📺 TV Shows Scraper

Search TV shows by name (or look up by show ID) and get clean, structured data — genres, status, network, premiere/end dates, rating, runtime, IMDb id, image, official site and summary — optionally with the full episode list and cast for each show. Powered by the public TVMaze API, so it's fast and reliable: no browser, no login, no API key, no blocks.

Built for media & entertainment research, building TV/streaming datasets, and powering recommendation or content apps. Export to JSON/CSV/Excel, run on a schedule, call via API, or connect to Make, Zapier or n8n.

🔎 What is the TV Shows Scraper?

Give it show names (e.g. "breaking bad", "the office") and it returns matching TV shows as structured rows — or pass show IDs to pull exact titles. Optionally include every episode and the full cast.

What data does it extract?

• Name, type, language and genres
• Status (Running/Ended), runtime and average runtime
• Premiere and end dates
• Rating and popularity weight
• Network / web channel and country
• IMDb, TheTVDB and TVRage IDs
• Image, official site, summary and TVMaze URL
• Episodes (optional): season, number, name, airdate, rating
• Cast (optional): actor name + character

⬇️ Input

Field	Type	Description
searchTerms	array	Show names to search, e.g. breaking bad.
showIds	array	Optional: exact shows by TVMaze show ID.
includeEpisodes	boolean	Also return the full episode list. Default false.
includeCast	boolean	Also return the cast. Default false.
maxPerTerm	integer	Max shows per search term. Default 10.

Example input

{
  "searchTerms": ["breaking bad", "the office"],
  "includeEpisodes": true,
  "maxPerTerm": 5
}

⬆️ Output

One record per show:

{
  "id": 169,
  "name": "Breaking Bad",
  "type": "Scripted",
  "language": "English",
  "genres": ["Drama", "Crime", "Thriller"],
  "status": "Ended",
  "runtime": 60,
  "premiered": "2008-01-20",
  "ended": "2013-09-29",
  "rating": 9.2,
  "network": "AMC",
  "network_country": "US",
  "official_site": "http://www.amc.com/shows/breaking-bad",
  "imdb_id": "tt0903747",
  "image": "https://.../original.jpg",
  "summary": "Breaking Bad follows protagonist Walter White...",
  "url": "https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/169/breaking-bad",
  "query": "breaking bad"
}

💡 Use cases

• 🎬 Media research — compare genres, ratings, networks and runtimes.
• 📊 TV datasets — build catalogs for analytics or dashboards.
• 🍿 Recommendation apps — enrich titles with ratings, images and summaries.
• 🤖 LLM / app pipelines — feed structured show data into your own tools.

❓ FAQ

Do I need an API key or login? No — just show names or IDs.

Can I get every episode? Yes — enable includeEpisodes.

Can I get the cast? Yes — enable includeCast.

Does it include IMDb IDs? Yes — plus TheTVDB and TVRage IDs where available.

Can I look up a specific show? Yes — pass TVMaze show IDs in showIds.

How does pricing work? Pay per show returned. No subscription.

Is it legal? It uses the public TVMaze API. Use responsibly and within their terms.

🔗 You might also like

• Steam Games Scraper — game prices & metadata.
• App Store Scraper — Apple App Store apps.
• Google News Scraper — news by keyword.

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Production workflow

This Actor is designed for media researchers, entertainment catalogs, recommendation products and schedule-monitoring workflows. Use show IDs as durable keys, request episodes or cast only when needed, and store snapshots when monitoring status, schedule, network, rating or catalog availability changes. Small, repeatable runs are easier to audit than occasional unlimited exports: they expose source changes quickly, reduce duplicate processing and keep automation costs predictable. Use the input defaults as a smoke test, then widen the query only after confirming that the returned fields match the downstream workflow.

Treat each dataset row as source evidence captured at a point in time, not as a permanent fact. Preserve the canonical identifier and source URL, add the run timestamp in the receiving system, and deduplicate before writing to a CRM, spreadsheet, warehouse or alert channel. For recurring monitoring, compare the newest dataset with the previous successful run and send only additions or material changes onward. That pattern avoids repeated notifications and makes the automation more useful over time.

Data quality and interpretation

The primary output includes id, name, type, language, genres, status, runtime, average_runtime, premiered, ended, rating, weight. Availability depends on what the source publishes for a particular result. Empty values are retained as null or empty fields rather than invented. Search rank is source-specific and can change with language, geography, query wording and time. Validate critical decisions against the linked source page, especially when the data is used for outreach, compliance, pricing, routing or reporting.

Use bounded inputs and respect the source's published interface. The Actor does not bypass logins or collect private account data. Avoid placing passwords, session cookies, personal access tokens or confidential records in Actor input. If a public source changes its response shape, attach a reproducible public input and run ID to an Actor issue so the parser can be updated without exposing private data.

Automation and cost control

The default dataset can be exported as JSON, CSV, Excel, XML or RSS and can be consumed through the Apify API. In Make, Zapier or n8n, start the Actor, wait for the run to finish, then read default-dataset items. In code, store the Actor run ID and dataset ID alongside the imported rows so every record remains traceable. Apply filters after collection only when the source cannot express them directly; source-side filtering usually reduces cost and noise.

This Actor uses pay-per-event billing. A result event is charged only when a structured row is saved to the default dataset. Keep test runs small, estimate expected row volume before scheduling broad searches, and use platform spending limits for unattended workflows. Failed requests and empty searches should not create result events.

Support and feedback

If the Actor saves time in a real workflow, please leave a short Apify Store review describing the use case and the fields that were most useful. Reviews help other users evaluate the product and help prioritize maintenance. For support, open an Actor issue with the run ID, public input, expected behavior and one affected field. Do not include credentials or confidential information.