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60 TV Vampire Shows Ranked By Tomatometer

Updated: September 28, 2023

While the fall 2008 premieres of True Blood on HBO and Twilight in theaters ushered in the vampire craze of the aughts and early 2010s, television immortalized the mythological creatures in series dating back to the early days of the medium.

Off-kilter 1960s sitcom The Munsters included bloodsuckers in its cast of spooky characters, and supernatural soap opera Dark Shadows, which debuted in 1966, introduced several nightwalkers over its six-year run.

Rotten Tomatoes has compiled a list of TV’s best and worst vampire series. While the shows don’t all have to be solely about vampires, each of the series on this list must have significant characters with the urge to suck blood. Shows without Tomatometer scores — either because the seasons don’t have enough reviews to get a score or there are more seasons without scores than with them — are listed at the bottom.

The most recent to join the list, animated sequel series Castlevania: Nocturne, launches on Netflix on Friday, September 29, and currently has a 100% Tomatometer score. We’ll keep watch to see if it rises to Certified Fresh level and takes over the top spot.

True Blood and its sister in the outsider-caught-between-two-vamps camp, The CW’s The Vampire Diaries, of course, feature prominently. But there are other shows that have brooding undead men and the women who love them — the grand dame of teen supernatural soap operas, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, for one. Other newcomers, like the 2022 titles Reginald the Vampire, Interview with the Vampire, Let the Right One In, Vampire Academy, First Kill, and animated series Vampire in the Garden, as well as 2021’s Firebite, and 2019’s The Passage and V Wars are all on the list.

The series are ranked by Tomatometer score, then shows without Tomatometer scores are listed by Audience Score (denoted by “A” and its rank; see Audience Scores on the series’ pages), then those without any scores are listed alphabetically.

Sink your teeth into our list of the best vampire TV shows ranked by Tomatometer:

#1

Being Human
100% 85%

#1

Synopsis: Deciding to turn over a new leaf, a group of friends who also happen to be vampires and werewolves move [More]

Starring: Michael Socha , Damien Molony , Kate Bracken , Steven Robertson

#2

Castlevania: Nocturne
98% 69%

#2

Synopsis: As revolution sweeps France, Richter Belmont fights to uphold his family's legacy and prevent the rise of a ruthless, power-hungry [More]

Starring: Edward Bluemel , Pixie Davies , Thuso Mbedu , Nastassja Kinski

#3

Kolchak: The Night Stalker
100% 84%

#3

Synopsis: Newspaper reporter uncovers supernatural causes in his investigations. [More]

Starring: Darren McGavin , Simon Oakland , Jack Grinnage , Ruth McDevitt

#4

Interview With the Vampire
98% 77%

#4

Synopsis: In the year 2022, the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac lives in Dubai and seeks to tell the story [More]

Starring: Jacob Anderson , Sam Reid , Delainey Hayles , Eric Bogosian

#5

What We Do in the Shadows
96% 92%

#5

Synopsis: A look at the lives of four vampires who've lived together for hundreds of years on Staten Island. The self-appointed [More]

Starring: Kayvan Novak , Matt Berry , Natasia Demetriou , Harvey Guillén

#6

Castlevania
94% 89%

#6

Synopsis: Inspired by the popular video game series, this anime series is a dark medieval fantasy. It follows the last surviving [More]

Starring: Richard Armitage , James Callis , Alejandra Reynoso , Jessica Brown Findlay

#7

Supernatural
93% 73%

#7

Synopsis: This haunting series follows the thrilling yet terrifying journeys of Sam and Dean Winchester, two brothers who face an increasingly [More]

Starring: Jared Padalecki , Jensen Ackles , Misha Collins , Alexander Calvert

#8

Penny Dreadful
91% 90%

#8

Synopsis: Many people are familiar with classic literary characters like Dr. Frankenstein and Dorian Gray. "Penny Dreadful" brings those and other [More]

Starring: Timothy Dalton , Eva Green , Josh Hartnett , Reeve Carney

#9

Preacher
87% 75%

#9

Synopsis: Fulfilling a promise to his deceased father, one-time outlaw Jesse Custer returns home to West Texas to take over his [More]

Starring: Dominic Cooper , Ruth Negga , Joseph Gilgun , Ian Colletti

#10

Midnight Mass
87% 80%

#10

Synopsis: The arrival of a charismatic priest brings miracles, mysteries and renewed religious fervor to a dying town. [More]

Starring: Zach Gilford , Kate Siegel , Hamish Linklater , Annabeth Gish

#11

A Discovery of Witches
87% 79%

#11

Synopsis: "A Discovery of Witches" is a fantasy series based on the similarly-named novel of the "All Souls" trilogy, written by [More]

Starring: Matthew Goode , Teresa Palmer , Alex Kingston , Valarie Pettiford

#12

Angel
87% 88%

#12

Synopsis: Leaving his true love, Buffy, behind in Sunnydale, the vampire Angel tries to get a fresh start in Los Angeles. [More]

Starring: David Boreanaz , Alexis Denisof , J. August Richards , Amy Acker

#13

The Vampire Diaries
86% 73%

#13

Synopsis: This supernatural drama, based on the series of novels by L.J. Smith, details the lives of two brothers, Damon and [More]

Starring: Paul Wesley , Ian Somerhalder , Nina Dobrev , Kat Graham

#14

Vampire in the Garden
86% 76%

#14

Synopsis: After humanity loses its battle with vampires, a young survivor named Momo has a fateful encounter with Fine, a vampire [More]

Starring: Megumi Han , Yū Kobayashi

#15

Firebite
86% 64%

#15

Synopsis: When the Vampire King arrives to the last colonial stronghold in a remote Australian mining town, it's up to two [More]

Starring: Rob Collins , Shantae Barnes-Cowan , Yael Stone , Thibul Nettle

#16

Buffy the Vampire Slayer
85% 92%

#16

Synopsis: Sarah Michelle Gellar takes on the role of Buffy Summers in this TV version of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," based [More]

Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar , Nicholas Brendon , Alyson Hannigan , James Marsters

#17

The Originals
84% 72%

#17

Synopsis: Klaus, the original vampire/werewolf hybrid, returns to New Orleans -- which his family helped build -- to investigate rumors of [More]

Starring: Joseph Morgan , Daniel Gillies , Phoebe Tonkin , Charles Michael Davis

#18

The Munsters
83% 92%

#18

Synopsis: The family at 1313 Mockingbird Lane is a little... different. Dad Herman looks like Frankenstein's monster; mom Lily and her [More]

Starring: Fred Gwynne , Yvonne De Carlo , Al Lewis , Patrick Lilly

#19

American Horror Story: Double Feature
80% 50%

#19

Critics Consensus: Though its second tale is still a mystery, the first half of Double Feature proves a spine-tingling good time with terrific performances - especially from the spectacular Leslie Grossman.

Starring: Neal McDonough , Craig Sheffer , Mike Vogel , Sarah Paulson

#20

Death Valley
80% - -

#20

Synopsis: Maintaining law and order is the mandate of the UTF, but this isn't exactly Benson and Stabler working the streets [More]

Starring: Texas Battle , Bryce Johnson , Tania Raymonde , Charlie Sanders

#21

The Strain
79% 79%

#21

Synopsis: Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, the head of the CDC's New York-based Canary Project, is called upon to investigate when an airplane [More]

Starring: David Bradley , Corey Stoll , Kevin Durand , Richard Sammel

#22

Being Human
77% 89%

#22

Synopsis: "Being Human," based on a BBC series of the same name, features three 20-something roommates who each try to keep [More]

Starring: Sam Witwer , Sam Huntington , Meaghan Rath , Dichen Lachman

#23

Vampire Academy
77% 44%

#23

Synopsis: Lissa, a royal vampire, and her best friend and protector, Rose, navigate romance, class politics and ancient magic at their [More]

Starring: Sisi Stringer , Daniela Nieves , Kieron Moore , André Dae Kim

#24

Shadowhunters
76% 80%

#24

Synopsis: On her birthday, Clary Fray discovers a surprise concerning her life. The teenager is not who she thinks she is [More]

Starring: Katherine McNamara , Dominic Sherwood , Alberto Rosende , Emeraude Toubia

#25

NOS4A2
72% 82%

#25

Synopsis: Based on Joe Hill's New York Times best-selling novel of the same name, "NOS4A2" is a different kind of vampire [More]

Starring: Zachary Quinto , Ashleigh Cummings , Ólafur Darri Ólafsson , Jahkara J. Smith

#26

Dracula
71% 62%

#26

Synopsis: The Count Dracula legend transforms with new tales that flesh out the vampire's gory crimes -- and bring his vulnerability [More]

Starring: Claes Bang , Dolly Wells , John Heffernan , Joanna Scanlan

#27

Reginald the Vampire
70% 70%

#27

Synopsis: Reginald lives a life of dreams deferred. One night he meets a stranger named Maurice, who decides to help Reginald [More]

Starring: Jacob Batalon , Mandela Van Peebles , Em Haine

#28

True Blood
68% 73%

#28

Synopsis: Small-town Louisiana waitress Sookie Stackhouse already is viewed as an oddball by her friends and neighbors, since she can read [More]

Starring: Anna Paquin , Stephen Moyer , Sam Trammell , Ryan Kwanten

#29

Let the Right One In
68% 85%

#29

Synopsis: The lives of Mark and his daughter, Eleanor, were forever changed 10 years earlier when she was turned into a [More]

Starring: Demián Bichir , Anika Noni Rose , Grace Gummer , Madison Taylor Baez

#30

American Horror Story: Hotel
64% 61%

#30

Critics Consensus: Favoring garish style over effective storytelling, the fifth American Horror Story strands a talented cast at Ryan Murphy's Hotel.

Starring: Kathy Bates , Sarah Paulson , Evan Peters , Wes Bentley

#31

Demons
63% - -

#31

Synopsis: A teenager discovers he is the last descendant of vampire hunter Van Helsing. [More]

Starring: Philip Glenister , Christian Cooke , Zoe Tapper , Holliday Grainger

#32

The Passage
62% 85%

#32

Synopsis: Based on author Justin Cronin's trilogy of the same name, "The Passage" is a character-driven action drama that focuses on [More]

Starring: Mark-Paul Gosselaar , Saniyya Sidney , Jamie McShane , Caroline Chikezie

#33

First Kill
59% 89%

#33

Synopsis: Falling in love is tricky for teens Juliette and Calliope because one's a vampire and the other's a vampire hunter [More]

Starring: Sarah Catherine Hook , Imani Lewis , Elizabeth Mitchell , Aubin Wise

#34

Midnight, Texas
61% 87%

#34

Synopsis: Based on Charlaine Harris' book series by the same name, "Midnight, Texas" follows the lives of the strange inhabitants of [More]

Starring: François Arnaud , Dylan Bruce , Parisa Fitz-Henley , Arielle Kebbel

#35

Chapelwaite: Season 1
60% 80%

#35

Critics Consensus: Chapelwaite's drab proceedings are stretched a bit thin over ten episodes, but those looking for an atmospheric whodunit with a few genuine frights could do worse.

Starring: Adrien Brody , Jennifer Ens , Sirena Gulamgaus , Emily Hampshire

#36

V Wars
60% 96%

#36

Synopsis: A doctor is pitted against his best friend when an ancient disease turns people into vampires; from the comics by [More]

Starring: Ian Somerhalder , Adrian Holmes , Jacky Lai , Kyle Breitkopf

#37

Dracula
53% 75%

#37

Synopsis: In an update of Bram Stoker's iconic novel, Dracula travels to London, pretending to be an American entrepreneur with an [More]

Starring: Jonathan Rhys-Meyers , Oliver Jackson-Cohen , Jessica De Gouw , Thomas Kretschmann

#38

Blade: The Series
50% 39%

#38

Synopsis: Krista Starr returns from Iraq to learn that her twin brother, Zack, has died under mysterious circumstances. Krista soon meets [More]

Starring: Kirk "Sticky Fingaz" Jones , Jill Wagner , Jessica Gower , Neil Jackson

#39

The Gates
50% - -

#39

Synopsis: The Monahan family abandons Chicago to settle into a private mountain community, The Gates, where father Nick becomes the new [More]

Starring: Frank Grillo , Marisol Nichols , Rhona Mitra , Luke Mably

#40

Dark Shadows
50% - -

#40

Synopsis: When a modern-day groundskeeper opens the Collins family crypt during a treasure hunt, Barnabas Collins, the 200-year-old family vampire, emerges [More]

Starring: Ben Cross , Jean Simmons , Roy Thinnes , Joanna Going

#41

Hemlock Grove
38% 64%

#41

Synopsis: Based on the book by Brian McGreevy and executive produced by acclaimed horror master Eli Roth ("Hostel"), this Netflix original [More]

Starring: Famke Janssen , Bill Skarsgård , Landon Liboiron , Dougray Scott

#42

Kindred: The Embraced
33% 83%

#42

Synopsis: "Dracula" meets "The Godfather" in this complicated but short-lived supernatural drama, in which San Francisco Police Detective Frank Kohanek makes [More]

Starring: C. Thomas Howell , Mark Frankel , Kelly Rutherford , Stacy Haiduk

#43

Moonlight
22% 83%

#43

Synopsis: In this eerie mystery series, private investigator Mick St. John is charismatic, resourceful and undead. Alex has been a vampire [More]

Starring: Alex O'Loughlin , Sophia Myles , Jason Dohring , Shannyn Sossamon

#A1

Dark Shadows
- - - -

#A1

Synopsis: A vampire returns to his family mansion in Collinsport, Maine. [More]

Starring: Jonathan Frid , Grayson Hall , Alexandra Isles , Louis Edmonds

#A2

Valemont
- - - -

#A2

Synopsis: A young woman investigates the mysterious death of her brother at an elite university. [More]

Starring: Kristen Hager , Jessica Parker Kennedy , Eric Balfour , Nikki Blonsky

#A3

Sirius the Jaeger
- - 87%

#A3

Synopsis: In Imperial Tokyo, a group calling itself "Jaegers" secretly hunts the vampires seeking the Ark of Sirius; among them is [More]

Starring: Yuto Uemura , Takahiro Sakurai , Ken'yû Horiuchi , Nanako Mori

#A4

From Dusk Till Dawn
- - 85%

#A4

Synopsis: Bank robber Seth Gecko and his violent brother, Richie, are on the run -- a robbery gone bad left several [More]

Starring: D.J. Cotrona , Zane Holtz , Eiza González , Jesse Garcia

#A5

Legacies
- - 77%

#A5

Synopsis: The town of Mystic Falls has a new generation of protectors in this spin-off of "The Vampire Diaries" and "The [More]

Starring: Danielle Rose Russell , Jenny Boyd , Quincy Fouse , Aria Shahghasemi

#A6

My Babysitter's a Vampire (2010)
- -

#A6

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: A teen (Matthew Knight) learns that his beautiful baby sitter is a bloodsucking creature of the night. [More]

Starring: Matthew Knight , Vanessa Morgan , Atticus Mitchell , Cameron Kennedy

Directed By: Bruce McDonald

#A7

Van Helsing
- - 56%

#A7

Synopsis: In this reimagining of the classic Dracula story, the world is dominated by vampires, requiring humans to work together to [More]

Starring: Kelly Overton , Jonathan Scarfe , Christopher Heyerdahl , Paul Johansson

##

Blood
- - - -

##

Synopsis: This drama is about a vampire surgeon who treats patients and struggles for justice and the value of human life. [More]

Starring: Ahn Jae-hyun , Baek Seung-hwan , Ji Jin-hee , Koo Hye-sun

##

Blood Ties
- - - -

##

Synopsis: While trying to solve a complicated murder case, Toronto private investigator Vicki Nelson encounters dashing Henry Fitzroy, who looks to [More]

Starring: Christina Cox , Dylan Neal , Kyle Schmid , Gina Holden

##

Forever Knight
- - - -

##

Synopsis: Nick Knight is an 800-year-old vampire working as a homicide detective on the graveyard shift in modern-day Toronto, a result [More]

Starring: Geraint Wyn Davies , John Kapelos , Catherine Disher , Natsuko Ohama

##

Immortals: Season 1
- - - -

##

Starring: Elçin Sangu , Kerem Bürsin , Birkan Sokullu

##

Morganville: The Series: Season 1
- - - -

##

Starring: Lindsay Seidel , Amber Benson , Ben Easter , Jordan Farris

##

Salem's Lot
- - - -

##

Synopsis: A writer (David Soul) and a boy (Lance Kerwin) hunt a vampire in their New England town. [More]

Starring: David Soul , James Mason , Lance Kerwin , Bonnie Bedelia

##

Salem's Lot
- - - -

##

Synopsis: When writer Ben Mears returns to his childhood hometown of Jerusalem's Lot, he discovers that it is being terrorized by [More]

Starring: Rob Lowe , Andre Braugher , Donald Sutherland , Samantha Mathis

##

Tokyo Vampire Hotel
- - - -

##

Synopsis: After narrowly escaping being killed in a murder rampage, Manami runs for her life; she is chased by a member [More]

Starring: Kaho , Shinnosuke Mitsushima , Ami Tomite , Megumi Kagurazaka

##

Ultraviolet
- - - -

##

Synopsis: Detective Sergeant Michael Colefield discovers a secret government vampire-hunting unit while investigating the disappearance of his partner. [More]

Starring: Jack Davenport , Susannah Harker , Idris Elba , Philip Quast

##

Young Dracula
- - - -

##

Synopsis: Vlad and Ingrid move to Britain from Transylvania with their father, Count Dracula. [More]

Starring: Gerran Howell , Keith-Lee Castle , Simon Ludders , Craig Roberts

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