16 Best Italian Series on Netflix to Watch in May 2024

Imagine this: it’s late in the evening, and you’re comfortably curled up in bed while watching an addicting Netflix series.

This up-to-date guide to the best Italian shows on Netflix will help you do exactly that.

It covers feel-good romantic comedies, crime series, intriguing documentaries and more. Many of these shows have beautiful backdrops too, featuring cities like Rome and Naples!

Here’s the full list, with trailers and streaming links included:

Contents

• 1. Suburra: Blood on Rome (2017)
• 2. The Law According to Lidia Poët (2023)
• 3. An Astrological Guide for Broken Hearts (2021)
• 4. Generation 56K (2021)
• 5. Baby (2018)
• 6. The Trial (2019)
• 7. Everything Calls for Salvation (2022)
• 8. Di4ries (2022)
• 9. Framed! A Sicilian Murder Mystery (2022)
• 10. The Lying Life of Adults (2023)
• 11. Running for My Truth: Alex Schwazer (2023)
• 12. First Team: Juventus (2018)
• 13. Luna Nera (2020)
• 14. Curon (2020)
• 15. Fortune Seller: A TV Scam (2022)
• 16. Supersex (2024)

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1. Suburra: Blood on Rome (2017)

Italian Title: Suburra – La serie
Genre: Crime
Main Actors: Alessandro Borghi, Giacomo Ferrara, Eduardo Valdarnini

Corruption, murders involving the Mafia, messy politics and even the Vatican—this show is great for binge-watching because of all the action! It’s set in a seaside town in Rome, with different groups fighting over the land there because the town will soon become a gambling paradise.

There are three main characters here, all from different backgrounds. Aureliano comes from a Mafia family, while Spadino is a gypsy who’s also a gang member. Finally, Lele is the son of a police officer, but he still gets drawn into crime. They form a complicated alliance, with their families also involved in the power struggles.

2. The Law According to Lidia Poët (2023)

Italian Title: La legge di Lidia Poët
Genre: Legal drama
Main Actors: Matilda De Angelis, Eduardo Scarpetta, Pier Luigi Pasino

This captivating series is based on a real-life figure: Lidia Poët, who was Italy’s first female lawyer back in 19^th-century Turin.

At the start of the show, Lidia takes on the case of a man accused of murder because her fees are cheaper than male lawyers. All throughout, she’s forced to fight against prejudice and go against social norms—she even almost couldn’t get her license just because she’s a woman!

Each episode features a new legal case that gets wrapped up by the end. It’s fun to watch because Lidia is sassy, plus the makeup, costumes and other visual details are all well done.

3. An Astrological Guide for Broken Hearts (2021)

Italian Title:  Guida astrologica per cuori infranti
Genre: Romantic comedy
Main Actors: Claudia Gusmano, Lorenzo Adorni, Michele Rosiello, Alberto Paradossi

Alice is a single woman in her 30s who lives in Turin, but she doesn’t feel fulfilled.

She’s in for a ride, though, after she meets Tio, a quirky but endearing astrologer who suggests that the answers to her relationship woes can be found in the stars. Alice is skeptical at first, but then she soon finds herself trying it out, using horoscopes to guide her romantic decisions.

The show’s two seasons go through all of the zodiac signs for each episode. It’s a totally underrated gem, and there are plenty of sweet, feel-good moments, whether you believe in astrology or not!  

4. Generation 56K (2021)

Italian Title: Generazione 56K
Genre: Romantic comedy
Main Actors: Angelo Spagnoletti, Cristina Cappelli, Gianluca Colucci, Fabio Balsamo

“Generation 56K” is another romantic comedy—but it comes with a dose of nostalgia. It goes back and forth between the 90s and the present, showing how different relationships have become because of the internet.

Daniel and Matilda first meet and fall in love as teenagers in Naples, when the Internet was still barely emerging. Then more than 20 years later, they meet again through a dating app, and they try to figure out how they really feel about each other.

This had me hooked because Daniel and Matilda have excellent chemistry! The episodes are also just at 30 minutes each, so it’s a fast-paced watch.

5. Baby (2018)

Genre: Drama
Main Actors: Benedetta Porcaroli, Alice Pagani, Riccardo Mandolini, Chabeli Sastre Gonzalez

“Baby breaks away from the usual teen drama or crime series because it portrays a controversial topic: underage prostitution.

Chiara and Ludovica are two high school students at an elite school in Rome. Chiara seems like she has the perfect life because she has a wealthy family, but she feels suffocated by the expectations and hypocrisy around her. On the other hand, Ludovica struggles with family issues and escapes from her problems by going to nightclubs and drinking.

As they become friends, Chiara finds out Ludovica is doing prostitution—and she starts to get involved in it too.  

6. The Trial (2019)

Italian Title: Il processo
Genre: Legal drama
Main Actors: Vittoria Puccini, Camilla Filippi, Francesco Scianna

Here’s an Italian series that revolves around crime but isn’t Mafia-based!

“The Trial” kicks off with a brutal murder of a teenage female escort. Two determined women then battle it out in court: Elena Guerra, the relentless prosecutor, and Virginia Ferrara, a famous defense lawyer who has never lost a case.

Elena is deeply affected by the case because of a personal connection, and she becomes consumed by her quest for justice. On the other hand, Virginia aggressively defends her client, Linda, against the seemingly overwhelming evidence. As tensions start to heighten, rules get betrayed, and the lines between guilt and innocence blur.

7. Everything Calls for Salvation (2022)

Italian Title: Tutto chiede salvezza
Genre: Drama
Main Actors: Federico Cesari, Fotinì Peluso, Andrea Pennacchi, Vincenzo Crea

Daniele suddenly wakes up in a psychiatric ward after crashing his car and then going back home. Even though he sees no good reason for being there, he’s given no way out. This forces him to get to know the other patients, who have conditions like bipolar disorder and catatonia, and form deep connections with them.

He then gradually starts to figure out in bits and pieces exactly what happened to him, all while trying to understand what’s really meaningful in his life.

Even though it might seem like a dark show at first, its message is about emotional healing and human connection, and I felt attached to the characters because they all have their distinct stories! 

8. Di4ries (2022)

Italian Title: Di4ri
Genre: Teenage drama
Main Actors: Andrea Arru, Flavia Leone, Pietro Sparvoli, Sofia Nicolini

“Di4ries” revolves around middle school students so it’s definitely for a younger audience! Still, it’s a fresh, realistic take on the coming-of-age genre.

Pietro is a 12-year-old boy who has to deal with his parents’ arguments along with misadventures at school, including exams, school trips and bullies. He also somehow gets into a love triangle with two girls in his class.

The show does a great job of capturing the complexities of growing up in a modern world, with social media and peer pressure. The format is also interesting since you’ll get to see different perspectives, with major characters talking directly to the camera.

9. Framed! A Sicilian Murder Mystery (2022)

Italian Title: Incastrati
Genre: Comedy
Main Actors: Salvatore Ficarra, Valentino Picone

“Framed!” combines two genres you don’t normally see together: crime and comedy. On top of this, the main characters are played by Ficarra and Picone, a popular comedy duo in Italy.

In the show, Salvo and Valentino are both TV technicians and friends. One evening, they head to an apartment but then find a corpse there that was recently just shot. They’re scared of getting framed for the crime, so they hurry to find an alibi and hide the dead body. As the investigation proceeds, they also try to not get caught by the cops, who are looking for the Mafia.

You’ll find both slapstick and absurd humor here, especially as they accidentally cause more and more problems for themselves!  

10. The Lying Life of Adults (2023)

Italian Title: La vita bugiarda degli adulti
Genre: Drama
Main Actors: Giordana Marengo, Valerie Golino, Alessandro Preziosi

“The Lying Life of Adults” is based on the novel by Elena Ferrante, a popular (and anonymous!) Italian author who’s known for her introspective storytelling.  

Giovanna is a rebellious teenager in Naples in the 1990s—and like plenty of teenagers, she feels very disconnected from her family. She even overhears her father comparing her to his estranged sister, Vittoria, whom he dislikes.

This makes her curious about her aunt Vittoria, so she requests his father to have them meet. She then discovers a whole new darker side to Naples—and unearths family secrets too.

Watching it actually got me asking myself: what does being an adult really mean?

11. Running for My Truth: Alex Schwazer (2023)

Italian Title: Il caso Alex Schwazer
Genre: Documentary
Main Actors: Alex Schwazer, Kathrin Freund, Sandro Donati

Alex Schwazer is a former Italian race walker and Olympic athlete who was widely adored until he fell from grace because of a doping scandal. “Running for My Truth” explores his life and career—and what really happened behind the scenes.

It’s a documentary, so it’s true to life and features Alex Schwazer himself! A turning point in his career was when he tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs, which got him banned from the sport. He then admitted to using the drugs and was allowed to return to the competition eventually—but then got banned again later for eight years because of another doping accusation.

12. First Team: Juventus (2018)

Genre: Documentary
Main Actors: Massimiliano Allegri, Gianluigi Buffon, Giorgio Chellini, Andrea Barzagli 

If you’re a football fan, this mini-series belongs on your watchlist!

It takes an in-depth look at the famous Italian football club Juventus F.C. during the 2017-2018 season. You’ll get to see interviews and personal stories of the club and its players, including Gigi Buffon and Paulo Dybala, as well as the coaches.

All in all, the show follows the team through key moments of the season, including Serie A matches, UEFA Champions League games, and Coppa Italia fixtures. Of course, it also shows their games and intense training routines! I found these exciting to watch, with the camera angles and music setting the mood.

13. Luna Nera (2020)

Genre: Fantasy
Main Actors: Antonia Fotaras, Giada Gagliardi, Manuela Mandracchia

Back in the 17^th century, women were being accused of witchcraft and persecuted—but what if there really were witches among them?  

In “Luna Nera,” Ade is a midwife who suddenly discovers her powers of witchcraft. After her grandmother is executed for it, Ade runs to the woods and finds a group of women there who are also witches.

On top of this, she starts to like Pietro, a young man whose family is actively involved in the witch hunts. As she comes to accept her abilities, Ade has to make difficult choices.

I adored the visuals here, from the ancient buildings to the special effects!

14. Curon (2020)

Genre: Supernatural
Main Actors: Valeria Bilello, Margherita Morchio, Federico Russo, Luca Lionello

A small, eerie town that’s steeped in legends and secrets—this is the backdrop of “Curon,” a psychological thriller that builds up to a grand finale.

Anna Raina left her hometown 17 years earlier under mysterious circumstances, but now she goes back to Curon with her teenage twins, Daria and Mauro.

But then she disappears—and the twins slowly find out that their family’s history is connected to the town’s dark past. The town is known for its bell tower that’s submerged in a lake, and—according to legends—it emits a haunting sound.

If you’ve watched “Dark,” a German series on Netflix, then the atmosphere here is similar!

15. Fortune Seller: A TV Scam (2022)

Italian Name: Wanna
Genre: Documentary
Main Actors: Wanna Marchi, Stefania Nobile

“Fortune Seller” dives into one of Italy’s biggest scams ever.

Wanna Marchi, a salesperson and self-proclaimed fortune-teller, and her daughter Stefania Nobile became popular on TV during the 1980s and 1990s. This was when teleshopping and infomercials were all the rage.

They became the masterminds of an elaborate scam by selling fake weight loss products, talismans and even psychic services. These all promised quick solutions to personal problems, and they swindled millions of euros from unsuspecting victims.

I felt disturbed while watching the interviews of victims, police and legal experts, but it’s also a useful reality check about how fraud can happen in any era.

16. Supersex (2024)

Genre: Drama
Main Actors: Alessandro Borghi, Jasmine Trinca, Adriano Giannini

This up-and-coming Netflix series is based on true events.

A young man named Rocco Siffredi lived a humble life growing up. But as he escapes the small, normal life he had, he finds himself becoming one of the world’s most successful adult entertainment stars.

Episode by episode, his past begins to unravel—from his childhood and family, to how he views love—and the starting point that got him to his career is revealed.

The show touches on taboo, untalked-about subjects, like what it means to be male and how sexuality, adult entertainment and love coexist (or if they can).

Hopefully this guide has given you an idea of what to watch next! What’s great about these is you can binge them from start to finish, with both reliable Italian and English subtitles available. 

A lot of Italian learners actually like practicing the language with the series above, including “Suburra” and “An Astrological Guide for Broken Hearts.”

For more Italian TV shows (outside of Netflix), there’s this guide too:

To build up your Italian vocabulary, there are shorter clips too on FluentU.

FluentU takes real-world videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons, as you can see here:

FluentU helps you get comfortable with everyday Italian by combining all the benefits of complete immersion and native-level conversations with interactive subtitles.

Tap on any word to instantly see an image, in-context definition, example sentences and other videos in which the word is used.

Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab, and review words and phrases with convenient audio clips under Vocab.

Once you've watched a video, you can use FluentU's quizzes to actively practice all the vocabulary in that video. Swipe left or right to see more examples of the word you’re on.

FluentU will even keep track of all the Italian words you’ve learned to recommend videos and ask you questions based on what you already know.

Plus, it'll tell you exactly when it's time for review. Now that's a 100% personalized experience!

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Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)