The upcoming week is an atypically slow period for Netflix — slow, in the sense that while there’s a healthy volume of new content coming next week (more than 30 TV shows and movies!), in my estimation almost none of it is of the mainstream, can’t-miss, everybody’s-gotta-watch-this variety.
There’s a ton of international content on the way, for example. Which is to say, films like Argentina’s I can’t live without you and France’s Nice Girls or shows like Mexico’s The Accident will, by definition, find a limited audience here in the US. There’s also a ton of third-party content hitting the streamer next week, including TV series like Seasons 1-3 of A Discovery of Witches; Season 1-2 of Gangs of London; and Seasons 1-2 of Kevin Can F**k Himself.
For a more comprehensive look at Netflix’s new release slate next week, including every title that’s being added on each day, our monthly Netflix guide is the perfect resource to consult.
As for the imminent titles that I think are the most interesting — given that I stressed it’s a slow week above, this is one of the only times you’ll find me pointing to docuseries as the biggies of the upcoming week. Not to say that the ones I’m going to talk about will necessarily do gangbuster numbers, but there are two in particular that I just think have more going for them than typical niche fare does.
Both of these series, coincidentally, arrive the same day (on Aug. 21). And they are:
I’ll start with the latter, since I haven’t written about it before:
Wyatt Earp and The Cowboy War is described as a hybrid “docu-drama” that mixes nonfiction, documentary-style elements with Ed Harris as the narrator along with dramatized re-enactments of moments from the story — including the legendary shootout at the O.K. Corral. This, of course, is pretty much the same narrative ground that was also visited in 1993’s Tombstone, starring Kurt Russell.
If you’re a history buff like I am, this one looks like a no-brainer and definitely worth checking out.
The other docuseries also coming next week is focused on a particular music subgenre — the big business of K-pop. Pop Star Academy: Katseye is the product of a collaboration between HYBE (the management company behind BTS) and Geffen records and follows their attempt to build a US-based girl group modeled after the K-pop training and development system.
I’ve gotten into K-pop recently, and this “making of the band” sort of documentary looks super intriguing. “Katseye is the name of Geffen and HYBE’s global girl group,” Netflix explains. “After receiving over 120,000 submissions from talented young people from around the world, Geffen Records and HYBE revealed the 20 contestants from around the world who would be competing for a spot in the band through the TV program The Debut: Dream Academy.”
The Debut: Dream Academy is an audition program and competition that premiered last year and ran for 12 weeks on YouTube, Weverse, and Abema TV. Netflix’s Pop Star Academy: KATSEYE will follow the 20 original contestants behind the scenes and go beyond what was seen in The Debut: Dream Academy.
