12 French TV Shows on Netflix You Should Watch (2021)
Netflix is the largest streaming service in the world and has a huge selection of movies and shows from around the globe. As such, it’s no surprise that there are also some fantastic French TV series to watch on Netflix. If you’re new to French TV or just want more suggestions for great things to binge on, here are 12 of our favorites!
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Benefits of Watching TV Shows to Learn French
But why should you bother with these shows? Here are three reasons:
1) They may make learning French easier and more fun
2) You’ll be able to practice your listening skills from your couch
3) You’ll get exposure to different accents
So, pop some popcorn, and take an hour or two to work on your French with these fantastic French TV shows!
Comedy & Dramedy
Call My Agent! (Dix Pour Cent)
Genre: Comedy-Drama
Call My Agent! is a comedy series about the personal and professional struggles of four lead agents at a French talent agency. The show features real stars as clients of a fictional Paris agency. It’s a parody of the entertainment industry, but it’s also about relationships. It’s filled with charming humor and is constantly pulling at your heartstrings for its realistic characters.
A Very Secret Service (Au service de la France)
Genre: Comedy-Drama
A Very Secret Service is a comedy about French intelligence in the 1960s. Young André Merlaux is hired as a trainee at the French secret service. André has to learn fast as he finds himself in the midst of a Cold War spy game. This show is a mix of comedy and drama, taking place in different international locations. In between missions, André faces the everyday life high ranking people have to deal with.
The Hook Up Plan (Plan Coeur)
Genre: Comedy
The Hook Up Plan is a French dramedy series. Elsa is a woman on the verge of turning thirty, who has been hurt by her past relationship. She lives in Paris and works at an uninspiring job. Her friend tricks her to go out on a date with a male escort so she can move on from her ex-boyfriend. The series follows their relationship and the trials and tribulations of modern dating.
Family Business
Genre: Comedy
If you’re in the mood for a comedy, look no further than Family Business. This French sitcom is about a butcher’s son who tried to turn his family butcher shop into a marijuana cafe after hearing that pot would become legal. If you’re looking for something light-hearted where nothing too serious ever happens but plenty of laughs ensue, then this show may be just what you need!
Can You Hear Me? (M’entends-tu ?)
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Can You Hear Me? is a French-Canadian television series. The show follows three best friends who live in a low-income neighborhood of Montréal, Quebec. One of the main characters, Ada, is a girl with serious anger problems and she must attend therapy sessions to get this under control. The show tackles some pretty heavy topics but the way it swings between comedy and drama throughout the 10 episodes is what makes it work.
Crime Thriller
The Forest (La Forêt)
Genre: Crime-Drama
The Forest is an intriguing French-Belgian series about the investigation of 16-year-old Jennifer’s disappearance in a small town in the Ardennes. The police are assisted by her teacher, who has had a traumatic experience in this forest when she was young. During the investigation, more and more facts are revealed about the history of the village and its inhabitants. The show offers a mysterious atmosphere that is enhanced by stunning shots of the forest’s lakes, cliffs, and woods.
The Mantis (La Mante)
Genre: Crime, Thriller
The Mantis is one of the most famous serial killers in France. She terrorized France more than 25 years ago, but now she has come out of solitary confinement to hunt down her copycat. Jeanne Deber offers her expertise to the police in order to help hunt down the copycat. Placed in solitary confinement since her arrest, “The Mantis” has one condition: to deal only with Detective Damien Carrot, her estranged son. Damien has no choice, for a serial killer is on the loose and could strike anytime, anywhere in Paris.
The Chalet (Le Chalet)
Genre: Crime, Thriller, Slasher
The Chalet is a French TV show. It features a group of friends who gather at an isolated chalet in France with a dark history. The friends are plunged into danger when menacing events and diabolical traps start occurring, which they must work together to uncover the truth before it’s too late.
Drama
Inhuman Resources (Dérapages)
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Inhuman Resources is a French drama-thriller that explores the struggles of Alain Delambre, who was fired from his company for being over 40 and has been unable to find work. The show is well-written and contains complex characters and a dramatic storyline that explores the themes of alienation, workplace discrimination against older workers, the impacts of unemployment on individual mental health, and the role of classism in hiring practices.
Mythomaniac (Mytho)
Genre: Drama
Mythomaniac is a French drama about an overworked mother who starts telling her family that she has cancer. As a result, her partner becomes so much more attentive, and her children shower her with love. Mythomaniac is an interesting show that takes on the psychological aspects of lying in order to get what you want.
Sci-Fi & Horror
Osmosis
Genre: Science Fiction, Drama
Set in near-future Paris, the science-fiction drama sees a new dating app called Osmosis developed that can decode true love, digging deep into its user’s brain data to find a perfect match with 100% accuracy. Osmosis is not without flaws, but it is undoubtedly worth watching for anyone interested in exploring what could happen when technology becomes more integrated into our lives than ever before.
Marianne
Genre: Horror, Drama
The French horror TV series, Marianne, is a captivating show that will keep you on the edge of your seat. It has an intriguing plot and well-written characters. The plot revolves around the young novelist Emma who realizes that the characters she writes in her horror novels are also in the real world. The story goes back and forth between Emma’s reality and her novels.
If you want to boost your vocabulary and learn new language skills, watching French TV shows is a great way of doing so. This article has given us 12 recommendations for some of the best French TV Shows on Netflix that we recommend you watch. We hope you enjoy it. 😉
Thanks for reading!