If you’re as much of a TV nerd as I am, you know the yearning that hits when a favorite show is about to return.
For 2026, shows with those vibes include The White Lotus, Industry, Slow Horses, and The Agency. And hell, I’ll throw Pluribus in that category even though its incredible first season hasn’t even finished airing yet.
That doesn’t stop me – and Pop Thruster – from eyeballing the TV calendar to get a read on which shows might turn into must watches in the coming new year.
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (HBO, Jan. 18th)
Game of Thrones is one of the best 100 TV shows ever. House of the Dragon, its first spin-off prequel, is… more like solid and watchable, two seasons in.
With A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, it seems we may be in for a smaller, more grounded story, and I see both of those things as very positive signs – and it’s also a reminder that the world first conjured by George R. R. Martin contains multitudes.
What I do crave most about the GoT universe, I’ll admit, is a new series that carries the timeline forward after the events that put Bran the Broken on the Iron Throne.
Margo’s Got Money Troubles (Apple TV, April 15th)
The David E. Kelley pedigree and the combo of Michelle Pfeiffer and Nick Offerman (who has the stone cold “I’ll watch him in anything” designation) as parents to Elle Fanning’s college dropout mom has caught my interest.
Widow’s Bay (Apple TV, April 29th)
Matthew Rhys is another stone cold “I’ll watch him in…” guy, and the logline on this one – rural New England setting, Rhys is a smalltown mayor, possible spooky supernatural stuff going on – has me straight up amped.
American Love Story (FX, TBD)
I’m a massive fan of Ryan Murphy’s American Crime Story anthology series, so as we turn to love – specifically between JFK Jr. (Paul Kelly) and Carolyn Bessette (Sarah Pidgeon), my interest is piqued. Sidenote: there’s gonna be a lot more than love storying going on here, yes?
The Testaments (Hulu, TBD)
I grew weary of The Handmaid’s Tale over time, but the worldbuilding and Margaret Atwood’s source material is plenty strong enough to give the creepy (and creepily prescient) goings on in Gilead another spin.
DTF St. Louis (HBO, TBD)
The title on this one alone has me leaning in, and then add in Jason Bateman, David Harbour, and Linda Cardellini involved in some kind of love triangle. Color me down to watch.
Lanterns (HBO, TBD)
Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre play “intergalactic cops” investigating a murder in the U.S. Yep, I’m intrigued.
RJ Decker (ABC, TBD)
That this one is a broadcast network show concerns me slightly, but the Carl Hiaasen source material (Double Whammy in this case, building on the spectacular success of Bad Monkey’s adaptation on Apple TV with Vince Vaughn) and Scott Speedman’s involvement – whom I’ve always had a soft spot for dating back to Felicity – has got my attention.
War (HBO, TBD)
Dominic West is a rich tech guy who divorces Sienna Miller in London. Even if this one turns into The Affair UK, I’m kinda fine with that?