The Strain (2014)
A high concept thriller that tells the story of Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, the head of the Center for Disease Control Canary Team in New York City. He and his team are called upon to investigate a mysterious viral outbreak with hallmarks of an ancient and evil strain of vampirism. As the strain spreads, Eph, his team, and an assembly of everyday New Yorkers, wage war for the fate of humanity itself.
| Type | TV series |
|---|---|
| First aired | 13 July 2014 |
| Status | Ended, last episode 17 September 2017 |
| Genre | Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Drama, Mystery |
| Created by | Guillermo del Toro and Carlton Cuse |
| Starring | Corey Stoll, Kevin Durand and Miguel Gómez |
| Seasons | 4 seasons, 46 episodes |
| Episode length | about 44 min |
| Time to watch it all | about 34 hours |
| Rated | TV-MA |
| Scores | TMDB users 7.5/10 |
Where to watch The Strain
The Strain is streaming on Hulu ($21.49 a month) in the US. At ten hours a week, all of the series takes about 1 month of Hulu, or $21.49 at list price.
We check availability daily. Page last updated 25 October 2026. Prices are standard monthly plans and change often, so check with the service before you sign up.
Where to watch The Strain in 117 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Algeria | Prime Video |
| Andorra | Prime Video |
| Antigua & Barbuda | Prime Video |
| Argentina | Prime Video $5199 ARS, Disney+ $15599 ARS |
| Australia | Prime Video $12.99 AUD, Disney+ $17.99 AUD |
| Austria | Prime Video €8.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Bahamas | Prime Video |
| Bahrain | Prime Video |
| Barbados | Prime Video |
| Belgium | Prime Video €4.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Belize | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Bermuda | Prime Video |
| Bolivia | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Brazil | Prime Video R$19.90, Disney+ R$49.90 |
| Bulgaria | Prime Video €5.99, Disney+ €9.99 |
| Burkina Faso | Prime Video |
| Cameroon | Prime Video |
| Canada | Prime Video $9.99 CAD, Disney+ $15.99 CAD |
| Cape Verde | Prime Video |
| Chad | Prime Video |
| Chile | Prime Video $6490 CLP, Disney+ $10990 CLP |
| Colombia | Prime Video $24900 COP, Disney+ $36900 COP |
| Congo - Kinshasa | Prime Video |
| Costa Rica | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Croatia | Disney+ €9.99 |
| Cyprus | Prime Video €5.99 |
| Czechia | Prime Video 149 Kč, Disney+ 219 Kč |
| Denmark | Prime Video 69 kr DKK, Disney+ 119 kr DKK |
| Dominican Republic | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Ecuador | Prime Video $5.99, Disney+ $11.49 |
| Egypt | Prime Video E£29 |
| El Salvador | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Equatorial Guinea | Prime Video |
| Estonia | Prime Video €5.99 |
| Finland | Prime Video €6.99, Disney+ €11.99 |
| France | Prime Video €6.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| French Guiana | Prime Video |
| French Polynesia | Prime Video |
| Germany | Prime Video €8.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Ghana | Prime Video |
| Gibraltar | Prime Video |
| Greece | Prime Video €5.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Guatemala | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Guernsey | Prime Video |
| Guyana | Prime Video |
| Honduras | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Hong Kong | Prime Video HK$70, Disney+ HK$88 |
| Hungary | Prime Video 1900 Ft, Disney+ 2990 Ft |
| Iceland | Prime Video 880 kr ISK |
| Indonesia | Prime Video Rp59000 |
| Iraq | Prime Video |
| Ireland | Prime Video €6.99, Disney+ €11.99 |
| Israel | Prime Video ₪3.90 |
| Italy | Prime Video €4.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Jamaica | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Japan | Prime Video ¥600 JPY, Disney+ ¥1250 JPY |
| Jordan | Prime Video |
| Kenya | Prime Video KSh560 |
| Kuwait | Prime Video |
| Latvia | Prime Video €5.99 |
| Lebanon | Prime Video |
| Libya | Prime Video |
| Liechtenstein | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Lithuania | Prime Video €5.99 |
| Luxembourg | Prime Video €8.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Madagascar | Prime Video |
| Malawi | Prime Video |
| Malaysia | Prime Video RM25.00 |
| Mali | Prime Video |
| Mexico | Prime Video $99 MXN, Disney+ $259 MXN |
| Monaco | Prime Video |
| Morocco | Prime Video |
| Mozambique | Prime Video |
| Netherlands | Prime Video €4.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| New Zealand | Prime Video $8.99 NZD, Disney+ $18.99 NZD |
| Nicaragua | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Niger | Prime Video |
| Nigeria | Prime Video ₦2300 |
| Norway | Prime Video 79 kr NOK, Disney+ 129 kr NOK |
| Oman | Prime Video |
| Palestinian Territories | Prime Video |
| Panama | Prime Video $5.99, Disney+ $12.49 |
| Paraguay | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Peru | Prime Video S/25.90, Disney+ S/49.90 |
| Philippines | Prime Video ₱149 |
| Poland | Prime Video 25.99 zł, Disney+ 34.99 zł |
| Portugal | Prime Video €4.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| Qatar | Prime Video QR16.00 |
| Romania | Prime Video 19.99 lei, Disney+ 34.99 lei |
| San Marino | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Saudi Arabia | Prime Video ﷼16.00 |
| Senegal | Prime Video |
| Seychelles | Prime Video |
| Singapore | Prime Video $4.99 SGD, Disney+ $18.98 SGD |
| Slovakia | Prime Video €5.99, Disney+ €9.99 |
| South Africa | Prime Video R79 ZAR |
| South Korea | Disney+ ₩9900 |
| Spain | Prime Video €4.99, Disney+ €10.99 |
| St. Lucia | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Sweden | Prime Video 69 kr SEK, Disney+ 129 kr SEK |
| Switzerland | Prime Video CHF8.90, Disney+ CHF16.90 |
| Taiwan | Prime Video NT$290, Disney+ NT$285 |
| Tanzania | Prime Video |
| Thailand | Prime Video ฿149 |
| Trinidad & Tobago | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Tunisia | Prime Video |
| Turks & Caicos Islands | Prime Video |
| Türkiye | Prime Video ₺39.90, Disney+ ₺449.90 |
| Uganda | Prime Video |
| United Arab Emirates | Prime Video AED16.00 |
| United Kingdom | Prime Video £8.99 GBP, Disney+ £11.99 GBP |
| Uruguay | Prime Video $U249, Disney+ about $U522 |
| Vatican City | Prime Video |
| Venezuela | Prime Video, Disney+ |
| Yemen | Prime Video |
| Zambia | Prime Video |
| Zimbabwe | Prime Video |
Subscription, free and ad-supported services we track; prices where Binge Boss has a price list for the country. "About" marks a price the service bills in another currency, converted at the day's rate. All countries as data.
What kind of watch this is
Guillermo del Toro and Carlton Cuse built a CDC team to fight a vampire plague. That is the entire engine. It is 34 hours of New York City slowly turning against itself, with Corey Stoll’s Dr. Ephraim Goodweather at the center of the chaos. The show treats the outbreak like a bureaucratic nightmare before it becomes a war. You are not watching for jump scares. You are watching to see how a city holds together when the lights go out. It is patient, grim, and oddly grounded in the mundane.
What the critics said
The critical reception follows a predictable arc. Season 1 earned 84% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 72 Metacritic score, praised for mixing supernatural thrills with B-movie gore. Season 2 dipped to 78% and 66, where critics noted the gory action helped compensate for an unfocused narrative. Season 3 stumbled to 55% and 62, suffering under a stagnant story despite its visual effects. Then Season 4 hit 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, concluding on a high note that reminded viewers of the series' initial bite. It’s a classic case of a show finding its footing only after tripping over its own feet.
How it did with audiences
There are no box office figures to debate. The money trail ends before the accounting starts. What remains is the audience verdict, which lives on TMDB. Users rate the series 7.5 out of 10. That is a solid score. It suggests people watched, processed the weirdness, and stayed for the finale. The absence of financial data is a blank space, but the rating fills it with enough warmth to matter.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched The Strain.
Read more: True Blood
Sources
- The Strain on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q15070575 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “The Strain (TV series)” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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