TVMaze Scraper — TV Shows, Episodes & Cast

Search TV shows and get rich metadata — genres, network, rating, premiere/end dates, runtime, IMDb ID, official site, summary and poster — plus optional episode list (count, seasons, latest) and cast (actor → character). Clean JSON/CSV/Excel.

Powered by TVMaze. Keyless, no anti-bot — built for TV/streaming apps, guides, trackers and entertainment datasets.

---

What this Actor does

Give it show searches and for each matching show it returns:

• Core — name, type (Scripted/Reality…), language, genres, status (Running/Ended), runtime.
• Dates & rating — premiere and end dates, average rating.
• Network — network or web channel (Netflix, HBO…) and its country.
• IDs & links — IMDb ID, TheTVDB ID, official site, TVMaze page and poster image.
• Summary — clean plain-text synopsis.
• Optional — episode summary (count, seasons, latest episode) and the main cast.

---

Why use it

• A free, clean TV API. Structured show metadata without a key or anti-bot — a solid alternative to scraping IMDb.
• Cross-reference with IMDb. Every show carries its IMDb ID for easy joins.
• Episodes & cast on demand. Flip on episodes and cast to enrich each show.
• Great for apps & content. Streaming guides, trackers, recommendation engines, fan sites and datasets.
• Networks & web channels. Covers traditional networks and streamers alike.

---

Who it's for

• TV / streaming app developers needing show, episode and cast data.
• Content & entertainment teams building guides and trackers.
• Data & recommendation builders assembling TV datasets.
• Fan sites & bots surfacing show info and cast.

---

Quick start

Run it in the console (no code)

1. In Show searches, add one per line:

   breaking bad
   the office
   game of thrones
   

2. (Optional) turn on Include episodes summary and/or Include cast.

3. Click Start, then export as JSON, CSV, Excel or HTML.

Leave queries empty for a demo.

Run it via API (Python)

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")

run_input = {
    "queries": ["breaking bad", "the wire"],
    "includeEpisodes": True,
    "includeCast": True,
}

run = client.actor("YOUR_USERNAME/tvmaze-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

for s in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(f"{s['name']} ({s['premiered'][:4]}) — {s['rating']} — {s['network']} — {s['episodeCount']} eps")

Run it via API (JavaScript)

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: 'YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN' });

const run = await client.actor('YOUR_USERNAME/tvmaze-scraper').call({
    queries: ['breaking bad'],
    includeCast: true,
});

const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((s) => console.log(`${s.name}: ${s.genres} — ${s.cast}`));

---

Input

Field	Type	Description
Show searches	array	One show search per line. Empty = demo.
Include episodes summary	boolean	Add episode count, season count and latest episode.
Include cast	boolean	Add main cast (actor → character).
Max shows per query	integer	Matching shows to keep per search. Default 50.
Speed (parallel queries)	integer	Searches at once. Default 5.
Proxy configuration	object	Apify Proxy. On by default.

---

Output

One record per show:

{
  "query": "breaking bad",
  "showId": "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",
  "networkCountry": "United States",
  "officialSite": "http://www.amc.com/shows/breaking-bad",
  "imdbId": "tt0903747",
  "summary": "Breaking Bad follows protagonist Walter White...",
  "image": "https://static.tvmaze.com/uploads/images/original_untouched/0/2400.jpg",
  "url": "https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/169/breaking-bad",
  "episodeCount": "62",
  "seasonCount": "5",
  "latestEpisode": "Felina (S5E16, 2013-09-29)",
  "cast": "Bryan Cranston as Walter White; Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman; ...",
  "castCount": "11",
  "scrapedAt": "2026-10-10T12:00:00.000Z"
}

Field	Description
name / type / language / genres	Core show info.
status / runtime / premiered / ended	Status, runtime and dates.
rating	TVMaze average rating.
network / networkCountry	Network or web channel and country.
imdbId / thetvdbId / officialSite / url	External IDs and links.
summary / image	Synopsis and poster.
episodeCount / seasonCount / latestEpisode	With Include episodes.
cast / castCount	With Include cast.
scrapedAt	ISO timestamp.

---

Tips & notes

• Search returns matches. A query like breaking returns several shows — raise/lower Max shows per query to control how many.
• Join on IMDb. Use imdbId to merge with IMDb-based datasets.
• Episodes/cast cost extra calls. They're off by default; turn on only what you need.
• Networks vs web channels. Streamers (Netflix, HBO Max…) appear in network too.
• Ratings vary. Popular shows have ratings; obscure ones may not.

---

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an API key? No — TVMaze's API is public and keyless.

Can I get episodes and cast? Yes — enable Include episodes summary and Include cast.

Is there an IMDb link? Yes — every show carries its IMDb ID.

Does it cover streaming shows? Yes — network and web-channel shows (Netflix, HBO, etc.) are included.

Good for a TV app or recommender? Yes — clean, structured show/episode/cast data is ideal for apps, guides and recommendation engines.

---

Export & integrate

Results are available as JSON, CSV, Excel, HTML and via the Apify API. Push to Google Sheets, a webhook, Make, Zapier or your database.

Data from TVMaze.