Men's Health February 20, 2026 0 Comments

Unlock Your Next Binge: 40 Jaw-Dropping Shows Coming in 2026 That Will Change How You Netflix Forever—and 8 Hidden Gems You’ve Gotta See Now!

Is TV really “new” anymore, or have we just become pros at dressing up old stories in shiny new suits? I mean, sure, we’ve seen gems like Severance and Pluribus swing onto screens, dazzling us with fresh ideas and gripping tales. But if you stop and think, a good chunk of the buzz these days isn’t about groundbreaking concepts—it’s the reruns of nostalgia wrapped in playsafe packaging: movies turned series, comic book heroes getting primetime love, iconic shows rebooted as if hoping the magic dust sprinkles itself over again. People crave that familiar spark, the comfy glow of a story they kinda already know — who can blame them? But here’s the kicker: just because something’s been done before doesn’t mean it can’t knock our socks off. With legends like Damon Lindelof masterminding Green Lanterns and Scorsese hooking up with Spielberg for Cape Fear, the stakes are high. We’re gambling on hope, folks, betting the reboots and continuations aren’t just cash grabs but legit contenders. So, what’s the move? Trust your gut, lean on good word of mouth, and keep those expectations sharp enough to slice through the noise. Because 2026’s TV lineup might just surprise us all — or at least keep us hanging on every episode. Ready to dive in and see what hits—and what misses? Let’s roll. LEARN MORE

THE IDEA OF “new” television shows is a little bit of a tricky one these days. Sure, we do still get a fair share of truly new, exciting, unique ideas each year—just look at shows like Severance a couple years ago and Pluribus last year. Shows like last year’s The Lowdown—rich, well-written, character-focused stories—still draw major stars like Ethan Hawke and still hit in a big way for audiences that watch it. If someone was being dramatic and wanted to say original TV was dead, dying, or on life support, there’s plenty of evidence out there to throw in their face.

But at the same time, they aren’t entirely wrong. For one reason or another, so much of the TV landscape—even shows we’re really excited for—are based around something that in one way or another already exists. Among the shows we’re eager to see are a number of movies being made into shows (Man on Fire and Cape Fear among them), TV series based around characters we love from comics or other mediums (Lanterns and Spider-Noir), TV continuations of beloved franchises (Blade Runner 2099 and Crystal Lake) and even straight-up reboots of shows everyone loves (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Malcolm in the Middle, and Scrubs).

Look, we can’t beat too much around the bush: People love nostalgia, people love things they recognize and remember, and it can be pretty hard to get anyone to even attempt to give their attention to something new, let alone get really into it in the way we all like to with the very best of TV. Which is why we kind of have two different options here—people need to be really trusting of word of mouth and really aware when something is a really good new, original show (because no one likes to waste their time with a piece of junk), and we just need to really hope that all the remakes, reboots, reimaginings, and re-whatevers are good.

And they should be! HBO’s Lanterns is modeled after True Detective, stars Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre as the titular Green Lanterns, and counts Watchmen genius Damon Lindelof as a producer. Why wouldn’t that be good? Apple TV’s Cape Fear counts Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg among its producers and Javier Bardem, Amy Adams, and Patrick Wilson among it’s cast. Again: Why wouldn’t that be good? Yahya Abdul Mateen II kicked off 2026 with one of the year’s early best shows (in Marvel’s Wonder Man), and we can only hope that he keeps his hot streak going when he steps into Denzel Washington’s shoes for Netflix’s new take on Man on Fire. Will it be good? Who’s to say. But we are choosing to be hopeful.

Below, we’re going to keep track all year. We’re charting the shows we already know are good. We’re charting the shows we think might be good. And we’re charting the shows that may not even come out this year, but if they do… they still might not be good. But, again, say it with us: We’re choosing to be hopeful.