Does it seem like there’s a lot of TV right now? More than normal? The spring of 2022 has seen a deluge of new television series, and this flood is only increasing over the next month. There’s a reason that it’s felt especially hectic now, which is a little something called the “Emmy eligibility window.” Shows that air between June 1, 2021 and May 31, 2022, are eligible for the Emmys, which will be handed out in early September 2022. So streamers are now premiering their highest profile new series and seasons at a head-spinning clip, before the eligibility window closes.
In the next month, there will be new and final seasons of “Ozark” (April 29) “Grace & Frankie” (April 29) and “Stranger Things” (May 27) on Netflix, and second seasons of HBO Max’s quirky critical darlings “Hacks” (May 12) and “Made for Love” (April 28). Season 2 of “Girls5Eva” will bow on Peacock on May 5, and the latest “Star Wars” extension pack series “Obi-Wan Kenobi” premieres on Disney+ on May 27 (reuniting the cast of the “Star Wars” prequel movies).
Not to mention all the new seasons that dropped this past weekend, including season 2 of “The Flight Attendant” and the highly anticipated new season of “Barry” on HBO Max, plus all the ripped from the headlines series that debuted earlier this year, including “Pam & Tommy,” “The Dropout” and “The Girl From Plainville” on Hulu, and “WeCrashed” on AppleTV+.
In terms of new series, Hulu will continue the trend of true crime adaptations with “Under the Banner of Heaven,” starring Andrew Garfield and Daisy Edgar-Jones. This series, created by Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, is an adaptation of the John Krakauer book that investigated a grisly Utah murder alongside Mormon history. That series will bow on Hulu this Thursday, April 28. Also on Hulu, a “five-night event” miniseries, “Candy,” premieres on May 9, starring Jessica Biel as notorious ax murderer Candy Montgomery, with Melanie Lynskey co-starring as Candy’s victim, Betty Gore.
For something a little less grisly on Hulu, May 15 sees the debut of “Conversations with Friends,” a series adaptation of Sally Rooney’s first novel. Hulu’s 2020 adaptation of her second novel, “Normal People,” put stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and Paul Mescal on the map, and “Conversations with Friends,” which stars Joe Alwyn, Jemima Kirke, Sasha Lane and Alison Oliver, should offer up more of Rooney’s signature cerebral and sexy melancholy.
HBO Max has the premieres of two high-profile new series coming this week and next, with the new series from David Simon (“The Wire,” “Treme,” “The Deuce,” “Generation Kill”). The 6-part limited series “We Own This City,” premiering April 25, sees Simon returning to Baltimore, in this adaptation of the book by Baltimore Sun reporter Justin Fenton, following the rise and fall of the Baltimore Police Department's Gun Trace Task Force. The series stars Jon Bernthal and Josh Charles. On May 5, the splashy true crime series “The Staircase” debuts on HBO Max. Inspired by the cult true crime doc (currently streaming on Netflix), starring Colin Firth and Toni Collette, “The Staircase” depicts the wild and confounding case of the death of Kathleen Peterson and the trial of her husband, Michael Peterson.
Two newer streamers will also make a bid for viewers’ attention and potential awards buzz. The star-studded series “The Offer” bows on Paramount+ on Thursday, April 28, depicting the production of a little movie called “The Godfather.” “Rocketman” director Dexter Fletcher helms the first three episodes, and the series stars Miles Teller, Matthew Goode, Colin Hanks, Juno Temple, Dan Fogler and Giovanni Ribisi. Over on Peacock, Emmy Rossum will embody cult Los Angeles icon Angelyne in “Angelyne,” which looks to be a sort of “Pam & Tommy”-esque look at the blonde behind the billboards. Watch it on Peacock on May 19.
Finally, for some comedy, bowing on Showtime this weekend, April 29, former “Saturday Night Live” cast member Vanessa Bayer stars in the series that she created with “SNL” writer Jeremy Beiler, “I Love That For You,” about a woman aspiring to be a home shopping network host. The cast also includes Molly Shannon, Broadway icon Jenifer Lewis, and “Haute Dog” host Matt Rogers. So if all the crime and true-life events of the rest of the TV line-up gets to be too heavy, tune into Showtime for something a bit more lighthearted, cause we could all use some laughs.
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