With Season 3 of The Gilded Age and Season 2 of The Buccaneers coming to their ends next week, viewers may be in search of more period drama stories to fill the void while waiting for Season 4 of The Gilded Age. Both the films and shows listed below can also help those get excited for Season 4 of Bridgerton, which is currently in production.
Not to mention, a refresher of the 1995 and 2005 film adaptations of Jane Austen’s works Sense & Sensibility and Pride & Prejudice might be needed, with remakes of both stories on the way.
Find a list of the best period dramas — which we will add to from time to time — below:
1. ‘The Gilded Age’ – HBO Max
Creator of Downton Abbey Julian Fellowes has tackled a different part of history with The Gilded Age, Season 3 of which is currently rolling out on HBO and HBO Max. The show takes place at the turn of the century in which English and American culture clashed with old-money New Yorkers having to make way for those with new money. Descendants of the English include Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski) and Ada Brooke (Cynthia Nixon), who witness the arrival of the Russell family, led by dynamic duo George (Morgan Spector) and Bertha (Carrie Coon). George, a railroad tycoon, matches his wife Bertha’s social ambition as they climb the ranks of old-money society, governed by Donna Murphy’s Mrs. Astor and Nathan Lane’s Ward McAllister. The show has been renewed for a fourth season as well.
2. ‘The Buccaneers’ – Apple TV+
Apple TV+’s The Buccaneers is also set during The Gilded Age, but it involves young American women trying to make their marriage matches in England. Season 2 of the series, loosely inspired by Edith Wharton’s final, unfinished book, concluded in August 2025. The show stars Kristine Frøseth, Matthew Broome, Guy Remmers, Alisha Boe, Josie Totah, Imogen Waterhouse, Aubri Ibrag and Christina Hendricks, with Leighton Meester joining in as a key character in Season 2.
Set to a soundtrack of mostly women musicians, The Buccaneers features a marriage market and debutante ball scene similar to that of Bridgerton, with a love triangle between Frøseth’s Nan and Remmer’s Theo, Duke of Tintagel, and Broome’s Guy Remmers. Guy and Nan had quite a meet cute, which is referenced in the second season, but Theo provides her the opportunity to have great social power.
3. ‘Bridgerton’ – Netflix
Based on Julia Quinn’s best-selling novels, Bridgerton is a Regency era-set romance series that follows the titular family as each of the eight children pursue their match in the marriage market. The debutant ball thread connects Bridgerton to The Buccaneers, as do their modern soundtracks, but Bridgerton is known for its orchestral pop song covers while The Buccaneers contains mostly women artists.
4. ‘Downton Abbey’ – HBO Max (Series) & Netflix/Peacock (Films)
Before The Gilded Age, Julian Fellowes created Downton Abbey, set in the early 1900s. The show begins right at the sinking of The Titanic and continues through 1926, telling the stories of the aristocratic Crawley family and their downstairs servants. There are also several films in the universe of Downton Abbey from the 2019 installment to Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022). A third film, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale (2025) will release in September. The first film is streaming on Netflix, and the second on Peacock.
5. ‘Pride & Prejudice’ – HBO Max
Pride & Prejudice (2025), directed by Joe Wright re-entered theaters In April for its twentieth anniversary. Writers Deborah Moggach and Emma Thompson adapted to script based on Jane Austen’s beloved novel. Keira Knightly plays Elizabeth Bennett, and Matthew MacFadyen portrays Mr. Darcy. The late Donald Sutherland portrayed Mr. Bennett, and Brenda Blethyn played Mrs. Bennett. Rosamund Pike, Jena Malone and Carey Mulligan played Elizabeth’s sisters Jane, Lydia and Kitty Bennett, and Talulah Riley played Mary Bennett.The film also starred Simon Woods as Mr. Bingley, Kelly Reilly as Caroline Bingley and Tom Hollander as Mr. Collins. Rupert Friend also played Mr. Wickham. Pride & Prejudice is getting the television series adaptation treatment from Netflix as well. Pride & Prejudice is currently available to stream on HBO Max.
6. ‘Sense & Sensibility’ – For Rent
Sense & Sensibility, written by and starring Emma Thompson, arrived ten years before Pride & Prejudice. Directed by Ang Lee, the film follows the Dashwood family of Jane Austen’s novel with the same title. Thompson portrays Elinor Dashwood, and Kate Winslet stars as Marianne Dashwood. Harriet Walter portrays Fanny Dashwood, and Gemma Jones plays Mrs. Dashwood, second wife to Tom Wilkinson’s late John Dashwood, who leaves her and her three daughters poor. James Fleet also plays John Dashwood, and Hugh Grant stars as Edward Ferrars. Sense & Sensibility is also getting another film adaptation treatment starring Daisy Edgar-Jones, Esmé Creed Miles and more from Focus Features. The film is currently available to rent on Prime Video, Apple TV and more.
7. ‘Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story’ – Netflix
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story is a spinoff of Netflix’s Bridgerton, both creatd by Shonda Rhimes. The prequel story stars India Amarteifio as the younger version of Golda Rosheuvel’s Queen Charlotte. Corey Mylchreest stars as the young King George.
Bridgerton cast who carry over aside from Rosheuvel include Ruth Gemmell as Lady Violet Bridgerton and Adjoah Ando as Lady Agatha Danbury. Arsema Thomas portrays a younger version of Lady Danbury.
8. ‘Sanditon’ – PBS Masterpiece
Sanditon is an adaptation of Jane Austen’s final novel, which was written months before she died in 1817. Rose Williams stars as Charlotte Heywood, and Theo James stars as Sidney Parker. Creatd by Andrew Davies, the show ran three seasons, and it also starred Georgiana Lambe, Kris Marshall, Kate Ashfield, Anne Reid, Jack Fox, Ben Lloyd-Hughes, Kevin Eldon, Turlough Convery, Charlotte Spencer and more. Williams’ Heywood moves the plot forward because she relocates from her rural home to the titular fishing village that wants to rebrand as a seaside resort.
9. ‘The Tudors’ – Prime Video
The Tudors follows King Henry VIII (Jonathan Rhyse Meyers) as he influences marriage, the church and the world. The king’s scandalous life is spotlighted through affairs and his obsession with securing a male heir to the throne. The series also starred Henry Cavill in the role of Charles Brandon, Anthony Brophy as Ambassador Bishop Chapuys, Thomas Cromwell as James Frain, Sarah Bolger as Mary Tudor, Natalie Dormer as Anne Boleyn and more. All four seasons of the show are available to stream on Prime Video.
10. ‘Mr. Malcolm’s List’ – Kanopy, Hoopla, Fandango with Ads
Directed by Emma Holly Jones from an adaptation of Suzanne Allain’s novel Mr. Malcolm’s List, the 2022 film is available to watch via Kanopy, Hoopla and Fandango with Ads as well as for rent on Prime Video, Apple TV, Spectrum and more. The almost 2-hour film stars Freida Pinto as Selina Dalton, Sope Dirisu as Mr. Malcolm, Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Lord Cassidy, Ashley Park as Gertie Covington, Zawe Ashton as Julia Thistlewaite, Sianad Gregory as Molly, Theo James as Captain Henry Ossory and more.
