Technically, the 2024-25 TV season isn’t really over until Emmy night on Sept. 14. But networks, streamers and viewers are already turning their calendars over as the 2025-26 season soft launches right after Labor Day. Gold Derby poured over the upcoming schedule and selected 20 new shows that we’re most excited to see, a group that includes prestige awards plays, addictive dramas and broadly commercial comedies. Set your TV remotes — if you still have them — to stun and follow along.
The Paper (Sept. 4), Peacock
Who’s in it: Domnhall Gleeson, Sabrina Impacciatore, Óscar Núñez
What’s the story: With Dunder Mifflin in the rearview, it’s time to open the door to a new office — in this case a struggling newspaper in Toledo, Ohio, that hopes to chart a path back to relevance under the stewardship of Gleeson’s excitable new editor-in-chief.
Why we’re excited: Even though the U.S. edition of The Office signed off over a decade ago, “That’s what she said” and Big Tuna references remain part of the pop-culture zeitgeist thanks to the show’s long streaming afterlife. And since some of the same people — including showrunner Greg Daniels and Núñez back in the creative mix — The Paper could be the rare spin-off that successfully turns the page on a previous hit.
Task (Sept. 7), HBO Max
Who’s in it: Mark Ruffalo, Tom Pelphrey, Emilia Jones
What’s the story: Ruffalo’s dogged FBI agent heads up a squad dedicated to tracking and capturing a Pennsylvania resident who happens to be a family man by day… and a thief by night.
Why we’re excited: Mare of Easttown creator Brad Ingelsby returns to the scene of his hit crime series, which won multiple Emmys and produced one of the best Saturday Night Live parodies in recent memory. Equaling or surpassing that success might be a tall task, but we have a feeling that Ingelsby and Ruffalo will hit the target.
The Girlfriend (Sept. 10), Prime Video
Who’s in it: Robin Wright, Olivia Cooke, Laurie Davidson
What’s the story: When Danny (Davidson) brings his new girlfriend (Cooke) home for a visit, his mother Laura (Wright) has a very bad reaction to the new woman in her midst.
Why we’re excited: Not since Ben Stiller had his first meet-and-greet with Robert De Niro has a “meet the parents” encounter had the potential to go so far off the rails. Besides starring in the six-episode series, Wright also directed the first three chapters and her previous work behind the camera on House of Cards and Ozark demonstrates that she’s got a good eye for thrills.
Tempest (Sept. 10), Hulu
Who’s in it: Jun Ji-hyun, Gang Dong-won, John Cho
What’s the story: After a deadly attack inches North and South Korea closer towards war, a diplomat (Jun) and a special agent (Gang) join forces to uncover the real guilty party.
Why we’re excited: Park Chan-wook’s frequent collaborator Jeong Seo-kyeong crafts her latest solo story and brings Cho into the mix alongside a cast of top South Korean stars. After Squid Game’s disappointing final season, we’re ready to get caught up in a killer spy game.
Black Rabbit (Sept. 18), Netflix
Who’s in it: Jude Law, Jason Bateman, Cleopatra Coleman
What’s the story: Two brothers (Law and Bateman) get thrown into New York’s seedy underworld as they attempt to keep the doors open and the lights on at their titular restaurant.
Why we’re excited: Bateman trades the backwoods of the Ozarks for the mean streets of Manhattan — what’s not to like? It helps that meaty roles for Coleman, Oscar winner Troy Kotsur and Gilded Age zaddy Morgan Spector are also on the menu.
The Lowdown (Sept. 23), FX on Hulu
Who’s in it: Ethan Hawke, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Tim Blake Nelson
What’s the story: A Tulsa-based bookseller digs up dirt on one of the town’s most powerful families, potentially putting his business and life in jeopardy.
Why we’re excited: Sterlin Harjo’s Reservation Dogs remains one of the best TV series of the 2020s, and there’s every reason to expect that he’ll avoid a sophomore slump — especially with ace actors like Hawke and Nelson in the mix. Look for supporting players Jeanne Tripplehorn and Kyle MacLachlan to deliver additional intrigue… and awards potential.
Wayward (Sept. 25), Netflix
Who’s in it: Toni Collette, Sydney Topliffe, Alyvia Alyn Lind
What’s the story: Abby (Topliffe) and Lelia (Lind) are early 2000s teen rebels without a cause who suddenly find themselves shipped off to a reform school overseen by Collette’s suspect educator.
Why we’re excited: Every generation needs its version of Reform School Girls and Canada’s own Mae Martin — known for shows like Feel Good and the Handsome Podcast — is poised to deliver the Gen-Z/Gen-A take. We can’t wait to see Collette’s teacherly version of Nurse Ratched.
House of Guinness (Sept. 25), Netflix
Fionn O’Shea in House of GuinnessBen Blackall/Netflix
Who’s in it: Louis Patrdige, Anthony Boyle, Fionn O’Shea
What’s the story: Go behind the legendary beer with a dramatized account of how the Guinness children built a hops-based dynasty.
Why we’re excited: Peaky Blinders proved that creator Steven Knight knows how to weave addictive period yarns. Watching him apply that craft to the 19th century brewery world should be a heady experience.
The Savant (Sept. 26), Apple TV+
Who’s in it: Jessica Chastain, Jordana Spiro, Pablo Schreiber
What’s the story: A terror-preventing savant (Chastain) embeds herself in an extremist group before they can carry out a mass casualty event.
Why we’re excited: That premise puts Chastain back in Zero Dark Thirty territory — and that means Emmy nominations are very likely in her future. For a preview of what to expect, check out the source material — a 2019 Cosmopolitan article about the real-life savant.
Chad Powers (Sept. 30), Hulu
Who’s in it: Glen Powell, Steve Zahn, Toby Huss
What’s the story: After a career-killing bout of bad behavior, Powell’s former college football star remakes himself as Chad Powers — the brightest light on a terrible Georgia team.
Why we’re excited: Powell’s last sports movie — Richard Linklater’s college baseball picture Everybody Wants Some!! — is a modern-day genre classic. That gives him the edge in making what could be the best football series since the glory days of Friday Night Lights.
It: Welcome to Derry (Oct. TBD), HBO Max
Who’s in it: Taylour Paige, Jovan Adepo, Bill Skarsgård
What’s the story: Decades before the Losers Club took on Pennywise (the first time), Stephen King’s killer clown from outer space feeds on a different group of Derry youngsters.
Why we’re excited: Warner Bros. is keeping the It franchise all in the family by bringing Andy and Barbara Muschietti back to preqeulize their blockbuster two-part adaptation of one of America’s best-loved boogeyman’s best-known books. And based on the San Diego Comic-Con panel, they’ll be bringing the scares — and the Skarsgård — back with them.
Boots (Oct. 9), Netflix
Who’s in it: Miles Heizer, Liam Oh, Vera Farmiga
What’s the story: Eager to escape his dead-end small town, a still-closeted gay teenager enlists in the Marines… but has to keep his sexuality secret during the height of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” era.
Why we’re excited: One of the final projects from legendary producer, Norman Lear, Boots is based on the life story of former Marine, Greg Cope White. And against the backdrop of real-world headlines, the show’s emphasis on how diversity in the military makes us — and the U.S. — stronger will hopefully resonate at home and abroad.
The Last Frontier (Oct. 10), Apple TV+
Who’s in it: Jason Clarke, Dominic Cooper, Haley Bennett
What’s the story: After a prison transport plane crashes in his neck of the Alaskan woods, Clarke’s U.S. Marshal has to round up the surviving convicts… including the one who masterminded the jailbreak.
Why we’re excited: It’s been awhile since we’ve had a good prison break series — maybe since the Prison Break revival, in fact. The addition of the Alaskan frontier should make this particular version of that story extra frosty.
Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy (Oct. 16), Peacock
Who’s in it: Michael Chernus, Gabriel Luna, James Badge Dale
What’s the story: Peacock makes its own Monster by dramatizing the bloody exploits of another notorious American serial killer.
Why we’re excited: With former newsman-turned-screenwriter Noah Oppenheim onboard as an executive producer, Devil may avoid some of the ickier creative choices that inspired controversies around Ryan Murphy’s serialized serial killer series on Netflix. And after scene-stealing supporting turns on shows like Severance and Dead Ringers, Chernus is overdue for a marquee role that really lets him slay.
Talamasca: The Secret Order (Oct. 26), AMC
Who’s in it: Elizabeth McGovern, William Fichtner, Nicholas Denton
What’s the story: A law school graduate (Denton) gives up a legal career to join the titular secret society that’s dedicated to hunting vampires, demons and other things that go bump in the night.
Why we’re excited: As AMC’s Anne Rice universe continues to expand outwards, it pulls in noted thespians like McGovern, Fichtner and Jason Schwartzman. And in a sign that the show aspires to be a worthy heir to Interview With the Vampire, look for a cameo by that show’s interviewer, Eric Bogosian.
All Her Fault (Nov. 6), Peacock
Dakota Fanning and Sarah Snook in All Her Fault (Courtesy Peacock)
Who’s in it: Sarah Snook, Dakota Fanning, Jake Lacy
What’s the story: A loving mother’s life is turned upside down when her young son goes missing after a playdate in her quiet and supposedly safe neighborhood.
Why we’re excited: Missing children dramas are a dime a dozen, but this one features million-dollar talent in the dynamic duo of Snook and Fanning. The bestselling book that its based on is also one (really) good read.
Death by Lightning (Nov. 6), Netflix
Bradley Whitford in Death By LightningLarry Horricks/Netflix
Who’s in it: Michael Shannon, Matthew Macfadyen, Bradley Whitford
What’s the story: The Oscar-nominated Shannon gets presidential as James A. Garfield, whose time in office was cut short by an assassin’s bullet.
Why we’re excited: This specific slice of American history has rarely been dramatized, which gives the creative team lots of leeway in bringing the past to life. And with its hirsute male leads, the period beards alone will be award-worthy.
Pluribus (Nov. 7), Apple TV+
Who’s in it: Rhea Seehorn, Karolina Wydra, Carlos Manuel Vesga
What’s the story: As a happiness epidemic prepares to drown Earth in good vibes, it’s up to a truly miserable person (Seehorn) to keep our emotions in check.
Why we’re excited: Better call Vince Gilligan. The Breaking Bad maestro returns to his X-Files roots with a series that appears to blend science-fiction with bone-dry comedy. Maybe Seehorn will finally get the Emmy that sadly eluded her and the rest of the Better Call Saul team.
The Beast in Me (Nov. 13), Netflix
Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys in The Beast in Me (Courtesy Netflix)
Who’s in it: Claire Danes, Matthew Rhys, Jonathan Banks
What’s the story: Still mourning the death of her child, a reclusive author (Danes) is stirred out of retirement by the arrival of a new neighbor (Rhys) with a dark past.
Why we’re excited: As if Danes re-teaming with her Homeland collaborator Howard Gordon wasn’t enough of a reason to binge this eight-episode series, the eclectic creative team also includes The Staircase’s Antonio Campos, American Crime Story’s Daniel Pearle and… Conan O’Brien?? That’s as unexpected a plot twist as anything in the show.
The American Revolution (Nov. 16), PBS
Who’s in it: America’s founding fathers
What’s the story: Ken Burns reveals the why’s and how’s behind an upstart colony’s choice to turn the world upside down.
Why we’re excited: 35 years after The Civil War single-handedly revolutionized the style and substance of historical documentaries, Burns puts his signature stamp on another revolution. Here’s hoping Lin-Manuel Miranda is one of the narrators.
Also Premiering
Everyone’s favorite naval crimesolving power couple are back in NCIS: Tony and Ziva (Sept. 4, Paramount+), which reunites Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo years after they departed the franchise. Hailing from Mexico, The Dead Girls (Sept. 10, Netflix) hopes to be your next ripped-from-the-headlines crime drama. The hit animated web series Helluva Boss (Sept. 10, Prime Video) graduates to streaming with a remake of the pilot and a re-release of the first two seasons, with new seasons of the hell-ishly funny comedy premiering on Prime Video at a later date. Speaking of cursed cartoons, Haunted Hotel (Sept. 19, Netflix) is the latest collaboration between Rick and Morty masterminds Matt Roller and Dan Harmon and takes place at a crumbling guest house where ghosts have the run of the place. Not to be outdone, Marvel Zombies (Sept. 24, Disney+) puts a horrific spin on Marvel’s animated series, pitting heroes like David Harbour’s Red Guardian and Simu Liu’s Shang-Chi against the walking dead. On Brand with Jimmy Fallon (Sept. 30, NBC) finds The Tonight Show host dabbling in Shark Tank-esque waters as he oversees a competitive reality series built around the fine art of advertising.
Country music royalty LeAnn Rimes and Kimberly Williams-Paisley are among the stars of 911: Nashville (Oct. 9, ABC), the latest installment in Ryan Murphy’s ever-expanding 911 franchise. Tim Meadows is the star attraction of CBS’s newest workplace comedy, DMV (Oct. 13, CBS) — a show that will hopefully be a lot more fun than an actual trip to the DMV. Director Rebecca Miller offers up an intimate portrait of Martin Scorsese in the six-episode docuseries Mr. Scorsese (Oct. 17, Apple TV+). Proving that there is life after The Voice, Blake Shelton and Keith Urban join forces for The Road (Oct. 19, CBS), where rising stars travel around the country competing for a chance to be Urban’s opening act. And venture Down Cemetery Road (Oct. 29, Apple TV+) with Emma Thompson in a new British crime drama that also stars Ruth Wilson.
I Love LA (Nov. 2, HBO Max) is the first TV series created by and sarring indie comedy phenom Rachel Sennott and also featurs Odessa A’zion and Josh Hutcherson. Sean Bean is the Sheriff of Nottingham to Jack Patten‘s famed outlaw in a new version of Robin Hood (Nov. 2, MGM+). Dive back into the Fab Four’s back catalogue with an expanded version of The Beatles Anthology (Nov. 26, Disney+). Elvis Costello, John Legend and Alanis Morissette are among the musicians profiled on Words + Music (Nov. 30, MGM+).
Returning favorites
Season 3 of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (Sept. 7, AMC) continues Norman Reedus’s journey through a zombie-infested Europe — a journey that will come to an end after the upcoming fourth and final season. New York’s finest podcasting sleuths are back on the case in Season 5 of Only Murders in the Building (Sept. 9, Hulu) and they’ve brought Oscar-winners Renee Zellweger and Christoph Waltz along for the ride. Return to The Boys universe and good ol’ Godolkin U. with Season 2 of Gen V (Sept. 17, Prime Video). The Morning Show (Sept. 17, Apple TV+) flickers to life once more with Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon welcoming Jeremy Irons and Aaron Pierre to the cast. Speaking of big-name cast additions, Season 3 of Sylvester Stallone’s Tulsa King (Sept. 21, Paramount+), adds Samuel L. Jackson to the mix ahead of the Pulp Fiction favorite’s spin-off series. Reality stalwarts Survivor (Sept. 24, CBS) and The Amazing Race (Sept. 25, CBS) return for Season 49 and Season 38, respectively, while procedural champs Law & Order (Sept. 25, NBC) and Law & Order: SVU (Sept. 25, NBC) clock in for Season 25 and Season 27, respectively. Big season numbers yes, but The Simpsons (Sept. 28, Fox) is also still chugging along at Season 37 and counting.
Dropping back into the single digits, Abbott Elementary (Oct. 1, ABC) is back in session for Season 5. Live from New York, Saturday Night Live (Oct. 4, NBC) rings in Season 51 with a pared-down cast and writing team. Season 2 of Matlock (Oct. 12, CBS), Season 3 of Elsbeth (Oct. 12, CBS) and Season 5 of Ghosts (Oct. 16, CBS) arrive just in time to bring eyeballs back to the Eye Network’s primetime lineup. Keri Russell diplomatically handles more international intrigue in Season 3 of The Diplomat (Oct. 16, Netflix). Adam Brody continues to make the world safe for hot rabbis in Season 2 of Nobody Wants This (Oct. 23, Netflix).
Over on the Peacock network — and next day on Peacock — St. Denis Medical (Nov. 3, NBC ) and Happy’s Place (Nov. 7, NBC) kick off their sophomore seasons. Kristen Wiig ventures back to Palm Royale (Nov. 12, Apple TV+) for more comedic intrigue. Billy Bob Thornton once again gets the Taylor Sheridan bump in Season 2 of Landman (Nov. 16, Paramount+). Ted Danson investigates more murders in retiree-friendly buildings in A Man on the Inside (Nov. 20, Netflix). The Upside Down may finally get put right side up in the fifth and final season of Stranger Things (Nov. 26, Netflix). Season 2 of Fallout (Dec. TBD, Prime Video) continues our journey to New Vegas, while Emily in Paris (Dec. TBD, Netflix) begins its fifth year as Emily in Rome.