Episode 1
Seize Power
Interested in becoming a tyrant? There are rules, and the playbook for a rise to dictatorship starts with one of history's most brutal: Adolf Hitler.
TV series
How to Become a Tyrant
2021TV-MA1 season7.4 / 10
The documentary series explores different political figures throughout history.
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Checked Jul 22, 2026
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Synopsis
The documentary series explores different political figures throughout history.
Season 1 episodes
Watch options above are for the show and may vary by season or episode.
Episode 2
Crush Your Rivals
You've secured your place at the top, but maintaining power means watching your back. Nobody did that better or more ruthlessly than Saddam Hussein.
Episode 3
Reign Through Terror
When keeping your population under control, is it better to be loved or feared? Idi Amin certainly thought he knew the right answer to that question.
Episode 4
Control the Truth
Through public relations spin, revisionist history and censorship. Soviet autocrat Joseph Stalin found a certain flexibility with the truth useful.
Episode 5
Create a New Society
Free speech? Right to assembly? Rebel-turned-dictator Muammar Gaddafi realized that civil liberties had to go when reshaping society. But he got soft.
Episode 6
Rule Forever
Seizing power is hard, but keeping it is harder. In North Korea, the Kim dynasty unlocked the secret to ruling forever: They declared themselves gods.
Episode information updated Jul 22, 2026
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