Queen Charlotte, Mask Girl, and the 20 best Netflix Original shows of 2023

The Night Agent

Who could have seen The Night Agent coming? If there was an unexpected dark horse of a hit on Netflix in 2023, it was the action-thriller series. Upon its premiere in March 2023, the show based on the book of the same name by Matthew Quick became an overnight success, hitting all kinds of viewership milestones. It's quite the feat for a series that otherwise wasn't previously buzzed about and didn't have an A-list name in the lead.

Gabriel Basso, one of the breakout Netflix stars of 2023, headlines The Night Agent as Peter Sutherland, a low-level FBI agent working as the White House's Night Action telephone operator. Suddenly, he's thrust into a wide-ranging political conspiracy when the phone finally rings. The first season's 10 episodes are a pulsating thrill ride, and it's no wonder that the show became one of Netflix's most-watched ever in just a month.

Five days after The Night Agent premiered, Netflix bet big and renewed the show for a second season. That kind of turnaround is just about unheard of, especially within the world of Netflix, which had become known for its reputation of canceling a lot of its fan-favorite originals. But The Night Agent was far too massive of a phenomenon for it to not become one of the streamer's new signature series. There's no doubt this was one of the most exciting and entertaining new shows of 2023, both on Netflix and on all of television period.

Written by Reed Gaudens