Discover the best of Irish cinema, film, and television

Discover the definitive list of popular and critically-acclaimed movies and TV shows from Ireland. Find your next binge-watch, streaming on Netflix, HBO, Hulu, Prime Video, and other top services!

The cinema of Ireland

Irish cinema has a poetic soul and a wonderfully wicked sense of humour, a film culture born from a nation with an unmatched gift for storytelling. Its modern cinematic voice roared to life in the late 80s and 90s, with a new generation of filmmakers gaining global acclaim. Directors like Jim Sheridan, with the Oscar-winning masterpiece My Left Foot, and Neil Jordan, with the provocative classic The Crying Game, announced a new, confident era of Irish film. But to truly know the Irish spirit, you must know its comedy. The surreal, beloved sitcom Father Ted is a cultural touchstone, a masterclass in absurdity. Its modern heir is the global smash-hit Derry Girls, which found immense heart and humour against a difficult historical backdrop. More recently, the tender romance of Normal People captivated the world, showcasing a different, more intimate side to its storytelling. Perhaps its most magical secret is Cartoon Saloon, a world-class animation studio. Their breathtakingly beautiful, Oscar-nominated films like The Secret of Kells and Wolfwalkers are stunning works of art, drawing inspiration from ancient Irish mythology and folklore. What makes Irish cinema so special is this incredible mix of "the craic" and the profound. It’s a cinema that knows how to break your heart and make you laugh, often in the very same breath.

Best Irish series

  • Poster for The Fall

    The Fall 2013

    When the Police Service of Northern Ireland are unable to close a case after 28 days, Detective Superintendent Stella Gibson of the Metropolitan Police Service is called in to review the case. Under her new leadership, the local detectives must track down and stop a serial killer who is terrorising the city of Belfast.

    RTÉ One
    79
  • Poster for Father Ted

    Father Ted 1995

    A crazy comedy about three rather strange parish priests exiled to Craggy Island, a remote island off the Irish west coast.

    Channel 4
    84
  • Poster for Kin

    Kin 2021

    The lives of a Dublin family embroiled in a gangland war and the consequences of their choices.

    RTÉ One
    78
  • Poster for Mrs Brown's Boys

    Mrs Brown's Boys 2011

    Mrs. Brown's Boys is a British-Irish award winning sitcom created by and starring writer and performer Brendan O'Carroll. The show is based on O'Carroll's stage plays about the character Agnes Browne, which were developed from books and straight-to-DVD films. The sitcom continues the stories of Agnes, now with the shortened surname "Brown", and her family who are played by real life close friends and family of O'Carroll's. After being slated by critics, the show has become a ratings success in both Ireland, where it is set, and the United Kingdom, where it is recorded. On 29 December 2012 the show began its third series. Mrs Brown's Boys is a co-production among BBC Scotland, BocPix and RTÉ.

    BBC One
    76
  • Poster for Moone Boy

    Moone Boy 2012

    Martin Moone is a young boy who relies on the help of his imaginary friend Sean to deal with the quandaries of life in a wacky small-town Irish family in the 1980's.

    Sky One
    77
  • Poster for Love/Hate

    Love/Hate 2010

    Modern-day underworld characters Nidge and John Boy wrestle for control of Dublin's illicit drug trade in this forceful crime drama.

    RTÉ One
    80

Best Irish movies

  • Poster for A Big Bold Beautiful Journey

    A Big Bold Beautiful Journey 2025

    Sarah and David are single strangers who meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and soon, through a surprising twist of fate, find themselves on a funny, fantastical, sweeping adventure together where they get to re-live important moments from their respective pasts, illuminating how they got to where they are in the present... and possibly getting a chance to alter their futures.

    62
  • Poster for Hallow Road

    Hallow Road 2025

    Two parents enter a race against time when they receive a distressing late-night phone call from their daughter after she caused a tragic car accident.

    60
  • Poster for Steve

    Steve 2025

    Over one intense day, the devoted head teacher of a last-chance reform school strives to keep his students in line while facing pressures of his own.

    64
  • Poster for Lee Cronin's The Mummy

    Lee Cronin's The Mummy 2026

    The young daughter of a journalist disappears into the desert without a trace—eight years later, the broken family is shocked when she is returned to them, as what should be a joyful reunion turns into a living nightmare.

    66
  • Poster for The Lobster

    The Lobster 2015

    In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into animals and sent off into The Woods.

    69
  • Poster for The Killing of a Sacred Deer

    The Killing of a Sacred Deer 2017

    Dr. Steven Murphy is a renowned cardiovascular surgeon who presides over a spotless household with his wife and two children. Lurking at the margins of his idyllic suburban existence is Martin, a fatherless teen who insinuates himself into the doctor's life in gradually unsettling ways.

    68