# The Following (2013)

> A disgraced FBI agent is pulled back in to hunt a charismatic serial killer who escapes death row and leads a cult of followers.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/40965

## Facts

- Seasons: 3
- Episodes: 45
- Episode runtime: 43 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: crime, thriller, drama
- Created by: Kevin Williamson
- Network: FOX
- Cast: Kevin Bacon, James Purefoy, Shawn Ashmore, Valorie Curry, Jessica Stroup, Annie Parisse, Sam Underwood, Zuleikha Robinson
- TMDB rating: 7.4/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2071645/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: graphic
- Tone: tense, dark, paranoid, brooding, relentless

## What critics say

Audience ratings are positive but modest, with viewers praising the lead performances and the cat-and-mouse tension between Ryan Hardy and Joe Carroll while finding the series less compelling as it continued.

## Synopsis

The Following (2013-2015) is an American network crime thriller created by Kevin Williamson for FOX. Kevin Bacon plays ousted FBI agent Ryan Hardy, pulled back into the hunt for Joe Carroll (James Purefoy), a literature professor turned serial killer who escapes death row after murdering fourteen students. Hardy works alongside agent Mike Weston (Shawn Ashmore) and specialist Debra Parker (Annie Parisse) as the investigation uncovers a growing web of followers Carroll has recruited and inspired. Across three seasons of fifteen episodes each, the series plays out as one serialized manhunt, with each episode tightening the pressure on a cat and mouse game between the hunter and a charismatic killer. The atmosphere is tense and dark, with paranoia and dread building around cult loyalty, betrayal, and the question of who can be trusted. Fans of Dexter, Hannibal and The Killing will find resonance in its brooding violence, psychological duels and relentless pace. The series is set in present day America, mostly in Virginia and across the East Coast, and unfolds with the brisk urgency typical of a network thriller.

## Shows like The Following

- [Those Who Kill (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/55419)
- [Rellik (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/64114)
- [The Fall (2013)](https://ember.film/tv/43993)
- [Wire in the Blood (2002)](https://ember.film/tv/5930)
- [Hannibal (2013)](https://ember.film/tv/36668)
- [Prodigal Son (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/77819)
- [The Endgame (2022)](https://ember.film/tv/110937)
- [Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior (2011)](https://ember.film/tv/29638)
- [Profiler (1996)](https://ember.film/tv/2519)
- [Absentia (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/63411)

---

Site overview: https://ember.film/llms.txt