The days of 30+ new shows debuting on Broadcast over a couple weeks is long gone sadly (yes, I loved those days). But there are still plenty of shows coming to Broadcast, Cable and Streaming over the next couple months, especially after a pretty quiet summer. This fall, there seems to be a lot of dark thrillers and less comedies and lighthearted procedurals. Maybe that reflects the current state of the world? But there's still a nice mix of shows and there could always be some that are not on this list that I end up being a fan of. But going into the fall, these are my Top 15 Most Anticipated Fall Shows!
Last fall was a Ryan Murphy explosion with a bunch of his shows premiering within weeks of each other. This fall, there appears to just be two - another Monster installment (yawn) and this legal drama on Hulu, with a premiere date yet to be announced. The series centers on a team of female divorce attorneys and stars Glenn Close, Naomi Watts, Sarah Paulson, Kim Kardashian and more. I am putting this last on the list because you just never know with Ryan Murphy. Sometimes his shows are really fun or interesting and other times they are a complete mess. Time will tell with this one.
14. The Last Frontier (Apple TV+, October 10)
Over a decade ago, I was really intrigued by FOX's Alcatraz, a short lived drama about escaped convicts from the famous prison. It didn't end up being great but I really liked the premise and the pilot. Now, we have The Last Frontier, an Alaskan-set drama about some of the world's most dangerous criminals being on the loose after a plane crash. I expect it to be more serialized than Alcatraz's case of the week style given that it's Apple but I like the premise and I like the Alaska setting so I'm at least intrigued.
13. The Chair Company (HBO, TBD)
This show is reported to be coming in the fall still but with no premiere date announced yet, it's possible it might be delayed until 2026. If it does come this fall, it definitely belongs on my list. Though I am not very familiar with Tim Robinson's brand of comedy, what I do know I like and I think this is a really interesting premise for a cringe comedy specialist to be in a show where the logline sounds like a thriller, though it's clearly the comedy. Maybe it will be his version of The Curse?
12. Boston Blue (CBS, October 17)
I watched almost all of Blue Bloods during its 14 season run so I'm definitely going to check out Boston Blue, which brings Donnie Wahlberg's Danny to Boston for a spinoff. Wahlberg was not always my favorite character on Blue Bloods but in a year with a small and uninspired crop of broadcast dramas, this one has me the most intrigued (more than ABC's 9-1-1: Nashville). I don't think I'll end up liking it as much as Blue Bloods because that show had the New York setting and such a great cast. But I will give this a try with some optimism.
There is no exact premiere date yet for this show, but it will be in October, just in time for spooky season. It feels like some years we get a ton of creepy shows and there are a few serial killer shows coming but not as many genuine horror shows this year. I'm not sure if this will be for me. Horror is a genre that I'm real picky about and often don't end up liking. I've also never seen the It films. But for whatever reason, I've been interested in this show for a long time. And I have to say the use of "Ya Got Trouble" from The Music Man in the trailer is real creepy.
10. The Lowdown (FX, September 23)
I am sort of mixed on this one but I am intrigued. This show comes from Sterlin Harjo and stars Ethan Hawke. Although classified a drama, the trailer looked somewhat comedic. Shows like this have a very distinct voice and feel and I think it'll probably be very well received. I'm just not sure how much I'll vibe with it. But I did love Hawke on The Good Lord Bird so I am definitely keeping my eyes on this one. I could see it being not for me or it being a sneaky favorite of the fall.
9. Chad Powers (Hulu, September 30)
The trailer just dropped for this over the weekend. Football season is here and this should be a nice fit. There's also a lack of new comedies coming this fall so this might be a welcome relief amidst the many serious dramas. Based on the NFL Films sketch associated with the Manning brothers and starring Glen Powell, I'm hopeful this will be a nice complement to all the football I'll inevitably be watching this fall. I thought the trailer looked fun but it's always hard to judge how funny a comedy will be by its trailer.
On the one hand, this is a missing child drama and we've had plenty of missing children or people shows over the years. But this one stars Sarah Snook and Dakota Fanning (as well as reliable limited series actor Jake Lacy) so I'm much more intrigued. Snook's first TV show since Succession immediately gives this show, which could be just a Peacock afterthought, much more attention. We'll see if it's worthy of living up to the attention and if it can do something that other shows in this subgenre have not. No trailer has been released yet.
7. The Paper (Peacock, September 4)
I don't really know what to make of this show, which will be the first on this list to premiere. Given that it's a sequel of sorts to The Office and set in the same universe as NBC's iconic comedy, this show will always be compared to The Office and that's not a good thing. If Greg Daniels had just done a show about a Toledo newspaper, I might have been more hopeful. But I just feel like this show is going to get mired in toxic and annoying online discourse, no matter the quality. It already has to some degree. I'm going to try to go into it with a clear head but I don't think anyone can come into this show totally neutral unless you've never seen The Office.
6. Task (HBO, September 7)
This show is coming out this coming weekend so reviews are already out and they have generally been mixed to positive. I was intrigued about this project because it comes from Brad Inglesby, who was the brains behind the great Mare of Easttown. The trailer did give me a little bit of pause just because of how dark (visually and emotionally) it seems to be. It does not seem to have the lighter touch that Mare did at times. But I'm definitely still excited to give it a try. The series stars Mark Ruffalo and Tom Pelphrey.
5. DMV (CBS, October 13)
There is only one traditional broadcast comedy premiering this fall and it is DMV on CBS. The show is set at, you guessed it, a DMV, and stars Harriet Dyer and Tim Meadows among others. I miss the days when tons of new broadcast comedies would come on every year. As far as I'm concerned, broadcast is still the best medium for comedy while streaming or premium/cable is better for drama. So I hope this succeeds and I hope it is a funny workplace comedy that can follow so many that came before it and encourage the networks to keep making new comedies.
This show, which is the newest series from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul's Vince Gilligan and stars Saul's Rhea Seehorn, has already been renewed for a second season and it's been very mysterious for a long time. It's being described both as "sci-fi," which gives me pause, and "genre-bending," which is more interesting to me and the premise given is "the most miserable person on Earth must save the world from happiness." This could go a whole lot of directions but I trust Gilligan and I do think the show will have people talking one way or another.
3. The Savant (Apple TV+, September 26)
I'm very intrigued by this show, which seems very dark and thrilling as it centers on a woman who infiltrates online hate groups to stop attacks. I'm a big fan of Jessica Chastain, who is in the lead role. I assume because this is a prestige show on a prestige streamer that it will mostly follow one specific case over the course of the season but I'm also curious if there will be any sort of "case of the week" element to the show. My favorite shows are ones that blend a procedural with an overarching story but that has rarely been Apple's approach. Time will tell!
2. The Beast in Me (Netflix, November 13)
There's not too much information on this show yet aside from a few photos but it has an intriguing premise - a grieving author takes an interest in her new next door neighbor, who was once the prime suspect in his wife's disappearance. What has me really excited though is the cast: Clare Danes, Matthew Rhys, Brittany Snow and Natalie Morales. All actors that I really like. I'm hopeful it leans more to a tense thriller than a slow burn mystery but I'll like either if the writing matches the capability of the performers.
I've been excited about this show for a very long time and it finally has a premiere date! Death By Lightning focuses on the assassination of James Garfield, a blind spot for me (and I assume many others) in American history where the only assassinations that ever get talked about are Lincoln and Kennedy. With a star-studded cast including Michael Shannon, Matthew Mcfadyen, Nick Offerman, Betty Gilpin, Bradley Whitford, Shea Whigham and more, I am very excited to see this show. It does give me a little bit of pause that it's only four episodes - was that always intended or were there troubles behind the scenes? Four is an awfully low count for an American show. And while I'd be happy with no fluff added, sometimes that low of an episode count is a sign there was trouble. But I'm hopeful!
A few others I'm keeping an eye on:
The Girlfriend (Prime Video, September 10)
Black Rabbit (Netflix, September 18)
Wayward (Netflix, September 25)
House of Guinness (Netflix, September 25)
I Love LA (HBO, November 2)
Returning shows I am looking forward to (listed by premiere date):
The Morning Show (Apple TV+, September 17)
Abbott Elementary (ABC, October 1)
Matlock (CBS, October 12)
Elsbeth (CBS, October 12)
Ghosts (CBS, October 16)
Nobody Wants This (Netflix, October 23)
St. Denis Medical (NBC, November 3)
Landman (Paramount+, November 16)
A Man on the Inside (Netflix, November 20)
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