Saagar Kote
Prime Video’s ‘Carrie’ is a supernatural horror series created by Mike Flanagan and based on Stephen King’s popular novel of the same title. After her father’s death, Carietta White, AKA Carrie (Summer H. Howell), leaves behind the sheltered life she has known and enters high school for the first time. Raised by her intensely religious mother, Margaret White (Samantha Sloyan), Carrie has little understanding of the world outside their home and struggles to fit in with other students. While Susan Snell, AKA Sue (Siena Agudong), treats her with some kindness, Christine Hargensen, AKA Chris (Alison Thornton), quickly makes Carrie a target and uses social media to publicly mock her after Carrie, with no concept of menstruation, experiences her first period and bleeds in front of other students.
At the same time, Carrie begins to experience strange telekinetic abilities she does not fully understand. While the hostility at school grows and Margaret’s controlling influence continues to affect her, Carrie becomes increasingly overwhelmed. The combination of bullying, isolation, and her developing powers eventually pushes the troubled teenager toward a terrifying act of violence. If the premise engaged you, these shows, similar to ‘Carrie,’ explore unique characters and horror themes that will entertain you from beginning to end.
12. Brand New Cherry Flavor (2021)
‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’ is a horror drama series from the creative minds of Nick Antosca and Lenore Zion, based on Todd Grimson’s novel of the same title. It is the tale of Lisa Nova (Rosa Salazar), an ambitious young woman who arrives in 1990s LA determined to become a popular filmmaker. Her plans hit a shocking hurdle when producer Lou Burke (Eric Lange) removes her from a project after she rejects his sexual advances. Unwilling to let the setback go, Lisa becomes determined to take revenge on the man who wronged her at a crucial phase of her life.
Her search for a way to retaliate brings her into contact with Boro (Catherine Keener), a mysterious witch whose involvement leads Lisa into a strange and dangerous situation. Lisa’s pursuit of revenge begins to consume her, leaving her caught between conflicting feelings. Like Carrie in ‘Carrie,’ Lisa in ‘Brand New Cherry Flavor’ is a complicated and layered individual driven to an extreme response after being mistreated by others.
11. The Midnight Club (2022)
‘The Midnight Club’ unfolds at a hospice for teenagers with terminal illnesses, where Ilonka (Iman Benson), Kevin (Igby Rigney), and their fellow residents find an unusual way to confront their fears about dying. They secretly gather at midnight, where frightening stories become a way to talk about what might lie beyond death. Their meetings take an eerie turn when they promise that the first among them to die will attempt to communicate with the others from the afterlife. Soon, unsettling events around the hospice make the teenagers wonder if their fascination with the supernatural has brought them closer to something that was already there.
Determined to understand what is happening, they investigate the building and uncover a disturbing mystery connected to death, violence, and a potentially sinister presence. The horror drama series from creators Mike Flanagan and Leah Fong is based on Christopher Pike’s eponymous novel. Both ‘Carrie’ and ‘The Midnight Club’ center on teenagers struggling with difficult personal circumstances while becoming increasingly connected to supernatural forces they do not fully understand.
10. Teen Wolf (2011-2017)
In ‘Teen Wolf,’ Scott McCall (Tyler Posey) is just an ordinary high school student in Beacon Hills until a night in the woods changes his life completely. After being bitten by an alpha werewolf, Scott develops heightened senses and physical abilities while struggling to control the aggressive instincts that come with his new identity. His problems become even more complicated when he falls for Allison Argent (Crystal Reed), whose family secretly hunts werewolves. With help from his best friend, Stiles Stilinski (Dylan O’Brien) and werewolf Derek Hale (Tyler Hoechlin), Scott learns to navigate his supernatural existence while protecting the people around him.
As Beacon Hills becomes a hotbed of supernatural activity, Scott and his friends face increasingly dangerous threats while trying to survive high school and understand the strange world around them. The supernatural drama series is a Jeff Davis creation that reimagines the eponymous film from director Rod Daniel. Along the lines of ‘Carrie,’ the show places supernatural abilities within the life of a teenager, forcing him to deal with extraordinary changes alongside the ordinary pressures of high school.
9. Locke & Key (2020-2022)
‘Locke & Key’ is a fantasy drama series from the creative team of Carlton Cuse, Meredith Averill, and Aron Eli Coleite, based on the titular comic book series by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodríguez. Following the murder of their father, Tyler Locke (Connor Jessup), Kinsey Locke (Emilia Jones), and Bode Locke (Jackson Robert Scott) move with their mother, Nina (Darby Stanchfield), to the family’s ancestral home. Their new residence, Keyhouse, soon reveals secrets long hidden within its walls, including magical keys capable of producing extraordinary effects. When the siblings explore the house, they begin to uncover links between the keys and their father’s past.
Their search becomes increasingly dangerous when they discover that a demonic entity is pursuing the keys as well. What starts as an attempt to understand their family’s mysterious history soon draws the Locke siblings into a supernatural conflict that puts their family at risk. Carrie’s supernatural experiences develop alongside her troubled family life and her mother’s behavior, while the Locke siblings’ obsession with uncovering secrets is also linked to familial bonds they share with their father, thus connecting the shows on a thematic level.
8. School Spirits (2023-)
‘School Spirits’ chronicles the disappearance of Maddie Nears (Peyton List), a student at Split River High School, who finds herself trapped on the school grounds as a ghost. Maddie soon realizes that she may have been murdered, but her new existence leaves her unable to communicate with the living students who continue to believe she is simply missing. She tries to understand what happened to her, connects with other spirits like herself inhabiting the school, and begins investigating the circumstances surrounding her death. Unable to leave the campus, she becomes caught between the world of the living and the dead, uncovering hidden motives and disturbing revelations along the way.
With the truth still out of reach, Maddie must piece together what happened before she loses her chance forever. The horror drama series from creators Megan Trinrud and Nate Trinrud is based on their graphic novel of the same title, co-written with Maria Nguyen. Both ‘Carrie’ and ‘School Spirits’ use high school as the backdrop for supernatural stories, turning an environment associated with teenage life into a place filled with fear, mystery, and uncertainty.
7. The Innocents (2018)
In ‘The Innocents,’ teenagers Harry (Percelle Ascott) and June (Sorcha Groundsell) run away from their families, believing that starting over together will finally give them the freedom they want. Their plans change when June discovers that she can shapeshift, leaving her uncertain about what is happening to her. Her unusual ability soon attracts the attention of a mysterious professor, who introduces June and Harry to others with similar powers and claims he can help her control them. His involvement also gives June a possible way to reconnect with her mother, who abandoned her years earlier.
As the couple investigates June’s abilities and uncovers more about their families, their attempt to escape into a life together becomes increasingly dangerous, forcing them to confront forces that threaten to separate them. Hania Elkington and Simon Duric are the creative voices behind the British supernatural series, which comments on the consequences of supernatural abilities, much like ‘Carrie’ does. Carrie and June discover powers that dramatically alter their lives in unforeseen ways.
6. The Secret Circle (2011-2012)
‘The Secret Circle’ is the saga of Cassie Blake (Britt Robertson), who is dealing with the death of her mother and moves to Chance Harbor, Washington, to live with her grandmother. Her life takes a stranger turn when five of her high school classmates, Adam Conant (Thomas Dekker), Diana Meade (Shelley Hennig), Faye Chamberlain (Phoebe Tonkin), Melissa Glaser (Jessica Parker Kennedy), and Nick Armstrong (Louis Hunter) reveal something. They reveal that Cassie is a hereditary witch and invite her to join their secret coven, the Circle.
Cassie accepts her abilities and joins the coven, only to discover that their growing powers also make them targets for dangerous forces. With Andrew Miller providing the creative ideas, the supernatural fantasy drama series is based on L. J. Smith’s titular book series. Carrie’s developing abilities in ‘Carrie’ contribute to increasingly dangerous circumstances, whereas witches in ‘The Secret Circle’ discover that their powers also draw dark forces toward them.
5. Wednesday (2022-)
In ‘Wednesday,’ a rebellious teenager named Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) finds herself at Nevermore Academy, a school for students with supernatural abilities. Already infamous for her fearlessness and wild tastes, she becomes intrigued by the strange events unfolding around the institution and starts digging into its hidden secrets. Her psychic abilities prove useful as her investigation brings her close to monsters, werewolves, and other threats. At the same time, Wednesday must deal with her strange family, whose members possess unusual gifts and share her fascination with the macabre and the unknown.
What begins as an attempt to understand the mysteries surrounding Nevermore gradually becomes a dangerous investigation, forcing Wednesday deeper into a world where the strange and supernatural are part of everyday life. Created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, the horror drama series is based on the popular Addams family characters developed by Charles Addams. Along the lines of Carrie in ‘Carrie,’ Wednesday possesses unusual and dangerous abilities that become important to how she handles dangerous situations. The dynamics among the students are also a major part of both shows.
4. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (2018-2020)
‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’ is a supernatural horror series based on the eponymous Archie comic book series by the show’s creator, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, and Robert Hack. Sabrina Spellman (Kiernan Shipka) is almost 16 when she finds herself unexpectedly caught between her human upbringing and her witch heritage. Living in Greendale, she tries to hold on to an ordinary teenage life while confronting the expectations attached to her supernatural identity.
Sabrina’s two worlds become increasingly difficult to separate as darker forces emerge around her family and draw her deeper into the occult. Rather than surrendering to the path expected of her, Sabrina chooses to make her own decisions and uses her abilities to protect the people she cares about. ‘Carrie’ and ‘Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’ blend the pressures of adolescence with supernatural forces, forcing their main female characters to deal with extraordinary circumstances alongside everyday teenage experiences.
3. Girl from Nowhere (2018-2021)
At the center of ‘Girl from Nowhere’ is Nanno (Chicha Amatayakul), a mysterious and intelligent girl who repeatedly transfers into private schools across Thailand, where her arrival often exposes the corruption hidden beneath their polished appearances. She uncovers the secrets of students and teachers, particularly seeking justice for female victims, and is willing to manipulate those around her to bring wrongdoing to light. Nanno believes punishing the guilty is the only way to challenge an education system she sees as deeply broken. Her mission becomes even more unusual because she possesses supernatural abilities and cannot die.
As she moves from one school to another, Nanno’s pursuit of justice leads to disturbing revelations and consequences that expose the seriousness of the crimes she encounters. Directed by Jatuphong Rungrueangdechaphat, S Khomkrit Treewimol, Pairach Khumwan, and others, the Thai thriller anthology series is engaging right from the get-go. ‘Carrie’ and ‘Girl from Nowhere’ use educational institutions and the twisted characters within them as the central premise for stories about bullying, mistreatment, and the consequences of harmful behavior at a young age.
2. Impulse (2018-2019)
‘Impulse’ introduces teenager Henrietta Coles, AKA Henry (Maddie Hasson), who arrives in Reston, New York, with her mother Cleo (Missi Pyle), hoping to settle into a more stable life. Instead, Henry remains isolated and struggles to adjust to the small, unfriendly town, even after moving in with Cleo’s boyfriend and his resentful daughter. Things take a terrifying turn when popular football star Clay Boone (Tanner Stine) attacks Henry. During the traumatic encounter, Henry discovers that she can teleport, though she has no control over where she ends up. Her powers also leave Clay paraplegic after she accidentally crushes his truck.
While Henry realizes that fear surrounding the assault can trigger her abilities, she struggles to understand a power she cannot yet control. The sci-fi drama series is a Jeffrey Lieber creation and is based on Steven Gould’s eponymous novel, which is a part of the ‘Jumper’ series. In ‘Carrie,’ bullying and humiliation contribute to Carrie’s emotional breakdown, while ‘Impulse’ connects Henry’s teleportation directly to the fear and trauma caused by the assault on her, thus connecting psychology to supernatural phenomena.
1. I Am Not Okay with This (2020)
‘I Am Not Okay with This’ is a fantasy comedy-drama series created by Jonathan Entwistle and Christy Hall, based on Charles Forsman’s graphic novel of the same title. Sydney Novak (Sophia Lillis), a 17-year-old girl, is already struggling with the pressures of school, problems at home, and complicated feelings for her best friend, Dina (Sofia Bryant). Still coping with the death of her father, Sydney finds herself increasingly overwhelmed by emotions she does not know how to process. Things take a strange turn when she discovers that she can move objects with her mind, with her telekinetic abilities appearing whenever her emotions become difficult to contain.
Unsure of where her powers come from or how to control them, Sydney turns to her eccentric neighbor, Stanley Barber (Wyatt Oleff). While the two try to understand her abilities, Sydney must also deal with the challenges of growing up. Both ‘Carrie’ and ‘I Am Not Okay with This’ focus on teenage girls grappling with isolation, personal turmoil, and increasingly difficult-to-manage emotions. Carrie and Sydney are forced to deal with supernatural changes within them while also navigating family problems and uncertainty.
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