“Expats” (Prime Video)
Now that the midsized budget drama has all but evaporated, and following “Big Little Lies,” “Top of the Lake,” “The Undoing” and “Nine Perfect Strangers,” it almost seems official that Nicole Kidman has moved into the realm of TV. Her latest follows the vibrant lives of a close-knit expatriate community: where affluence is celebrated, friendships are intense but knowingly temporary, and personal lives, deaths, and marriages are played out publicly.” Ji-young Yoo, Jack Huston, Sarayu Blue, and Brian Tee co-star. Lulu Wang (“The Farewell”) is an exec-producer and writes and directs multiple episodes.
Airdate: TBA – RP
“Slow Horses” Season 2 (Apple TV+)
Critics adored the first season of this adaptation of the Mick Herron novel and were pleasantly surprised to see a preview for season two at its conclusion! It turns out that the second series is already complete and reportedly dropping before the end of the year. Gary Oldman is phenomenal as the head of Slough House, a group of MI5 outcasts who end up saving the day, and he’s joined by a charismatic performance by Jack Lowden. Want more good news? It’s already been renewed for a third and fourth season.
Airdate: TBA – BT
“Extrapolations” (Apple TV+)
The brilliant Scott Z. Burns (“The Informant!”) turns to television in this insanely stacked anthology series that centers on the impact of climate change around the world through different stories with completely different characters (although they may be connected in some way). The list of people who signed up for this project is insane, including Meryl Streep, Sienna Miller, Matthew Rhys, Daveed Diggs, Forest Whitaker, Marion Cotillard, Tobey Maguire, Ed Norton, Keri Russell, Diane Lane, Heather Graham, and many more.
Airdate: TBA – BT
“Florida Man” (Netflix)
Jason Bateman may have said goodbye to “Ozark” but he’s not leaving Netflix behind for long, executive producing this promising thriller that feels likely to drop on the streaming giant before the end of the year (it’s been done filming since the end of 2021). Edgar Ramirez (“Carlos”) stars as an ex-cop who left Florida but returns to the Sunshine State to help with a difficult case involving a mobster’s girlfriend. It sounds a little like “Sharp Objects” in that the journey home reveals as much about the protagonist as the case. The show co-stars Anthony LaPaglia, Abbey Lee, and Emory Cohen.
Airdate: TBA – BT
“The Idol” (HBO)
He’s back! The divisive creator of “Euphoria,” Sam Levinson delivers another project for the cable giant in what looks like the biggest show of the season for the network. Created by The Weeknd, “The Idol” alleges to unpack a kooky tale from the modern music industry that also incorporates commentary on self-help culture. The Weeknd actually stars (as his actual name Abel Tesfaye) alongside Lily-Rose Depp, Suzanna Son, Troye Sivan, Jane Adams, Dan Levy, and many others but Levinson’s name is one of the biggest draws here, even with the controversy resulting from the ousting of Amy Seimetz, who shot multiple episodes before leaving and having them reshot by Levinson himself.
Airdate: TBA – BT
“The Kingdom Exodus” (MUBI)
No one makes a TV show quite like Lars von Trier. The controversial director started telling the tale of “The Kingdom” way back in 1994, and he returns to this insane, Lynchian universe for a third and final (yeah right) season of television that will mark the first TV series premiered by indie/foreign streaming service MUBI after the show premieres at the Venice Film Festival. What’s “The Kingdom” about? Well, it’s set at a hospital in Copenhagen, and that’s about all that can be logically conveyed for a show that traffics in surrealism more than anything else.
Airdate: TBA – BT
“Life After Life” (BBC One)
A four-part adaptation of the best-selling novel, “Life After Life,” about the alternate lives of a woman who dies one night in 1910, only to be born and survive on the same night, this BBC mini-series star fast-rising actress Thomasin McKenzie, star of “Jojo Rabbit” and “Last Night In Soho,” and BAFTA-winning “Fleabag” star Sian Clifford. James McArdle and Jessica Brown Findlay (“Downton Abbey”) co-star. “Outlaw King” writer Bash Doran has adapted the novel, while John Crowley, the two-time BAFTA-winning director who helmed the Saoirse Ronan drama “Brooklyn,” directs.
Airdate: TBA – RP
“The Mandalorian” Season 3 (Disney+)
With Baby Yoda riding off into the sunset with Deep Fake Luke Skywalker, it seemed like “The Mandalorian” Season 2 hit a logical conclusion point, but, apparently, Lucasfilm and co-creators Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau felt there was more story to tell. Pedro Pascal returns as does Giancarlo Esposito as Moff Gideon, Carl Weathers as Greef Karga, but obviously not Gina Carano. The story is unknown, but it seems like Lucasfilm is building towards an event series that will likely tie into the “Ahsoka” show and characters from “Star Wars Rebels” eventually, so expect potential surprises and cameos.
Airdate: TBA – RP
“Masters of the Air” (Apple TV+)
HBO lost the Playtone war operation that created “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific” to the open pocketbooks at Apple, who funded the latest mini-series set during World War II. This one centers on the Eighth Air Force and promises some of the most unbelievable air combat ever seen on television. Once again, the producers tend to mostly unknown faces but the biggest one might be Austin Butler, who captivated viewers this summer in “Elvis.”
Airdate: TBA – BT
“National Treasure: Edge of History” (Disney+)
It feels like “National Treasure” is about to make a nostalgic comeback. There are rumors that a script is done for a third film and the 10-episode series finished production this Summer and could be dropped on the streaming service before the end of the year. Jerry Bruckheimer produces this continuation of the Nicolas Cage films that replaces the actor with newcomer Lisette Alexis in the lead role. It’s mostly a cast of newcomers but having Catherine Zeta-Jones and Harvey Keitel in supporting roles won’t hurt.
Airdate: TBA – BT
