TV Shows Like Merlin
If you like Merlin, here are 10 similar TV shows — each with its current AI renewal verdict, so you can see which are still going and which have been cancelled.
BBC One · Action & Adventure · Merlin is ended
Merlin works because it keeps things personal. The Arthurian legend has been retold hundreds of times, but this version earns its audience by shrinking the scale down to two young men, one hiding a secret and the other too proud to ask for help, both growing into versions of themselves they couldn't have imagined at the start. The magic is fun, the action is light enough for a family audience, and the BBC production gives it just enough grandeur without losing the warmth. What keeps people watching isn't the sorcery, it's the friendship, and the slow, sometimes aching wait for Merlin to finally be known for what he is.
The best shows like Merlin
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
If Merlin's vision of a kingdom threatened by encroaching darkness appealed to you, Rings of Power operates on a much larger canvas with the same underlying concern: ordinary and extraordinary people trying to hold something good together against an evil that most of them refuse to believe is real. The ensemble is broad, but the show finds room for quieter, character-driven moments alongside the spectacle. Fans of the Camelot mythology will feel at home in a world where legacy and destiny hang over every decision.
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2. The Magicians
The Magicians takes the idea of a gifted young person learning to control dangerous magic and drops it into a modern, slightly cynical world that isn't above poking fun at its own genre conventions. Like Merlin, it is fundamentally about a group of people bonded by shared knowledge of something the rest of the world doesn't believe in, and the cost that knowledge carries. It's darker and sharper-edged than Merlin, but the core love for magic and the friendships built around it will feel familiar.
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3. Avatar the Last Airbender
Avatar the Last Airbender is arguably the closest spiritual match to Merlin on this list: a young person with unique, world-changing powers who has to grow into them while the people around him are shaped by the journey too. The balance of humor, heart, and genuine stakes is almost identical in feel. Merlin fans who loved watching Arthur and Merlin push and pull at each other will find the same dynamic energy in Avatar's ensemble.
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4. Marvel's Runaways
Marvel's Runaways centers on teenagers who discover they have powers and a shared enemy, and much of its appeal comes from watching that reluctant group become something like a family. It echoes Merlin's theme of young people carrying secrets they can't share with the adult world around them. The tone is more contemporary superhero drama than fantasy, but the loyalty and trust built between the characters will resonate with anyone who watched Merlin for its relationships.
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5. The Green Hornet
The Green Hornet is a different kind of recommendation, rooted in 1960s action television rather than fantasy, but its central appeal is a tight, charismatic partnership between two very different men who are better together than apart. Merlin fans who loved the dynamic between a servant-level figure and a more publicly powerful one will find something familiar in that pairing. It's lighter and more episodic than Merlin, but the chemistry between the leads is the whole point.
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More on shows like Merlin
Fans of Merlin tend to want a few specific things in their next show: a fantasy world that feels lived-in, characters whose relationships carry more weight than any single battle, and some version of the secret-keeper or the underdog with extraordinary gifts. A dose of humor helps too. These viewers aren't necessarily looking for grimdark or wall-to-wall political intrigue. They want to care about the people on screen.
The recommendations here cover a decent range of that territory. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power goes bigger and more epic, but it shares the sense of a world on the edge of something terrible, with characters whose choices will echo for generations. The Magicians trades the medieval setting for a contemporary college campus but keeps magic at the center and adds a sharp, sometimes dark wit. Avatar the Last Airbender is the most direct match in spirit: a young person with rare gifts, a long journey, and a friendship-driven ensemble at its core. Marvel's Runaways takes the "young people discovering their own power" thread and pulls it into a modern superhero setting, with a lot of the same focus on found family. The Green Hornet is the outlier here, a 1960s action series built around a classic crime-fighting duo, and it scratches the itch for a charismatic partnership more than it does the fantasy element.
None of these are perfect replacements for Merlin, because nothing quite replicates the specific mix of Arthurian myth, BBC restraint, and slow-burn loyalty that show built over five seasons. But each one has at least one quality that Merlin fans will recognize and respond to.
More shows like Merlin
Frequently asked
- What is the most popular show like Merlin?
- The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is the most popular show similar to Merlin in the IsItRenewed catalogue.
- Are shows like Merlin still on the air?
- Of the 10 shows similar to Merlin listed here, 2 currently carry a renewed verdict — the rest are cancelled, ended, or awaiting a decision.
- How does IsItRenewed pick shows like Merlin?
- The recommendations come from TMDB's similar-titles data, and each is shown with its current AI renewal verdict so you know which are still going.