Scripted series · USA Network
Burn Notice
Spies don't get fired, they get burned
Who's in it
Cast
The principal ensemble across the run of the series.
Jeffrey Donovan
Michael Westen
111 eps
Gabrielle Anwar
Fiona Glenanne
111 eps
Bruce Campbell
Sam Axe
111 eps
Sharon Gless
Madeline Westen
111 eps
Coby Bell
Jesse Porter
51 eps
Chris Vance
Mason Gilroy
4 eps
Michael Shanks
Victor
5 eps
Navi Rawat
Kendra
3 eps
Richard Schiff
Phillip Cowan
2 eps
Moon Bloodgood
Detective Paxson
3 eps
Todd Stashwick
Carmelo Dante
2 eps
John Mahoney
Management
2 eps
Seth Peterson
Nate Westen
15 eps
Chris Ellis
Virgil Watkins
2 eps
John Doman
Bill Cowley
2 eps
China Chow
Lucy Chen
2 eps
Jay Karnes
Tyler Brennen
4 eps
Tricia Helfer
Carla Baxter
7 eps
Silas Weir Mitchell
Seymour
2 eps
Ben Watkins
Ricky Watkins
2 eps
Ben Shenkman
Tom Strickler
4 eps
Otto Sanchez
Diego Garza
4 eps
Charlie Weber
Jacob Starky
2 eps
Brendan O'Malley
Gabriel Manaro
2 eps
Kristanna Loken
Rebecca Lang
4 eps
Sonja Sohn
Olivia Riley
5 eps
Alex Carter
Jason Bly
6 eps
Richard Kind
Marv
2 eps
Callie Thorne
Natalie Rice
2 eps
Andrew Howard
Tavian Korzha
3 eps
Lauren Stamile
Agent Pearce
14 eps
John Ales
Matt Bailey
2 eps
Marc Macaulay
Agent Harris
9 eps
Audrey Landers
Veronica
4 eps
Brandon Morris
Agent Lane
7 eps
Alona Tal
Sonya
8 eps
George Tasudis
Oleg
2 eps
Paul Tei
Barry
16 eps
Arturo Rossi
Sugar
5 eps
Steve DuMouchel
Bruce Gellman
2 eps
The Nutevio profile
TV DNA
How Burn Notice actually feels to watch, measured on the traits our editors track across every series.
Signature profile
Burn Notice reads strongest on Character Depth, Serialized and Bingeability.
How fully written and psychologically layered the ensemble is.
How much each hour depends on the one before it.
How hard it is to stop after one episode.
How much the series is designed to affect you.
Visual ambition — scale, craft and set-piece filmmaking.
The sustained pressure the series keeps you under.
How often an episode ends on a hook you can't ignore.
The scale, internal logic and texture of the world.
How often the series is genuinely funny, by design.
The story
What it's about
A formerly blacklisted spy uses his unique skills and training to help people in desperate situations.
The run
Seasons
7 seasons · 111 episodes.
Season 1 · Complete
Season 1
200712 episodes
7.2IMDbBest episode · S01E12 Loose Ends (2)
Season 2 · Complete
Season 2
200816 episodes
7.6IMDbBest episode · S02E16 Lesser Evil
Season 3 · Complete
Season 3
200916 episodes
6.8IMDbBest episode · S03E11 Friendly Fire
Season 4 · Complete
Season 4
201018 episodes
7.7IMDbBest episode · S04E03 Made Man
Season 5 · Complete
Season 5
201118 episodes
7.6IMDbBest episode · S05E14 Breaking Point
Season 6 · Complete
Season 6
201218 episodes
7.9IMDbBest episode · S06E12 Means & Ends
Season 7 · Complete
Season 7
201313 episodes
6.9IMDbBest episode · S07E03 Down Range
Where the series peaks
Best Episodes
The hours that define the show, ranked by audience response and editorial signal.
S02E16
Lesser Evil
Michael gets to know Victor's motivation and his connection to Carla after capturing him. When the truth about Carla's organization is revealed, everyone is put in danger.
- Directed by Tim Matheson
- Written by Matt Nix
S02E13
Bad Breaks
A federal agent with a knack for giving Michael trouble returns to Miami to force Michael to hand over blackmail materials; the two enemies must work together during a bank robbery.
- Directed by John T. Kretchmer
- Written by Michael Horowitz
S02E03
Trust Me
Andy, a cell-phone salesman, was conned into investing in a fake Cuban nightclub. Michael helps Andy when the people he borrowed the money from come knocking.
- Directed by Paul Holahan
S01E12
Loose Ends (2)
Michael must rescue Sam from heroin smugglers, who happen to be ex-Special Forces, while also evading agents who are out to get him.
- Directed by Stephen Surjik, Jace Alexander
- Written by Matt Nix
S02E11
Hot Spot
Sam calls in a favor and asks Michael to talk to Sean Martin, a football coach who helps impoverished kids. Sean wants Michael's assistance helping one of his players, Corey Jensen, who's being targeted by gangsters.
- Directed by Stephen Surjik
- Written by Ben Watkins
S02E01
Breaking and Entering
Having been recruited by the people who burned him, Michael's new handler, Carla, tasks him with helping a computer tech, whose wife and daughter were kidnapped, liberate some information that is guarded by mercenaries.
- Directed by Paul Holahan
- Written by Matt Nix
Behind the series
Created by
Showrunners, creators, executive producers and the writers who set the voice of the series.
The craft
Key Crew
Directing, writing, production, camera, music and editing.
Executive production
- Matt NixProducer
Writing
- Mere SmithWriter
- Matt NixWriter
- Michael HorowitzWriter
- Alfredo Barrios Jr.Writer
- Ben WatkinsWriter
- Lisa JoyWriter
Direction
- Paul HolahanDirector
- Michael ZinbergDirector
- Jeremiah S. ChechikDirector
- Stephen SurjikDirector
- Bryan SpicerDirector
- Jeffrey DonovanDirector
Where to watch
Streaming
Availability verified against regional listings.
- HuluStreaming
- Amazon VideoBuy
- Apple TV StoreBuy
- Google Play MoviesBuy
- Fandango At HomeBuy
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Where to go from here
Watch Next
Our editors' suggestion for the show you should start tonight — and why.
Dexter
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Another morally complex epic for anyone who wanted more grey.
House
2004
A natural next watch: same ambition, different world.
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Another invented world built with the same seriousness — start at episode one.
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A crime story told with the patience of a novel.
Never stop watching
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