The 20 best female detectives on TV

Stephanie Beatriz earned her place in the annals of TV history when she appeared as Rosa Diaz in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. It’s safe to say Rosa does not suffer fools lightly, and she’s not afraid to tell it like it is. Time and again, though, Rosa also shows a softer side, particularly once she comes out as bisexual to her family. The brilliance of Beatriz’s performance lies in her ability to show these various sides to Rosa’s personality, as well as in her ability to make her into much more than a stereotype.  

Anyone who’s ever seen the original Law & Order knows that there’s no one quite like Anita Van Buren. Memorably portrayed by S. Epatha Merkerson, she’s a no-nonsense lieutenant who doesn’t suffer fools lightly. More to the point, she’s a genuinely good leader who cares about the cause of justice. She’s not afraid to speak bluntly, not just to the detectives under her jurisdiction–who sometimes cause her more than a few headaches–but also to the various lawyers in the DA’s office. She’s a figure who commands respect, not just from the characters but also from the audience. 

There’s rarely been a more formidable detective duo than Cagney and Lacey . Memorably portrayed by Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly, these two detectives more than earned their place in the history of TV detectives. After all, they appeared on television at a period in which feminism was in retreat, and their various struggles in the male-dominated world of policing revealed the extent to which it was difficult (though not impossible) for women to thrive in professions thanks to institutional barriers. 

Olivia Colman has yet to appear in a role that she doesn’t manage to make completely her own, but one of her most remarkable is Ellie Miller in the crime drama Broadchurch. As is so often the case with Colman, she manages to excavate many rich depths in her character, giving audiences a woman whose innocence and assumptions about the world and her loved ones are stripped away by the evil around her. One can’t help but feel a bit sorry for her, even as one can’t help but admire her fortitude and her pursuit of justice.

Gillian Anderson is her usual captivating self as Dana Scully in the beloved show The X-Files. For the first part of the series, she was a skeptic, in contrast to Mulder, who was willing to believe almost anything. It was precisely Scully’s unwillingness to believe anything not proven by science, however, that made her such a fascinating surrogate for the audience. Moreover, her intelligence and determination have earned her a place in the hearts of diehard and casual fans alike. 

Any character played by Helen Mirren is sure to be a formidable personality, and that is certainly true of Detective Tennison. Tennison is the very definition of no-nonsense, and it’s clear throughout the series that she does not suffer fools lightly (if at all). The series shines a much-needed light on the extent to which women face an uphill battle in traditionally male-dominated professions, no matter how competent they might be. Tennison, though, shows time and again that there is nothing that is going to keep her down, and this is why audiences love her.

Few female detectives are as well-known or beloved as Miss Marple, created by the one and only Agatha Christie. Marple has been portrayed by several actresses over the years, but all of them capture the essential characteristics of this redoubtable woman. She might appear to be just a slightly daffy old lady living in the English countryside, but she has a shrewd and incisive mind, which is precisely what allows her to both understand human nature and to solve various crimes. 

The TV adaptation of Fargo retains the quirky and sometimes disturbing sensibility of the Coen Brothers’ movie on which it’s based. This is particularly true in the first season, which stars Allison Tolman as Molly Solverson, who sets out to solve several crimes. As with Marge in the original film, she is the moral center of the film, someone who isn’t going to rest until she gets to the bottom of what’s happened. Thanks to Tolman’s performance–one of the best of her career–she ends up becoming someone the audience genuinely loves and cares about.

Amy Santiago is one of the most delightful characters in the sitcom Brooklyn Nine-Nine, a series known for its wonderful characters. Though she can be a bit uptight and sometimes lets her adherence to rules get in the way, she has a good heart and is, moreover, a very good detective. It’s refreshing to see the extent to which she takes her jobs and her duties seriously, and it’s thus particularly fitting that, at the end of the series, she achieves many of her dreams and ambitions.

Mariska Hargitay gained the role of a lifetime when she was cast as Olivia Benson in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Even now, over two decades since the show began, she continues to be one of its highlights and one of the few remaining from its earliest days. Olivia is not only a good cop because she is relentless in her pursuit of justice; she also genuinely cares about crime victims and wants to do right by them. It thus makes sense that she continues to be the show’s moral center.

Brenda Brethyn gives a remarkable performance as Vera, the main character of the British mystery series of the same name. Vera might look more than a little disheveled, but make no mistake: there’s a very clever and subtle mind at work there. She’s the kind of character who was seemingly made to be a fan favorite, and not just because she’s a great detective. She also has a genuinely good heart, and it’s clear from her behavior how much she genuinely does care about what she does.

When it comes to female detectives on TV, they don’t make them quite like Jessica Fletcher, so memorably portrayed by the late Angela Lansbury. Though she might appear to be a simple retired teacher and mystery novelist, time and again Jessica proves that she’s sharp as a tack, with a firm moral compass to go with her keen intellect. It’s no wonder that fans tuned in to see her solve so many murders over the years, and it’s also easy to see why the show, and Jessica herself, remain perennially popular.

Kathy Bates gives one of her dependably excellent performances in the rebooted version of Matlock, in which she is the title character (though her real name is Madeline Kingston). In addition to being quite a sharp litigator in the courtroom, Matlock is also a formidable investigator, driven by her need to seek justice from her daughter’s opioid overdose death. She more than earns her place in the pantheon of great female TV detectives, particularly since she is successful in bringing a whole corrupt law firm to justice.

Candace Cameron Bure gives one of her more notable performances as Aurora Teagarden, the main character of a series of TV movies based on the novels by Charlaine Harris. Bure is perfectly cast as Teagarden, a librarian who solves various crimes, particularly murders. The Hallmark adaptation manages to retain the charm and fun of the original novels, and the series is a perfect fit for anyone yearning for a bit of cozy murder and Bure’s undeniable and enduring charm as an actress.

Though she was best known for portraying Hyacinth Bucket in the comedy Keeping Up Appearances, Patricia Routledge also played the amateur sleuth Hetty Wainthrop in the series Hetty Wainthrop Investigates. It’s the kind of role at which Routledge excelled, for while it’s not a comedy, it nevertheless has a very cozy atmosphere to it. As she showed throughout her long and storied career on both the stage and the screen, there was almost nothing Routledge couldn’t do. 

Jodie Foster has always had a knack for playing hard-bitten characters, and Liz Danvers of True Detective might be one of her very best roles. To be sure, Liz is cut very much in the antihero mold, which can sometimes make it a bit difficult to like or sympathize with her. Nevertheless, thanks to Foster’s remarkable star charisma, you can’t take your eyes from her, and she helps to elevate the entire fourth season of the beloved HBO series.

British television is famous for its cozy mysteries, and they don’t come much cozier than Rosemary & Thyme, which focuses on Laura Thyme and Rosemary Boxer as they uncover the truth about a number of murders. The two women make a formidable duo, and anyone who thinks they can get away with murder on their watch is in for a rude awakening. Despite the series’ cozy vibe, it explores darker aspects of human nature and people's capacity to do terrible things to one another.

Kristen Bell is one of her generation’s most dazzling talents, and though she’s created many great characters, Veronica Mars will always be one of her best. What’s particularly remarkable about Bell’s performance is how he manages to inhabit the mind and body of a decidedly old-fashioned hard-boiled detective. Though the series has never been a true ratings success, it has nevertheless earned considerable critical praise, and deservedly so. It’s the perfect combination of finely crafted writing and perfectly tuned performance.

When it premiered in 2021, Mare of Easttown  became an instantaneous hit. It’s easy to see why, since it has a very gothic, twisting crime story and an intense yet understated performance from Kate Winslet. Winslet perfectly captures the sense of a woman who has seen a lot and is clearly working through her own traumas. Though Mare is dogged and determined to get to the bottom of the crime that is the center of the series, she’s also more than a little devastated by what she discovers.

While Olivia Benson is rightly regarded as the ongoing MVP of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, she’s not the only formidable woman on the force. Amanda Rollins, like so many other characters in the series, has more than her fair share of demons, and this is precisely what makes her such a captivating character to watch. She is both a very good detective and also deeply flawed and very, very human, and it’s thus no wonder the character ended up returning to the series after a brief departure.