Summary

• Dark Academia movies and shows on Netflix offer a combination of gothic imagery, dramatic storylines, and studious characters, satisfying fans of the genre.
• The streaming giants have raised the bar in creating and adding television series and movies that perfectly incorporate the dark academia aesthetic.
• From mysteries set in the 1800s to supernatural capers and secret societies, there's plenty of Dark Academia content on Netflix to cater to different preferences.

There are a lot of great Dark Academia shows and movies on Netflix for fans of the genre or those who are curious about it. Tweed jackets, elbow patches, and twisted journeys of self-discovery — these are the elements at the center of Dark Academia, an aesthetic that has established a presence in movies and television based on specific themes. It isn't just young people in prep school beige, peering out from behind rows of books; it's learning taken to its most imioned, and often violent, extreme. Dark Academia as a genre can often boast beautiful gothic imagery, compelling and dramatic storylines, and an emphasis on studious characters.

The various streaming services have a vast collection of Dark Academia movies and shows that will have viewers reaching for their sweaters, scarves, and book bags. Dark Academia has only been growing in popularity, and the streaming giants have raised the bar when it comes to creating–and adding–television series and movies that perfectly incorporate the genre's moody settings and themes. Whether viewers like mysteries set in the 1800s, supernatural capers involving spell books, or secret societies full of sinister machinations, there's plenty to choose from to satisfy any Dark Academic.

30 Rebecca (2020)

• Stream on Netflix

One of the overlooked Dark Academia movies on Netflix is 2020's Rebecca, an updated adaptation of the novel by Daphne de Maurier which was famously adapted in 1940 by Alfred Hitchcock. This new version from director Ben Wheatley stars Lily James and Armie Hammer as a newlywed couple who arrive at the husband's estate where the new wife finds herself battling with the memory of his first wife. The movie doesn't hold up to the Hitchcock version, however, Lily James gives a strong performance that compliments the gripping combination of Dark Academia and film noir vibes.

29 Mary Shelley (2017)

• Stream now on AMC+

Mary Shelley was an esteemed author, a young woman who began writing Frankenstein at the age of 18. The movie Mary Shelley is a period drama with Elle Fanning playing the author in a Dark Academia movie that focuses on her romance with Percy Bysshe Shelley, which inspired her to write her groundbreaking horror novel. The movie allowed Fanning to shine in the role, one that led her to take on several other historical roles over her career. While the critical reviews were average, the movie delivered a dark look at the young woman with very dark literary ideas in her mind.

28 The Skulls (2000)

• Rent now on Apple TV & Amazon Prime Video

The Skulls is a 2000 movie that touched on the dark side of college academia. Director Rob Cohen and his The Fast & The Furious star Paul Walker teamed up here one year before they made their street racing movie to tell the story of a kid from the wrong side of the tracks (Joshua Jackson) who picked up a college scholarship as a champion rower. He then s a secret society at the college known as The Skulls, which is based on the Skull and Bones secret society that allegedly existed at Yale and has at all levels of the government. The movie was panned by critics but picked up a cult following and spawned two sequels.

27 Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey (2020)

• Stream on Netflix

A Christmas musical that ignites the holiday spirit in a unique and stylish way, Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey follows Jeronicus, an imaginative toymaker as he works towards assembling some of the most awe-inspiring creations of his career, only to be betrayed by his ambitious apprentice. Years later, when the once joyful Jeronicus has all but given up hope on completing his magnificent opus, his granddaughter appears in his workshop and inspires his ability to create. He rediscovers the spirit of the season and finds new meaning with his family just in time for Christmas.

26 The Pale Blue Eye (2022)

• Stream on Netflix

One of the most disturbing Dark Academia movies on Netflix is The Pale Blue Eye, based on the novel by Louis Bayard. Set in 1830, the movie sees a detective named Landon (Christian Bale) investigate the murder of a cadet at the West Point Academy. There, he meets an outcast named Edgar Allen Poe (Harry Melling) who helps with the investigation. Poe's work has an influence on many Dark Academia works, so it is interesting to see him as a character in one, especially with Melling's committed performance, and the gothic feel of the thriller keeps the tension high until the intriguing reveal of The Pale Blue Eye's true killer.

25 The Goldfinch (2019)

• Stream now on Prime Video

Based on the novel by Donna Tartt, Ansel Elgort stars in The Goldfinch, a movie about a young man whose mother was killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City when he was 13. After her death, he set out to survive on his own after taking a famous painting from the museum after the bombing called The Goldfinch. Not all Dark Academia movies take place in university settings, and the idea of the illustrious world of art plays a big role in this movie, which plays in the same sandbox as the best of the genre.

24 The Magicians (2015-2020)

• Stream now on Netflix

For fans of blending magic with their scholastic endeavors, The Magicians will take them on an enchanted, angst-ridden adventure accompanying Quentin Coldwater, a student of Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy, as he acquaints himself with the realm of magic. Along with his group of grad school chums, Quentin endeavors to not only learn about wielding magic himself as a magician but also use it to prevent impending dangers to the institution and humanity en masse. The series is based on the novels of Lev Grossman.

23 Enola Holmes 2 (2022)

• Stream now on Netflix

The Dark Academia Netflix movie franchise continues in Enola Holmes 2. The sequel finds Enola attempting to get her own detective business off the ground when she begins looking into the disappearance of a young factory worker. Brown continues to be charming and heroic in this role, ensuring that she will have a great new franchise once Stranger Things ends. The new movie also has the added benefit of including more of Henry Cavill's Sherlock Holmes, with great chemistry shared between him and Brown. The movie continues to draw influence from Arthur Conan Doyle's work while being its own thing as well.

22 Tolkien (2019)

• Stream on Fubo

While he is best known for his fantastical worlds of elves and hobbits, J.R.R. Tolkien worked as an English professor and published several academic works as well. In the 2019 biopic Tolkien, Nicholas Hoult stars as the esteemed author in this movie that tells the story of his early life as a professor and author, and the moments that led to his creation of his magical world. Much of the movie takes place during his time as a teenager where he fell in love with his future wife, and then his time at Oxford, where he developed his love for language.

21 School Ties (1992)

• Stream on Prime Video

Released in 1992, School Ties is another movie that shows the dark side of elite schools and the separation between the haves and have-nots. The movie takes place in 1955 and follows a working-class teenager who received a football scholarship to an exclusive Massachusetts prep school. However, he finds it hard to fit in and hides his Jewish heritage from his new friends, knowing their negative stereotypical views. The cast had some of the top young stars of the era, with Brendan Fraser, Matt Damon, Chris O'Donnell, Ben Affleck, and Cole Ha in the cast as students.