If you are one of those people who love intriguing stories and then end up questioning everything that you saw, then you should get ready. These are the shows and movies whose plots not only confuse but also twist, turn, and leave the viewers struggling with their own perception of reality. Each of them, from endlessly repeating timelines and crushed memories to simulated worlds, will have you doubting your reality all the time. So, let’s move from the level of ‘huh?’ to the complete ‘what did I just watch?’ one.
10. The Perfection
Just by the look of it, The Perfection seems like a nice music drama about two cellists who, after years of separation, get together again. In a matter of minutes, however, it changes to a much darker and certainly stranger type of story. Betrayal, revenge, and psychological manipulation are the main themes that get twisted one inside another until it becomes almost impossible to predict the truth. It is as shocking as it is disturbing, and, at the same time, completely addictive-just don’t expect to figure out the ending.
9. Love, Death + Robots
This is an animated anthology series that is nothing but boundless creative power. Each episode is a completely different world which they take you to-sometimes it is a futuristic world, sometimes a scary one, and sometimes a heartbreakingly human one. The topics of the series range from the killing of machines and digital immortality to alternate histories, and in all cases, Love, Death + Robots is treating reality as a plaything, just like a cat does with its yarn. It is like a creativity and chaos shot to the system: swift, daring, and unforgettable.
8. Manifest
Imagine stepping off a plane to find out that five years have passed. Such is the case for the passengers of Flight 828, whose return sets off a chain of unsettling and seemingly inexplicable events. Manifest plays out like a slow-burning story about fate and destiny, weaving together mystery, sci-fi, and faith. It’s Lost and The Leftovers with its own supernatural spin-and people still can’t stop dissecting every clue.
7. Russian Doll
Nadia dies. And then she dies again. And again. But every time, she wakes up at the same New York party. Russian Doll takes this time-loop trope and makes an achingly funny yet surprisingly emotional story about facing your past. Season two doubles down with time travel and even more layers of existential weirdness. That’s Groundhog Day meets therapy, wrapped in dark humor and chaos.
6. Maniac
In this surreal miniseries, two strangers sign up for an experimental drug trial that promises to fix their mental struggles-but instead, it sends them spiraling through bizarre dream worlds and alternate realities. Emma Stone and Jonah Hill anchor a story that’s equal parts sci-fi, psychological, and deeply emotional. Maniac is strange, beautiful, and the kind of show that lingers in your mind long after it ends.
5. Westworld
But what starts as a simple Western theme park peopled by lifelike robots, Westworld quickly becomes much deeper. When the “hosts” begin to remember their past lives, the story bursts into a philosophical maze on consciousness, morality, and the illusion of choice. The show constantly redefines what is real until you start to question your memory along with them.
4. Severance
How about a scenario where one can literally separate their work life from their personal one? That is the weird and unsettling world of Severance, in which workers get a surgery that divides their minds into two, one for the office and another for home. What follows is an eerie, slow-burning mystery probing themes of personal identity, freedom, and the heartbreaking feeling of being under the control of a huge corporation. It ranks among the smartest and strangest workplace dramas ever made.
3. Mr. Robot
Elliot Alderson is a hacker, an idealist, and a man who is struggling mentally. Mr. Robot confuses the viewers so much with its delusion and reality that they can hardly distinguish what is real and who is in control. This is a paranoid, stylish journey into the depths of mental illness, technology, and power, through the lens of one of the most unreliable narrators in TV history. Very few shows alter the viewer’s perception to the extent that this one does.
2. Legion
No superhero show has ever looked or felt like Legion. David Haller thinks he’s schizophrenic, but the truth is far stranger: his mind might just be the most powerful weapon on Earth. The show is a kaleidoscope of surreal imagery, non-linear storytelling, and psychological chaos. Every episode feels like falling into someone else’s dream-or nightmare-and yet it all somehow fits together.
1. Dark
If there’s a series that defines the “mind-bending” genre, then Dark would have to be it. What starts as a small-town mystery about a missing child unravels into an epic puzzle spanning generations and timelines. Time travel, fate, family secrets, and moral paradoxes all collide in a story so meticulously constructed that it demands total attention. Blink, and you’ll miss a clue. Dark is not about time but about the consequences of repeating history, be it personal or collective. Hauntingly brilliant, it’s a show that’s endlessly rewatchable-you don’t just watch Dark; you study it, obsess over it, and finally, you realize you are trapped in its loop, too.
So, if you are ready to spend the next few weeks questioning your reality and scribbling notes on timelines, here are the stories that will keep you up at night, thinking, rewinding, and wondering whether the real world is any less strange.