I don’t know about you, dear reader but I can’t quite believe the fact that there are (at the time of writing) four months left of 2024. Still, as we wave goodbye to summer – or winter, for those in the southern hemisphere – there’s one thing we can all look forward to: plenty of not only potentially great new shows, but also returning favorites.
With that in mind, I’ve compiled a list of the 13 TV series I can’t wait to see between now and December 31 on the world’s best streaming services. With multiple genres catered for, I think one or more of the below recommendations will make it onto your ‘to watch’ list, too. So, let’s waste no more time: here are my 13 most anticipated shows (ones that were announced prior to this article’s creation, anyway) to stream in late 2024 on Netflix, Prime Video, Max, and more.
Slow Horses season 4 (Apple TV Plus)
Release date: September 4
I saw a tweet – are we still calling them that? – from someone recently that suggested this Apple TV Plus show would be a colossal hit if it held a primetime slot on, say, UK terrestrial channel BBC One. And, frankly, it’s difficult not to agree with that sentiment. Slow Horses is arguably the most underrated Apple TV Original, with the Gary Oldman-led spy thriller series earning praise and award nominations aplenty from critics and its loyal fanbase alike.
With Slow Horses season 4’s imminent release galloping over the horizon, then, now’s as good a time as any to binge watch one of the best Apple TV Plus shows‘ first three seasons, each with just six episodes apiece, ahead of its return. Capisce?
Slow Horses season 4 episode 1 debuts on launch day. New episodes air weekly until October 9.
Agatha All Along (Disney Plus)
Release date: September 18 (US); September 19 (UK and Australia)
Debuting just two weeks before the most haunting month of the year arrives, Agatha All Along will be Marvel‘s final live-action TV series of 2024. But, with the Kathryn Hahn-fronted WandaVision spin-off reuniting us with fan-favorite character Agatha Harkness for what’s expected to be one of the MCU‘s most spooky projects yet, I’m cautiously optimistic about its chances of casting a spell on, well, everyone.
So, what’s it about? The Marvel Phase 5 series will see Harkness create her own coven of dark magic misfits to embark on a quest down The Witches’ Road, a dangerous and terrifying realm that grants wishes to anyone who successfully navigates it. Here’s hoping it’s good – oh, and remember, it was Agatha all aloooooong!
Agatha All Along launches with a two-episode premiere. New episodes air weekly until November 6.
The Penguin (Max)
Release date: September 19 (US); September 20 (UK and Australia)
The sequel to the 2022 smash hit The Batman is still a few years away, but this TV spin-off will aim to fill the crime thriller-shaped hole in my life and yours very soon. Colin Farrell reprises his role from the aforementioned Batman flick as Oz Cobb, one of numerous crime bosses who’ll vie for a greater slice of the underworld pie following Gotham’s criminal kingpin Carmine Falcone’s death in The Batman. The biggest obstacle standing in Cobb’s way? Carmine’s menacing daughter Sofia (Cristin Milioti), who’s out to prove Gotham’s new criminal mastermind doesn’t need to be a man.
A darker and more mature offering than its movie forebear, The Penguin looks set to be the next HBO TV Original that’ll waddle its way onto our best Max shows list (NB: it’ll air on Sky/Now TV in the UK, and Binge in Australia). I, for one, can’t wait to see Farrell deliver another commanding acting performance that’ll surely earn him more a few award nominations on next year’s circuit.
The Penguin’s first episode arrives on release day. New episodes air weekly until the miniseries’ finale on November 10 (US) and November 11 (UK and Australia).
The Legend of Vox Machina season 3 (Prime Video)
Release date: October 3
It’s been over 18 months since The Legend of Vox Machina last graced out screens, but Prime Video’s R-rated animated adaptation of Critical Role’s beloved Dungeons and Dragons series is ready to return with its eagerly anticipated third installment. Indeed, we’ll be reunited with the titular gang’s eccentric ensemble in early October, with Vox Machina still searching for a way to defeat the Chroma Conclave – aka a group of fearsome dragons who threaten Tal’Dorei’s entire existence.
I’m a big fan of Amazon‘s adult animation line-up, which counts Invincible, Hazbin Hotel, and Undone among its number. So, it’ll come as no surprise to learn that one of the best Prime Video shows is among the programs I’m looking forward to seeing before the year ends.
The Legend of Vox Machina arrives with a three-episode premiere. New episodes will be released in three batches of three until October 24.
Heartstopper season 3 (Netflix)
Release date: October 3
Heartstopper, Netflix’s hugely popular coming-of-age rom-com drama, returns for its third season in early October, and I suspect there are millions worldwide who are desperate to see what Nick, Charlie, and the rest of the gang get up to this season.
Understandably, Netflix is playing it coy over the plot of its hit show’s third entry, but it has teased that Nick and Charlie will navigate even more high-school romance-based challenges. With the pair starting to look to their higher education future, too, Heartstopper season 3 could be the funniest, most dramatic, and tear-jerking installment yet. Have a tissue or 20 handy, folks.
Heartstopper season 3 will release in full on launch day.
Disclaimer (Apple TV Plus)
Release date: October 11
Based on Renee Knight’s novel of the same name, this Apple TV Plus project has all the ingredients to be another acclaimed Apple series that bafflingly passes most people by.
A terrifically talented leading lady in Cate Blanchett? Check? One of the best directors of the modern age in Alfonso Cuaron? Double check. A pulsating psychological thriller plot – one centered around Blanchett’s veteran war correspondent who bizarrely finds out she’s become the protagonist of a fictional story – that promises to leave audiences guessing week to week? Triple check. I’d love to see Disclaimer break into the mainstream like Presumed Innocent did earlier this year, and it has every chance of doing so with the talent attached to it.
Disclaimer will debut with a two-episode premiere. New episodes air weekly until November 15.
Cobra Kai season 6 part 2 (Netflix)
Release date: November 15
It won’t be much longer until Cobra Kai closes the doors of its dojo for the final time, but at least we’ve got two more batches of episodes to look forward to until it does. The next lot of those will swan kick their way onto Netflix in mid-November, with Cobra Kai season 6 part 2 delivering five more entries for fans (myself included) to be captivated by.
Unsurprisingly, season 6’s sophomore volume will pick up directly after its predecessor, with the Miyagi-Do team arriving in Barcelona to compete in the Sekai Taikai. Expect punches to be thrown, tears to be shed, and plenty of comical and dramatic moments to play out as the tension is ratcheted up in season 6 part 2. Make sure you enjoy what’s on offer, too, because season 6 part 3 won’t arrive until sometime in 2025. It’s going to be a long wait, my fellow students.
Cobra Kai season 6 part 2 will launch in full on release day.
Arcane season 2 (Netflix)
Release date: sometime in November
Anyone who’s frequented these parts since November 2021 will know how much I love Arcane. I’m not a League of Legends devotee – sorry, LoL fans and Riot Games, it’s just a game franchise that passed me by – but I’ll watch the game series’ animated TV projects for as long as they’re pumped out.
In the least surprising news of the year, then, you don’t need me to tell you that I’m super excited for Arcane season 2. It’s been a long, long, loooong time since one of the best Netflix shows made its debut, but the excruciating three-year wait for its second and final season will be over soon. I’m crossing my fingers and toes that we finally, finally get a confirmed release date at Netflix Geeked Week 2024 in mid-September. I wouldn’t turn my nose up at an announcement or two about the follow-up series that’ll replace it, too, Riot.
Arcane season 2’s release schedule hasn’t been revealed yet, but expect it to be released in three parts like season 1.
Dune: Prophecy (Max)
Release date: sometime in November
I’m going to warn you up top: this Dune TV series won’t feature Timothee Chalamet’s Paul Atreides. So, if you were going to tune in with the hope of seeing the A-lister, reset your expectations accordingly. That doesn’t mean Dune: Prophecy won’t be worth tuning into, however. The sci-fi drama, which is set 10,000 years before Atreides’ journey begins in Dune, will chart the rise of the Bene Gesserit, the covert, all-female organization that sets events in motion surrounding the successors of the Padishah Emperor.
Like Arcane, this prequel show doesn’t have an official launch date yet, but it’s certainly giving me Game of Thrones and Shogun vibes with its inter- and intra-familial melodrama, bloody violence, and other R-rated material. It’ll join The Penguin in launching on Sky/Now TV in the UK and Binge in Australia, by the way.
Dune: Prophecy’s release schedule hasn’t been unveiled, but this HBO TV Original’s episodes will likely launch one per week.
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew (Disney Plus)
Release date: December 3 (US); December 4 (UK and Australia)
Star Wars: The Acolyte disappointed a lot of people earlier this year – and, with Andor season 2, which is my most anticipated Star Wars series, not due out until early 2025, this “Goonies in space” TV show will look to get Lucasfilm’s iconic franchise back on track on the small screen.
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew stars Jude Law as an enigmatic rogue-cum-Force wielder who, after a chance encounter, is charged with helping four kids navigate their way home. Given the vastness of that infamous galaxy far, far away, it’ll take the quintet a while to reach their destination, not least because of the threats that lurk in the depths of space.
Skeleton Crew is one of two new Disney Plus shows that’ll make their grand entrance this festive season, so Disney will hope its primary streamer will win the holiday streaming wars. Until it’s released, though, the jury is out on whether Skeleton Crew will join our best Disney Plus shows list.
Star Wars: Skeleton Crew will arrive with two episodes on launch day. New entries will debut weekly.
Win or Lose (Disney Plus)
Release date: December 6
The second of Disney Plus’ new kid-friendly series in December, Win or Lose, will bring Pixar‘s signature (and reborn) big-screen magic to TV screens worldwide for the very first time. Set in the hours and/or days before a high-school championship softball game, Win or Lose‘s joker in the pack lies in its approach to its lead character – or, rather, lead characters. Indeed, each of the eight-part series’ installments will focus on a different softball team member, ranging from the Will Forte-voiced coach and a lovesick umpire, to its insecure players and overprotective parents.
Win or Lose‘s first trailer makes it look like a cross between Pixar’s best high-school-set movies in Inside Out and Turning Red. If it can embody the best parts of that duo, I’m sure Pixar’s first TV venture will be an *ahem* home run.
Win or Lose’s release schedule is yet to be determined, so it’s unclear if it’ll debut in full on release day or receive a weekly episodic timetable.
Squid Game season 2 (Netflix)
Release date: December 26
Disney may win the fight when its comes to family-friendly content this Christmas but, let’s be honest, there’s only one show that the world will be tuning into in the final week of the year: Squid Game season 2. Netflix’s most successful TV Original is set to dominate online discussions once more when it returns for its sophomore season, and I’m already looking ahead of streaming it with a leftover turkey dinner sandwich in one hand and an ice-cold beer in the other.
Lee Jung-jae reprises his role as Squid Game protagonist Gi-hun, who’s gunning for the titular games’ creators after his remarkable but traumatizing victory in the hit show’s first outing. Between you and me, he might not be successful in putting an end to the life-threatening gameshow, either. Indeed, with Squid Game season 3 already confirmed for a 2025 launch, I imagine Netflix will hold back Gi-hun’s real victory until the series’ final entry.
Squid Game season 2 is expected to launch in full on December 26.
Creature Commandos (Max)
Release date: sometime in December
2025’s Superman movie is being viewed as the “true” beginning of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s rebooted DC Cinematic Universe (DCU), but it won’t mark the franchise’s official starting point. That’ll come with Creature Commandos, which is technically the DCU’s first project as it’s set to be released on Max in December.
So, what’s the adult-animated DCU Chapter One TV series about? Essentially, Creature Commandos will see a gang of superpowered, monstrous miscreants embark on a secret mission to tackle a villain more powerful than any of them. Gunn has made a habit of turning lesser-known superheroes and villains into household names, so I expect this cross between The Suicide Squad‘s anti-hero roster and themes, and Guardians of the Galaxy‘s dysfunctional found family vibes to perform admirably enough.
Creature Commandos’ release schedule hasn’t been revealed, but I believe all seven episodes will drop on release day. There’s no word on whether it’ll launch in the UK and Australia in December yet, either.
For more TV-based coverage, read our guides on the best Hulu shows, best Paramount Plus shows, and best Netflix documentaries.
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tom.power@futurenet.com (Tom Power)
