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The generational divide is an intangible thing because there is no clear boundary that divides every generation. Frankly, a Gen Zer from 1997 may relate more to Millennials than to younger Gen Zers. But as time passes and Gen Zers continue to establish themselves as adults in the world, they have continued to create their own culture.
For more than a decade, we’ve seen shows following the Millennial experience, but in recent years, we’ve slowly seen shows about the Gen Z experience. It’s debated, but generally, Gen Zers were born between 1997 and 2012. We’re now seeing multiple mainstream shows depicting the experiences of the older Gen Zers. If you are Gen Z and want to feel seen, these are the shows you need to check out.
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‘The Z-Suite’ (2025 – Present)
Besides being an ad-supported streaming service, Tubi has its own original content as well. Since 2021, the streaming service has produced original movies, documentaries, unscripted series, and a handful of scripted shows. Among those scripted shows is workplace comedy The Z-Suite. Largely ignored by mainstream media, probably because it was on Tubi, the show premiered on February 6, 2025. All eight episodes premiered, starring Lauren Graham (from Gilmore Girls and Parenthood) as an out-of-touch ad executive who is fired by her boss and replaced by her Gen Z interns. From there, we see a light-hearted competition between Graham and her sidekick, played by Nico Santos, as the two “older cast members.”
The rest are a variety of Gen Zers. While the show is definitely not the best comedy, it grows on you. The Z-Suite starts as a painfully stereotypical show, but as you continue watching it, you notice the stereotypes are intentionally being played with. The entire series is mocking older and younger generations, while also highlighting our similarities and strengths. Overall, it’s a funny show about generational differences.
6
‘Never Have I Ever’ (2020 – 2023)
Known mostly for her work on The Office and The Mindy Project, where she wrote behind the scenes and acted in front of the screen, Mindy Kaling stepped exclusively behind the camera for Netflix’s Never Have I Ever. Running for four 10-episode seasons, the high school comedy follows Devi, who is temporarily paralyzed after the traumatic event of watching her father pass away in front of her. One day, she miraculously regains movement and is now dedicated to making her next year of high school the best one yet.
Featuring a South Asian family at the center of the series, the Netflix show was praised for breaking stereotypes. The show has also launched the careers of Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Darren Barnet, along with Poorna Jagannathan as Devi’s mother. While being a light-hearted comedy, Never Have I Ever also explores grief and depicts a growth arc for the main character with the help of therapy.
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‘Sex Education’ (2019 – 2023)
Netflix’s Sex Education brought the sex-positive aspect of the Gen Z generation to the small screen. Taking place in a small fictional U.K. town, a sex therapist’s son decides to become a sex therapist for his classmates. He meets with them and provides them with tips surrounding intimacy, sexuality, safety, and so on. The comedy expertly ridicules the awkwardness of all of these things, but also portrays honest and vulnerable conversations that we rarely see shown in popular media.
Rather than shaming anything in the series, it always approached it with no judgment. The cast of the show was also impressive, featuring Asa Butterfield and Gillian Anderson playing son and mother. Sex Education was also the breakthrough for Ncuti Gatwa, who went on to become the 15th Doctor on Doctor Who.
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‘Heartstopper’ (2022 – Present)
Based on Alice Oseman’s webcomic of the same name, Heartstopper became an international hit for Netflix. The series has repeatedly been featured on Netflix’s Top 10 List and has been critically acclaimed. The rom-com series is praised for its positive representation of LGBTQ+ people and for having a warm and comic-like aesthetic. So far, Heartstopper has had three seasons and 24 episodes.
The coming-of-age show will end with a movie titled Heartstopper Forever, with a planned release date of 2026. The first season won five awards at the first Children’s and Family Emmy Awards. It has also launched massive careers for both Kit Connor and Joe Locke. Locke could be seen in Marvel’s Agatha All Along, while Connor was in 2025’s Warfare. Rhea Norwood will appear in Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. This series is a great depiction of romance and identity for the Gen Z generation.
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‘Sex Lives of College Girls’ (2021 – 2025)
After creating Never Have I Ever, Kaling went ahead and created another successful series, but this time for Max, Sex Lives of College Girls. Unlike Never Have I Ever, Sex Lives of College Girls didn’t get a proper finale and was cancelled after three seasons. This teen dramedy follows four 18-year-old freshman girls who are roommates at a fictional Vermont college. Each of the four girls is radically different, and the series follows their individual journeys as they explore their identities and sexual experiences in college. The four girls were played by Pauline Chalamet, Amrit Kaur, Reneé Rapp, and Alyah Chanelle Scott.
After achieving success in the music world and the musical-movie adaptation of Mean Girls, Rapp left the series at the beginning of the third season. Despite its premature cancellation, Sex Lives of College Girls is a refreshing take on the Gen Z college experience without playing into stereotypes.
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‘Adults’ (2025 – Present)
2025 has several significant additions to television’s representation of the Gen Z experience. One of this year’s favorites is FX’s comedy, Adults. With only eight episodes, the Gen Z ensemble comedy is an easy and enjoyable watch. The series follows a group of five friends (two of whom are a couple) living in their Queens apartment together.
Think a Gen Z version of some mix of Friends, Girls, and something new. The characters are messy, ridiculous, complicated, and wonderful to watch. The core five are played by Malik Elassal, Lucy Freyer, Jack Innanen, Amita Rao, and Owen Thiele. Each of them has great chemistry with the others that only improves when they are all in the same room together. The cherry on top is Charlie Cox as the questionable (and hilarious) Mr. Teacher.
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‘Overcompensating’ (2025 – Present)
Social media personality Benito Skinner brought his pop culture-infused humor to Amazon Prime. Created, co-written, and starring Skinner, Overcompensating is Gen Z’s favorite new dramedy. Loosely based on Skinner’s own experiences in college, the college drama follows Benny, a closeted football high school star, going to college and trying to figure out who he is outside of his small town.
The best part of the series is not only how Benny slowly figures out who he is, but also his beautiful friendship with his new best friend, Carmen. The comedy is raunchy, hilarious, and definitely has the same energy as college comedies from the 2000s and early 2010s. Despite mainly being hilarious, the show has a heartfelt center that makes you fall in love with the cast from its very first episode.
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