The release schedules for all the major streamers are out for February, giving us a good idea of the biggest releases worth watching on all of our favorite services. In addition to those official release schedules, we’re also all but certain to get an unannounced surprise or two dropped on us over the next few weeks. Until that happens, though, what you’ll find below are the biggest upcoming streaming TV series from all the major streamers that are worth knowing about and checking out over the next month.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Prime Video, Feb. 2)
This first TV series is a remake of the 2005 action-comedy Mr. & Mrs. Smith that starred Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. This time around, the story will be told in the form of a series, with Donald Glover and Maya Erskine playing sexy rival spies.
In Prime Video’s eight-episode Mr. & Mrs. Smith, the pair are “two lonely strangers land jobs working for a mysterious spy agency that offers them a glorious life of espionage, wealth, world travel, and a dream brownstone in Manhattan. The catch? New identities in an arranged marriage as Mr. and Mrs. John and Jane Smith.”
If you love spy series like I do, this is definitely one to add to your watchlist. Mr. & Mrs. Smith mixes gunfights, the allure of espionage, and the kind of witty repartee you expect from any series with Glover in the cast (“Have you ever killed anyone?” … “No — not really”).
Curb Your Enthusiasm: Season 12 (HBO, Feb. 4)
HBO, meanwhile, is poised to say goodbye to a classic.
Larry David’s long-running TV series Curb Your Enthusiasm debuts its 12th and final season in February, with ten episodes that rely on the show’s tried-and-true, Seinfeld-esque formula of seemingly trivial situations that set off what’s often a bizarre chain of events.
“As Curb comes to an end, I will now have the opportunity to finally shed this ‘Larry David’ persona and become the person God intended me to be — the thoughtful, kind, caring, considerate human being I was until I got derailed by portraying this malignant character,” David said in a statement about the show. “And so ‘Larry David,’ I bid you farewell. Your misanthropy will not be missed.”
The New Look (Apple TV+, Feb. 14)
Apple has chosen Valentine’s Day for the debut of its newest prestige drama — The New Look, a 10-episode series about the post-World War II rise of Parisian couture dominated by iconic figures like Christian Dior, Coco Chanel, Pierre Balmain, and Cristóbal Balenciaga.
The series, executive produced and directed by Todd A. Kessler, is set against the Nazi occupation of Paris during WWII and follows the City of Light’s resurrection after the war thanks to Dior, the fashion icon who’s portrayed here by Ben Mendelsohn. Continues the Apple TV+ summary of The New Look: “As Dior rises to prominence with his groundbreaking, iconic imprint of beauty and influence, (Coco) Chanel’s reign as the world’s most famous fashion designer is put into jeopardy.
“The interwoven saga follows the surprising stories of Dior’s contemporaries and rivals from Chanel to Pierre Balmain, Cristóbal Balenciaga and more — and provides a stunning view into the atelier, designs, and clothing created by Dior through collaboration with the House of Dior.”
The Dynasty (Apple TV+, Feb. 16)
This next 10-part series from Imagine Documentaries and Emmy-winning filmmaker Matthew Hamachek goes inside the rise of the New England Patriots as one of the most dominant sports franchises of the 21st century. In it, former quarterback Tom Brady, coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft, along with a variety of contributors, give viewers the definitive story of the team’s remarkable run.
About the series, which is based on the critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling book of the same title by author Jeff Benedict, Apple TV+ says: “The docuseries explores the franchise’s 20-year journey, from the unique chemistry that fueled six Super Bowl wins to the internal strife that sparked a turf war. From the owner’s suite to the locker room, the series reveals an insider’s look at the road to — and cost of — greatness.”
Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix, Feb. 22)
Continuing the popular new trend on Netflix of remaking hit animated series, Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender is one of the streaming giant’s most highly anticipated February releases.
Its protagonist is the young Avatar Aang, who’s learning to master the four elements of Earth, Water, Fire, and Air to restore balance to a world threatened by the Fire Nation. “The four nations once lived in harmony,” Netflix explains, “with the Avatar, master of all four elements, keeping peace between them.
“But everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked and wiped out the Air Nomads, the first step taken by the firebenders towards conquering the world. With the current incarnation of the Avatar yet to emerge, the world has lost hope. But like a light in the darkness, hope springs forth when Aang (Gordon Cormier), a young Air Nomad — and the last of his kind — reawakens to take his rightful place as the next Avatar.”
Shogun (FX/Hulu, Feb. 27)
I was instantly excited to check out FX’s new TV series Shogun, set in 17th-century Japan, once I saw Anna Sawai among the cast. At this point, she’s built up enough of a record that anytime you see her as part of a show (like Apple’s Pachinko and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters) you can rest assured that it’s going to be good.
In FX’s new series, adapted from James Clavell’s bestselling novel, it’s the dawn of a century-defining civil war. Hiroyuki Sanada stars as Lord Yoshii Toranaga, fighting for his life as his enemies on the Council of Regents unite against him. “When a mysterious European ship is found marooned in a nearby fishing village, its English pilot, John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis), comes bearing secrets that could help Toranaga tip the scales of power and devastate the formidable influence of Blackthorne’s own enemies — the Jesuit priests and Portuguese merchants.
“Toranaga’s and Blackthorne’s fates become inextricably tied to their translator, Toda Mariko (Sawai), a mysterious Christian noblewoman and the last of a disgraced line. While serving her lord amidst this fraught political landscape, Mariko must reconcile her newfound companionship with Blackthorne, her commitment to the faith that saved her, and her duty to her late father.”
The Tourist: Seasons 1 and 2 (Netflix, Feb. 1/Feb. 29)
This final TV series is an acquisition by Netflix. The Tourist, starring Jamie Dornan, aired its first season on HBO Max, but it now moves over to Netflix with the debut of season two.
Season one debuts on Netflix first, on Feb. 1, with the new season to come at the end of the month. Across the six episodes of the first season, Dornan plays a man who wakes up in the Australian outback with no memory, forcing him to rely on a smattering of clues to discover his identity before his past catches up with him. In season two, he travels to Ireland in search of answers about his identity.
