There’s no doubt that a giant audience exists for teen-based drama/comedies such as Heartbreak High and Sex Education, albeit an audience with a wandering attention span. But still, it’s an audience nonetheless, and that audience needs more and more recommendations to keep them going. So, here are ten shows like the aforementioned titles with a major focus on teenage drama and all that entails.
10 Shows Like Heartbreak High and Sex Education
Never Have I Ever (2020)
Never Have I Ever | Image via Netflix
Ex-Office employee and rubbish Scooby Doo revisionist Mindy Kaling stars in this comedy-drama that follows the roller coaster ride of a first-generation Indian-American teenage girl, and the various escapades she encounters. Never Have I Ever is based on some experiences from Kaling’s upbringing, and she also co-created the popular series.
Euphoria (2019)
Euphoria | Image via HBO
Created by Sam Levinson, whom you might associate with the controversial and almost universally panned The Idol, Euphoria is probably everything that you might expect it to be, following a group of high schoolers that need to be sent to their rooms and grounded until they are at least thirty. Gloomy Spider-Man love interest Zendaya somehow found time to star in this series that takes a look at mental health and addiction issues too.
Heartstopper (2022)
Heartstopper | Image via Netflix
Slightly more heartwarming is this popular series that sees two friends discovering that their friendship may be developing into something more, as they navigate their journey of self-discovery. Heartstopper is a feel-good series that has some nice performances too.
Young Royals (2021)
Young Royals | Image via Netflix
Perhaps not as royal as The Crown, but still featuring a Prince, Young Royals follows Prince Wilhelm as he tries his best to find a place at a new boarding school. At its center is a fish-out-of-water story, as our Prince tries to adapt to his new peer group and environment, and you can expect plenty of drama along the way involving out-of-control hormones.
XO Kitty (2023)
XO Kitty | Image via Netflix
This franchise, a spin-off from To All The Boys I Loved Before, certainly gained a lot of attention, with fans loving the premise and the diverse cast. In XO Kitty, self-proclaimed love genius and meddler Kitty makes a long-distance trip to be at the same school as her boyfriend, then discovers that affairs of the heart are more complicated when it’s yours that’s on the line.
Freeridge (2023)
Freeridge | Image via Netflix
Here’s a slight change of pace, kind of, as there is another group of teens, this time spinning out of another show that could have been on the list: On My Block. Freeridge leans into a scarier, some would say silly, premise, as the gang wonders if they have somehow unleashed a curse that is bringing them all bad luck.
Skins (2007)
Skins | Image via Channel 4
This UK-based series would shock viewers as when it was first released, lots of middle-aged parents tuned in before realizing that this show was not made for them, and they would have been better off not seeing what their teenage kids were probably up to. Lanky British X-Man Nicholas Hoult would head an ensemble cast in this popular series that many UK teens thought was a documentary.
Derry Girls (2018)
Derry Girls | Image via Channel 4
Girls behaving badly are front and center in this outrageous comedy-drama set in the 90s in a troubled Northern Ireland. The show would receive a high honor in its native land, with a mural of the cast being painted on the wall of the Badgers Bar and Restaurant, located at 18 Orchard Street, Derry, proving the cultural significance of the show.
The Sex Lives of College Girls (2021)
The Sex Lives of College Girls | Image via HBO
Mindy Kaling is running this series, her second show on the list, that features four 18-year-old freshman roommates at the highly respected Essex College in Vermont. Of course, there are plenty of eyebrow-raising situations to wade through as our often hard-to-empathize-with cast indulges in all manner of adventures.
The Young Ones (1982)
The Young Ones | Image via the BBC
If you are of a certain age you may remember this gr0und breaking anarchic and irreverent BBC sitcom from the 80s that starred Ade Edmundson, Rik Mayall, Nigel Planer, and Christopher Ryan as four students living in a house and spending their days tormenting each other with cartoon violence and schoolyard humor. The show would cause chaos at the BBC, but remains a cult classic today, limitlessly quotable and childishly hilarious.
Do you have any other suggestions for shows like Heartbreak High and Sex Education? Let us know in the comments below.
