By Louise Rugendyke
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Succession has one episode to go. So does Barry and The Marvellous Mrs Maisel. So, what do you watch next? Quite frankly, there’s a glut of TV heading our way. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it covers crime, comedy, drama, sport and satire. There’s big international shows and some terrific local productions, too, plus returning favourites. Is the next Succession hiding in here? We should be so lucky…
Deadloch
The two Kates are back – Kate McLennan and Kate McCartney – but this time they are not onscreen. Instead, they have upended the detective genre with this “funny feminist noir” set in Tasmania that starts with the discovery of a man’s body on the beach. Kate Box stars as local senior sergeant Dulcie Collins who must work with the rowdy senior investigator Eddie Redcliffe (Madeleine Sami), who has been brought in from Darwin to help with the case. It’s funny, frank and foul-mouthed with a seal. What more could you want? June 2, Amazon Prime
The Idol
This is the hot-button show of the season, with controversy swirling even before it premiered at Cannes Film Festival on Monday. It’s a collaboration between Abel Tesfaye, aka singer The Weeknd, and Euphoria creator Sam Levinson, with Tesfaye starring as a cult leader who manipulates a disgraced pop star played by Lily-Rose Depp. So far, so prestige drama, except the production was mired in controversy, including the walkout of original director Amy Seimitz, a complete overhaul of the show where, according to Rolling Stone, it switched from being a story about “a woman who was finding herself sexually” to a story about “a man who gets to abuse this woman and she loves it”. Early reviews from Cannes were mixed, with Vulture summing it up as “lotta boobs, lotta butt”. Approach with caution. June 5, Binge
Based on a True Story
This is for anyone who listens to – or lives with someone who obsesses over – the wildly popular podcast My Favourite Murder. Comedy pros Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina star as a married couple who decide to make a podcast – and a quick buck – about the Westside Ripper, a serial killer cutting a swathe through Los Angeles. It looks snappy and funny and, as they say, “No one ever went broke betting on America’s obsession with murder.” June 8, Binge
Tour de France: Unchained
So, you’ve watched all five seasons of Formula 1’s Drive to Survive, binged the first five episodes of tennis doco Break Point. What’s next? How about Unchained, the eight-part series that follows seven teams through the 2022 Tour de France, from pre-race prep through all 3328-kilometres of the iconic three-week race. That’s a lot of nature breaks. June 8, Netflix
The Crowded Room
Tom Holland whips off his spidey suit for psychological drama, in which he stars as Danny Sullivan, who is arrested in 1979 for a shooting. Did he do it? It’s up to interrogator Rya Goodwin, played by Amanda Seyfried, to unravel his past. The show is loosely based on the non-fiction book The Minds of Billy Milligan, about a man with dissociative identity disorder, so you can kinda guess where it’s going. June 9, Apple TV+
Year Of
The Bump universe expands with this spinoff set in Sydney’s inner-city Jubilee High School, where the kids and adults are just as mixed up as each other. Starring Matt Nable and Danielle Cormack, plus a cast of new young talent, the show has Heartbreak High vibes and comes from the ever-reliable creators of Offspring. June 9, Stan
Secret Invasion
Another Marvel offering. This time it’s Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) with his own show, as he attempts to stop the Skrulls from taking over Earth. June 21, Disney+
The Bear
The Original Beef of Chicagoland is closed, long live The Bear. The breakout show of 2022 returns, with the same cast but a new restaurant, as Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) uses the tomato tin money from the end of last season (yes, we know it was a convenient plot point, but apparently tins can be resealed in a professional kitchen) to open his dream Chicago restaurant. Yes, it will still probably be stressful, but that REM soundtrack on the trailer has me crying already. June/July, Disney+
And Just Like That
Big is dead, long live Aidan? We all know by now that Carrie’s handyman ex is back in the picture, as they have been spotted all over New York while filming. But will he stick around? The one person we do know who has stuck around is Miranda’s new love Che, the most eyerolly character in a show full of them. #justiceforsteve. June 22, Binge
Hijack
A plane is hijacked. Idris Elba is a corporate negotiator on board. The trick? The story is told over real time, with each of the seven episodes representing an hour of the seven-hour flight between Dubai and London. June 28, Apple TV+
Only Murders in the Building
More murders! More wallpaper! More multimillion-dollar New York real estate! Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez are back for season three of this highly silly but wickedly funny comedy. Last season ended with the death – on stage! – of Ben Glenroy (a surprise Paul Rudd) during the premiere of Oliver’s new play (unfortunately not Splash! The Musical). Who did it? Maybe new co-star Meryl Streep… August 8, Disney+
Sigourney Weaver stars in The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart.
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart
Based on Holly Ringland’s best-selling novel, this is another splashy local drama from the streamers, with Sigourney Weaver jetting in to play June Hart, who takes in her granddaughter Alice after her parents are killed in a shocking event. A well-stocked local cast, including Asher Keddie, Leah Purcell and Alexander England, round out the show, which was filmed around Grafton in northern NSW and the Northern Territory. August, Amazon Prime
All the Light We Cannot See
This four-part drama is based on Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about two teenagers – a blind French girl and a German boy – who meet during the height of WWII. Hugh Laurie and Mark Ruffalo star, but if you want some good inside baseball on filming, look up director Shawn Levy’s episode on the Smartless podcast, where he talks about the challenges of directing a blind actor. November 2, Netflix
TBA: All confirmed, but no dates set
Bay of Fires Marta Dusseldorp produces and stars in this Tasmanian comedy about a single mum in a small, remote community bursting with simmering feuds, crime and sometimes, murder. Great cast, too – Kerry Fox, Toby Leonard Moore, Pamela Rabe, Stephen Curry, Roz Hammond and Matt Nable. And if you’re in Sydney, you can catch an early screening at the Sydney Film Festival on June 17. ABC
The Betoota Advocate Presents The satirical news site makes its TV debut, with Errol Parker and Clancy Overall taking a look at some of the historical events that have shaped Australia. Paramount+
Burning Girls Samantha Morton stars in this adaptation of CJ Tudor’s novel, which follows a Reverend and her daughter who move into a sleepy, probably spooky, town. Paramount+
C*A*U*G*H*T Sean Penn (yep, it’s a head-scratcher) stars in this Australian comedy series from Kick Gurry about four Australian soldiers sent on a mission to a war-torn country who become celebrities when their hostage video goes viral. Stan
The Crown The sixth and – allegedly – final season covers the death of Princess Diana and the early days of William and Kate’s relationship. Netflix
The Curse Fans of Nathan Fielder’s docu-series The Rehearsal should get ready, as the baffling US comedian stars opposite Emma Stone in this comedy about a husband and wife who are trying to conceive while starring in their problematic home improvement show. Bonus points for Corbin Bernsen. Paramount+
Frasier Kelsey Grammar returns as his alter ego Frasier Crane in this “third act” of the psychiatrist’s life. He’s back in Boston, where, I guess, everybody still knows his name. Paramount+
Full Circle Steven Soderbergh directs this must-see six-parter about a botched kidnapping in New York that stars Claire Danes, Zazie Beetz, Timothy Olyphant and Denis Quaid. Binge
Justified: City Primeval Raylan Given is back, baby! Timothy Olyphant reprises his deputy US Marshal character, but this time he’s in Detroit, where filming took place during a real-life gang shootout (you can listen to Olyphant talk about it on the Conan O’Brien podcast). Disney+
Special Ops: Lioness Nicole Kidman and Zoe Saldana star in this spy thriller from the king of dad TV Taylor Sheridan (Yellowstone etc), in which a Marine must befriend the daughter of a terrorist. Paramount+
Zoe Saldana and Nicole Kidman in Taylor Sheridan’s new espionage drama Special Ops – Lioness.
Morning Wars Season two of this glossy Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston drama went seriously off the rails. Hopefully, John Hamm (who will also pop up in Fargo sometime this year), who plays a corporate titan, can bring a bit of Mad Men magic to the dysfunctional UBA offices. Apple TV+
NCIS: Sydney I don’t know why US Naval Criminal Investigative Service is setting up shop in Sydney, but I would put good money on the guess that the first dead body to turn up will do so while floating on the harbour with the Opera House in the background. Paramount+
The Newsreader This terrific 1980s-set local drama returns, with Dale Jennings (Sam Reid) and Helen Norville (Anna Torv) still behind the desk at News at Six in Melbourne. Screenwriter and producer Michael Lucas knocked it out of the park with season one, making season two must-see TV. ABC
Scrublands Based on the award-winning novel by Australian crime writer Chris Hammer, the thriller stars Luke Arnold as a journalist who investigates a shooting in a church by a priest in a country town. Stan
Sexy Beast This is a prequel to the 2000 film of the same name, which charts the rise of Gal and Emum from small-time London thieves to big-time crooks. Cockney accents, ahoy! Paramount+
True Detective: Night Country – starring Jodie Foster (left) and Kali Reis.
True Detective: Night Country Can this fourth iteration of the True Detective universe capture the magic of the first? Here’s hoping, as Jodie Foster and Kali Reis investigate the disappearance of six men at the Tsalal Arctic Research Station in Alaska. Binge
While The Men Are Away Filmed in Orange, in the NSW central west, this fizzy local comedy is set in 1940 and follows Frankie, who is left in charge of the farm when her husband is sent to war. Arriving to help as are a couple of city girls from the Land Army, as well as local indigenous farmhand Kathleen. SBS
Yellowstone There’s been big cast drama behind the scenes of this ranching favourite, with Kevin Costner confirming this second-half of season five will be his last (he’s busy making three movies). Don’t worry, though, the Yellowstone universe continues to expand, with Matthew McConaughey to star in an untitled spin-off. Stan
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