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The new year is upon us and along with setting our New Year's resolutions, booking in that new haircut and checking our 2022 horoscopes, we're also gearing up for another 12 months of epic television viewing. The streaming giants are blessing us with a good mix of drama, action and comedy.
One of the most anticipated Disney+ titles this year is Pam & Tommy, promising epic transformations from Lily James and Sebastian Stan as the series revisits the infamous celeb sex tape scandal of the 90s. Fantasy lovers have their eyes peeled for Amazon Prime Video's The Lord of the Rings that wrapped up filming in New Zealand last year, while Netflix is preparing to release the second season of fan favourite, Bridgerton.
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I'm personally looking forward to How I Met Your Father when it comes to Disney+ (the release date is yet to be announced) because I miss Hilary Duff from her days on Stan's Younger that wrapped up its final season last year, (anyone else?), plus it's about time we had a female voice to follow on from How I Met Your Mother.
Here are the best new TV shows to watch in 2022. Grab some popcorn and buckle in for the ride.
1. Pam & Tommy
Release date: February 2
Where to watch: Disney+
Ever since the first cast photos came out last year, I've been impatiently waiting for Pam & Tommy's release because it has absolutely nailed the celebrity transformation and it's based on a true story, which I can never get enough of.
Lily James and Sebastian Stan's makeovers as Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee are incredibly on point in this eight-part series that tells the true story of the pair's sex tape that was stolen by a disgruntled carpenter (played by Seth Rogen) before becoming a full-blown global sensation when it hit the internet in 1997.
Watch the Pam & Tommy trailer below:
2. How I Met Your Father
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Disney+
How I Met Your Mother – we've been there and done that. Now it's time for a follow-up from a female perspective and we're getting just that in this new show with Hilary Duff front and centre as the main figure and narrator and Francia Raísa playing her best friend.
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Duff's character, Sophie, tells her son the story of how she met his father – a story that kicks off in 2021 where Sophie and her friends are figuring out who they are, their life goals and how to fall in love in the world of dating apps.
Watch the How I Met Your Father trailer below:
3. The Lord Of The Rings
Release date: September 2
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video
We've seen the big screen blockbusters but get ready to go on another breathtaking journey with a look into J.R.R. Tolkien’s fabled Second Age of Middle-earth's history.
It all begins in a time of relative peace, thousands of years before the events that unfold in Tolkien's fan favourites, The Hobbit and The Lord The Rings books. We'll see new and familiar characters confront the long-feared re-emergence of evil to Middle-earth. We have to wait until sunny Spring to watch this but trust me, you won't see me leaving the lounge once they release this one.
Watch The Lord Of The Rings trailer below:
4. Bridgerton Season 2
Release date: March 25
Where to watch: Netflix
I had honestly been praying for another Christmas day premiere in 2021 and while that didn't happen, the wait until season 2 of Bridgerton is not too long so I'll hold my horse.
This season Lady Whisteldown will be back to her neighbourhood gossiping antics and the storyline hones in on the devilishly handsome Viscount Anthony Bridgerton (played by Jonathan Bailey) and his new love interest, Kate Sharma. Simone Ashley's casting as the female lead is a massive win for female South Asian representation on screen and I'm eager to see how the Sex Education star makes this role her own.
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Watch the Bridgerton Season 2 trailer below:
5. Ms. Marvel
Release date: June 8
Where to watch: Disney+
Marvel has come far in terms of cultural diversity as of late – think Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings and Eternals – and there's thankfully more to come. The six-episode series, Ms. Marvel centres on Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani American from Jersey City who's a huge fan of the Avengers, particularly Captain Marvel.
Kamala's struggled to find her place in the world but that all changes when she acquires superpowers like the heroes she's admired for years. We're talking powers such as the ability to change her shape and size that has added strength as she grows.
Iman Vellani stars as Kamala aka Ms. Marvel and I'm excited to see where this big break takes her next in her acting career.
Watch the Ms. Marvel trailer below:
6. Wolf Like Me
Release date: January 13
Where to watch: Stan
I'm an Aussie reality TV addict, but I have to admit, I'm very keen to see Wolf Like Me. Shot in NSW, the show reveals what happens when Gary (Josh Gad), an emotional wreck trying to provide for his daughter since his wife's death, meets Mary (Isla Fisher), who has a secret she can't share with anyone.
Watch the Wolf Like Me trailer below:
7. The Sandman
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Netflix
Based on the DC comic by Neil Gaiman, the 11-episode series as Netflix puts it, "follows the people and places affected by Morpheus, the Dream King, as he mends the cosmic — and human — mistakes he’s made during his vast existence." The big drawcard for me is Tom Sturridge in the role of Dream as we haven't seen much of the actor on screen since Being Julia and Waiting for Forever.
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Watch The Sandman trailer below:
8. She-Hulk
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Disney+
There's more Marvel goodness coming in 2022 with this comedy series directed by executive producer Kat Coiro with Anu Valia also directing. Tatiana Maslany portrays She-Hulk/Jennifer Walters, a lawyer specialising in superhuman-focused cases. I'm particularly excited for this one because her cousin, Bruce Banner aka The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) is also in it, as is the Abomination, played by Tim Roth.
Watch the She-Hulk trailer below:
9. Too Hot to Handle: Season 3
Release date: January 19
Where to watch: Netflix
It's back for a third season, and Too Hot To Handle is frankly the mindless escapism my heart is craving as we go into 2022. Yet another group of thirsty singles are ready to meet and mingle but in order to win the $100,000 prize, they have to give up all forms of sex.
Cast members this season hail from all across the globe including the US, England and South Africa plus we have our own Aussie in the mix. Keep your eyes peeled for 26-year-old Queensland midwife Georgia who's from Brisbane.
Watch the Too Hot To Handle Season 3 trailer below:
10. Peacemaker
Release date: January 13
Where to watch: Binge
A fresh DC spin-off series, Peacemaker sees John Cena reprise his famous character in the aftermath of the 2021 film, The Suicide Squad. He's a man who prioritises peace at any cost, regardless of how many people he has to kill to get it.
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If you like to binge-watch your TV shows, you're in luck because the series kicks off with the first three episodes in one hit, followed by the remaining five eps dropping weekly on Thursdays.
Watch the Peacemaker trailer below:
11. Moon Knight
Release date:
Where to watch: Disney+
This action-adventure series brings mental health awareness to the forefront with Oscar Isaac playing a complex vigilante, Marc Spector, who suffers from a dissociative identity disorder.
The multiple identities inside him are thrust into a war of gods in Egypt as he becomes the embodiment of Khonshu, the Egyptian god of the moon. The series is directed by executive producer Mohamed Diab and Jeremy Slater is lead writer on the production.
Watch the Moon Knight trailer below:
12. Limitless with Chris Hemsworth
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Disney+
The name Chris Hemsworth is enough to sell it to me. In this six-part Disney+ original series from National Geographic, viewers will watch the 38-year-old Australian actor "discover the full potential of the human body".
The Thor star looks into how we can live healthier, smarter lives and throughout this process undergoes training for six massive challenges in a bid to show how to fight aging at every life stage.
Keep your eyes peeled for the premiere date that's yet to be announced.
Watch the Limitless with Chris Hemsworth trailer below:
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13. Bel-Air
Release date: February 14
Where to watch: Stan
Now, this is a story all about how my life got flipped-turned upside down... OK, I need to stop myself there because I could sing The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song again and again. More than two decades since the OG, the beloved 90s sitcom is reimagined in this fresh drama on Stan called Bel-Air.
Set in modern-day America, we see Will's journey from the streets of West Philadelphia to the grandeur of Bel-Air through a raw, current lens. As these two worlds collide, he's forced to navigate their different emotions and conflicts all the while feeling the power of second chances.
Newcomer Jabari Banks plays Will this time around (that's a pretty epic first acting gig to land), while Will Smith is still very much involved as one of the executive producers.
Watch the Bel-Air trailer below:
14. Naomi
Release date: January 12
Where to watch: Binge
I'm absolutely here for a young, female-led superhero series which is exactly what Binge's Naomi delivers. The show based on the DC comic follows the journey of cool and confident teenager Naomi (played by 17-year-old Kaci Walfall) who sets out to discover where a supernatural event in her town originated from. With Ava Duvernay and Jill Blankenship behind this production, there's a lot of expectations riding on it but early reviews seem promising.
Watch the Naomi trailer below:
15. The Gilded Age
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Release date: January 26
Where to watch: Paramount+
The Gilded Age follows millionaire titans of New York City in the 1880s and given that mere fact plus it's from the creators of Downton Abbey, I'm already committed and ready for some juicy drama. Beginning in 1882, it's the brink of a modern age and we first see young Marian Brook (Luisa Jacobson) move from rural Pennsylvania to New York to live with her old money aunts Ada Brook (And Just Like That's Cynthia Nixon) and Agnes van Rhijin (Christine Baranski) following her father's death. Viewers will watch as Marian grapples with the prospect of following society's established rules or forging her own path. I'll be blocking out my calendar for this one.
Watch The Gilded Age trailer below:
16. Halo
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Paramount+
Based on the popular Xbox franchise, this live-action series is a dramatisation of the 26th-century conflict between the United Nations Space Command and an alien threat known as the Covenant. With 10 episodes in the series, expect to see the likes of Pablo Schreiber as the Master Chief, Spartan-117; Natascha McElhone as Dr. Halsey, the creator of the Spartan super-soldiers, and Jen Taylor as Cortana, the most advanced AI in human history.
Watch the Halo trailer below:
17. Inventing Anna
Release date: February 11
Where to watch: Netflix
Inspired by the New York Magazine article “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People” by Jessica Pressler, Inventing Anna is about a Russian-born woman (played by Ozark's Julia Garner) who creates and pretends to be the fictitious Anna Delvey, a wealthy German heiress who steals the money and hearts of New York's social scene.
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As people wonder who Anna Delvey really is, there's one journalist who's on the case, investigating Delvey's moves. The reporter and Delvey develop a dark, funny love-hate bond as the journo tries to determine if she's a con woman or there's more to the story.
Watch the Inventing Anna trailer below:
18. Muster Dogs
Release date: January 23
Where to watch: ABC TV and ABC iView
Get ready for your heart to melt with this four-part series that follows five Kelpie puppies from the same litter on their journey to become muster dogs. From the Northern Territory to Victoria, the five pups are sent to separate graziers around the country who will each try to get their dog up to speed within a year.
It's a heartfelt series exploring the unique bond grazier have with their best mate, all the while revealing the environmental, economic and emotional benefits of using dogs instead of machines to muster.
Watch the Muster Dogs trailer below:
19. Australian Survivor: Blood v Water
Release date: January 31
Where to watch: Channel 10 and 10 Play on Demand
Australian Survivor returns in 2022, and after the Brains v Brawns theme last year, this series has been named Australian Survivor: Blood v Water. As the title suggests, it's a family affair this time around when contestants enter the competition with one of their dearest and nearest, putting their relationships to the ultimate test in the most extreme sweat-inducing scenarios.
This is the first time in Australian Survivor history that contenders will compete alongside and against family members. From married couples, siblings, in-laws and parents and children, there are strong bonds of trust that could be broken when the 24 castaways battle it out. At the end of the day, there can only be one 'survivor' so will blood prove to be thicker than water? We'll have to wait and see.
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Watch the Australian Survivor: Blood v Water trailer below:
20. MasterChef Australia: Foodies Vs Favourites
Release date: TBA
Where to watch: Channel 10 and 10 Play on Demand
Channel 10 is bringing back the reality show that has made the likes of Poh Ling Yeow, Sarah Tiong and Adam Liaw famous with MasterChef Australia: Foodies vs Favourites.
It's a mix of everything a MasterChef fan could ever dream of because the cast features 12 fresh-faced foodies (and who doesn't love discovering next-gen chefs to follow on Tik Tok and Instagram?) who will go up against 12 of our favourites, who've already got a special place in our hearts from their previous stints in the MasterChef kitchen. Whip out your aprons and get excited for this one.
As we leave you, here's a reminder to all of the TV buffs to bookmark this page as we will continue updating it as new release date and trailers emerge.
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