Debapriya Bhattacharya
Created by Gaia Violo and Matt Cirulnick, ‘Absentia’ stars Stana Katic as Special Agent Emily Byrne of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. While pursuing a notorious serial killer in Boston, Emily disappears without a trace and is declared dead in absentia. In a surprising turn of events, she is discovered alive six years later in a cabin in the woods. She has no memory of the time she was missing or how she turned up in the woods.
Upon returning home, she finds her husband, fellow FBI Special Agent Nick Durand (Patrick Heusinger), has taken another wife, Alice (Cara Theobold), and they are raising her child together. Soon, a series of new murders takes place, and Emily becomes the primary suspect, further complicating the situation with her return. The crime thriller series first premiered on Amazon Prime Video and ran for three seasons. If you are in search of more shows similar to ‘Absentia’ for binge-watching, the following list will help you get started.
10. In From the Cold (2022-)
From the mind of Adam Glass, ‘In From the Cold’ centers around Anya Petrova (Margarita Levieva), a former spy and assassin from Russia who is living in the United States under a false identity. She has the remarkable ability to shapeshift and camouflage her appearance depending on her surroundings. While living under the name Jenny Franklin, Anya comes under the radar of the CIA, which forces her to return to the gangerous lifestyle she hopes she had left behind. Just like Emily Byrne, she ultimately becomes an asset to the US government.
9. DNA (2019-)
Helmed by Torleif Hoppe, ‘DNA’ revolves around Copenhagen-based police detective Rolf Larsen (Anders W. Berthelsen), whose daughter goes tragically missing as a baby. After failing to trace her for five years, Rolf realizes that the national DNA database, with which the police have been working, is seriously flawed. With the renewed hope of being reunited with his daughter, Rolf decides to work on a different angle, investigating an international child trafficking ring. Similar to Emily Byrne in ‘Absentia,’ the series has a parent and child being separated for years on end at the center of the plot.
8. Found (2023-2025)
Created by Nkechi Okoro Carroll, ‘Found’ follows Gabrielle “Gabi” Mosely (Shanola Hampton), a public relations specialist and crisis manager. A survivor of kidnapping in her childhood, Gabi heads Mosely & Associates, a firm that investigates and discovers missing people alongside the local law enforcement. Hidden from others, Gabi has a sinister side, which she indulges in by abducting her childhood kidnapper and keeping him locked up in her basement. At times, she seeks his help to get an insight into similarly twisted minds and solve complex cases. The predominant theme of abduction and criminal investigation in the show is similar to ‘Absentia.’
7. Alias (2001-2006)
‘Alias’ by J.J. Abrams stars Jennifer Garner as Sydney Bristow, who is seemingly approached by the Central Intelligence Agency as an undergraduate and offered a job in their secret Black Ops unit called SD-6. As a field agent, Sydney finds herself embroiled in the world of secrets and espionage, and comes to know of the heavy price she has to pay for putting her guard down for a moment. Soon, she discovers that the SD-6 is not what it claims to be, and sets out to discover its real purpose. Like Emily Byrne, Sydney takes on deadly challenges as she dedicates herself to uncovering exactly what she has gotten herself into.
6. Tabula Rasa (2017)
Helmed by Veerle Baetens and Malin-Sarah Gozin, ‘Tabula Rasa’ centers around Mie (Veerle Baetens), a young woman suffering from amnesia and staying locked inside a psychiatric institution. When the investigation into a missing person hits a wall, a detective visits Mie, claiming her to be a witness. With the police refusing to let her leave, Mei faces the task of piecing together her past while remaining confined to her cell. In the process, she stands to discover the true reason behind not having her memories. Much like Emily Byrne in ‘Absentia,’ Mei struggles both for her sake and the sake of the investigation that is dependent on her.
5. Treadstone (2019)
‘Treadstone’ by Trim Kring is set in the world of Jason Bourne, originally created by Robert Ludlum. It chronicles a covert network operation by the Central Intelligence Agency that trains young recruits to be nearly-superhuman assassins with the help of a behavior modification protocol. When a group of sleeper cells planted among them is suddenly activated, the agency and the world in general face grave danger. Such agents have their minds wiped and moral code eliminated to turn them into ultimate killer machines. Similar to Emily Byrne, they lose the recollection of who they have been while retaining all their training.
4. The Enemy Within (2019)
Created by Ken Woodruff, ‘The Enemy Within’ centers around Erica Shepherd (Jennifer Carpenter), the former Deputy Director of Operations for the Central Intelligence Agency. In a desperate attempt to protect her daughter from Russian terrorist leader Mikhail Vassily Tal (Lev Gorn), Erica gives up the details of 4 operatives of the organization, resulting in their demise. As a result of her actions, she is sentenced to 15 consecutive life sentences in a Supermax prison. After spending three years in captivity, Erica is approached by FBI special agent Will Keaton (Morris Chestnut), who informs her about Mikhail’s new attack and seeks her help to stop him for good. Answering his call, Erica gets back to work hunting the criminal, similar to Emily Byrne on ‘Absentia.’
3. Citadel (2023-)
Helmed by Josh Appelbaum, Bryan Oh, and David Weil, ‘Citadel’ revolves around a spy agency of the same name, which employs ground operatives Mason Kane (Richard Madden) and Nadia Sinh (Priyanka Chopra). After an accident involving a new organization, Manticore, Mason and Nadia have their memories wiped, and start living under new identities. Eight years later, Citadel associate Bernard Orlick (Stanley Tucci) asks for their help, and the two agents return to the field once again while recalling their training. They share the experience of restarting work with Emily Byrne in ‘Absentia.’
2. The Tourist (2022-2024)
From the minds of Harry and Jack Williams, ‘The Tourist’ follows an Irishman (Jamie Dornan) waking up in a hospital in Australia with no memory of who he is, what he does, or how he got here. He gets recognized by a local woman as a helpful person, and she volunteers to help him look for more clues about his past. When they start pointing at a dark and twisted life, the man tries to get away before being drawn back into it. Not having any idea of what he may have done in the past makes the man’s story reflect that of the protagonist in ‘Absentia.’
1. Blindspot (2015-2020)
Developed by Martin Gero, ‘Blindspot’ tells the story of the New York City Police Department discovering a mysterious and unidentified woman (Jaimie Alexander) in an unclaimed duffel bag at Times Square in New York City. She is completely naked at the time and has freshly made tattoos. With no idea of who she is and where she comes from, the woman is given the name Jane Doe and becomes a person of interest for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Special Agent Kurt Weller (Sullivan Stapleton) and his team at the New York field office begin investigating the case alongside Jane herself. They soon discover that the tattoos on her body are the key to discovering who she truly is. The female-led show, about a woman losing her recollection of her past and fighting to regain it, is reminiscent of ‘Absentia.’
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