. The Duffer Brothers chose Indiana for its unassuming, ordinary-America vibe, making the supernatural chaos feel more jarring. Derry is Stephen King’s It setting, Hill Valley is from Back to the Future, and Twin Peaks is David Lynch’s famous town.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Hawkins, Indiana. Derry, Maine is the fictional town from Stephen King’s It. Hill Valley is Marty McFly’s home in Back to the Future. Twin Peaks, Washington is David Lynch’s famous fictional town. Hawkins is The Duffer Brothers’ deliberately ordinary Midwestern setting — the flat, unassuming backdrop that makes Vecna’s horrors hit harder.
06
Netflix’s Regency romance juggernaut — based on Julia Quinn’s novels and famous for its colour-blind casting, string-quartet pop covers, and narrated gossip column — is produced by which prolific showrunner’s production banner?
✓ Correct! Shonda Rhimes — the creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal — produces Bridgerton through her Shondaland banner as the first major fruit of her massive 2017 Netflix deal. Chris Van Dusen created the show, but Shondaland’s signature ensemble-romance DNA is all over it. Julian Fellowes did Downton Abbey, Ryan Murphy did Monster/Dahmer, and Jenji Kohan did Orange Is the New Black.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Shonda Rhimes (Shondaland). Ryan Murphy produces true-crime anthologies like Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Julian Fellowes is the Downton Abbey/Gilded Age creator — a different period drama entirely. Jenji Kohan is behind Orange Is the New Black and Weeds. Bridgerton was the first big payoff of Rhimes’ nine-figure Netflix deal.
07
La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) became a global phenomenon on Netflix after a modest Spanish TV debut — partly thanks to its gang’s instantly recognisable red jumpsuits paired with a mask of which famous figure?
✓ Correct! The Salvador Dalí mask — with its upturned moustache — became the show’s defining visual alongside the red jumpsuits, a nod to Spanish artistic rebellion and surrealist individuality. It inspired protest iconography worldwide, from Lebanon to France. The original Antena 3 version underperformed; Netflix acquired it in 2017, re-edited it, and turned it into a global sensation.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Salvador Dalí. Guy Fawkes is the V for Vendetta mask that Anonymous adopted. Che Guevara is a common revolutionary image but not the heist crew’s mask. Picasso is a frequent wrong answer given he’s the more globally-known Spanish artist — but the Dalí mask, with its iconic moustache, is the one fused forever with Money Heist’s red jumpsuits.
08
Netflix’s 2020 limited series about a Cold War-era chess prodigy named Beth Harmon caused a global surge in chess-set sales and was one of the streamer’s most-watched shows that year. Who played Beth?
✓ Correct! Anya Taylor-Joy — already a cult favourite from The Witch and Emma — broke out globally as Beth Harmon, winning the Golden Globe for Best Actress. The Queen’s Gambit pulled 62 million households in its first 28 days and caused such a chess-boom that Chess.com and retailers ran out of sets. It also made Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel a surprise bestseller almost 40 years later.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Anya Taylor-Joy. Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Oppenheimer), Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird), and Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People, Where the Crawdads Sing) are all frequent competitors in similar roles. Taylor-Joy’s Beth Harmon earned her a Golden Globe, a SAG Award, and turned Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel into a sudden bestseller.
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Platinum subscriber — or still on the free trial?
Well, Bodies happens to be the perfect mix of both, with the Netflix sci-fi thriller series serving as a mind-bending story. The show, which was released in 2023, ran for only one season, with eight episodes that slowly unraveled one of the streaming service’s most well-crafted mysteries. Now, three years later, it stands as the perfect weekend binge on Netflix for new viewers.
Netflix’s Bodies Is A Mind-Bending Sci-Fi Thriller Series
Bodies is the type of Netflix show for those who enjoy stories where the initial reveal seems impossible, with a slow-burn narrative that takes its time revealing the clues to the show’s secrets. As such, if you enjoyed watching Netflix shows like Dark, Black Mirror, 1899, 3 Body Problem, and other similar projects, then you will probably have a good time with Bodies. The Netflix sci-fi thriller’s setup is that the same body shows up across four different timelines at the same place, with different detectives in 1890, 1941, 2023, and 2053 investigating the same murder, which should be impossible.
As the show goes on, the investigations begin to connect, painting a complex picture of what exactly is in play here. The Netflix sci-fi thriller series’ cast features names like Stephen Graham (Adolescence), Shira Haas (Captain America: Brave New World), Jacob Fortune-Lloyd (The Great), and more. The British mystery series holds a high 81% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 27 reviews, which handed the show the coveted Certified Fresh label on the platform. Bodies is one of the most creative shows on the streamer, and it stands as one of Netflix’s best limited series.
Why Bodies Is The Perfect Netflix Weekend Binge
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There are many factors that make Bodies one of the Netflix shows that viewers will want to finish in a single weekend. Given the mind-bending nature of its mystery, Bodies is a show meant to be devoured, and as is usually done on Netflix, all of its episodes were released on the same day, making it a must-binge from the start. Additionally, Bodies is a limited series, which means viewers only need to finish its eight episodes to get the whole story, without having multiple seasons to catch up or to wait for new episodes to be released.
Bodies‘ eight episodes range from 55 minutes to 1 hour and 1 minute. As such, the Netflix series can be finished in around 7.6 hours. That is too much for most viewers in terms of a one-night binge. While that feat is possible, those who wish not to do so in one sitting could easily finish the mystery series over a couple of days on the weekend. After you start the first episode of Bodies, there is really no going back, as the Netflix sci-fi thriller series hooks viewers early.
