Thanksgiving has come and gone and the holiday season is upon us. With it comes cooler weather, darker nights and a wide variety of new and returning series for the winter season.
With the resolution of Hollywood’s historic double strike, network shows are getting back up into production with the goal of bringing back beloved returning shows like “Law & Order” and the “One Chicago’ franchises by mid January, along with more series returning through early spring. In the meantime, streamers and cable networks are getting ready to entertain viewers with noteworthy new shows (like Disney+’s “Percy Jackson and the Olympians,” Netflix’s “The Brothers Sun” and “Monsieur Spade” on AMC Networks), along with returning favorites like “Slow Horses” on Apple TV+ and the latest installment of “True Detective.”
Check out TheWrap’s staff picks for the 15 most anticipated shows set for release this winter.
“Slow Horses” Season 3 (Apple TV+) — Nov. 29
The hit British spy series’ third season is its most intense yet, and this time the threat is coming from inside MI5. When one of the Slow Horses is kidnapped, Jackson Lamb (Gary Oldman), River Cartwright (Jack Lowden) and the rest of the crew scramble to save their colleague. It all traces back to a terrible secret that MI5 leadership is determined to keep quiet at all costs. “Gangs of London” star Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù joins the cast as a rogue agent, with “Alien: Covenant” star Katherine Waterston as a whistleblower risking her life to share the truth. — Sharon Knolle
“The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: RHONY Legacy” (Peacock) — Dec. 14
“The Real Housewives of New York” cast may have undergone a full reboot, but the “legacy” housewives – Ramona Singer, Luann de Lesseps, Kelly Bensimon, Sonja Morgan, Kristin Taekman and Dorinda Medley – will reunite for a tropical girls trip to St. Barts. The vacation spot was the site of the cast’s infamous “Scary Island” trip in the early years of the Bravo series, so expect the women to fight over rooms, relationships and who’s most relevant. It’s turtle time! — Lawrence Yee
“Percy Jackson and the Olympians” (Disney+) — Dec. 20
Greek mythology will come to life on the small screen with “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” arriving on Disney+ Dec. 20. The first two episodes will premiere that Wednesday, followed by one per week through the eighth episode. Walker Scobell (“The Adam Project”) stars as the titular son of Poseidon, alongside Aryan Simhadri’s Grover and Leah Sava Jeffries Annabeth Chase. Author of the beloved books Rick Riordan and his wife Rebecca have been involved with the show in writing and executive production levels. Guest star Greek gods include Dionysus (Jason Mantzoukas), Hermes (Lin-Manuel Miranda), Poseidon (Toby Stephens), Hades (Jay Duplass), Hephaestus (Timothy Omundson), Ares (Adam Copeland) and the late Lance Reddick as Zeus. The idea is to create five seasons around the five books in the original “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series. — Dessi Gomez
“Dr. Death” Season 2 (Peacock) — Dec. 21
Peacock’s dark anthology series is back for another haunting tale of a doctor with a blood-curdling passion. The second installment centers on charming surgeon “Miracle Man” Paolo Macchiarini (Edgar Ramírez), whose innovative operations grab the interest of investigative journalist Benita Alexander (Mandy Moore). As Benita digs into Paolo’s past for a story, she enters a dangerous dance with the surgeon, who goes to great lengths to protect his secrets. Benita isn’t the only one with questions for Paolo, however, as doctors halfway across the world make shocking discoveries that threaten his stature. Additional cast include Luke Kirby, Ashley Madekwe and Gustaf Hammarsten. — Loree Seitz
“The Brothers Sun” (Netflix) — Jan. 4
Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh steps into a matriarch role once again, this time as Eileen, the mother of a deadly gangster Charles “Chairleg” Sun (Justin Chien) and his naive younger brother, Bruce (Sam Song Li), who knows nothing about his family’s gangster ties. “The Brothers Sun” is packed full with both action and comedy, something Yeoh deftly balanced in “Everything, Everywhere All at Once.” The series is created by Brad Falchuk and Byron Wu. — LY
“Ted” (Peacock) — Jan. 11
Seth MacFarlane’s foul-mouthed bear is back in a new live-action prequel series for Peacock. “Ted,” which is based on two feature films released by Universal Pictures with MRC Film, is set in 1993 and follows a 16-year-old John Bennett (Max Burkholder), who is living back home in Framingham, Mass., with his parents, Matty and Susan (Scott Grimes and Alanna Ubach) and cousin Blaire (Giorgia Whigham). The show is written and executive produced by MacFarlane, Paul Corrigan and Brad Walsh. The trio serve as co-showrunners and MacFarlane also directs. Other executive producers include Fuzzy Door Productions’ Erica Huggins, Alana Kleiman, Jason Clark and Aimee Carlson. Fuzzy Door, MRC and UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group, serve as producers. — Lucas Manfredi
“Criminal Record” (Apple TV+) — Jan. 12
Apple TV+’s new crime thriller brings pairs up an unlikely detective duo when an anonymous phone call ties together the fates of Detective Sergeant June Lenker (Cush Jumbo), a young woman just ramping up her career, and Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Hegarty (Peter Capaldi), a well-connected man determined to protect his legacy. Set in a polarized contemporary London, the pair struggles to find common ground as they pursue a high-profile murder case. “Criminal Record” rounds out its cast with Charlie Creed-Miles, Dionne Brown, Shaun Dooley, Stephen Campbell-Moore, Zoë Wanamaker, Rasaq Kukoyi, Maisie Ayres, Aysha Kala, Cathy Tyson and Tom Moutchi. — LS
“True Detective: Night Country” (HBO) — Jan. 14
The fourth installment of HBO’s mystery anthology is serving up a new cold case right in time freezing temps this winter. “True Detective” Season 4 introduces the series’ first female detective duo through heroines Jodie Foster and Kali Reis, who star as detectives Liz Danvers and Evangeline Navarro, respectively. Despite the investigators’ strained past, the pair begrudgingly teams up to investigate the disappearance of six workers who operate Alaska’s Tsalal Arctic Research Station. — LS
“Monsieur Spade” (AMC, AMC+ and Acorn TV) — Jan. 14
In yet another crime drama premiering this winter, “Monsieur Spade” follows the exploits of a retired Detective Sam Spade (Clive Owen), the investigator at the center of Dashiell Hammett’s 1930 classic novel “The Maltese Falcon.” Now settling into the peaceful pace of life in the South of France, the investigator is thrust back into the job after six nuns are brutally murdered at a local convent. Co-created, written and executive produced by “The Queen’s Gambit” co-creator Scott Frank and Tom Fontana, the neo-noir series also features Cara Bossom, Denis Ménochet, Louise Bourgoin, Chiara Mastroianni and Stanley Weber. — LS
“Griselda” (Netflix) — Jan. 25
After delighting fans with her comedic chops on “Modern Family,” and delivering honest but delicate feedback as a judge on “America’s Got Talent,” Sofia Vergara is ready to stun audiences with her first lead dramatic television role in “Griselda.” The Hollywood powerhouse disappears into the role of Griselda Blanco, a Colombian businesswoman and the mastermind behind one of the most profitable drug cartels in history. The six-episode series, which Vergara also executive produced, was created by Eric Newman, Doug Miro, Ingrid Escajeda and Carlo Bernard. Andrés Baiz directed every episode. Luis Balaguer also served as executive producer for Latin World Entertainment. — Jose Alejandro Bastidas
“Masters of the Air” (Apple TV+) — Jan. 26
Get ready military history fans, “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific” EPs Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman are back with another war-centric miniseries, this time turning their attention to the sky. Based on Donald L. Miller’s book of the same name, “Masters of the Air” centers on the men of the 100th Bomb Group whose life-threatening missions in B-17s battle Hitler’s Third Reich during World War II. Primarily following close friends Maj. John ‘Bucky’ Egan (Callum Turner) and Maj. Gale ‘Buck’ Cleven (Austin Butler), the nine-part series introduces a slew of young men — played by Anthony Boyle, Nate Mann, Rafferty Law, Barry Keoghan, Josiah Cross, Branden Cook and Ncuti Gatwa, among others — who are quickly hoisted into the viciousness of war. Displaying all possible outcomes of the horrific conflict — from death by fire to capture as prisoner of war — the show spotlights the psychological and emotional toll taken by the 8th Air Force and beyond. — LS
“Avatar: The Last Airbender” (Netflix) — Feb. 22
Following the success of “One Piece,” Netflix is bringing a live-action adaption of “Avatar: The Last Airbender” to the screen. (Yes, we’re trying to forget that 2010 feature film.) Gordon Cormier plays 12-year-old Aang, the last surviving member of the Air Nomads, who may be the prophesied Avatar that will bring peace to the Air, Fire, Earth and Water nations. Expect some spectacular visual effects of the four elements, as well as Appa, Aang’s flying sky bison. Albert Kim (“Sleepy Hollow,” “Nikita”) serves as showrunner, executive producer and writer. Jabbar Raisani (“Lost in Space,” “Stranger Things”) and Michael Goi are executive producers and directors alongside directors Roseanne Liang (also a co-executive producer) and Jet Wilkinson. Dan Lin (“The Lego Movie,” “Aladdin”) and Lindsey Liberatore (“Walker”) serve as executive producers from Rideback. — LY
“The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live” (AMC and AMC+) — Feb. 25
Two anchors of “The Walking Dead” universe – Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira) – return to the small screen in a six-episode spin-off titled “The Ones Who Live.” It’s been five years since Rick seemingly perished in a bridge explosion, and was secretly saved by the enigmatic Jadis (Polly Anna McIntosh). The highly anticipated reunion between the series’ super couple may not be a joyous one, as each has been hardened by their time surviving both human and undead threats. — LY
“Shogun” (FX) — February
This stylish period drama is an adaptation of James Clavell’s 1975 novel. Cosmo Jarvis plays John Blackthorne, an English sailor who becomes shipwrecked in feudal Japan. Hiroyuki Sanada plays Lord Toranaga, a powerful daimyo who faces threats both internal and external. And Anna Sawai plays Lady Mariko, whose skills with a sword rivals any samurai. Expect political intrigue, violence and passion in this epic series. — LY
“The Traitors” Season 2 (Peacock) – Winter 2024
The reality competition series, hosted by Alan Cumming, became a surprise hit for the streamer, thanks to its fascinating mix of physical challenges, big TV personalities and shocking twists. The show gathers 21 players in a remote castle in the Scottish Highlands to compete in challenges in hopes of earning a cash prize of up to $250,000. The catch? Some of the competitors, dubbed “the Traitors,” are designated to work from within the ranks to steal the prize from the other contestants, known as “the Faithful.” “Survivor” all-star Cirie Fields took the win in Season 1, and this upcoming installment will feature only reality television stars vying for the big prize. The talent roster for Season 2 includes “Real Housewives of Miami” star Larsa Pippen, “Big Brother” favorite Janelle Pierzina, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” star Peppermint and more. — JAB
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