Shows Like MacGyver
He's everyone's favorite action hero... but he's a hero with a difference. Angus MacGyver is a secret agent whose wits are his deadliest weapon. Armed with only a knapsack filled with everyday items he picks up along the way, he improvises his way out of every peril the bad guys throw at him. Making a bomb out of chewing gum? Fixing a speeding car's breaks... while he's riding in it? Using soda pop to cook up tear gas? That's all in a day's adventures for MacGyver. He's part Boy Scout, part genius. And all hero.
Ranked by shared creators, cast, themes, genre, and network — not just generic recommendations.
MacGyver
Direct remake/reboot of the same franchise — same character, same improvisation-with-everyday-objects premise.
Burn Notice
Blacklisted spy uses ingenuity and everyday resources to help civilians; same tone, structure, and lone-hero problem-solving formula.
The A-Team
80s action-adventure with a genius improviser (Murdock/Hannibal) building solutions from scrap; same era, same fun adventurous energy.
Mission: Impossible
Spy team uses gadgets and elaborate problem-solving against villains; direct genre peer and acknowledged influence on MacGyver.
Mission: Impossible
Revival of the spy-team franchise airing alongside MacGyver on CBS; same network, same era, direct peer audience overlap.
Leverage
Team of specialists uses clever improvised skills to fight injustice; same satisfying problem-solving payoff and light action-adventure tone.
Chuck
Ordinary genius accidentally becomes a spy; improvisation, humor, and reluctant-hero charm mirror MacGyver's DNA almost exactly.
The Pretender
Genius fugitive uses skills to assume any identity and help victims while evading pursuit — closest structural twin to MacGyver outside the franchise.
Knight Rider
Same producer era (Glen Larson / NBC action), lone hero-with-gadget fighting crime; direct contemporary and audience crossover with MacGyver.
Scorpion
Genius team solves high-tech threats using unorthodox improvised solutions; modern descendant of MacGyver's problem-solving formula.
The Man from U.N.C.L.E.
Classic secret-agent adventure with wry humor and gadget-assisted escapes; foundational influence on the spy-adventure tone MacGyver inhabits.
Covert Affairs
CIA operative uses wits and field skills in globe-trotting missions; lighter spy-adventure tone closely matches MacGyver's accessible action style.
Archer
Spy-agency comedy that riffs on the same tropes MacGyver plays straight; fans of the genre regularly cross over despite the animated/satirical format.
The New Avengers
British spy-adventure series with resourceful agents and light action; shares the escapist adventure tone that defines MacGyver.
The Persuaders!
Adventurous duo tackles crime with wit and charm; same escapist action-adventure spirit in a slightly lighter key.
Magnum P.I.
Vietnam-vet private investigator uses resourcefulness and charm; same era, same ABC/CBS action-adventure zeitgeist, direct peer audience.
Alias
Spy uses gadgets, disguises, and quick thinking across globe-trotting missions; modern spiritual successor to MacGyver's action-spy formula.
The Fugitive
Lone protagonist constantly escaping pursuit using wits; shares the escape-and-ingenuity thread but is a drama with no spy element.
Almost Paradise
Retired DEA agent drawn back into dangerous situations; light action-adventure tone and reluctant-hero setup echo MacGyver at a distance.
The Equalizer
Former intelligence operative helps ordinary people using elite skills; same era and lone-helper premise but darker, grittier tone.
How Good Is MacGyver?
Ratings across IMDb and TMDB, plus our verdict.
Where to Watch MacGyver
Streaming, rental, and purchase options across 40+ countries.
United States
USStream
5
Paramount Plus Premium
Paramount Plus Essential
Paramount Plus Apple TV Channel 
Paramount+ Amazon Channel
Paramount+ Roku Premium ChannelFree with Ads
1
Tubi TVBuy
7
Apple TV Store
Fandango At Home
Amazon Video
Google Play Movies
Barnes & Noble
Amazon DVD / Blu-ray
ZavviAvailable in 12 countries
Frequently asked about MacGyver
Common questions people search for, with answers written by us at MoviesPack.
Why does MacGyver refuse to use guns?
MacGyver's aversion to firearms stems from a childhood incident in which a friend was accidentally shot and killed while they were playing with a gun. This traumatic event left him with a deep moral conviction that guns cause more harm than good, and he committed himself to solving problems through ingenuity rather than lethal force. Throughout the series, this principle is treated as an absolute personal code he will not break regardless of the danger he faces.
What is MacGyver's relationship with the Phoenix Foundation, and what does the organization actually do?
The Phoenix Foundation is a covert think-tank and problem-solving organization that serves as MacGyver's primary employer after his time with the DXS (Department of External Services). It operates as a front for government-sanctioned intelligence and humanitarian missions, allowing MacGyver and his boss Pete Thornton to undertake assignments that are too sensitive or deniable for official agencies. The Foundation's ambiguous status — part NGO, part intelligence asset — gives the show flexibility in sending MacGyver anywhere in the world under various pretexts.
What is the nature of MacGyver's friendship with Pete Thornton, and how does Pete's blindness affect their dynamic?
Pete Thornton, who becomes director of the Phoenix Foundation, is MacGyver's closest friend and the person who most often sends him into the field. In later seasons Pete loses his sight due to a degenerative eye condition, a storyline the show uses to explore his vulnerability and reliance on others — a reversal of his usual authority role. Rather than sidelining Pete, his blindness deepens the partnership, as MacGyver becomes more protective of him while Pete continues to direct operations, demonstrating that his leadership depends on judgment rather than physical ability.
Who is Murdoc, and why does he keep surviving apparent deaths?
Murdoc is a freelance assassin and recurring antagonist who becomes MacGyver's most persistent nemesis across multiple seasons. He is depicted as a theatrical, almost gleeful killer who treats his confrontations with MacGyver as a personal game, and his repeated survivals — falling from heights, explosions, apparent drowning — are presented as a combination of extreme competence, preparation, and darkly comic luck. The show never provides a definitive supernatural explanation; his escapes are meant to sustain him as a villain while also satirizing action-series tropes about indestructible adversaries.
Does MacGyver ever learn the full truth about his father's absence during his childhood?
MacGyver was largely raised by his grandfather Harry Jackson after being effectively abandoned by his father James MacGyver, a wound that shapes his self-reliant, distrustful-of-authority character throughout the series. In later seasons the show revisits his family history and MacGyver comes to a degree of peace with his past, though the series never delivers a dramatic confrontation or full reconciliation with his father as a central plot resolution. His grandfather Harry remains the dominant paternal figure in his life, and Harry's death in the series is treated as the most emotionally significant loss MacGyver experiences.