10 Best TV Shows Like Snowfall

If there are two subjects that have continued to exert a powerful hold on American TV, it’s drugs and crime. These two cultural and social phenomena have provided a great deal of fodder to the creative imagination, and this can be seen in the wide variety of series that have focused on one or the other (and sometimes both).

The series Snowfall is one of those series, and it focuses, in particular, on the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s and how it radically reshaped the culture of Los Angeles.

Godfather Of Harlem (2019 – ) Stream On Hulu

Forrest Whitaker is widely regarded as one of the best actors of his generation, and he has been in many great roles. One of his most prominent is in the series Godfather of Harlem, which focuses on the real-life figure of Bumpy Johnson, who attempts to regain control of his own neighborhood after time spent in prison.

Like Snowfall, which addresses the way that drugs affected the entire culture of Los Angeles, this series explores how a changing culture forces a man like Johnson to make political alliances — including one with Malcolm X — that contribute to the increasing social upheaval of his neighborhood.

The Wire (2002 – 2008) Stream On HBO Max

The Wire is rightly regarded as one of the best HBO series ever made. It is a searing look at the city of Baltimore and the various institutions that make the city work (or don’t) and it manages to be both a crime drama and yet something more, as well.

Because it features actors who weren’t particularly well known when the series started, it has a powerful authenticity, and it allows the viewer to understand the particular mechanisms that make a modern city function. It should particularly appeal to fans of Snowfall in that it takes a similarly expansive view of the ways that all of the various institutions of a given city have to contend with social problems, including drugs.

When They See Us (2019) Stream On Netflix

Ava DuVernay is one of those directors who is almost universally lauded in Hollywood, and she has shown time and again that she knows how to produce movies that are both great drama and powerful social commentary.

When They See Us is rightly regarded as one of her greatest triumphs, focusing as it does on the Central Park Five, a group of youths who were wrongly accused of rape. It’s a searing indictment of a criminal justice system that is very willing to persecute and imprison people of color. Just as Snowfall offers a searing (but at times oddly nostalgic look) at the 1980s and its particular milieu, so When They Se Us also shines an unflattering light on the way that the period was one in which rampant crime often led to the unfair victimization of the innocent.

Breaking Bad (2008 – 2013) Stream On Netflix

There are few series that are as highly regarded as Breaking Bad, which demonstrated just how powerful a figure the antihero had become in American popular culture. To this day, Walter White – the chemistry teacher who would go on to become a powerful drug maker and drug lord – is one of the paradigmatic examples of this figure.

What makes the series work, however, is how skillfully it immerses the viewer in the sinister world that Walter comes to inhabit as he gives in to the darkness in his soul. This show should be especially appealing to fans of Snowfall in that it manages to do two things simultaneously, showing not only the dark yet compelling persona of Walter White but also the perilous mechanics and systems that govern the illegal drug trade.

Ozark (2017 – ) Stream On Netflix

Though it hasn’t achieved quite the level of praise as Breaking Bad, Ozark, nevertheless, covers some similar territory. It focuses on the Byrdes, a couple who find themselves drawn into the dark, sinister, and dangerous world of drug dealing and money laundering.

Both Jason Bateman and Laura Linney deliver powerful performances as the married couple, allowing the viewer to see them as complicated people doing the best that they can to survive, even as they are forced to make terrible decisions and commit atrocious crimes. Just as Snowfall shows how easy it is to get slowly sucked into the sinister world of drugs — and those who sell them — so Ozark does something similar, by showing just how ruthless seemingly normal people can become when confronted with life and death consequences for their actions.

Claws (2017 – 2022) Stream On Hulu

Traditionally, it has been men who occupy the lion’s share of the attention in crime dramas. One exception to this rule is the series Claws, which focuses, as the title slyly suggests, on a group of manicurists who become involved in money laundering and gradually become ever more powerful.

The series has a bit of a light touch and more than a bit of comedy, and there’s no question that the presence of Niecy Nash and the show’s sleek production value allows it to become a standout in the genre. Given that it shows the extraordinary lengths to which people will go to obtain money and power — as well as the consequences that their actions sometimes have — this should be an especially good fit for those who enjoyed that aspect of Snowfall. 

Narcos (2015 – 2017) Stream On Netflix

As the title suggests, Narcos is very much about the world of drugs and organized crime. In this case, it focuses in particular on Pablo Escobar, famous for being one of the world’s most powerful and ruthless drug lords.

It is driven by a forceful narrative that never lets the drama wane, but it has to be said that it doesn’t have many characters who are especially sympathetic. However, it does feature some very powerful performances from such talented actors as Wagner Moura and Pedro Pascal. Part of what makes this series so endlessly compelling — and what should endear it to fans of Snowfall — is the way that it shows the various aspects, and consequences, of the narcotics trade. What’s more, it also specifically focuses on cocaine, the same focus as the FX series.

Weeds (2005 – 2012) Stream On Hulu

Just as Claws allows women to occupy the center of a story about organized crime, Weeds does something similar. In this case, however, it focuses on a mother, played by Mary-Louise Parker, who turns to dealing marijuana in order to support her family.

While it has a similar story to Breaking Bad, it has a much lighter touch when it comes to the material, and it is as much a dark comedy as it is a drama. It definitely deserves its reputation as one of Showtime’s best series. Parker’s Nancy Botwin might be an unlikely drug dealer, but the series — like Snowfall — demonstrates how easy it is to get slowly but steadily involved in darker and more sinister illegal activities the longer one remains in the business.

American Crime (2015 – 2017) Stream On Hulu

American Crime deserves to be seen as one of the best anthology dramas of the 2010s. In each season, it focused on a different set of characters and a different set of circumstances, but each time it managed to delve deep into the American psyche and society, exploring issues surrounding race, violence, and crime.

What’s more, it also featured a very powerful and talented cast, with Felicity Huffman, Timothy Hutton, and Regina King, all making repeat appearances. Despite its uneven storytelling, it still managed to be a timely social drama. Like Snowfall, it also takes a hard-hitting approach to its material, shining a very harsh light into some of the ugliest and most sinister aspects of the American psyche, and while the characters in both series may be at times not terribly sympathetic, they still make for compelling viewing.

Boardwalk Empire (2010 – 2014) Stream On HBO Max

Along with the drug lord, the gangster is one of the most enduring figures in American popular culture. In the case of Boardwalk Empire, the gangster in question is Nucky Thompson, who runs a criminal enterprise during the Prohibition Era.

Loosely based on a real historical figure, the character is one of Steve Buscemi’s best roles, who brings his own signature brand of charisma to the part. What’s more, the series shines a powerful light on one of the most important periods in American criminal history. Both Snowfall and Boardwalk Empire demonstrate the extent to which the figure of the crime lord, no matter what illegal activity they are engaged in, continues to exert a powerful pull, making for riveting television drama.

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