Steven Knight’s House of Guinness (2025) is gaining traction on Netflix. The new series is a historical drama that explores the Guinness family, renowned for their achievements in the brewing industry. When the family patriarch dies, the fate of his legacy is left in the hands of his four adult children.
House of Guinness is everything one could want from a family saga, brimming with complicated histories, secrets, and envy. If the series leaves you eager for more family drama, you can use our guide to find the 10 best dark family sagas on platforms like HBO Max, Paramount+, Netflix, and more.
The Sopranos (1999-2007)
The Sopranos is a crime drama that follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a mafia boss who struggles to balance his crime life with his family life. Its family saga is twofold, as it delves into both Tony’s biological family and the DiMeo crime family. The show’s intensity stems from family conflict, as Tony faces constant fear of betrayal, shifting loyalties, and power struggles within the DiMeo family.
Turmoil also reigns within his personal family, as his wife and children struggle to come to terms with their father’s lifestyle. The Sopranos family strongly parallels the Guinness family, given their rich history of scandal. Meanwhile, The Sopranos delves even deeper into dark territory through its nuanced and dazzling character study of Tony and his descent into evil. If you loved House of Guinness but are seeking something that leans more into the gangster genre, The Sopranos is perfect for you.
Game of Thrones (2011-2019)
Game of Thrones takes the family saga to epic proportions with its sprawling tale of two powerful families vying for control of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. It tells a similar story to House of Guinness, about a family left grasping for a coveted legacy, but on a much larger scale. The vacancy of the Iron Throne sparks an extensive, gruesome war of succession involving numerous noble families and endless betrayals, rebellions, schemes, and dark secrets.
Game of Thrones bolsters its family saga with extensive worldbuilding, stunning visuals, and complex storytelling. Its grandeur and attention to detail make it one of the best fantasy series ever made, comparable in scale to series like Shōgun (2024) and The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (2022). Game of Thrones is an excellent alternative to House of Guinness for viewers seeking dark family drama, but with an exciting fantasy backdrop.
Peaky Blinders (2013-2022)
Peaky Blinders and House of Guinness have quite a bit in common, including creator Steven Knight. Like House of Guinness, Peaky Blinders is also a historical drama. It centers on the Peaky Blinders gang during the aftermath of World War I under the leadership of Tommy Shelby (Cillian Murphy) and his family. The series blends history with family drama as the wealthy Shelby family rules the streets through fear and influence, clashing with one another over methods, strategy, and what they’re entitled to.
The Shelby family strongly parallels the Guinness family, as both are wealthy and powerful and operate amid turbulent historical times. While based in truth, the shows take some creative liberties to produce thrilling, dramatic, scandalous, gritty, and dark tales of family, politics, and power. Peaky Blinders isn’t as grand or fantastical as Game of Thrones, but it boasts the gangster elements of The Sopranos and is excellent for viewers who appreciated the historical aspects of House of Guinness.
Empire (2015-2020)
Empire tells the story of Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard), the CEO of a successful entertainment company, who struggles to find a successor after being diagnosed with a terminal illness. The series features all the family drama and conflict of House of Guinness, but set against the backdrop of the dazzling hip hop industry, complete with exquisite costumes and catchy songs. It’s deliciously soapy, offering performances that are over-the-top but believable and delving convincingly into the music industry.
The fascinating power dynamics between Lyon, his ex-wife, and their three adult sons are highly reminiscent of those between the Guinness brothers in House of Guinness. Empire is an excellent choice for viewers who enjoy the family saga elements of Peaky Blinders and House of Guinness, but are seeking something a little more soapy. With its House of Guinness meets Scandal (2012) vibes, Empire is a dark family saga and excellent guilty pleasure watch.
Taboo (2017)
Taboo is another Steven Knight historical drama on par with House of Guinness and Peaky Blinders. In the show, James Delaney (Tom Hardy) inherits a coveted piece of land from his late father, but his desire to rebuild his father’s shipping empire is complicated by greed, corruption, and dark family mysteries. Taboo is as dark and gritty as it gets, delving deep into the dark underbelly of the East India Company, as well as the complicated history of Delaney’s family, including his father’s mysterious death and his mother’s alleged mental illness.
As in House of Guiness, everyone in the Delaney family and their connections holds dark secrets that deepen the saga and mystery. Taboo also boasts historical elements reminiscent of the House of Guinness, but it ventures into even darker territory, paralleling Game of Thrones in the extent of its betrayals, conspiracies, and twisted relationships. The series is perfect if you're yearning for a show with the historical elements of Peaky Blinders and House of Guinness, but also the darkness and gloom of the likes of Ripper Street (2012).
Succession (2018-2023)
Succession centers on billionaire Waystar RoyCo founder Logan Roy (Brian Cox), whose declining health sparks a battle among his four adult children to inherit his empire. The premise is highly reminiscent of House of Guinness and Empire because of its focus on adult children with clashing personalities, secrets, and desires, who are a little too eager to play their father’s games. Like House of Guinness, it also draws inspiration from a real-life family: the Murdochs.
Succession is one of the best modern family sagas one can watch. The series isn’t just about family drama; it frames its succession conflict in satire and dark humor to critique corporate America and the complexities of family inheritances. Dark, funny, witty, and sharp, Succession is much like a modern-day House of Guinness, but it also offers a satirical commentary on America and the pursuit of power with a cynicism that rivals Veep (2012).
Yellowstone (2018-2024)
Yellowstone follows the Dutton Family, the owners of the largest ranch in Montana, as they navigate family drama and conflict along the ranch’s borders. It's a sprawling family saga, as patriarch John Dutton (Kevin Costner) is a sixth-generation homesteader with four children and a ranch rich in history. The setting is perfect for family drama, as the rough environment lays the groundwork for murder, mystery, betrayal, and alliances.
Yellowstone has the family drama and high stakes of House of Guinness with the grittiness of a western that adds some darkness to the saga. Between its dazzling settings, modern western premise, and family drama, it has something for everyone and is a bit of a comfort watch akin to Empire. If you love House of Guinness but want to trade the historical elements with western ones, Yellowstone is an excellent choice.
The Righteous Gemstones (2019-2025)
The Righteous Gemstones focuses on the dysfunctional Gemstone family, as they struggle to maintain their vast religious empire amid dark family secrets and scandals. It parallels House of Guinness with its dark family saga, but it goes to even more outlandish heights due to the extent of the adult children’s dysfunction and secrets. In the line of Succession, the show thrives on dark humor and satire, examining family dysfunction and the corruption, greed, and hypocrisy of commercialized religion with a critical lens.
The family saga of the Gemstones also explores ideas of grief and generational trauma, though it encases these themes in slapstick humor. The Righteous Gemstones offer a bit more complexity than shows like Empire and Yellowstone, but it never sacrifices the humor, absurdity, and drama. Viewers who love the family dynamics of House of Guinness but are seeking something even more bold, twisted, and humorous will be interested in The Righteous Gemstones.
The Fall of the House of Usher (2023)
The Fall of the House of Usher is a gothic horror miniseries based on Edgar Allan Poe’s works. It follows Rodrick Usher (Bruce Greenwood), CEO of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, who must confront his and his twin sister’s past when his children begin dying one by one in freak accidents. The series boasts the dark family secrets and drama of House of Guinness, but it approaches its topic with a horror twist. It’s dark, disturbing, and an excellent, modern tribute to Poe that also critiques business corruption and wealth.
The Fall of the House of Usher is a family saga that effectively conveys the horror of some family secrets and dysfunction. Like Taboo, The Righteous Gemstones, and Succession, it explores how children often pay for the wrongs of the previous generation, except that it doesn’t hold back in depicting that price. Fans of House of Guinness and the gothic horror of Mike Flanagan will love The Fall of the House of Usher’s blend of a family saga and horror.
MobLand (2025-Present)
MobLand is a crime drama that centers on Harry Da Souza (Hardy), a fixer for the Harrigan crime family tasked with navigating and minimizing the impact of their feud with the Stevenson crime family. Like The Sopranos, MobLand is a blend of crime drama and family saga, delving into the complex family dynamics and violent conflicts between two powerful crime families. It differentiates itself by examining these family dynamics from the perspective of outsider Da Souza, whose street smarts and brutal ways will dazzle viewers.
Like House of Guinness, MobLand explores convoluted family history, betrayal, loyalty, and alliances. However, it stands out as a slow-burning crime drama largely carried by Hardy’s top-notch performance. It’s the perfect show for viewers looking for a family saga that’s a cross between Taboo and The Sopranos.
