Top 50 History Movies and TV Shows
1. Vikings (2013–2020)
TV-MA | 44 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Vikings transports us to the brutal and mysterious world of Ragnar Lothbrok, a Viking warrior and farmer who yearns to explore - and raid - the distant shores across the ocean.
Stars: Katheryn Winnick, Gustaf Skarsgård, Alexander Ludwig, Georgia Hirst
Votes: 423,947
2. The Crown (2016– )
TV-MA | 58 min | Biography, Drama, History
Follows the political rivalries and romance of Queen Elizabeth II's reign and the events that shaped the second half of the twentieth century.
Stars: Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, Imelda Staunton, Matt Smith
Votes: 142,725
3. The Last Kingdom (2015– )
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Drama, History
As Alfred the Great defends his kingdom from Norse invaders, Uhtred - born a Saxon but raised by Vikings - seeks to claim his ancestral birthright.
Stars: Alexander Dreymon, Eliza Butterworth, Ian Hart, Arnas Fedaravicius
Votes: 82,954
4. The Great (2020– )
TV-MA | Biography, Comedy, Drama
A royal woman living in rural Russia during the 18th century is forced to choose between her own personal happiness and the future of Russia, when she marries an Emperor.
Stars: Elle Fanning, Nicholas Hoult, Phoebe Fox, Sacha Dhawan
Votes: 15,838
5. Warrior (2019– )
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Crime, Drama
During the Tong Wars in the late 1800s, Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy from China, immigrates to San Francisco and becomes a hatchet man for the most powerful tong in Chinatown.
Stars: Andrew Koji, Olivia Cheng, Jason Tobin, Dianne Doan
Votes: 15,609
6. The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)
R | 129 min | Drama, History, Thriller
The story of 7 people on trial stemming from various charges surrounding the uprising at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois.
Director: Aaron Sorkin | Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Alex Sharp, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jeremy Strong
Votes: 82,135
7. Chernobyl (2019)
TV-MA | 330 min | Drama, History, Thriller
In April 1986, an explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics becomes one of the world's worst man-made catastrophes.
Stars: Jessie Buckley, Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Adam Nagaitis
Votes: 529,772
8. Hamilton (2020)
PG-13 | 160 min | Biography, Drama, History
The real life of one of America's foremost founding fathers and first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton. Captured live on Broadway from the Richard Rodgers Theater with the original Broadway cast.
Director: Thomas Kail | Stars: Lin-Manuel Miranda, Phillipa Soo, Leslie Odom Jr., Renée Elise Goldsberry
Votes: 53,133
9. Band of Brothers (2001)
TV-MA | 594 min | Action, Drama, History
The story of Easy Company of the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division, and their mission in World War II Europe, from Operation Overlord, through V-J Day.
Stars: Scott Grimes, Damian Lewis, Ron Livingston, Shane Taylor
Votes: 372,871
10. Dark Waters (2019)
PG-13 | 126 min | Biography, Drama, History
A corporate defense attorney takes on an environmental lawsuit against a chemical company that exposes a lengthy history of pollution.
Director: Todd Haynes | Stars: Mark Ruffalo, Anne Hathaway, Tim Robbins, Bill Pullman
Votes: 58,278
11. Spartacus (2010–2013)
TV-MA | 55 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
The life of Spartacus, the gladiator who lead a rebellion against the Romans. From his time as an ally of the Romans, to his betrayal and becoming a gladiator, to the rebellion he leads and its ultimate outcome.
Stars: Andy Whitfield, Lucy Lawless, Manu Bennett, Daniel Feuerriegel
Votes: 222,120
12. Call the Midwife (2012– )
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama, History
Chronicles the lives of a group of midwives living in East London in the late-1950s to mid-1960s.
Stars: Vanessa Redgrave, Laura Main, Jenny Agutter, Judy Parfitt
Votes: 19,991
13. Dunkirk (2017)
PG-13 | 106 min | Action, Drama, History
Allied soldiers from Belgium, the British Empire, and France are surrounded by the German Army and evacuated during a fierce battle in World War II.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Fionn Whitehead, Barry Keoghan, Mark Rylance, Tom Hardy
Votes: 551,861 | Gross: $188.37M
14. Greyhound (2020)
PG-13 | 91 min | Action, Drama, History
Several months after the U.S. entry into World War II, an inexperienced U.S. Navy commander must lead an Allied convoy being stalked by a German submarine wolf pack.
Director: Aaron Schneider | Stars: Tom Hanks, Elisabeth Shue, Stephen Graham, Matt Helm
Votes: 65,179
15. Poldark (2015–2019)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
Ross Poldark returns home after American Revolutionary War and rebuilds his life with a new business venture, making new enemies and finding a new love where he least expects it.
Stars: Aidan Turner, Eleanor Tomlinson, Jack Farthing, Beatie Edney
Votes: 25,532
16. Tombstone (1993)
R | 130 min | Action, Biography, Drama
A successful lawman's plans to retire anonymously in Tombstone, Arizona are disrupted by the kind of outlaws he was famous for eliminating.
Directors: George P. Cosmatos, Kevin Jarre | Stars: Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliott, Bill Paxton
Votes: 126,420 | Gross: $56.51M
17. The Tudors (2007–2010)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
A dramatic series about the reign and marriages of King Henry VIII.
Stars: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Henry Cavill, Anthony Brophy, James Frain
Votes: 68,215
18. Boardwalk Empire (2010–2014)
TV-MA | 55 min | Crime, Drama, History
An Atlantic City politician plays both sides of the law by conspiring with gangsters during the Prohibition era.
Stars: Steve Buscemi, Kelly Macdonald, Michael Shannon, Shea Whigham
Votes: 171,368
19. Braveheart (1995)
R | 178 min | Biography, Drama, History
Scottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.
Director: Mel Gibson | Stars: Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, Patrick McGoohan, Angus Macfadyen
Votes: 956,421 | Gross: $75.60M
20. Schindler's List (1993)
R | 195 min | Biography, Drama, History
In German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Liam Neeson, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley, Caroline Goodall
Votes: 1,208,998 | Gross: $96.90M
21. The King (I) (2019)
R | 140 min | Biography, Drama, History
Hal, wayward prince and heir to the English throne, is crowned King Henry V after his tyrannical father dies. Now the young king must navigate palace politics, the war his father left behind, and the emotional strings of his past life.
Director: David Michôd | Stars: Tom Glynn-Carney, Gábor Czap, Tom Fisher, Edward Ashley
Votes: 87,742
22. First Man (2018)
PG-13 | 141 min | Biography, Drama, History
A look at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong, and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.
Director: Damien Chazelle | Stars: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler
Votes: 167,403 | Gross: $44.94M
23. Midway (2019)
PG-13 | 138 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The story of the Battle of Midway, told by the leaders and the sailors who fought it.
Director: Roland Emmerich | Stars: Ed Skrein, Patrick Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Luke Evans
Votes: 65,497
24. The Revenant (2015)
R | 156 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A frontiersman on a fur trading expedition in the 1820s fights for survival after being mauled by a bear and left for dead by members of his own hunting team.
Director: Alejandro G. Iñárritu | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Will Poulter, Domhnall Gleeson
Votes: 702,194 | Gross: $183.64M
25. Rome (2005–2007)
TV-MA | 52 min | Action, Drama, History
A down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic.
Stars: Kevin McKidd, Ray Stevenson, Polly Walker, Kerry Condon
Votes: 154,102
26. Last Knights (2015)
R | 115 min | Action, Drama, History
A fallen warrior rises against a corrupt and sadistic ruler to avenge his dishonored master.
Director: Kazuaki Kiriya | Stars: Clive Owen, Morgan Freeman, Aksel Hennie, Payman Maadi
Votes: 39,645
27. Hidden Figures (2016)
PG | 127 min | Biography, Drama, History
The story of a team of female African-American mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program.
Director: Theodore Melfi | Stars: Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kevin Costner
Votes: 199,720 | Gross: $169.61M
28. El Cid (2020– )
TV-14 | 70 min | Action, Drama, History
The story of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, a Castilian nobleman and war hero in medieval Spain.
Stars: Jaime Lorente, José Luis García Pérez, Elia Galera, Francisco Ortiz
Votes: 1,475
29. Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
R | 139 min | Biography, Drama, History
World War II American Army Medic Desmond T. Doss, who served during the Battle of Okinawa, refuses to kill people, and becomes the first man in American history to receive the Medal of Honor without firing a shot.
Director: Mel Gibson | Stars: Andrew Garfield, Sam Worthington, Luke Bracey, Teresa Palmer
Votes: 432,848 | Gross: $67.21M
30. The Spanish Princess (2019–2020)
TV-MA | 55 min | Drama, History, Romance
The beautiful Spanish princess, Catherine of Aragon, navigates the royal lineage of England with an eye on the throne.
Stars: Laura Carmichael, Aaron Cobham, Charlotte Hope, Stephanie Levi-John
Votes: 4,981
31. Barbarians (2020– )
TV-MA | 280 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The famous battle of the Teutoburg Forest, in which Germanic warriors halted the northward advance of the Roman Empire in AD 9, is the focus of "The Barbarians."
Stars: Laurence Rupp, Jeanne Goursaud, David Schütter, Bernhard Schütz
Votes: 15,962
32. Deadwood (2004–2006)
TV-MA | 55 min | Crime, Drama, History
A show set in the late 1800s, revolving around the characters of Deadwood, South Dakota; a town of deep corruption and crime.
Stars: Timothy Olyphant, Ian McShane, Molly Parker, Brad Dourif
Votes: 94,127
33. Apollo 13 (I) (1995)
PG | 140 min | Adventure, Drama, History
NASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.
Director: Ron Howard | Stars: Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, Kevin Bacon, Gary Sinise
Votes: 268,079 | Gross: $173.84M
34. Troy (2004)
R | 163 min | Drama, History
An adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Julian Glover
Votes: 487,545 | Gross: $133.38M
35. Les Misérables (2012)
PG-13 | 158 min | Drama, History, Musical
In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after breaking parole, agrees to care for a factory worker's daughter. The decision changes their lives forever.
Director: Tom Hooper | Stars: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried
Votes: 308,002 | Gross: $148.81M
36. Mary Queen of Scots (2018)
R | 124 min | Biography, Drama, History
Mary Stuart's (Saoirse Ronan's) attempt to overthrow her cousin Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie), Queen of England, finds her condemned to years of imprisonment before facing execution.
Director: Josie Rourke | Stars: Saoirse Ronan, Margot Robbie, Jack Lowden, Joe Alwyn
Votes: 40,874 | Gross: $16.47M
37. Medici (2016–2019)
TV-14 | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
A political family drama set in Florence in the early fifteenth century. Cosimo de Medici finds himself at the helm of his banking dynasty when his father, Giovanni, dies suddenly.
Stars: Daniel Sharman, Alessandra Mastronardi, Synnove Karlsen, Sebastian De Souza
Votes: 15,411
38. Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Approved | 228 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
The story of T.E. Lawrence, the English officer who successfully united and led the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes during World War I in order to fight the Turks.
Director: David Lean | Stars: Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Jack Hawkins
Votes: 267,138 | Gross: $44.82M
39. The Big Short (2015)
R | 130 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
In 2006-2007 a group of investors bet against the US mortgage market. In their research they discover how flawed and corrupt the market is.
Director: Adam McKay | Stars: Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt
Votes: 360,082 | Gross: $70.26M
40. Victoria (2016– )
TV-PG | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
The early life of Queen Victoria, from her ascension to the throne at the tender age of eighteen to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert.
Stars: Jenna Coleman, Adrian Schiller, Tommy Knight, Jordan Waller
Votes: 22,225
41. The Favourite (2018)
R | 119 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
In early 18th century England, a frail Queen Anne occupies the throne and her close friend, Lady Sarah, governs the country in her stead. When a new servant, Abigail, arrives, her charm endears her to Sarah.
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos | Stars: Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Rachel Weisz, Nicholas Hoult
Votes: 171,116 | Gross: $34.37M
42. The Outpost (2019)
R | 123 min | Action, Drama, History
A small team of U.S. soldiers battle against hundreds of Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.
Director: Rod Lurie | Stars: Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones, Orlando Bloom, Jack Kesy
Votes: 18,278
43. 12 Years a Slave (2013)
R | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History
In the antebellum United States, Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery.
Director: Steve McQueen | Stars: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Kenneth Williams, Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt
Votes: 638,044 | Gross: $56.67M
44. The Terror (2018– )
TV-14 | 60 min | Adventure, Drama, History
Supernatural, semihistorical, horror anthology series, where each season is inspired by a different infamous or mysterious real life historical tragedy.
Stars: Jared Harris, Derek Mio, Tobias Menzies, Kiki Sukezane
Votes: 36,485
45. The Impossible (2012)
PG-13 | 114 min | Drama, History, Thriller
The story of a tourist family in Thailand caught in the destruction and chaotic aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
Director: J.A. Bayona | Stars: Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor, Tom Holland, Oaklee Pendergast
Votes: 199,953 | Gross: $19.02M
46. The Death of Stalin (2017)
R | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, History
Moscow, 1953. After being in power for nearly thirty years, Soviet dictator Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (Adrian McLoughlin) takes ill and quickly dies. Now the members of the Council of Ministers scramble for power.
Director: Armando Iannucci | Stars: Steve Buscemi, Simon Russell Beale, Jeffrey Tambor, Andrea Riseborough
Votes: 86,661 | Gross: $8.04M
47. 7 Days in Entebbe (2018)
PG-13 | 107 min | Action, Drama, History
Inspired by the true events of the 1976 hijacking of an Air France flight en route from Tel Aviv to Paris, and the most daring rescue mission ever attempted.
Director: José Padilha | Stars: Batsheva Dance Company, Zina Zinchenko, Ben Schnetzer, Daniel Brühl
Votes: 13,813 | Gross: $3.19M
48. The Patriot (2000)
R | 165 min | Action, Drama, History
Peaceful farmer Benjamin Martin is driven to lead the Colonial Militia during the American Revolution when a sadistic British officer murders his son.
Director: Roland Emmerich | Stars: Mel Gibson, Heath Ledger, Joely Richardson, Jason Isaacs
Votes: 253,958 | Gross: $113.33M
49. A Bridge Too Far (1977)
PG | 175 min | Drama, History, War
Operation Market Garden, September 1944: The Allies attempt to capture several strategically important bridges in the Netherlands in the hope of breaking the German lines.
Director: Richard Attenborough | Stars: Sean Connery, Ryan O'Neal, Michael Caine, Laurence Olivier
Votes: 51,977 | Gross: $50.80M
50. Assassin's Creed Valhalla (2020 Video Game)
M | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
England in the age of the Vikings is a fractured nation of petty lords and warring kingdoms. Beneath the chaos lies a rich and untamed land waiting for a new conqueror. Will it be you?
Directors: Ashraf Ismail, Benoit Richer, Ramiro Bélanger | Stars: Cecilie Stenspil, Magnus Bruun, Carlo Rota, Gaia Weiss
Votes: 1,156