What To Watch
20 TV Shows Worthy of Watching with Your Mom
She’s sure to love them (almost as much as she loves you).
By Allie Baker
May 6, 2026
20 Best TV Shows to Watch with Mom - Netflix Tudum
The bond between mother and child — or a mother figure and child — is a special one. Watching a show can be a great way to get in quality time with your favorite female role model, creating memories through laughter and stimulating conversation about stories and characters. Plus, there’s nothing like watching the eccentric — and occasionally diabolical — behavior of TV matriarchs to make you appreciate your own mom.
We’ve rounded up 20 series with powerful mother-kid dynamics, all perfect for some good old-fashioned mom appreciation. (And if you’d rather do a movie night, we’ve got options for those, too.) Whether the leading lady in your life loves a satirical comedy, romance, drama, or mystery, there are some solid mothering TV shows listed below, and they’re even better when enjoyed together.
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Against the Ropes
Here’s proof that moms will do anything for their kids. In this 10-episode Mexican dramedy created by Carolina Rivera, Ángela (Caraly Sánchez) tries to win back the respect of her young daughter, Rocío (Alisson Santiago), after serving time in prison. Her solution: become a lucha libre wrestler, naturally. Even if you know nothing about the world of wrestling, you’ll instantly get roped in by Ángela’s compelling struggles and triumphs.
Bridgerton
Shonda Rhimes’s Regency-era series is known for its racy romances, but the familial love burns (pun fully intended) just as bright. Lady Violet Bridgerton (Ruth Gemmell) guides her eight kids — including eldest daughter Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor) and sons Anthony (Jonathan Bailey), Colin (Luke Newton), and Benedict (Luke Thompson) — as they navigate the marriage market and contend with the gossiping tongues of the ton. The show is decadent fun to watch with your mom, though you may need to fast-forward through the steamy scenes.
Call the Midwife
This BBC period piece, based on the memoir of midwife Jennifer Worth, is cozy and comforting — like a hug from your mom. It chronicles the day-to-day lives of midwives in East London in the ’50s and ’60s. In each episode, the women of the nursing convent Nonnatus House, led by kind and wise Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter), help a different mom through the joys and challenges of birth and raising children. This show is sure to give you and your mom all the warm and fuzzy feels.
Dead to Me
Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini both earned Emmy nominations for their performances in this dark comedy series, in which they play two women who bond after a mysterious and fatal hit-and-run. With James Marsden and Katey Sagal in the cast, the series is an exploration of grief, celebration of the messiness of motherhood, and tribute to a perfectly landed insult. Any hour watching these three seasons with your mom is time well spent.
Derry Girls
This charming comedy follows the titular Derry girls (and their pal James) through teenage turmoil and everyday life in Northern Ireland during the Troubles. It also offers a glimpse into the lives of their parents and family interactions — especially the hilarious dynamics between Erin Quinn (Saoirse-Monica Jackson) and her mother, Mary (Tara Lynne O’Neill), quirky cousin Orla McCool (Louisa Harland), and aunt Sarah (Kathy Kiera Clarke). This is a fun one to watch with mom, with its getting-into-nonsense teens and no-nonsense parenting.
Gilmore Girls
Meet one of TV’s most iconic mother-daughter duos. Lauren Graham stars as fast-talking, thirtysomething mom Lorelai, who’s raising her bookish teen daughter, Rory (Alexis Bledel), in their hometown of Stars Hollow. Across seven seasons, the two share an unbreakable bond — plus plenty of pop culture references and lots of coffee — alongside their eccentric but endearing neighbors. Plus, Lorelai often spars with her wealthy mother, Emily (Kelly Bishop). Keep up with the Gilmore gang in the limited series revival Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.
Ginny & Georgia
This dramedy is the Gen Z successor to Gilmore Girls — with more murder and mayhem. Young and charismatic mom Georgia (Brianne Howey) and angsty teen Ginny (Antonia Gentry) have a tight-knit yet unconventional relationship — it’s often unclear who’s parenting whom. Still, Georgia will do anything to protect her kids, even if it means burying secrets from her own shady past. Ginny & Georgia is packed with wild subplots, romantic drama, and quippy banter, but the heart of the show is that mother-child bond.
Good Girls
For mother-child duos who love irreverent comedies, this is, well, a good one. The four-season series, created by Jenna Bans, stars Christina Hendricks, Retta, and Mae Whitman as three suburban Michigan moms who rob a supermarket to make ends meet. Suddenly, they’re thrust onto an unexpected road to a life of crime. You and your mom may not relate to the heist hijinks, but the heartfelt family dynamics will make you feel right at home.
Grace and Frankie
Jane Fonda plays the rigorous Grace opposite Lily Tomlin as the free-spirited Frankie. The women’s husbands (Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston), longtime partners at a law firm, realize they’re in love and leave their spouses for each other. Both newly divorced, Grace and Frankie find themselves forging an unlikely friendship. Along with their respective ex-husbands and children — played by Brooklyn Decker, Ethan Embry, June Diane Raphael, and Baron Vaughn — they find a new and expansive kind of family.
The Letdown
This Australian comedy stars Alison Bell as Audrey, a new mom who’s struggling to keep it together as she raises her 2-month-old. She’s lonely — her husband (Duncan Fellows) is overworked, and even the neighborhood drug dealer is sick of her complaints. She joins a support group for new parents and makes some eccentric friends facing their own challenges. Together, they tackle sleeplessness, relationship changes, and more — through thick and thin.
Love on the Spectrum
This sweet, romantic docuseries will be lighting up the family group text. The US version of the popular Australian series follows young adults on the autism spectrum as they navigate dating and relationships — some for the first time — with pure joy, nerves, and the occasional discomfort. With the support of their parents and loved ones, the daters pursue their happily-ever-after love stories, and they let us in on the beautiful journey.
Maid
Margaret Qualley earned an Emmy nomination for her performance in this limited series as Alex, the young mother who escapes an abusive relationship and finds work as a house cleaner. She keeps on moving — through bureaucratic chaos, her ex’s antagonism, and her mother’s challenges with undiagnosed mental illness — toward the goal of starting a new life for herself and her daughter. Bonus: Qualley’s onscreen mother is played by her real-life mom, Andie MacDowell.
Mom
One of life’s biggest lessons is the realization that our parents are just as fallibly human as we are. Co-created by Chuck Lorre (Leanne, The Kominsky Method), this sitcom begins with Christy (Anna Faris), a recovering alcoholic and gambling addict, reconnecting with her mother, Bonnie (Allison Janney), also a recovering alcoholic and former drug abuser. When Christy’s teen daughter gets pregnant, she finds herself relating to her own mother more and more. The two spend eight seasons struggling through sobriety, navigating parenting, and building community.
Mom, Don't Do That!
We can all probably relate to the title of this Taiwanese family drama — who hasn’t wanted to yell that once or twice? In this quirky 11-episode series — which was adapted from a novel by Chen Ming-min and inspired by true events — romance novelist Ru-rong (Alyssa Chia) and her recently heartbroken sister, Ruo-min (Alice Ko), try to rein in their widowed mother’s messy romantic entanglements while navigating their own.
Never Have I Ever
Come for the hilarious high school antics, stay for the poignant and layered mother-daughter relationship. Created by Mindy Kaling (Running Point) and Lang Fisher (The Four Seasons), Never Have I Ever follows outspoken teen Devi Vishwakumar (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) as she faces love and loss following the death of her father, Mohan (Sendhil Ramamurthy). Devi and her mother, dermatologist Dr. Nalini Vishwakumar (Poorna Jagannathan), often clash, but ultimately grow to understand each other in new ways. Their touching exchanges will have you and your mom tearing up.
North of North
This charming Canadian series is set in the snowy Arctic town of Ice Cove, but it’s sure to warm your family’s hearts. Anna Lambe plays Siaja, a young Inuk mom who tries to reinvent herself after a sudden and very public exit from her marriage to the town’s local darling. She also navigates a thorny relationship with her own single mother, Neevee (Maika Harper). Come for the self-discovery storylines and close-knit community vibes, stay for the breathtaking landscapes and authentic representation of Inuit culture.
The Perfect Couple
The Perfect Couple is the perfect pick for mystery-loving moms. Based on the novel by Elin Hilderbrand, this limited series takes place during a lavish wedding weekend at the sprawling Nantucket estate of the Winbury family. Consummate matriarch and best-selling author Greer Winbury (Nicole Kidman) and her dashing husband Tag (Liev Schreiber) are hosting the nuptials of their son Benji (Billy Howle) and his bride-to-be Amelia (Eve Hewson). But before the idyllic “I dos,” a shocking death disrupts the celebration — and turns every guest into a suspect.
Sweet Magnolias
Mix friendship with family drama and a dash of romance, and you have the recipe for a sweet show that you and your mom will both love. Based on the 11-part book series by Sherryl Woods, Sweet Magnolias tells the story of three moms and childhood best friends — Maddie (JoAnna Garcia Swisher), Dana (Brooke Elliott), and Helen (Heather Headley) — as they juggle their careers, parenting, and relationships while supporting each other.
Wednesday
This twisted take on the classic Addams Family saga adds some woe to the dynamic between Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) and her mother, Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones). When Wednesday heads off to Nevermore Academy, her parents’ alma mater, she doesn’t only have to contend with a student body of fellow outsiders, but also the added pressure of her mother’s legacy at the school. Their mother-daughter relationship takes as many twists and turns as the multiple mysteries that the young sleuth investigates.
Workin' Moms
This seven-season sitcom follows five working moms — trying to “have it all” with careers, marriages, and kids (oh, my!) — who form an unusual but unbreakable bond after meeting at a prestigious “mommy and me” class. The series begins when Kate Foster (Catherine Reitman) returns to work at her PR firm after maternity leave, only to find that things have changed dramatically in her absence. Meanwhile, her friends juggle an unexpected pregnancy, postpartum depression, and more universal parenting woes.
Additional reporting by Erin Corbett and Ashley Lee.
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