Fall has traditionally been TV’s busiest season. As folks return from summer vacations and settle back into autumnal routines, we gather around the hearth (*the TV) and return to our favorite stories—and maybe make room for some new ones along the way. Cable and streaming have changed traditional TV launch seasons over time, making premieres a year-round event, with Peak TV just amplifying it all ten-fold. But fall still manages to reign supreme, and after a few years of quiet with pandemic shutdowns, 2022 is back in full swing.
Below, our Paste TV editors and writers have picked 28 shows—both new and returning—in premiere date order that we’re excited for in the coming months. With so much television on the horizon, we wanted to provide a few for you to hone in on and make sure you have on your radar, with a little something for everyone.
Atlanta
Network: FX
Premiere Date: September 15
Status: Final Season
After a lukewarm third season that took us on a journey to Europe and into the lives of unknown characters via episodic vignettes, the expectation is that Season 4 of Atlanta, which also happens to be its last season, will bring us back to the city and the characters that we grew to love over the series’ run. While not much is known about Donald Glover’s vision for the end of the series about a once-fledgling rapper named Paper Boi and his manager as they navigate rap culture and newfound fame, fans can at least hope that Glover and team lean into what made the series so special when it first debuted back in 2016: sharp cultural commentary, an examination of race relations via comedy, and explosive performances from the cast that have now become household names. And for its farewell season, I wouldn’t mind getting another bombastic episode that upends what television can do, like we got with Season 2’s “Teddy Perkins.” —Radhika Menon
Vampire Academy
Network: Peacock
Premiere Date: September 15
Status: New Series
Even though The Vampire Diaries universe just met an unceremonious end, its mastermind Julie Plec and former TVDU actress and producer Marguerite MacIntyre are bringing some more hot vampire drama to Peacock to fill the void. Based on a series of books of the same name by Richelle Mead, this is the series’ second chance at adaptation after the spectacular failure of 2014’s Vampire Academy film. The show will follow half-vampire Guardian Rose Hathaway (Sisi Stringer) and vampire royalty Lissa Dragomir (Daniela Nieves) as they fight to keep their world protected against Strigoi (a type of feral, unhinged vampire driven only by bloodlust). Promising royal intrigue, high school drama, and classic vampire shenanigans, Vampire Academy is the perfect show to sink your teeth into this fall. —Anna Govert
The Great British Baking Show
Network: Netflix
Premiere Date: September 16
Status: Season 13
When summer turns to fall, there are some things that usher in the season: apples, falling leaves, pumpkin spice, and yes, The Great British Bake Off. Now entering its 13th season in the majestic tent, judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith are again joined by Noel Fielding and Matt Lucas to test the meddle of 12 amateur bakers. The reality show asks the bakers to take on exceedingly difficult tasks, each week whittling down the contestants to the season’s best baker. What makes The Great British Bake Off so magical is the sincerity and camaraderie between the bakers—it’s definitely a competition, but there is no shortage of helpful hands around the kitchen. Whether someone receives a handshake from Paul Hollywood or becomes that week’s star baker, it’s a treasure trove of joy (and really bad baking puns). Mother always said that baking has healing powers. —Max Covill
Los Espookys
Network: HBO
Premiere Date: September 16
Status: Season 2
Ever wanted a show that skewers American imperialism, but also satisfies your horror habit, and with some absurdist humor thrown in? Los Espookys has you covered. Created by Fred Armisen, Ana Fabrega, and Julio Torres, the series follows a group of macabre friends (Torres, Fabrega, Bernardo Velasco, and Cassandra Ciangherotti) who start a business manufacturing “supernatural” happenings for clients in need. The latest season is just as strange—if not even weirder—than the first, which aired way back in 2019. Torres’ otherworldly and self-obsessed Andrés asks for favors from The Moon herself, Velasco’s Renaldo keeps seeing a murdered beauty queen, Ciangherotti’s Úrsula goes on a crusade against the sexist (and pro-U.S.) president, and Fabrega’s Tati makes gazpacho out of ketchup. In short, it’s business as unusual. —Clare Martin
Quantum Leap
Network: NBC
Premiere Date: September 19
Status: New Series
Don’t call it a reboot, or a revival, as the new Quantum Leap aims to thread the needle of bringing back old fans and hopefully making some new ones along the way. The beloved cult hit returns with a new team and new hero taking over the time-leaping project, though the lingering mysteries of Sam Beckett’s disappearance all those years ago still hang over the action. The project looks to be a throwback, primetime, network TV adventure, building on the story-of-the-week hook of the original, and exploring time periods a bit more modern like the 1980s and 1990s. The cast is also promising, with Kevin Can F Himself breakout Raymond Lee and genre legend Ernie Hudson as the leads. —Trent Moore
Abbott Elementary
Network: ABC
Premiere Date: September 21
Status: Season 2
What does Appointment TV even look like anymore when you have endless choices on endless platforms? This spring, my family found our answer, week in and week out, with Abbott Elementary, Quinta Brunson’s mockumentary sitcom about a group of teachers working at an under-funded Philadelphia school. We weren’t alone. The workplace comedy experienced a phenomenal breakout year, racking up Emmy nominations and Twitter acclaim alike—and for good reason. The warm-hearted first season thrived on impeccable comedic performances and smartly written characters, from Brunson’s determined optimist to Janelle James’ self-centered principal (Please let Ava stay bad!) to Sheryl Lee Ralph’s veteran teacher. These are the types of characters worth returning for, and I’ll be doing just that when Season 2 arrives with its full 22-episode order. Fortunately, there’s no required reading due before class returns, but you might want to brush up on your “desking” skills. —Annie Lyons
Reboot
Network: Hulu
Premiere Date: September 20
Status: New Series
If anyone understands the TV sitcom landscape of the last 30 years, it’s Steven Levitan. After writing consistently since the 1990s (working on everything from Wings to Just Shoot Me!), the Modern Family creator is taking on the current TV comedy world with Reboot. The upcoming series about an emerging writer who decides to reboot an early 2000s sitcom has the promise of being an excellent commentary on the contemporary world of making TV (the joke in the trailer of the VP of comedy at Hulu being “new to comedy” immediately sold me on the show). Reboot also features a truly exciting cast of actors who have often been relegated to supporting roles. Keegan-Michael Key, the always underappreciated Judy Greer, and Johnny Knoxville isn’t a group I would have ever thought would go together, but I can’t wait to see how they pull off a reunited dysfunctional cast. Reboot also stars the eternally great Rachel Bloom, a welcome return to our TV screens after the end of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, and comedy veteran Paul Reiser. Reboot has all the pieces to celebrate and poke fun at sitcoms, and I can’t wait to see if this great cast of talent will make something new and special out of recycling something old. —Leila Jordan
Andor
Network: Disney+
Premiere Date: September 21
Status: New Series
A strong case could be made that Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is the best film in the franchise since the original trilogy. Intense, thoughtful, and deeply rooted in Star Wars lore, it told the story of how a ragtag group of rebels stole the plans for the Death Star. One of the most compelling characters from the film is Cassian Andor (Diego Luna), who dies while retrieving the stolen plans. In Andor, Luna reprises his role and we get a different perspective of this compelling character. Technically a prequel to a prequel, Andor is set 5 years prior to the events of Rogue One and A New Hope, and takes place as the Rebellion is just starting to form. With Tony Gilroy, who co-wrote Rogue One, serving as the creator and showrunner, Andor holds plenty of promise. —Terry Terrones
Bob’s Burgers
Network: Fox
Premiere Date: September 25
Status: Season 13
Everyone’s favorite restaurant-based series is back—no, no, not that one. Bob’s Burgers returns later this month, and if you missed out on seeing the long-awaited Bob’s Burgers Movie on the big screen this summer, take the chance to catch up on either Hulu or HBO Max before this new season starts. The success of the movie proves there’s more for the Belchers to give after all these years. Bob’s Burgers is still able to stun us with a musical number, make us cry from the Belchers’ constant love and support for each other, and crack a fart joke or two all within the span of a few minutes. Even though things have changed, like Jimmy Pesto being written out of the series for … reasons, Bob’s Burgers has stayed true to all its best qualities, and is still the same lovable, family comedy 13 seasons in. —Kristen Reid
The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers
Network: Disney+
Premiere Date: September 28
Status: Season 2 (but with a new setting and a new adult co-lead)
There are few things more classically Disney than picking up the cast of a beloved series set in Middle America and dropping them into California—see Liv & Maddie, Raven’s Home, and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, just to start. Similarly, there are few things more classically ‘90s-era-teen-film-franchise than picking up whatever cast of misfits bonded into a cohesive unit in the franchise’s first outing and dropping them into a completely alien setting for the sequel, typically with a new adult co-lead. Which is all to say, there could hardly be greater precedent for the California-set, Josh Duhamel-starring second season of The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers, and I cannot wait to see what the new Ducks do with it. —Alexis Gunderson
Ghosts
Network: CBS (Streaming on Paramount+)
Premiere Date: September 29
Status: Season 2
In its premiere season, Ghosts not only overcame any demographic biases against it for being a CBS sitcom, but also won over fans of the original UK series—making it the rare American adaptation that worked on its own, with only vague references to its predecessor. But like its predecessor, it is an unmitigated delight. Full of wit, warmth, and an abundance of charm, the series follows a young couple who inherit a house full of fairly friendly ghosts. Though only one of them can see and speak with the ghosts, these interactions impact both of their lives constantly—even though both the Living and the Dead have their own interests and dramas and personal arcs that are sometimes connected to the others and sometimes not. Regardless, there is no combination of characters in this vast cast that is ever a disappointment, and learning more about each of their backstories and what they do next has me very excited for Season 2. —Allison Keene
Spy x Family
Network: Crunchyroll
Premiere Date: October 1
Status: Part 2
Spy x Family, based on the Shonen Jump+ manga by Tatsuya Endo, was the breakout hit anime of the spring 2022 season, and 13 episodes wasn’t nearly enough. We didn’t even get to meet the puppy they were planning on adopting yet! Fortunately, the wait for new episodes was mercifully short, and the Spy x Family anime is returning just three months after it left off.
Taking place in a Cold War-esque retro setting, Spy x Family follows Twilight, a spy from the nation of Westalia, who goes undercover in the enemy nation of Ostania under the name Lloid Folger. In order to complete his mission, he has to adopt a kid; he ends up with Anya, who is secretly a psychic, and to further continue his cover, he marries a woman named Yor, who is secretly a top assassin. The sharp comedy, cool style, and wholesome found-family vibes of Part 1 should continue to make Part 2 a must-watch. —Reuben Baron
The Walking Dead
Network: AMC
Premiere Date: October 2
Status: Final Season
One of the longest-running genre hits in history is finally coming to an end, and we can’t wait to see how they wrap it all up. The final season of The Walking Dead has managed to reclaim some of the bite it lost in the middle of its run, and with myriad spinoffs already announced and in the works, it’ll be the ultimate balancing act to bring closure to the main chapter of this story and leave the door open for all those other ones. What will come of Alexandria? Who lives, who dies? Will Rick show back up to set-up his miniseries spinoff? So many questions. —Trent Moore
Chucky
Network: Syfy
Premiere Date: October 5
Status: Season 2
In 2021, one of the biggest TV surprises for me was the advent of Chucky. I’m not a horror fan, and I’ve never even seen a Chucky movie. But the self-aware, unbridled mayhem of this series from the start was not only hilarious but somehow… cozy?? Chucky creator Don Mancini returns to bring the doll to life (yet again!) alongside Brad Dourif’s iconic voice acting for a second season that might find it hard to top the wonderful absurdity of its first. And yet, I’ll be tuning in to see it try—and probably succeed. Wanna play? —Allison Keene
Walker: Independence
Network: The CW
Premiere Date: October 6
Status: New Series
If you loved Red Dead Redemption 2, or are just a sucker for the wild west, this is absolutely the show for you. Taking place in the late 1800s, Walker: Independence is a spin-off of The CW’s Walker, and follows Ranger Cordell Walker’s (Jared Padaleki) ancestor Abigail Walker (Katherine McNamara) as she attempts to avenge the death of her husband in a burgeoning Texas town called Independence. Joining forces with Hoyt Rawlins (Matt Barr), Abigail, widowed and miles from her former Boston home, makes it her mission to take down the new sheriff of Independence, who she believes is responsible for her husband’s murder. Additionally, this show seems to be keen to right some of the wrongs of the Western genre through the inclusion of Calian (Justin Johnson Cortez), who is a member of the Apache tribe. Johnson Cortez told Deadline that he wanted Calian and the tribe to be “represented in a positive way,” and ensures that the show is providing “something special.” Based on the trailer alone, it looks like a CW-ified Clint Eastwood movie, and we can’t wait to see it. —Anna Govert
The Midnight Club
Network: Netflix
Premiere Date: October 7
Status: New Series
I will watch anything Mike Flanagan creates. The showrunner behind The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor and Midnight Mass keeps delivering thoughtful interpersonal dramas with a side of horror—or delightfully scary shows with a lot to say. His latest for Netflix, Midnight Club, is based on Christopher Pike’s 1994 novel about eight young, terminally ill patients (Iman Benson, Adia, Igby Rigney, Ruth Codd, Aya Furukawa, Annarah Shephard, William Chris Sumpter, and Sauriyan Sapkota) who gather at midnight to tell scary stories. They’ve promised each other that the first one to die will communicate to the rest from the great beyond. This being a Flanagan joint, we can only imagine that’s a promise kept. —Josh Jackson
The Winchesters
Network: The CW
Premiere Date: October 11
Status: New Series
Fifteen seasons wasn’t enough. The long-running CW series Supernatural (actually, it’s so long-running that it started on the now-defunct WB) is now getting a prequel. The Winchesters is set in the 1970s with Meg Donnally and Drake Rodger portraying Sam and Dean’s parents, Mary and John. Jensen Ackles (Dean, in the original series) reprises his role to narrate the story of How Dad Met His Mother. And also how the pair then started fighting the monsters among us. Supernatural writer Robbie Thomas developed the series, with Ackles and his wife Danneel Ackles executive producing. Expect more monsters of the week, and fewer cameos by angels, God, and Lucifer. —Josh Jackson
High School
Network: Freevee
Premiere Date: October 13
Status: New Series
Based on the memoir High School and accompanying album Hey, I’m Just Like You by Canadian trailblazers Tegan and Sara Quinn, this series is Amazon Freevee’s latest offering in their burgeoning library of originals. Taking place during Tegan and Sara’s tumultuous high school years, the show follows the twin sisters as they navigate life, sexuality, and music—all while trying to simply get along. Coming from showrunner Clea Duvall (Happiest Season), the series stars TikTokers and actual twin sisters Railey and Seazynn Gilliland as the musicians. High School is perfect for any fan of Tegan and Sara’s decades-long music career, as well as those simply intrigued by an introspective examination of two queer sisters trying to find connection over guitar strings, all while they attempt to survive high school in the mid-90s. —Anna Govert
Shantaram
Network: Apple TV+
Premiere Date: October 14
Status: New Series
The forthcoming Apple TV+ drama is based on a much-lauded 2003 novel by Gregory David Roberts, which follows an Australian criminal who escapes jail and flees to India, where he becomes integrated into 1980s Bombay (now Mumbai). The book’s rights were purchased immediately after it was published but has lived in “development hell” since then, rotating through a circle of producers, creatives, and actors including Mira Nair, Johnny Depp, and Amitabh Bachchan before landing in the hands of Eric Warren Singer and Steve Lightfoot for a television adaptation. The Apple TV+ series will star Charlie Hunnam as the main character Lin, and Bollywood maven Radhika Apte as his love interest Kavita.
It’s exciting to see more projects set in and featuring South Asian settings and characters make their way to screen in any capacity, and I’m hopeful that the depictions of these characters don’t devolve into caricatures when set against the white protagonist. But the series has already announced at least one South Asian behind the camera as one of the directors, and one established Indian cinema star in front of it, which bodes well for the lens with which the story will be told. And with Apple behind the production, there is an expectation for high quality and a reason to believe they will treat the story with care—especially after their gorgeous rendering of Pachinko, another Asian story. It also helps that the story is propulsive, engaging, and filled with moral quandaries: all of the ingredients needed for great television. —Radhika Menon
Miss Scarlet and the Duke
Network: PBS
Premiere Date: October 16
Status: Season 2
There are few things I love more than a mystery, especially if they’re on Masterpiece, which is why one of my most anticipated shows of the fall is one that will likely be flying under the radar for many: Miss Scarlet and the Duke. While not exactly prestige TV, the pleasant Victorian Era drama about a talented but underestimated female detective (Peaky Blinders’ Kate Phillips) trying to make a name for herself in a male-dominated world is still a welcome addition to the growing genre of Awesome Lady Detective Shows. So while this fall might be all about dragons, rings of power, and rebel spies, save some room for Eliza Scarlet and the exasperated man (Stuart Martin’s William Wellington, aka the Duke) who can’t help but be impressed by her skills. —Kaitlin Thomas
Sherman’s Showcase
Network: IFC
Premiere Date: October 26
Status: Season 2
Sherman’s Showcase, the Soul Train parody from the minds of Bashir Salahuddin and Diallo Riddle, is finally returning after its “Black History Month Spectacular” (which aired, oddly enough, in June 2020). The comedy explores Black culture and experiences through sketches that dip into all sorts of genres—sci-fi, heist, infomercial—in between Salahuddin hosting the variety show as the grandiose emcee himself, Sherman McDaniels. Besides being hilarious, Sherman’s Showcase also boasts irresistible earworms spoofing (but also paying homage to) artists, like Vic Mensa’s Prince impression as the enigmatic artist Charade. With guests in store like Demi Adejuyigbe, Jay Pharoah, Laci Mosley, Paul F. Tompkins, and more, Season 2 promises to be just as off-the-wall funny as the first. —Clare Martin
Chainsaw Man
Network: Crunchyroll
Premiere Date: October (date TBD)
Status: New series
If you’re going to watch just one new anime this fall, it’s almost certainly going to be Chainsaw Man. Tatsuki Fujimoto’s manga has exploded into the most popular new series to come out of Shonen Jump in recent years thanks to its memorable characters, ultra-violent action, and dark absurdist sense of humor. The hype for the anime adaptation has been building for years, and if the trailers are anything to go by, animation studio MAPPA is delivering the exact sort of beautiful balls-out visual spectacle that a proper adaptation of this material requires.
Chainsaw Man takes place in a world where Devils are born out of people’s fears, their power varying based on the strength and commonness of said fears. Denji, a young man trapped by his father’s immense debt to the yakuza, makes a contract with the Chainsaw Devil Pochita to become the human-Devil hybrid Chainsaw Man, and gets recruited to hunt other Devils. —Reuben Baron
The White Lotus
Network: HBO
Premiere Date: October (date TBD)
Status: Season 2
The (no longer a) miniseries that solidified our knowledge that Jennifer Coolidge is more than just a MILF returns for a second season, and another glamorous destination (this time at the Four Seasons San Domenico Palace in Taormina in Sicily). While the first installment discussed classism and tourism’s role in colonialism, White has said that the second season will explore the legend of the teste di moro statues that proliferate over the Italian island (that story, from the 12th century, involves a scorned lover and a beheading). Coolidge is returning to the series, as is Jon Gries, who played the ailing paramour to her Tanya McQuoid. New cast members include Aubrey Plaza, Meghann Fahy, Theo James, and Will Sharpe. —Whitney Friedlander
Doctor Who
Network: BBC America
Premiere Date: October (date TBD)
Status BBC Centennial Special
Much like David Tennant’s final few episodes before regenerating, Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor is closing out her tenure with a series of specials. The first two, the New Year’s and Easter specials, aired earlier this year, leaving just one more.
Instead of coinciding with a holiday, however, this special will be a part of the BBC’s 100th anniversary, as the public British broadcaster has been running since 1922. Not only that, but the episode will be the 300th story since the series’ revival in 2005!
In addition to this being Whittaker’s last episode before regenerating into the body of Ncuti Gatwa, but it will also be the last before veteran Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies takes back the reins. This means that the episode will mark the end of an era many fans have felt has stagnated under the supervision of current showrunner Chris Chibnall.
As for the content of the episode itself, we don’t know much, not even its name, but we do know it’s bringing back Tegan Jovanka (Janet Fielding) and Ace (Sophie Aldred), companions not seen since their appearance in classic Doctor Who in the ‘80s, along with the Daleks, Cybermen, and the current regeneration of The Master, played by the brilliant Sacha Dhawan. —Joseph Stanichar
Blockbuster
Network: Netflix
Premiere Date: November 3
Status: New Series
You can’t have a good sitcom without a little bit of irony, and Netflix’s Blockbuster is set to deliver just that. Created by Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Superstore writer Vanessa Ramos, the new workplace comedy series is set to follow Timmy (Randall Park) and Eliza (Melissa Fumero) as they work at the last Blockbuster Video in America. While there’s not a lot about to show out at the moment, the cast and the writing team definitely mean that there’s a lot to look forward to here. After all, Netflix was Blockbuster’s downfall, so we can only hope that the streamer allows for some self-referential humor with this one. Sitcoms have made their way back into everyone’s good graces as of late, and Blockbuster could be another great addition to the latest wave of great, feel-good TV. —Kathryn Porter
Manifest
Network: Netflix
Premiere Date: November 4
Status: Final Season, Part 1
Though the days of Netflix saving canceled broadcast shows were thought to be over, one managed to claw its way onto the platform. Manifest’s initial attempts to outrun cancellation didn’t succeed, but Netflix announced in August of last year that the series would be picked up for a 4th and final season comprised of two 10-episode volumes. After Season 3’s wild conclusion, there are a ton of flailing loose ends that need to be tied down before the series ends. Season 4’s total of 20 episodes will make it the longest season of the show so far, and we can only hope Lost’s weirder, less tropical cousin makes the most of its remaining time. At a time when the stakes are so high in real life, it will be nice to have a show back that keeps the world-changing ramifications of the day contained to the out-of-this-world story. Unplugging your brain shouldn’t just be reserved for comedy TV, so if you’re looking for a drama to unwind with, Manifest is calling your name. —Kathryn Porter
Welcome to Chippendales
Network: Hulu
Premiere Date: November 22
Status: New Series
Most true crime series follow a familiar plot: there’s a seemingly nice person who commits a heinous crime. Some are high profile (Ted Bundy, The Menendez Brothers, Lorena Bobbit, etc.) while others unravel odd cases you’ve never heard of before. This is the unexpected category that Welcome to Chippendales falls into. While most are likely aware of Chippendales, a male revue show that started in 1979 and is still running (BTW, Jersey Shore alum Vinny G is featured in limited run at the Las Vegas show if that’s your thing.), few know about Chippendales’ shady history. A gripping story from just long enough in the past to feel shocking, this new limited series with an all-star cast (Kumail Nanjiani, Annaleigh Ashford, Juliette Lewis, Murray Bartlett) is sure to be hot, deadly, and full of surprises. —Terry Terrones
Willow
Network: Disney+
Premiere Date: November 30
Status: New Series
Let no beloved fantasy adventure IP go unexploited. It’s been 34 years since an aspiring Nelwyn dwarf sorcerer named Willow Ufgood volunteered to take the orphaned baby his family has found back to her people. Now, the 1988 film written by George Lucas and directed by Ron Howard is getting a sequel in the form of a Disney+ series, with Warwick Davis reprising his title role. Howard is back to executive produce alongside Brian Grazer, Kathleen Kennedy, and others. The world needs Willow again, the trailer proclaims. We’ll soon see if that’s true of our world, as well. —Josh Jackson
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