Happy New Year!
It’s that time again to take a look forward at what you want on your TV radar for 2026. These are the shows from genredom we think borg readers will want to know about. This year we’re splitting movies and TV series, which we’d been combining since the pandemic, because the volume of movie choices has finally returned (in case you missed it, check out the list of all of the forthcoming 2026 movies here). In all we pulled more than 50 TV series. Compare the below list to the series on our 2025 list, 2024 list and 2023 list, and you’ll see a broader variety of streaming TV series options ahead via services like Prime Video, Netflix, PBS, Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max, BritBox, AMC+, Peacock, and Paramount+. With sci-fi and spy-fi, fantasy, superhero and supernatural, mystery, police procedurals, historical, and horror, 2026 looks particularly good for genre TV, even if the studios cancelled some of last year’s very best series, like Duster, one of out top picks of 2025.
The biggest and most anticipated series? That’s got to be the follow-up to one of genredom’s all-time biggest genre series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with the new series Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale starring Ryan Keira Armstrong and Sarah Michelle Gellar, Marvel’s all-new live-action series Spider-Noir starring Nicolas Cage, and the second season of 2024’s best comedy, the irreverent Seth MacFarlane series Ted.
New series include Blade Runner 2099 (starring Michelle Yeoh), crime drama Criminal (starring Emilia Clarke, Adria Arjona, and Luke Evans), the Friday the 13th spin-off Crystal Lake (starring Linda Cardellini), DC Entertainment’s Lanterns (with Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan), the animated Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord, and Marvel’s VisionQuest (starring Paul Bettany). Many popular returning series don’t have fixed premiere dates yet but are slated for release in 2026, like Avatar: The Last Airbender, Black Doves, Dune: Prophecy, Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen, The Gilded Age, Grace, House of the Dragon, The Last of Us, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, My Life is Murder, Mystery Road: Origin, MobLand, Only Murders in the Building, The Pitt, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Wars: Ahsoka, Task, and Wednesday.
Grab your calendar and sit back–here are All the TV Series You’ll Want to See in 2026:
January
Shetland Season 10 – Alison O’Donnell and Ashley Jensen return to lead the department on a new murder case. BritBox – January 1
Run Away Season 1 – Deja vu. How many crime thrillers have starred James Nesbitt searching for his lost kid? And another by Harlan Coben? Well here is one more. Netflix – January 1
High Potential Season 2 – Second season of the quirky crime series continues. ABC – January 6
Law & Order – 25th season of the original crime series continues. NBC – January 8
His & Hers Season 1 – Tessa Thompson stars with Jon Bernthal in mystery thriller as an estranged couple–a journalist and detective–working the same murder case – Netflix – January 8
All Creatures Great and Small Season 6 – The series flashed forward to the end of the war, and how Skeldale House adjusts to the changing times. PBS – January 11
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Season 1 – New series looks at a class of cadets, with Holly Hunter, Tatiana Maslany, Tig Notaro, Paul Giamatti, Robert Picardo, Oded Fehr, Stephen Colbert – Paramount+ – January 15
Ponies Season 1 – Ponies = “persons of no interest” – Emilia Clarke and Haley Lu Richardson star in 1970s espionage thriller – Peacock – January 15
Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials – Adapts Christie’s 1929 mystery novel. Stars Mia McKenna-Bruce. Netflix – January 15
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms Season 1 – The next Game of Thrones spin-off begins. With Daniel Ings. HBO Max – January 18
The Beauty Season 1 – Bizarre sci-fi construct: FBI agents Evan Peters and Rebecca Hall investigate deaths of supermodels with a criminal billionaire played by Ashton Kutcher. FX/Hulu – January 21
Bridgerton Season 4 – Nicola Coughlan series returns – Netflix – January 29 for Part 1, February 29 for Part 2
Wonder Man Season 1 – The next Marvel Comics adaptation stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Ben Kingsley – Disney+ – January 27
February
The Lincoln Lawyer Season 4 – Manuel Garcia-Rulfo returns in crime series based on Michael Connelly’s characters. Netflix – February 5
The Artful Dodger Season 2 – Based on characters from Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, David Thewlis, and Maia Mitchell return in one of 2023’s best series, filmed in Australia. Hulu and Disney+ – February 10 (all eight episodes)
Dark Winds Season 4 – The Tony Hillerman Native American police series continues, starring Zahn McClarnon and A Martinez. AMC+ – February 15
The Simpsons Season – Special episode celebrates 800th episode. Fox – February 15
The Night Agent Season 3 – Gabriel Basso returns without (gasp) Rose Larkin, with newcomers Genesis Rodriguez, Stephen Moyer, David Lyons, Jennifer Morrison – Netflix – February 19
Paradise Season 2 – One of last year’s best mystery series returns, starring Sterling K. Brown – Hulu – February 23
The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins – Tracy Morgan stars as a former pro football player who tries to rehabilitate his image with the help of a filmmaker played by Daniel Radcliffe. NBC – February 23
Scrubs Season 10 – After a 15-year hiatus, the series continues. ABC – February 25
Ghosts Season 5 – The best comedy on television returns for second half of fifth season. Starring Rose McIver – CBS/Paramount+ – February 26
March
Young Sherlock Season 1 – Guy Ritchie’s next project looks back to young Holmes. Prime Video – March 4
Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 – Charlie Cox returns with Vincent D’Onofrio – Disney+ – March 4 (all eight episodes)
Ted Season 2 – The best comedy series of 2024 is back! Seth MacFarlane’s comedy series about a teddy bear continues. Peacock – March 5
Scarpetta Season 1 – Patricia Cornwall’s fictional detective finally makes it to the screen, starring Nicole Kidman and Jamie Lee Curtis – Prime Video – March 11
Deadloch Season 2 – Madeleine Sami & Kate Box return in the Tasmanian police comedy. Prime Video – March 20
One Piece Season 2 – Live-action version of the anime pirate adventure story continues – Netflix – March 20
December
Doctor Who Season 41 – Russell T. Davies will write the Christmas episode, which is expected to feature Billie Piper’s premiere showing as the 16th Doctor. BBC/PBS – December 25
New series with no release date or trailers include:
DTF St. Louis – Dark comedy starring David Harbour, Jason Bateman, and Linda Cardellini – HBO Max
And here are the trailers for projects announced without a fixed release date:
Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2:
Mystery Road: Origin Season 2:
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4:
As with every year, some of these films and series will have revised release dates or get pushed to 2027. Come back all year for new previews and reviews of some of the most eagerly awaited series.
C.J. Bunce / Editor / borg
