13. Trapped (2015)
There’s something about crime and snow that go together like bread and butter. This list is bursting with frozen corpses, Nordic folklore, and detectives who warm themselves with black coffee.
First of these detectives is Andri Ólafsson (played by Ólafur Darri Ólafsson), who’s chief of police on the northern coast of Iceland and the center of the show inTrapped.
This Icelandic mystery series eventually found an audience in the US and UK without sacrificing its Nordic roots. And like its popular Danish counterpartThe Killing(which I’ll get to later below),Trappedfavors slow-paced, high-concept drama over shortcut thrills.
Related:The Best Cop TV Shows About Police
12. Wisting (2019)
Snow is the perfect cover for a murderer. Footprints can be kicked over, DNA melts in the morning sun, and time of deaths are muddled by the natural preservation of frigid temperatures. Perhaps that’s why places like Norway love the police procedural genre?
Detective William Wisting (played by Sven Nordin) finds fingerprints on a snow-covered body, belonging to an American serial killer who must be hiding out in Norway “in plain sight” of unsuspecting locals.
The most fitting word for this show is “woven” because it’s like an intricate tapestry of patterns, links, and chilly atmospherics.
11. Deadwind (2018)
If you hadn’t already gathered, the Scandi noir genre has carved its own corner of crime television, proving that the Nordic countries really know how to orchestrate bone-chilling dramas better than most.
Bleak landscapes, straight-talking detectives, folksy infusions, and broader socio-political contexts make these Nordic noir stories stand out against campy Agatha Christie-style whodunits.
InDeadwind, we’re venturing to the capital of Finland where the personal and police lives of Sofia Karppi (played by Pihla Viitala) grapple and shake in the face of a recent murder case.
Related:The Best Foreign-Language Netflix Original Series
10. Pagan Peak (2018)
Pagan Peak(also known asDer PassorThe Pass, take your pick) takes place on the Austria-Germany border, where gruesome copycat killings are multiplying during the “red season.”
In Alpine mythology, Krampus is the demon-looking guy who punishes children on the naughty list, whom you could describe as the Satan to our Santa Claus. In fact, you might have seen the (heavily Americanized) horror film about Krampus that came out in 2015!
Well, inPagan Peak, Krampus is the mask worn by the serial killer in this unforgiving, polysemous drama. Although it isn’t a Nordic noir,Pagan Peakdoes have the tone of one, which makes sense given that it was inspired by Hans Rosenfeldt’sThe Bridge.
9. Cardinal (2017)
Based on the crime novel series by Giles Blunt,Cardinaltakes place in the fictional city of Algonquin, steeped in mounds of crystal white snow.
We’re introduced to the city during winter, where the body of a young girl is lifted out an old mine shaft, preserved like a fossil in ice.
Although it isn’t snowing for all four seasons of this Canadian drama, it certainly is duringForty Words for Sorrow(the first of Blunt’s books).
Related:The Best Crime TV Shows About Anti-Heroes Who Break the Law
8. Snowpiercer (2020)
Bong Joon-ho, director of the 2019 Oscar-winning filmParasite, was also the genius behind the 2013 sci-fi movieSnowpiercer. Seven years later, it was spun-off into a three-season-long dystopian thriller TV series, with Bong Joon-ho producing (so you know it’s good).
Based on the 1982 French graphic novelLe Transperceneigeby Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand, and Jean-Marc Rochette,Snowpiercerrefers to an enormous train that carries the remnants of humanity. Why? Because in 2026, the world is a complete frozen wasteland.
7. To the Lake (2019)
A Netflix thriller series set in Moscow? Of course there’s going to be snow! In this apocalyptic web series,To the Lakecenters around an epidemic that breaks out in the Russian capital. The original title is even called (literally translated)Epidemic.
In our current climate, this word might be enough to put you off—but trust me, this gritty series is worth the watch! Inspired by Yana Vagner’s 2011 debut novel,To the Lakefollows two families who take refuge on a ship in the middle of Vongozero to avoid infection.
Related:The Best Netflix TV Series With Big Plot Twists and Revelations
6. The Killing (2007)
A Danish police drama that reached international acclaim,The Killing(originally titledForbrydelsen) won numerous awards. It later got a US remake (also calledThe Killing) because American viewers “cannot read subtitles, or they don’t want to,” apparently.
The Killingrevolves around a murder investigation. Set in chilly Copenhagen, Detective Inspector Sarah Lund (played by Sofie Gråbøl) investigates a different homicide in each of the three seasons.
Created by Søren Sveistrup,The Killingwas hailed for its clever plot twists and its focus on the victims' families rather than just the criminals.
Related:The Best Modern Detective TV Shows
5. Fortitude (2015)
Drama, horror, mystery… all the genres wrapped in one!Fortitudefollows its ensemble cast through a fictional town in the Norwegian Arctic—one that may seem quiet on the outside but is really anything but.
Simon Donald brings us an icy psychological thriller inspired by his talks with a parasitologist, basingFortitude’s fatal infestation on the creepy ichneumon wasps (or “Darwin wasps”).
The three-season-long show features an all-star international cast, who each harbor their own dark secrets.
Related:The Best BBC Drama Series of All Time
4. True Detective: Night Country (2024)
The first season ofTrue Detective—starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson in the hot backroads of Louisiana—quickly became one of the greatest detective shows ever made upon release.
Naturally, creator Nic Pizzolatto has been trying (and failing) to match that success ever since, but Issa López’s recent attempt is the only season to come close. Instead of trying to recreate the vibe of season one, López givesTrue Detectivea whole new look with season four.
This season got an Alaskan makeover, featuring strong female detectives and supernatural elements, set apart from other seasons by the tack-on titleNight Country. Like the ritualistic killings in the first season,True Detective: Night Countryis not for the easily creeped out.
Related:The Best Female Detective TV Shows
3. The North Water (2021)
“To live is to suffer.” It wasn’t only Friedrich Nietzsche who believed that, but also director Andrew Haigh.
The North Watershows us a crew of 19th century whalers in the Arctic. Disgraced army surgeon Patrick Sumner (played by Jack O’Connell) has more than just the cold working against him—there’s also a matter of murderers, polar bears, and opium withdrawal.
Colin Farrell and Stephen Graham star alongside him in this high-caliber British miniseries based on the 2016 novel by Ian McGuire. Get ready for five episodes of chewy, brutal, and nail-biting drama, where frostbite is the last thing on the characters' minds.
Related:The Best TV Miniseries of All Time (To Watch in a Single Sitting)
2. Fargo (2014)
The Coen brothers' 1996 cult classic movieFargotakes place in a frosty city in North Dakota—and so does theFargospin-off TV series.
Only the first season takes place in winter, but snow plays a huge role in its iconic mise-en-scène. TheFargoTV series is co-produced by the Coen brothers, which means their offbeat style of black comedy in kept intact.
Made by Noah Hawley,Fargoopens with a cowardly insurance dealer (played by Martin Freeman) who gets inadvertently involved with a hitman (played by Billy Bob Thornton).
Related:The Best Hitman Characters on TV
1. Game of Thrones (2011)
You’re probably familiar with this show already. Sure, much ofGame of Thronestakes place in plush royal gardens and outstretched plains and barren wastes, but the frigid North plays a key part in the story.
As one of the main Seven Kingdoms struggling for power and independence, the North—which includes the Night’s Watch, an heir to the throne, and a towering wall of ice that stands more than 700 feet tall—is the very heart of the show.
Based onA Song of Ice and Fireby George R. R. Martin, seven of the eight seasons were adored by fans and critics, featuring myriad characters and plots that weave in and out across a realistic medieval fantasy world that’s not unlike Tolkien’s Middle-earth.
Related:The Best Epic TV Series Worth Watching
