The Witcher 2 versus Outlander 5 and more hot TV for 2020
There may be no Game Of Thrones finale to obsess over but the world of pop culture has plenty to look forward. Here are 20 of the hottest shows on our radar.
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There is no Game Of Thrones or Big Little Lies finale to obsess over but the world of pop culture has plenty to look forward to in 2020.
Fantasy, science fiction, dystopia, horror — and mash-ups of all genres are coming our way. Some of these are the latest instalments of series we’ve come to love, some are new, some are adaptations of books or movies and some are reboots of earlier shows.
And almost all of them have big name actors and directors and writers attached.
It’s a glittering line-up — although you will have to wrangle a bunch of streaming services to see them all.
Still, plan it well and it should be worth it. Here’s our essential list of 20 exciting pop culture shows for 2020.
DC’S LEGENDS OF TOMORROW
Season 5
Watch or stream now on Foxtel
This started as a band of feuding super-powered heroes and villains dragged together to save the Earth from a baddie called Vandal Savage. By season 5, it’s gone crazy. Literally. The plot is ridiculous — this season sees the Legends so famous that a documentary crew is following them through time and space. And that’s just one of the plot lines. The effects are often ropy but the actors all play their characters dead straight and it’s a riotous mix of comedy and action. It’s bonkers but in a brilliant way.
AVENUE 5
Debuted January 21
New episodes each week on Foxtel
This sci-fi adventure-comedy stars Hugh Laurie as The Captain and is set in the future when space tourism is all the rage. A space liner — filled with rich, spoiled tourists — is heading for disaster. Can Laurie and his bumbling crew save the day and can the rich idiots rise to the challenge? It’s from the creator of political comedy Veep, so expect plenty of laughs. The trailer alone has a bunch of them.
STAR TREK: PICARD
Now streaming on Amazon Prime
New episodes every Friday
Patrick Stewart returns to the beloved character he played in Star Trek: The Next Generation TV series and movie, with a bunch of his former castmates as well as some new chums. Captain Jean Luc Picard is enjoying his retirement when a crisis sees him called back to duty. While there is a huge fan base who will want to check it out, can the ageing Picard still cut in space? And can the series recapture the magic from its 1990s heyday?
LOCKE & KEY
Season 1
February 7 on Netflix
This dark tale is based on a series of graphic novels. Three children return to their father’s childhood home after his death to discover a series of hidden keys, which reveal strange rooms — dark magic and sinister dangers. The trailer looks stunning and it promises some serious frights along the way.
OUTLANDER
Season 5
Starts February 17 on Foxtel
Those time-travelling hotties Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) are back for another lust-filled adventure. This time they are being dragged into the American Revolution and — shock, horror — Jamie is fighting with the Redcoats. It may be a long while before the Industrial Revolution but expect it to steam up the screen.
THE WALKING DEAD
Season 10
Returns February 24 on Foxtel
The second half of season 10 will see The Whisperer War hit a new peak, while we can also expect the final appearance of Danai Gurira as Michonne. It has already been confirmed that Lauren Doyle will return as Maggie for Season 11, so we may not have seen the last of The Whisperers. It has been leaking viewers faster than a zombie on a spiked bed but expect this half-season to pack an emotional punch as we farewell Michonne.
WESTWORLD
Season 3
Starts March 16 on Foxtel
The Western-themed park has been left far behind. Dolores (Evan Rachel Woods) and the others are still being hunted by Charlotte (Tessa Thompson) but things are changing. Ed Harris is back, while new characters are also joining the action. If you want a lavish spectacle, blood, guts and stacks of nudity, then this series won’t disappoint.
THE WALKING DEAD: WORLD BEYOND
Debuts April 13 on Foxtel
Yes, another spin-off from the world of TWD. This time it jumps 10 years into the future after the zombie apocalypse and the two main characters are young women who have grown up knowing nothing but zombies. Can it recapture the magic of the early years of TWD? Given many of the original zombies would have basically rotted away, will the focus shift even more to human enemies? We can only wait and see …
SNOWPIERCER
Debuts June 1 on TNT in the US, Netflix in UK, no announcement for here
You may remember the film starring Chris “Captain America” Evans and Tilda Swinton about the last survivors of a post-apocalyptic Earth on a train endlessly circling the globe. Down the back are the poor, up the front are the rich — until Evans starts a revolution. This series reboots that idea — but can it recapture the raw magic of the film?
FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER
Spring 2020
Disney+
This spin-off from the Avengers sees Falcon — now carrying Captain America’s shield — and Winter Soldier teaming up. Given that Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) was the logical heir to Captain America and Falcon (Anthony Mackie) isn’t actually super-powered, we can expect some friction between them. But obviously they will also team up to fight bad guys. It will have six episodes — the equivalent of more than two movies. Too much for these previously minor characters? Or too little?
WANDA VISION
Late 2020
Disney+
Another Marvel spin-off, this will see the adventures of Vision (Paul Bettany) and Wanda (Elizabeth Olson). There is a problem in that Vision died in Infinity War, so how does he come back? Apparently this series will lead into Doctor Strange 2, so expect some magic. Or is it all happening inside Wanda’s head? And how does it tie into Doctor Strange? Don’t expect any answers yet. It was slated for early 2021 but now appears to have been moved up in the schedule. The poster alone is trippy enough.
THE MANDALORIAN
Season 2
Late 2020 on Disney+
So far the only new series on Disney, it has become famous for “Baby Yoda” — officially just called The Child. He’s too adorable not to make more of, so expect him and his bounty hunter protector back for another season. But can it recapture the magic? It was a surprise hit but there won’t be a surprise this time round. Or will there?
THE WITCHER
Season 2
Late 2020 on Netflix
Henry Cavill made a bloody good start to this fantasy series last year and, by the end of season one, all the time jumping had resolved itself. Season 2 should take us more into the political machinations of the world, as Princess Cirilla becomes the most wanted royal on the continent. Can Geralt and Yennefer keep her safe? And how often can Geralt take his shirt off?
CURSED
Season 1
Late 2020 on Netflix
Australian Katherine Langford, the breakout star of 13 Reasons Why, will star in this series that takes the Arthurian legend and flips it. She is Nimue, the sorceress, who enlists the help of a young mercenary called Arthur to fight the evil Uther Pendragon and his Red Paladins. Langford lit up the screen in 13RW and if she can do it again here, this has the potential to be a smash hit.
LOVECRAFT COUNTRY
Season 1
Late 2020 Foxtel
HP Lovecraft was the master American horror writer and this series is helmed by JJ Abrams (Star Trek, Star Wars). A black family is travelling across 1950s racist America and not only has to deal with racist monsters but real-life monsters from the imagination of Lovecraft. It has a big cast and big ambitions — but let’s hope it doesn’t sacrifice the horror and action to win “woke” points. Aussie Abbey Lee has been cast in a recurring role.
Y: LAST MAN STANDING
Season 1
Late 2020 Foxtel
Based on a comic book of the same name, this sees Yorick and his faithful monkey friend Ampersand (not making that up!) as the only male mammals to survive a mystery virus that wiped out everything else with a Y chromosome. Strangely, a world run by women isn’t quite the utopia some might imagine as Yorick tries to first survive, then discover why he lived — and how to maybe repopulate the world. Rising star Barry Keoghan (The Killing Of A Sacred Deer) has been cast as Yorick with Diane Lane as his mother Senator Jennifer Brown.
neXt
Mid 2020 Foxtel
This offers a glimpse into a world disturbingly close to our own. John Slattery is a tech tycoon who fears that a rogue artificial intelligence is about to take over the world. And, of course, it is. Only he and a special agent Fernanda Andrade, might be able to stop it. Make sure you turn off Google Home, Alexa and Siri before you sit down and check this one out.
STATION ELEVEN
Mid 2020 HBO/Foxtel
Mackenzie Davis and Yesterday star Himesh Patel will star in this dystopian series based on a book by Emily St John Mandel. A global pandemic called the Georgia Flu has wiped out most of the world. Naturally the survivors decide to form a travelling Shakespeare troupe to try and recreate the world they lost. Really! This series cuts back and forth across time to follow five characters before, during and after the pandemic and the strange twists of fate that link them. It was an award-winning novel and, while the premise sounds a little strange, this could be a surprise hit.
THE STAND
Late 2020
CBS All Access
This is not the first time The Stand, a legendary novel by Stephen King, has been adapted for television but this 10-part series will reputedly come with a new ending written by King. Once again, almost all of the world has been wiped out by a killer flu and now the survivors must choose who to follow: Mother Abigail, a 108-year-old black woman who is the force of light or Randall Flagg (Alexander Skarsgard), who has gathered an army of murderers and freaks. Ten episodes will give it the time and space to develop all the subplots of the novel but what about the new ending? Will that please or horrify fans?
THE CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA
Season 3
Now streaming on Netflix
Remember that cute TV show about the teenage witch? Well, this is a reboot — but it’s on steroids. This season sees Sabrina (Kiernan Shipka) and her friends forced to journey into Hell itself to rescue her boyfriend Nick. Expect plenty of monsters, plenty of magic and even more explosions — as well as a few love triangles to develop. One could say it’s devilishly good …
