The first decade of the millennium was a turning point for television: networks and creators took bigger narrative risks, formats evolved and audiences began to expect more complexity. This article surveys fifteen series that, by artistic reach and cultural influence, helped redirect the medium. Our selections prioritize lasting quality, visible industry impact and an enduring legacy, while excluding shows that reached prominence mainly outside the decade or that, despite influence, failed to maintain consistent quality.
Not every landmark of the era appears here; some well-known titles air too late in the decade for inclusion, and others are omitted because their overall arcs did not meet the standards we applied. What remains is a cross-section of series that pushed form and content: from serialized epics and morally ambiguous leads to comedies that rewired television humor. Below, these shows are grouped to highlight how each trend reshaped storytelling.
Drama’s new frontiers
The Sopranos sits at the summit of this period, the series most commonly credited with launching the modern prestige era. James Gandolfini’s portrayal of Tony Soprano turned a mob story into a study of character, ethics and American identity. Across six seasons the show accumulated 112 Emmy nominations and 21 wins, and its influence on long-form character development is difficult to overstate. Alongside it, The Wire offered a sweeping institutional critique: David Simon and Ed Burns crafted an ensemble examination of urban systems that earned two Emmy nominations during its run but has since become one of the most lauded televisual achievements in critics’ retrospectives.
The Shield, which debuted in 2002, introduced viewers to Detective Vic Mackey and delivered a ferocious study of power and corruption; Michael Chiklis won an Emmy for his lead performance. Shows such as Battlestar Galactica retooled genre television into political allegory, acting as an early example of a post-9/11 drama that interrogated security, governance and identity. Meanwhile, Alan Ball’s Six Feet Under combined dark comedy and grief narratives and amassed 53 Emmy nominations with nine wins, ending on a finale frequently cited as television’s best. Finally, House, M.D. used diagnostic puzzles to anchor a character study of an abrasive genius: Hugh Laurie earned six Lead Actor nominations across a run of over 170 episodes, though he never secured the statuette.
Antiheroes and institutions
One recurring device of the decade was the antihero—a protagonist whose moral flaws are central to the story. From Tony Soprano and Vic Mackey to figures in The Wire, series interrogated institutional failure and personal compromise. These programs often inverted traditional hero narratives, showing how systems shape individual choices while forcing audiences to wrestle with uncomfortable empathy. That shift remains a key contribution of the 2000s to television craft.
Comedy and formal reinvention
Comedy in the 2000s experimented with tone and format in ways that would ripple across the next decades. The original British The Office popularized the mockumentary style and a strain of cringe humor; its U.S. adaptation expanded the form into a mainstream success, winning Outstanding Comedy Series in 2006. Arrested Development compressed elaborate running gags and dense callbacks into three seasons that won an early Emmy for its freshman year and later influenced countless writers. Tina Fey’s 30 Rock satirized television production with sharp, verbally dense comedy, earning three consecutive Outstanding Comedy Series trophies and holding an Emmy nominations-per-season record until 2026.
Curb Your Enthusiasm split the difference between improvisation and rigorous structure: Larry David refined awkward social conflict into an art form across a run that stretches from 2000 to 2026 (after a lengthy hiatus following season eight in 2011), earning 55 Emmy nominations and two wins. Lighter, heartfelt work such as Everybody Hates Chris blended stand-up origin tales with authentic family dynamics, anchored by strong supporting performances that helped launch several future TV stars.
Mockumentary and cringe
The adoption of documentary aesthetics allowed comedies to feel immediate and layered: flat camera work, direct-address glances and unsparing awkwardness redefined what television comedy could do. That formal shift produced shows ranging from the dry, British original to broad ensemble pieces that married serialized character growth with episodic setups, influencing series across genres.
Ensemble spectacles and cultural events
Certain series became weekly cultural gatherings, using ensemble casts and serialized mysteries to drive water-cooler conversation. Lost was a phenomenon that turned serialized puzzles into appointment television, and it collected 51 Emmy nominations with 10 wins over its run. Friday Night Lights used high school football as an entry point to explore community, class and adulthood; it earned 13 Emmy nominations, and Jason Katims won recognition for writing the series finale “Always,” while Kyle Chandler won Outstanding Lead Actor. Deadwood reimagined the Western with literary density and earned 28 Emmy nominations, with eight wins, eventually receiving a film continuation in 2019 to conclude its storylines.
Taken together, these dramas and comedies illustrate how the 2000s broadened television’s emotional, moral and formal vocabulary. Whether through ensemble ambition, antiheroic introspection or formal reinvention, the decade’s best series set a template that still shapes what creators attempt and audiences expect.