LADY IN THE LAKE
Apple TV+
Natalie Portman comes to the small screen in her first series, a noir nightmare set in Baltimore in the mid-1960s. She’s a mother turned reporter, who quickly gets embroiled in the underbelly of the city when a child goes missing. Based on the Laura Lippman bestselling novel (not the Raymond Chandler classic), this limited series is a genre-bending mélange of storytelling that co-stars Moses Ingram and Pruitt Taylor Vince.
THOSE ABOUT TO DIE
Peacock
Anthony Hopkins loves dark drama, so it’s no surprise that he’s leading this new take on an old story. He’s Roman Emperor Vespasian, who loves giving his people what they want—gory deaths in the Colosseum (and beyond). Director Roland Emmerich, who’s known for his epic films like Independence Day, brings his over-the-top sensibility to this ten-part series filled with blood, guts, and some very pretty people, including Angeliqa Devi and Lara Wolf.
BAD MONKEY
Apple TV+
There’s no funnier novelist than Carl Hiaasen, and happily Bad Monkey, his hilarious Florida-centric tale of crime in the Keys is coming in August as a 10-part series. Vince Vaughn stars as an ex-police detective whose crappy new job is as a health inspector gets interesting when he finds a human arm during his checkups. Enter a bunch of only-found-in-Florida weirdos and criminals, as well as that monkey who’s up to no good, and this one’s a comedic keeper.
THE DECAMERON
Netflix
Journey back to the 1300s, into the time of the Black Death, when plague swept Italy and wealthy citizens fled to their villas away from the cities filled with disease. While that doesn’t sound too comical, this new series starring Tony Hale of Veep fame knows just how to combine farce and social status satire with sexual shenanigans and other outrageous behavior that’s sure to keep you watching. Zosia Mamet, Tanya Reynolds, and Saoirse-Monica Jackson co-star in this wild romp.
TIME BANDITS
Apple TV+
If you’ve never seen Time Bandits, Terry Gilliam’s incredibly clever and creative 1981 fantasy, start with that. Then get ready for Jermaine Clement and Taika Waititi’s take on the same story in this zany series that follows a boy (Kal-El Tuck) who discovers a time-travel portal in his bedroom. His jump into history, along with a gang of thieves led by Lisa Kudrow, is filled with wacky moments and astonishing special effects, just like the original movie.