If you’re drawn to stories where words are weapons, trust is a trapdoor, and nothing is as it seems, we’ve got a lineup designed for mind-bending binge-watching.
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Here are 5 series streaming on Netflix, AppleTV+ and Showmax that you need to watch if you love mind games:
1. Severance (Apple TV+)
Step into a corporate dystopia where employees undergo a surgical ‘severance’ procedure to separate their work memories from their personal lives. As protagonist Mark navigates a maze of corporate control and eerie office rituals, the line between identity and manipulation blurs. With its liminal atmosphere and labyrinthine plot, Severance is a total must-watch.
Where to watch: Apple TV+ in South Africa.
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2. The White Lotus (Showmax)
This razor-sharp satirical thriller drops wealthy guests into a luxury resorts, where simmering resentments and hidden agendas unravel into chaos. Each character plays a high-stakes game of deception, privilege, and survival, with darkly comedic twists that expose the rot beneath paradise. A biting commentary on power and human nature.
Where to watch: Showmax in South Africa.
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3. Surface (Showmax)
After a suicide attempt leaves a San Francisco woman with total amnesia, she rebuilds her seemingly perfect life—only to uncover unsettling secrets about her marriage, identity, and the truth behind her accident. Released in 2022, Surface is a sleek psychological thriller that blurs the lines between memory and manipulation.
Where to watch: AppleTV+ in South Africa.
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4. Sugar (Apple TV+)
Colin Farrell stars as a private investigator navigating Hollywood’s seedy underbelly in this noir-inspired thriller. As Sugar digs into a starlet’s disappearance, he confronts moral ambiguity, shifting alliances, and a labyrinth of secrets. Stylish and cerebral, this series questions how far we’ll go to bury the truth. You’ll never expect the plot twist.
Where to watch: Apple TV+ in South Africa.
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5. Black Mirror (Netflix)
The ultimate anthology of tech-driven paranoia, Black Mirror explores dystopian futures where humanity’s obsession with innovation backfires spectacularly. Each standalone episode—like the haunting ‘San Junipero’ (which was coincidentally filmed in Cape Town) or nerve-shredding ‘Shut Up and Dance‘ delivers mind-bending twists that challenge ethics, reality, and the human psyche.
Where to watch: Netflix in South Africa.
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Feature Image: Instagram / @appletv
