We say this every year, but damn we’re excited for fall’s thrilling crop of genre TV shows—be they airing on old-school network TV, a cable channel, or one of the ever-growing number of streaming services. Here’s our guide to what’s new, what’s returning, and when you can start watching!
New shows
Carnival Row
Premieres: August 30, Amazon Prime Video
In this pretty but kinda unimpressive fantasy, a fairy (or fae) named Vignette Stonemoss (Cara Delevingne) finds herself crossing paths with her former lover, a detective named Rycroft Philostrate (Orlando Bloom) after being forced from her homeland in a war. The series uses the fantasy genre to explore themes of immigration and systemic discrimination, as Vignette and Rycroft work together to stop a serial killer and bring peace between human and fae.
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
Premieres: August 30, Netflix
The Jim Henson Company’s fantasy epic is back, with a 10-episode prequel exploring the world of Thra before the events of The Dark Crystal. Taron Egerton (Rian), Game of Thrones’ Nathalie Emmanuel (Deet), and Anya Taylor-Joy (Brea) star as three Gelfling from different walks of life, who find themselves coming together to rise against the evil Skeksis and save their home from destruction.
Undone
Premieres: September 13 on Amazon Prime Video
Amazon enters the world of adult animation with this rotoscoped new series co-created by BoJack Horseman’s Raphael Bob-Waksberg. It’s about an offbeat young woman (voiced by Alita: Battle Angel’s Rosa Salazar) who realizes she has the ability to time travel in the wake of a near-death experience, and sets about using her new gift to prevent her father (Better Call Saul’s Bob Odenkirk) from being murdered.
Evil
Premieres: September 26 on CBS
Katja Herbers (Westworld) and Mike Colter (Luke Cage) play skeptical/not skeptical investigators who poke into cases of alleged hauntings, possessions, and miracles, with a larger conspiracy hovering over them and some personal demons too. We saw the first episode at San Diego Comic-Con and it was spooky enough to make us want more.
Bless the Harts
Premieres: September 29 on Fox
Saturday Night Live vet Emily Spivey created this animated series about a North Carolina family, with voices by Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Jillian Bell (whose black-sheep teenage character is into fantasy art and comic books), and Ike Barinholtz.
Batwoman
Premieres: October 6 on the CW
The latest superhero show to join the CW’s DC Universe, Ruby Rose stars in Batwoman as Kate Kane, the person who takes up the cowl after Batman’s disappearance. The first season centers around Batwoman embracing her destiny as a crime fighter, and pits her against her version of the Joker. That would be Alice (Rachel Skarsten), the leader of the Wonderland Gang and someone with a significant connection to the Red Wigged Crusader.
Nancy Drew
Premieres: October 9 on the CW
This definitely isn’t the wholesome Nancy Drew you grew up with—but the CW’s “edgier” take on the classic mystery series feels like a natural way to progress with the times, bringing more diversity, maturity, and genuine spookiness into the fold. The show may be copying Riverdale a bit, but we like what we’ve seen so far.
Limetown
Premieres: October 16 on Facebook Watch
“I have heard the future.” Based on the sci-fi podcast, Limetown stars Jessica Biel as reporter Lia Haddock, who’s investigating the mysterious disappearance of 300 people from an experimental research facility called Limetown. Lia finds that the more she digs into the true purpose of the research project—and her own personal connection to it—the more danger she finds herself in.
Harley Quinn
Premieres: November 29 on DC Universe
The lovable and foul-mouthed Harley Quinn is back with her own animated series. Our anti-heroine, played by Kaley Cuoco, is on a mission to find her own villainy after kicking the Joker to the curb, leading her to form new friendships with some of DC’s coolest (or wackiest) heroes and villains. Expect a lot of campy but gory violence, and at least a few references to Batman fucking bats.
Watchmen
Premieres: October 20 on HBO
One of the season’s most anticipated new series picks up 10 years after the events of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ cult graphic novel, with Damon Lindelof running the show and an incredible cast led by Regina King. We were already excited for this one, then we saw the explosive first trailer. Tick tock, is it October yet?
The Mandalorian
Premieres: November 12 on Disney+
Speaking of highly anticipated small-screen events...yeah. Star Wars’ return to live-action TV and the rollout of the new Disney streaming service make November 12 a huge day for fans of the galaxy far, far away—even if they will have to (potentially) buy new TVs and subscribe to yet another streaming service to get there.
His Dark Materials
Premieres: November 3 on HBO
Based on the fantasy series by Phillip Pullman, His Dark Materials stars Logan’s Dafne Keen as Lyra, an orphan in an alternate world who finds herself the center of a battle for the human soul. Also starring Ruth Wilson as Marisa Coulter, James McAvoy as Lord Asriel, and Lin-Manuel Miranda as Lee Scoresby, the series looks to be a promising adaptation that will (hopefully) fix the mistakes of the film, The Golden Compass.
Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal
Premieres: October 7 on Adult Swim
A caveman and a dinosaur become unlikely allies (and a kick-ass battle team when the occasion arises) in this dialogue-free adventure series from celebrated animator Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack). We got an early look at the first episode at SDCC and can report Primal looks like a stunningly wild ride.
The Witcher
Premieres: Fall on Netflix
Henry Cavill (and his wig) stars as Geralt of Rivia in The Witcher, a fantasy saga about magic and monsters and the people who hunt them down. Taking inspiration from the books, rather than the video game series, The Witcher is about Geralt coming together with his lover Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) to help protect Ciri (Freya Allan), a young princess with a strange and possibly unfathomable power. Also, there’s a bathtub.
Returning shows
Titans
Premieres: September 6 on DC Universe
The debut season (and series) for DC Universe, Titans is set to start its sophomore season on the streaming service. The metahumans are all learning to work together, and figure out their place as heroes. Robin, Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy are back, and this time they’ve got Hawk, Dove, and Donna Troy as part of the team. We’ve also got the arrival of Superboy (Joshua Orpin), Deathstroke (Esai Morales), Jericho, and Ravager to look forward to. And, perhaps the best arrival of all: Krypto the Superdog!
Room 104
Premieres: September 13 on HBO
HBO’s Room 104 is a unique experience, in that it exists in a single place but can literally be about anyone or anything. Each season of the show takes place in a hotel room as people come in and out of it over the years or decades, exploring different genres ranging from horror to fantasy and comedy. This season looks to be pushing things to the extreme, with science fiction, vampires, and who knows what else. We might be stuck in one room, but it looks to be a wild visit.
American Horror Story: 1984
Premieres: September 18 on FX
After a return to form with last season’s vivid and shocking Apocalypse, Ryan Murphy’s edgy series looks like it’s going even more fun places with this homage to slasher films of the 1980s. Though some of the show’s regular cast won’t be starring this time around (including Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters), it will feature Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, and John Carroll Lynch mixing gruesome horror with high camp, as is AHS tradition.
Disenchantment
Premieres: September 20 on Netflix
Matt Groening’s animated fantasy-comedy returns with its sophomore season, which continues the story of Princess Bean (Abbi Jacobson) after she chose to abandon her kingdom and follow her recently revived mother to a far-off land. Will she follow her mother down a path of darkness, or choose to stand with her friends and subjects? Either way, there’s sure to be a lot of drinking.
The Good Place
Premieres: September 26 on NBC
The Good Place returns for the fourth and final time. Season three ended tragically with Eleanor (Kristen Bell) choosing to erase Chidi’s (William Jackson Harper) memory of their relationship as part of the Grand Final Experiment to determine if The Good Place has made its standards of admission too harsh. After all, no one has gotten in for 521 years.
Van Helsing
Premieres: September 27 on Syfy
After failing to defeat all the Elders, Vanessa (Kelly Overton) has found herself a possible new ally in the fight against the vampires: Lily Van Helsing, who Vanessa revived after some of her special blood accidentally splattered on the formerly dead ancestor.
Bob’s Burgers
Premieres: September 29 on Fox
Yes, there’s a feature film coming...but first, fan-beloved animated series Bob’s Burgers is back for its 10th season, which will include the following: a Nightmare on Elm Street-themed Halloween episode; an episode set almost entirely in a shopping mall; the shocking sight of Teddy taking a job working for Jimmy Pesto (Bob’s arch-rival); and some very special new glasses for Tina.
Family Guy
Premieres: September 29 on Fox
Seth MacFarlane’s sci-fi series, The Orville, may be moving to Hulu (where it’ll air sometime next year), but his animated Griffins are staying on Fox, where they’ll debut their 18th season this fall.
The Simpsons
Premieres: September 29 on Fox
Speaking of long-running series, there’s no touching The Simpsons. Springfield’s finest (now owned by Disney) will return for its 31st season as the show inches ever-closer to its 700th episode.
Supergirl
Premieres: October 6 on the CW
As the CW prepares for Arrow’s exit, Supergirl looks to be stepping up its game with a long-awaited conflict. Last season, Kara Danver’s best friend, Lena Luthor, learned she was Supergirl and that everybody had kept the truth from her. This could put these two friends at odds, and lead Lena down the path to the Dark Side. At the same time, we’ve got the rising threat of the shadowy group Leviathan...and Kara’s suit has pants!
The Walking Dead
Premieres: October 6 on AMC
Zombie fans won’t have to wait long between Fear the Walking Dead (whose fifth season wraps up September 29) and the O.G. Dead, which returns for a 10th season to address all the shifts in the status quo that went down at the end of season nine. Season 10, notably, will mark the final series outing for longtime cast member Danai Gurira. But don’t worry, there are lots more spinoffs on the way!
Star Wars Resistance
Premieres: October 6 on Disney Channel and DisneyNOW
The brightest lights are sometimes extinguished too soon. Star Wars Resistance, which explored the time period between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens, will only get one more season after its debut, making it the shortest-run animated series in recent Star Wars history. The sophomore (and final) run will follow last season’s cliffhanger, where Kaz and his friends managed to escape from the First Order to establish their own mobile safe haven...but lost one of their own in the process.
Black Lightning
Premieres: October 7 on the CW
The CW’s most grounded (and yet ever-expanding) superhero show returns for its third season, ahead of persistent rumors that characters from the series will finally be a part of the next multi-part Arrowverse crossover episode, Crisis on Infinite Earths, which will air installments in December and January.
The Flash
Premieres: October 8 on the CW
The Flash returns with a sixth season and another new villain to add to the baddies list, although this one might come with a content warning for the kiddos. Sendhil Ramamurthy (Heroes, Reverie—come on you knew we were gonna mention that one) is joining the series as Bloodwork, a hemophiliac who gained blood-based powers and is now using them to rid the world of cancer...as well as the folks who he sees as cancerous to the planet and its people. Can Barry outrun blood loss? I guess we’ll find out.
Riverdale
Premieres: October 9 on the CW
Nothing like the possible murder of your best friend to bring a group closer together. Riverdale follows its bonkers third season with an equally bonkers story detailing how Archie, Betty, and Veronica ended up nearly naked in a field burning Jughead’s hat and swearing to “never speak of this again.” You’ve also got a vanishing cult, political drama, and a touching tribute to the late Luke Perry. Riverdale: It’s a beautiful and weird world.
Legacies
Premieres: October 10 on the CW
This spin-off of a spin-off (The Originals, by way of The Vampire Diaries) proves that as long as there is life on Earth, there will always be an audience for ridiculously good-looking actors in storylines involving vampires, werewolves, and witches. This particular show is set at a school for the supernaturally gifted, and is back for its second season.
Supernatural
Premieres: October 10 on the CW
It’s finally ending, they swear this time.
Charmed
Premieres: October 11 on the CW
The Elders are dead and the Charmed Ones are now in charge. How did this happen? The sophomore season of the magical CW reboot goes back to the drawing board with a new showrunner and a story more focused on magical shenanigans. Maggie (Sarah Jeffrey), Mel (Melonie Diaz), and Macy (Madeleine Mantock) have saved the world from the apocalypse, and will now work to help the witches and magical creatures of the world. Here’s hoping we finally get to hear Harry (Rupert Evans) do karaoke.
Castle Rock
Premieres: October 23 on Hulu
Stephen King’s crossover community is back, weaving stories from some of the legendary horror writer’s most-famous works. In the sophomore season, Annie Wilkes, better known as the obsessive fan/home nurse played by Kathy Bates in Misery, arrives to stir up trouble between the “warring clans” of the small but terrifying Maine town.
Arrow
Premieres: October 15 on the CW
The series so quintessential to the CW’s DC universe that it’s literally called the Arrowverse, Arrow is finally coming to an end after eight seasons. Even though Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) is no longer on the series, the 10-episode final season will feature the return of some of Arrow’s key heroes and villains, including John Barrowman as Malcolm Merlyn—and showrunner Marc Guggenheim did share that the final scene of the show will be a tough one to pull off. What that means for Stephen Amell’s Oliver Queen, well, we just have to wait to find out.
The Man in the High Castle
Premieres: November 15 on Amazon Prime Video
Amazon’s Philip K. Dick-inspired series that started off as “what if the other side won World War II” and soon expanded to include “...and also, there are multiple universes afoot here (and the Nazis are evil in all of them)” returns for its fourth and final season.
Rick and Morty
Premieres: November on Adult Swim
It’s time to Michael Down Your Vincents, because at loooong last, season four is upon us! And with it, a solemn promise that fans of supergenius scientist Rick and his hapless nephew Morty (and all their various iterations, speaking of multiverses) won’t have such agonizingly long waits for seasons five and beyond.
The Expanse
Premieres: December 13 on Amazon Prime Video
Don’t call it a comeback—season four of The Expanse, the beloved sci-fi series’ first on Amazon, looks to continue the sky-high bar set when the show was at its previous home on Syfy, and even surpass it. As the season begins, the crew of the Roci heads to a brand-new planet, and fans can enjoy the action while also enjoying the fact that the show’s already got a season five order, too.
Marvel’s Runaways
Premieres: December 13 on Hulu
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has some crossover competition with the third season of Marvel’s Runaways, which will see the titular runaways teaming up with the heroes of Freeform’s Cloak and Dagger. The series is set to dive into the franchise’s mystical elements, including an appearance by Morgan le Fey (Elizabeth Hurley), as they continue fighting the Pride and Jonas’ evil plans.
The Purge
Premieres: Fall on USA
The spin-off from the film series about a society that designates one violently lawless night per year is back for a second season; this time, the show will focus on four different types of people, showing their lives leading up to the decisions they make on Purge night.
Mr. Robot
Premieres: October 6 on USA
Hello, friend. The groundbreaking series about a hacker who hides revolutionary ideas (and sometimes, more than one personality) under his hoodie returns for its fourth and final season, giving creator Sam Esmail a chance to wrap up all those dangling mysteries (like, what is Whiterose’s endgame, for starters?)—and give newly-minted Oscar winner Rami Malek one last chance to play the character that made him famous.
Updated: Added details and release date for Castle Rock’s second season, and the premiere dates for Watchmen, His Dark Materials, Harley Quinn, Mr. Robot and Primal.
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