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This article appears in the new issue of DEN OF GEEK magazine. You can read all of our magazine stories here.
A hulking hedge knight. A sociopathic superhero. A rock star revenant. Suffice it to say, television is about to have some big characters in 2026. As was the case for our last rotation around the sun, genre storytelling looks to remain a majority priority for the TV medium this coming year. With traditional cable bleeding subscribers and corporations continuing to consolidate, networks and streamers increasingly want the same thing that movies want: Big. Sure. Things. And where does that lead them? Back to us (geeks).
Yes, while it may be bad news for folks who appreciate the art of a good sitcom or procedural, TV is increasingly the home to vampires, aliens, super-powered beings, and all other manner of genre creations. The 2026 calendar has some major geek benchmarks, from a fresh Star Trek to the next effort from Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers. Allow us to walk you through those upcoming offerings now.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
January 15 on Paramount+
Star Trek has continually reinvigorated itself by bringing new generations to the forefront. This aspect takes center stage in the upcoming Paramount+ original series Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. The show is set in the 32nd century period introduced by the recently concluded Star Trek: Discovery, with Starfleet Academy reopening after a 120-year hiatus to welcome a new class of promising cadets. This move comes after the United Federation was fractured by a cataclysmic event known as the Burn, with the cadets playing a vital role in the organization’s rebuilding process.
“It felt like this generation particularly is facing so many deep challenges. What I think everybody is trying to figure out now is how do we get back to hope,” co-showrunner Alex Kurtzman tells Den of Geek. “I always feel like Star Trek is a compass that points us towards our better angels and the people that we want to be. For a generation of kids who are inheriting a lot of problems created by the generations before them, it feels very relevant now. But it’s also a really funny, really fun, emotional show.”
The young cast is joined by several familiar faces, including Robert Picardo reprising his Star Trek: Voyager role as the Doctor and Tig Notaro returning as her Discovery engineer character Jett Reno. Leading the ensemble is Academy Award-winner Holly Hunter, playing Captain Nahla Ake, who is also the newly-installed chancellor of Starfleet Academy. For the veteran actor, getting to witness and join in on the effusive energy on set was crucial in helping her develop her performance.
“I just found so much of my characters through each of these actors,” Hunter says. “I kept being able to reveal more about who she is through my interactions with each of them because they’re all so incredible. The energy on the set was so much fun and so unleashed and alive. You’ll see that in the show!” – Sam Stone
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
January 18 on HBO
Based on George R.R. Martin’s three “Tales of Dunk and Egg” novellas, Game of Thrones prequel series A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms follows the mismatched duo of dim-witted but good-natured hedge knight Ser Duncan the Tall a.k.a. “Dunk” (Peter Claffey) and his young, bald-headed squire Egg (Dexter Sol Ansell) as they traipse across a postwar Seven Kingdoms looking for adventure.
“[This show] allows us to lean into the thing that I think a lot of Game of Thrones fans love, which is the odd couple pairings. That is essentially our show,” showrunner Ira Parker tells Den of Geek. “Everyone loves Brienne and Pod. Everyone loves The Hound and Arya. Game of Thrones was at its best when it could figure out who were the two least likely people to be in a scene together. That is my favorite stuff.”
Dunk and Egg present a unique casting challenge. Not only is the duo quite visually distinct—a nearly seven-foot-tall gentle giant and a pre-pubescent boy—but their adventures, beginning with 1998’s The Hedge Knight, take on a warm tone that represents the World of Ice and Fire at its most wholesome. Still, this all remains a George R.R. Martin joint.
“It’s just a very easy story to fall in love with,” Parker says. “It is lighter as an entry point, but it’s still Westeros—anything can happen to any character. It can get quite dark.” – Alec Bojalad
Daredevil: Born Again Season 2
March 4 on Disney+
Daredevil: Born Again is an example of fan service backed up by great quality storytelling. The first season brought back many of the beloved actors from the Netflix Daredevil series that aired between 2015-2018, including series star Charlie Cox as the titular blind lawyer-turned-vigilante. The show is gritty and takes risks that other Marvel projects sometimes shy away from, and the long-form format of episodic storytelling has been the perfect avenue for this hero.
The second season will bring back more famous actors from the Defenders franchise, most importantly Krysten Ritter from the Jessica Jones Netflix series that aired between 2015-2019. Expect a lot of Jon Bernthal as the Punisher, as well, in anticipation for his upcoming standalone special that’s waiting for a release later in 2026 and appearance in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. – Shawn Laib
Invincible Season 4
March 2026 on Prime Video
“One of the things that’s most exciting about Invincible for me is that it’s an escalating show,” Invincible creator Robert Kirkman says of the heightened expectations for the series heading into season 4. “The scale and the scope of the fights and the conflicts and the things that are happening always seems to get bigger, and it’s always growing and it’s always working towards something. I’m really excited about getting to season 4 because everything from the first minute of season 1 has been working towards a lot of the events that happen in season 4.”
The season 3 finale was a turning point for Mark Grayson (Steven Yeun). For the first three seasons, Mark has been as much of a passive hero as possible, avoiding deadly conflicts or fights that would put his family or friends in harm’s way and trying to save the largest number of people possible. A near-fatal altercation with Conquest (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) during the last episode caused an epiphany for Mark that should spearhead a whole new Invincible during season 4. – SL
The Boys Season 5
April 8 on Prime Video
TV’s bloodiest, boldest, and most thoroughly unabashed satire of the superhero genre finally comes to a close with a fifth season that surely will be filled with more of the same shock value that fans have come to know and love. The Boys pokes holes in cultism and makes fun of the way corporations run America, but the final act will obviously be about one man/monster’s fate: Homelander.
Antony Starr’s performance has been Bryan Cranston-esque as people find ways to love a character who is obviously a supervillain to the highest degree. Whether or not Homelander lives or dies, and whether Billy Butcher is triumphant, is really beside the point. Vought’s biggest lab rat has already done incomprehensible damage and he enters season 5 as the de facto President of the United States. What could possibly go wrong? – SL
The Vampire Lestat
TBD on AMC
In a world where adaptations often go awry, AMC’s Interview with the Vampire has gotten everything right. The TV version of Anne Rice’s gothic novels has been a fantastic deep dive into the dark fantasy genre, with plenty of courage to explore diversity regarding race relations and sexuality. The first two seasons only covered the material in Rice’s first book in the series. The upcoming third season will use the same name as the second novel and dive deeper into the life of Lestat de Lioncourt.
The theme and aesthetic of the season will be slanted toward rock music, something that composer Daniel Hart talked to Den of Geek about at San Diego Comic-Con 2025. “I feel right at home. It is a thrill, it’s been a great challenge… to do something this ambitious, to take swings this wild and to do something I don’t usually do, which is be in the writers’ room and be in production on set with Sam [Reid], with the band, making sure everything looks right and sounds right.”
Sam Reid, who portrays Lestat, revealed what viewers can expect from the charismatic vampire this season. “Rock music, live performances have kind of an inherent sexuality that feels necessary, and you just have to go with it. Lestat is a hypersexualized character anyway, kind of a slinky, feline predator anyway. So if he’s going to do this, he’s kind of going to do it. Sometimes, I basically close my eyes, hope for the best, and just wing it.” – SL
Lanterns
TBD on HBO
The MCU used to be the king of the superheroes, but DC has really started to dig into that media monopoly in recent times. Lanterns is the latest DCU project with a ton of potential, and it’s easy to see why with a simple look at the cast and crew. Damon Lindelof is one of the creators of Lanterns and there aren’t many showrunners with a more impressive pedigree. The Leftovers, Lost, and Watchmen litter Lindelof’s resume, demonstrating his greatness and ability to work within a wide range of genres and themes. Watchmen is the series that fans should check out if they want a closer look at what Lanterns might feel like in pace and aesthetic as Lindelof moves more toward the superhero genre specifically.
The HBO series will star Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights) and Aaron Pierre (previously known for Krypton on SyFy and 2024 action breakout Rebel Ridge) as Green Lanterns Hal Jordan and John Stewart – two superpowered detectives who are at very different points in their lives. The age-juxtaposed buddy mystery is nothing super novel in media, but with so much credibility in the script, cast, and crew, Lanterns should be a new favorite even for people who aren’t into superheroes but want a thriller in the vein of True Detective. – SL
House of the Dragon Season 3
TBD on HBO
The second season of Game of Thrones prequel House of the Dragon concluded on an unsure note. Rhaenyra, Daemon, and the rest of Team Black will have to move forward without the blade and the dragon of Rhaenys Targaryen. Team Green will continue to rely on the menacing eye of Aemond after King Aegon II was burnt up in the Battle of Rook’s Rest.
Fans who were waiting for a big battle to serve as the climax of season 2 should get that bloodshed when the third season begins. The Battle of the Gullet is expected to launch in the first part of the season, presumably in the premiere episode as we saw the naval forces joining vicinities during the season 2 finale. The intensified action this season might make up for the lack of fighting previously, but we can never be certain what happens next in the land of dragons and betrayal. – SL
Spider-Noir
TBD on MGM+
With so much Spider-Man content nowadays, it’s no surprise that Sony is capitalizing on the ubiquitous nature of the crawling hero’s popularity in the 21st century. Spider-Noir is set in the same animated universe as the acclaimed Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse films and features Nicolas Cage as the alternative version of Spider-Man from the Spider-Man Noir comic books. A black-and-white aesthetic and a setting of 1930s New York City gives this a darker tone than most other Spidey stuff. Other great actors lending their voices to the project include Lamorne Morris and Brendan Gleeson. – SL
The Boroughs
TBD on Netflix
Stranger Things fans won’t have to wait long for a spiritual successor to the Netflix megahit, or at least a science fiction story made by the same people. The Duffer Brothers are producing The Boroughs, a tale of mismatched, retired heroes who join forces to stop an alien threat in New Mexico. Expect a lot of the Duffers’ signature tropes like outcast characters, good surviving over evil, and fantastic ensemble acting. Bill Pullman of Independence Day, Alfred Molina of Spider-Man 2 fame, and Clarke Peters from The Wire star. – SL
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