Disturbing crime shows that Mindhunter fans will obsess over

If you watched Mindhunter and felt oddly calm while listening to serial killers talk about why they did what they did, you're not alone. Something about that slow, quiet dread pulled people in. It wasn’t about car chases or dramatic courtrooms. Mindhunter had a different pace. It lets things breathe.

You saw the crime scenes, but you also saw the way the agents thought, asked questions, and got inside a killer’s head. It was more about how the mind worked and sometimes how it didn’t.

Now, the show hasn’t been active in years, but fans haven’t stopped looking for something that feels even a little similar. Maybe not in tone, maybe not in look, but something that scratches the same itch.

A mix of smart storytelling, psychological tension, and yes, a fair share of disturbing details. This list is for those still missing Mindhunter and not afraid to go looking into dark places. Just maybe keep a light on.

Disturbing crime shows like Mindhunter that fans will love

1) The Fall

Set in Belfast, The Fall follows a detective (played by Gillian Anderson) hunting a killer who blends right into regular life. He’s a father, a husband, and he works as a grief counsellor. But at night, he stalks women and plans everything with disturbing precision.

The show doesn’t rush. Like Mindhunter, it leans into quiet moments and long stares. What makes it work is how much attention it gives to both sides - the one doing the chasing, and the one being chased. You end up watching not just the crime, but the routines that hide it.

2) True Detective (Season 1)

If the quiet, slow-burn style of Mindhunter worked for you, Season 1 of True Detective is a good follow-up.

It’s set in Louisiana, where two detectives look into a strange case that feels more like a bad dream than a typical murder. There are odd details - symbols, masks, and talk of something bigger in the background.

Matthew McConaughey plays Rust Cohle, who doesn’t have much faith in people or the world. His dialogue isn’t just dark; it borders on philosophy. “Time is a flat circle”. This show lingers, and not just in memory.

3) Criminal Minds

You’ve probably heard of it, but if you haven’t watched it all the way through, Criminal Minds is worth a dive. It ran for 15 seasons, following the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit.

Unlike Mindhunter, which focused on early profiling days, Criminal Minds throws you straight into active cases. Each episode features a new criminal or “unsub” and often explores what made them the way they are. Some episodes are tame, others are deeply unsettling.

While the show has a more traditional structure, its best episodes scratch the same itch that Mindhunter did.

4) Hannibal

You probably know the name. But the series Hannibal dives deep into the minds of both killers and those who study them. Mads Mikkelsen plays Dr. Hannibal Lecter in a calm, collected way that somehow makes him scarier.

This isn’t just gore for shock value - it’s almost poetic. The show’s visual style is more like art than crime TV. The meals, the murders, the dreams - it’s all meant to unsettle. If Mindhunter felt clinical, Hannibal feels personal. It may take some getting used to, but it’s a hard show to forget.

5) Manhunt: Unabomber

This one doesn’t get talked about enough. It tells the story of how the FBI caught Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber. What sets Manhunt: Unabomber apart is how it shows the creation of modern profiling tools. In that way, it’s a natural follow-up to Mindhunter.

You see agents struggling to understand language, patterns, and clues that don’t fit the usual mold. Paul Bettany plays the Unabomber with a quiet intensity, while Sam Worthington plays the profiler who figures him out. It’s short, sharp, and based on a real case that shocked the country.

6) Marcella

Marcella follows a former detective who returns to work after a long break. She’s thrown into a new case, but something’s not right. Her memory’s acting up. She’s losing chunks of time and can’t explain why. She’s having blackouts, forgetting chunks of time, and losing control.

The show doesn’t focus only on who did it - it’s more about what’s going on inside her head. That’s where it lines up with Mindhunter. Both shows look at what happens when past trauma leaks into the present.

7) Broadchurch

Broadchurch starts with a boy found dead on the beach in a quiet seaside town. Two detectives are sent to figure out what happened. The show spends time on how the town reacts - how people look at each other differently, how small things begin to break. You feel the weight of it all.

Like Mindhunter, it doesn’t rush. It lets the emotions settle in and shows what crime does to the people left behind. The town feels real. The people react like real people do. There’s no flashy music, no dramatic zoom-ins - just a quiet unraveling of guilt, suspicion, and pain.

Mindhunter fans might appreciate the attention to detail and how much time the show gives to the effects of crime, not just the solving of it.

8) The Sinner

Each season of The Sinner explores a different crime, one that looks open and shut but turns out to be anything but. The first season stars Jessica Biel as a woman who stabs a man at the beach for no clear reason. What follows is a slow peeling back of memory, trauma, and hidden motives.

Like Mindhunter, the story isn’t really about who did it - it’s about why. Detective Ambrose (played by Bill Pullman) brings a calm, methodical energy to the investigation, asking the kinds of questions that dig beneath the surface.

Conclusion

These shows all carry a bit of that quiet tension, that interest in the “why” behind every “what.” Some are slower, some more stylish, some more grounded. But they all explore people - not just crimes.

If Mindhunter hooked you with its low voice and sharp questions, chances are at least a few of these will do the same. Just don’t watch too many before bed.