The 9 Most Anticipated New TV And Streaming Shows Of 2024
There are so many shows airing and about to air that it's nearly impossible to keep track of them. And while we tend to track our favorite returning shows, new shows will often slip beneath the radar. This list, then, covers the brand-new live-action shows we're looking forward to most throughout this year. As with any list looking at the year ahead, it's important to keep in mind that there are piles and piles of shows that haven't been officially announced yet that could come out this year. We also can't cover every show releasing this year, so make sure to sound off in the comments about which titles you're holding out for. As a result of all of this, the list is biased pretty heavily toward the first half of 2024, with the shows set for later this year having unspecific release dates.
1. Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Prime Video February 2, 2024 Based on the 2005 film of the same name, Mr. & Mrs. Smith tells the story of two spies paired together to live undercover as a married couple, and all of the complications that come with that. The series stars Donald Glover (Community, Atlanta) and Maya Erskine (PEN15, Blue Eye Samurai) as the titular mister and missus, as well as Paul Dano and John Turturro.
2. Avatar: The Last Airbender (Live Action)
Netflix February 22, 2024 Netflix has a dodgy hit-miss rate with live-action adaptations--One Piece quickly garnered positive attention with fans new and old, while Cowboy Bebop fell flat on its face. As a result, we're not quite sure if we should anticipate Avatar: The Last Airbender or dread it. The 61-episode Nickelodeon animated series is considered a classic in modern animation, working as a show for younger audiences while also giving older viewers the complexity they crave. If Netflix can capture what fans loved about the original Avatar series, then they could have a major hit on their hands, and we're excited to see it. At the very least, the trailer looks wonderful.
3. The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live
AMC February 25, 2024 Also in the anticipate-or-dread category is The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live. The Walking Dead is no stranger to spin-off series, with five other spin-off shows either currently airing or in AMC's rear-view mirror. What sets The Ones Who Live apart is its focus on two of the original series' main characters, Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira). Lincoln left the show during Season 9, and didn't appear again until the very end of the series. Gurira's presence in the original series decreased, too, as she spent more time as Okoye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise of movies. Bringing back two actors who left the show can be contentious with fans and can undercut the development they experienced in the primary series. The Ones Who Live is set firmly after the end of The Walking Dead, though, and the concept of a world overrun by zombies has potentially endless stories to tell under the right direction, so we're excited to see what Rick and Michonne can bring to the series.
4. Shogun
FX & Hulu February 27, 2024 This is the second swing at filming Shogun, the 1975 James Clavell novel of the same name, itself loosely based on real events. The first version of the miniseries aired on NBC in 1980, and was at the time the second-highest ratings draw in American television, surpassed only by Roots. The book and miniseries acted as an introduction to Japanese culture for many Americans and was lauded for its historical accuracy. Japanese audiences were not as impressed with the program when it aired there, though, and more-recent revisitations have called out the original miniseries for its exoticization of Japanese culture, as well as the many errors in language, interpersonal relationships, and religion. This 2024 retelling (trailer), which stars Hiroyuki Sanada as the titular Shogun, Yoshii Toranaga, and Cosmo Jarvis as John Blackthorne (based on William Adams, the same real-life figure that 2017 game Nioh used as a source for its protagonist). Even with 10 episodes, FX's version of Shogun will have to work hard to match the 547-minute runtime of the original series, but it does have the chance to show us a much more accurate and lively picture of Japanese culture during the 17th century--if the writers, producers, and showrunners want it to.
5. 3 Body Problem
Netflix March 21, 2024 Despite the name, 3 Body Problem (trailer) is not a story about a tragic love triangle. Rather, the title refers to the effects of a third star in a given star system--the math for predicting the orbit of a twin-sun system is pretty-well solved, but even now, adding a third star brings a level of computational complexity that we still struggle with. Based on the Chinese-language novel of the same name by Liu Cixin, 3 Body Problem is a non-linear, multi-generational story of an alternate history of China, and what happens when an astrophysicist named Ye makes contact with extraterrestrial beings who live in just such a system and are subjected to the chaos of the above problem and its effects on their planet. The series was developed by D.B. Weiss and David Benioff and co-written by Alexander Woo.
6. Fallout
Prime Video April 12, 2024 War. War never changes. But our appetite for adaptations of video games into live-action sure has, and Prime Video's Fallout (trailer) could be the biggest example of this yet, following on the heels of films like Detective Pikachu and Sonic the Hedgehog, and shows like Netflix's Castlevania and HBO's The Last of Us, all of which have made audiences say, "Hey, this is actually pretty good," marking a major change from the long history of video game adaptations. Just like the video games, the series from Westworld creator Jonathan Nolan focuses on a Vault Dweller, someone who grew up in a nuke-proof vault, emerging 200 years after a nuclear war destroyed most of the world. Ella Purnell plays the role of the Vault Dweller, named Lucy, and the cast features some fan-favorite actors like Kyle MacLachlan as the Vault Overseer and Walton Goggins as a Ghoul, the name given to the semi-immortal but heavily-scared survivors of the initial bombing. Nolan directs three of the first season's eight episodes. Like some of Amazon's other shows, this is a high-profile production the streamer is hoping will take off and be a big attractor for potential Prime Video subscribers.
7. Agatha: Darkhold Diaries (and other Marvel Studios shows)
Disney+ Late 2024 Marvel Studios' Disney+ shows have had their ups and downs, but one of the breakout stars of the very first Disney+ series in 2020 was Agatha Harkness, the witch who alternatively educates and antagonizes Wanda Maximoff in the comics. Her spin-off series is set after WandaVision, and begins with Agatha powerless after escaping from Wanda's Westview hex. Along with Kathryn Hahn, the show also stars Aubrey Plaza, Joe Locke, and Patti LuPone. This is one of two Marvel Studios shows scheduled to hit Disney+ this year, alongside Hawkeye spin-off Echo. The other shows, including Daredevil: Born Again, are in a state of flux, and we don't know enough about their release schedules just yet to include them here--even if we're stoked for every single one of them. There's no trailer yet, so just go watch the Agatha All Along music video again.
8. The Penguin
Max Late 2024 Unexpectedly, some of the most fun Batman live-action stories have excluded the Caped Crusader. Gotham and Pennyworth both found weird little niches to live in, telling alternate histories of Gotham in the pre-Batman era. Even CW's ill-fated Gotham Knights had its own charms despite struggling to find a place on the then-newly-sold network. The Penguin (trailer) is Max's contribution to this lineage. The series stars Colin Farrell reprising his role from 2022's The Batman, in his incredible, transformative makeup, and follows the rise of Oswald Cobblepot, also known as The Penguin, from small-time club owner to major power in Gotham's underworld, following the death of mafioso Carmine Falcone. The series also features Cristin Milotti as Sofia Falcone, and Clancy Brown as Salvatore Maroni, two other prominent figures in Gotham's criminal community. Robert Pattinson is not currently expected to appear as either Batman or Bruce Wayne in the series when it airs later this year.
9. Star Wars: The Acolyte (and other Star Wars shows)
Disney+ 2024 Throughout the trilogy of Star Wars trilogies, the Star Wars animated series, and the Disney+ live-action series, we've thoroughly explored Star Wars history from Anakin's childhood up through the second death of Emperor Palpatine (who, somehow, had returned). The Acolyte is interesting if only because it wants to look backward, before the Skywalker family had killed billions of people by exploding multiple planets and Death Stars. The series takes us back to the High Republic era, 100 years before the birth of Anakin Skywalker. We don't know much about the story, but The Acolyte will star Amandla Stenberg and Lee Jung-jae as a former Jedi padawan and Jedi Master. The series will reportedly be 8 episodes long, and is set to air sometime this year. We're excited for Skeleton Crew, which stars Jude Law, as well, but the Acolyte's time period makes us especially curious.
10. All The Returning Shows
Along with all of the new shows, there are tons of returning shows we're ready for more of. Tokyo Vice, House of the Dragon, Halo, and Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire are just some of the shows getting a second season. Abbott Elementary, Ghosts, Bridgerton, Girls4Eva and The Bear are on season 3. The Boys, True Detective, and Umbrella Academy are returning with fourth seasons. Star Trek: Discovery is already onto season 5. Even with all of the new shows coming out, these returning shows will help ensure that there's a little something to catch on TV each week.
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