2020 was a buzzkill for us all with a global pandemic slowing us down and depriving us of shows that could have changed our lives. While Netflix, Amazon Prime and many other streaming platforms kept us company during the pandemic, it was emotionally scarring to see productions of highly anticipated TV shows and series being delayed, pushing back the release dates by an unprecedented amount of time.
2021 has, so far, followed the depressing COVID trend. However, as a ray of hope in our lives, Netflix is set to release many of those delayed series whose productions began in August 2020, after the lockdown was lifted for some time. While WandaVision on Disney+ has already taken the world by storm, we cannot wait to see what Netflix has in store for us.
With Disney+ releasing shows like The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Loki, Hawkeye and more in 2020 as well as Amazon prime’s rumoured Lord of the Rings series, Netflix has tough competition this time. With live-action features on the works, a lot is at stake as they must do a really good job to keep up with fans’ expectations. While fans are eagerly waiting for new seasons to shows like Sex Education, Lucifer, The End of the Fucking World and more, there shall be some exciting new additions that shall garner a lot of love and support from fans.
We decided to list the six anticipated shows on Netflix in 2021that we are eagerly waiting for. We can hardly wait to see what course these shows are going to take. The stakes are high and the games afoot.
Let’s get going.
The 6 most anticipated Netflix series in 2021:
Shadow and Bone – Eric Heisserer
Based on Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha trilogy, the series will be set in a world ravaged by wars and battles. As a ray of hope, it shall be discovered that an orphaned soldier Alina Starkov has demonstrated abilities that have the potential of saving the people and setting the country free. With impending threats pervading their world, Alina is made to train with an elite army known as the Grisha where she learns that nobody can be trusted and to survive, she must demonstrate more skills than just mere magic.
The series is set to stream on Netflix on April 23, 2021. With the series being shot in Budapest, the premise looks very promising with an intriguing trailer. With actors like Jessie Mei Li and Ben Barnes (remember prince Caspian?) starring in lead roles, we cannot wait to see what new elements the show has in store for us in addition to Bardugo’s incredible imagination being unleashed in the Grishaverse.
Vikings: Valhalla -Jeb Stuart, Michael Hirst
Set nearly a hundred years after the original series, the premise of this show will witness the near obliteration of the Vikings as the English kingdom stands steadfast against the Scandanavian raiders. Three claims to the English throne following the demise of King Edward the Confessor change the historical course of England forever. A sexual assault alters the faith of a woman who vehemently defends the old Norse religion. Her half-brother has issues with his father and her lover is on his way to avenge an attempted genocide.
After a spectacular six-season run of Hirst’s Vikings, Valhalla is a spin-off that will feature at some point in 2021. Hirst has affirmed certain connections between the two series. He has spoken of how the meetings will take place in the same great halls of Kattegat as before; the older characters are now going to exist as legends. With an extraordinary premise that promises blood and gore aplenty, we cannot wait for the premiere.
Inventing Anna -Shonda Rhimes
Based on a New York Magazine article by Jessica Pressler titled “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People”, the film shall follow the journey of Anna Sorokin, a smart and cunning 28-year-old, hailing from a relatively lower-middle-class family, who adopted the name Anna Delvey to scam her friends and New York socialites and businesses of money. With her being known as the SoHo scammer, the film shall see a journalist set out with a mission to investigate Anna’s life.
The series will be limited to 10 episodes and shall air sometime in 2021. Anna Delvey is probably the new face of the American Dream and the series shall explore the relationship the two women form- one of both love and hate. With Julia Garner and Anna Chlumsky in the lead, it shall be an interesting series to watch that shall surely appeal our intriguing minds regarding who Anna Delvey really is.
The Cuphead Show – Chad Moldenhauer, Jared Moldenhauer
With video games growing increasingly popular by the day, it shall be interesting to watch the same unfold on screen. This animated series shall follow the misadventures and escapades of the protagonist Cuphead who is dauntless and his wary yet easily manipulable brother Mugman. It is based on the popular video game Cuphead and shall feature Tru Valentino and Frank Todaro as the two brothers who shall go on a journey to explore the wondrous Inkwell isles and find themselves embroiled in various funny situations.
Although it was supposed to stream on Netflix in 2020, the dates got postponed to 2021 due to the pandemic. It shall comprise hand-drawn characters and movement unlike the video game’s traditional pen and paper illustrations, which shall bring back the 1930s old-school cartoon aesthetic.
Cowboy Bebop – Alex Garcia Lopez, Michael Katleman
Although the series was set to drop in 2020, it was delayed due to the pandemic. Production has been in works since 2019 and thus it is expected to stream on Netflix in early 2021. The live-action feature of the animated favourite shall follow the same course where Spike Spiegel shall lead his eclectic team of bounty hunters who are better known as Cowboys, to capture the most dangerous criminals in the galaxy. The show shall also document the extraordinary obstacles (including the evil Syndicate) that lie in their path as they usually try and save the world but usually cause loads of damage and wreckage.
Although fans love the original series, what is better than getting to see an adorable Corgi grace the screens? With John Cho, Mustafa Shakir and Daniella Pineda among others in the cast, fans will be excited to know that the director of the original anime, Shinichiro Watanabe is a creative consultant on this show and has interesting stuff in store for us. Most importantly, Yoko Kanno, the composer of the original anime’s iconic score, is returning as well. Need we say more?
Midnight Mass -Mike Flanagan
After winning over fans with The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor, Mike Flanagan is set to take 2021 by storm with his new series Midnight Mass. Although the release dates have not been announced yet, it is known that despite delayed production, it had ended in December 2020. Featuring actors such as Kate Siegel, Henry Thomas, Zach Gilford, Hamish Linklater and more, the series will actually connect to Flanagan’s 2016 film Hush where the protagonist, while being pursued by the crazy invader, was writing a book titled Midnight Mass.
A community living on an isolated island shall experience strange and bizarre events that shall lead them to seek help from a young priest to make sense of the incidents. The show shall have seven episodes and according to the rules of the Flanaganverse, shall probably have an indirect connection (via casting in all probability) to its predecessors.