Peter Claffey in 'A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms'. Photo: Handout
The new year will bring the usual wealth of returning television series, with my own most anticipated titles including Hacks (Season 5 will likely appear in spring on HBO), and Ted Lasso (Season 4 is TBD 2026 on Apple TV). But should you be looking for something brand-new, here's a something-for-everyone list of 10 premiering shows to watch for this year. Note, as always, that premiere dates are subject to change.
Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials
A country-house party prank goes terribly wrong in this elegant-looking British series, adapted from Christie’s 1929 novel and featuring young sleuth Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent (Mia McKenna-Bruce). Helena Bonham Carter and Martin Freeman co-star. (Premieres Jan 15, Netflix)
A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms
This Game Of Thrones prequel, taking place a century before that series’ events, is based on author George R.R. Martin’s novella Tales Of Dunk and Egg, the story of a lowborn knight (Peter Claffey) and his child squire (Dexter Sol Ansell). (Jan 18, HBO)
The Beauty
Ryan Murphy’s latest is a body-horror sci-fi thriller, in which supermodels around the world are literally exploding(!) after taking a “fountain of youth” drug. The cast includes Rebecca Hall, Anthony Ramos, Ashton Kutcher and Isabella Rossellini. (Jan. 21, Disney+)
Wonder Man
Yet another Marvel Comics adaptation, and an intriguing one: Simon Williams (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) and Trevor Slattery (Ben Kingsley) are actors hoping to be cast in a Wonder Man movie, with the former suddenly finding himself with superpowers of his own. Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi And The Legend Of The Ten Rings) and Andrew Guest (Community, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) are the co-creators. (Jan 27, Disney+)
Strip Law
In the growing category of “adult animated comedy” (eg, the Netflix hit BoJack Horseman) comes this series, in which an uptight Las Vegas lawyer (voiced by Adam Scott) teams up with a local magician (Janelle James) to bring some pizzazz to his cases. (Feb 20, Netflix)
How To Get To Heaven From Belfast
From Derry Girls creator Lisa McGee, this comedy/thriller follows three Irish childhood friends as they try to solve the mysterious death of a former schoolmate. (February TBD, Netflix)
Young Sherlock
Hero Fiennes Tiffin, co-starring with his uncle Joseph Fiennes, plays a 19-year-old Sherlock Holmes, solving his first murder case while a student at Oxford. The series is based on Andrew Lane’s Young Sherlock Holmes books. Co-stars include Zine Tseng, Natascha McElhone and Colin Firth. (March 4, Prime Video)
The Testaments
Based on Margaret Atwood’s bestselling sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale (itself already a TV hit), this series follows a new generation of young women growing up in the dystopian theocracy of Gilead. Ann Dowd, of The Handmaid’s Tale, returns as Aunt Lydia; Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another) co-stars. (April TBD, Disney+)
Widow’s Bay
In this horror/comedy, Matthew Rhys (The Americans) plays the mayor of an island town in New England, contending with locals who believe their community is cursed. Apparently it is? Katie Dippold (Parks And Recreation) is the showrunner. (April 29, Apple TV)
Trinity
This naval thriller from the makers of Bodyguard was shot in Vancouver, British Columbia (watch for a cameo by the Vancouver Art Gallery). It centres on a naval commander (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) stationed on a nuclear submarine who gets involved, surely unwisely, with the secretary of defense (Richard Madden) – who’s got a few conspiracies up his sleeve. (TBD, Netflix) – The Seattle Times/Tribune News Service
