The 5 New and Under-the-Radar Shows You Can’t Miss in December

No need to pout or cry. A lot more naughty and nice TV is coming to town this December. 

Need something to watch while you cozy up with a cup of hot chocolate? A little something on in the background while you wrap presents and write out your holiday cards? We got you!

Paste TV will be covering all of TV’s reindeer games this month. There’s the new Disney+ series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew (December 3). Lisa Kudrow and Ray Romano headline Netflix’s No Good Deed (December 12). And Peacock has the new comedy Laid (December 19) about a woman whose former lovers keep dying (don’t you hate it when that happens?). But, as always, we don’t want you to miss a thing. Here are five under-the-radar new shows you can’t miss this December.

1. Pop Culture Jeopardy!

Stars:  Colin Jost

Premiere Date:  Three episodes premiere December 4 on Prime Video with three new episodes every Wednesday thereafter

Finally a game show where my love of teen dramas, movie quotes and top 40 hits comes into play. Saturday Night Live’s Colin Jost hosts this version of Jeopardy which he describes as being “for viewers who get upset when regular Jeopardy players miss clues about rappers and reality TV.” Over 40 episodes, teams of three (with team names like “Oops We Guessed It Again”) will compete until the final round when the top three teams vie for the grand prize of $300,000. You’ll hear long-time Jeopardy announcer Johnny Gilbert here as well. He even gets to announce some of the clues.

2. Paris Has Fallen

Stars:  Tewfik Jallab, Ritu Arya, Sean Harris, Ana Ularu, Camille Rutherford, Jérémie Covillault, Emmanuelle Bercor and Karl Collins

Premiere Date:  All eight episodes premiere December 6 on Hulu

This eight-episode series, adapted from Gerard Butler’s Has Fallen movie franchise (which started with 2013’s Olympus Has Fallen), follows French Minister of Defence protection officer Vincent (Tewfik Jallab) and MI-6 officer Zara (Ritu Arya) as they work to stop a terrorist attack from mastermind Jacob (Sean Harris). Jacob, as the title would suggest, wants to bring down the city of Paris. Mon dieu! Butler doesn’t appear in the series but does serve as one of the executive producers.  

3. Dream Productions

Stars:  Paula Pell, Richard Ayoade, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Ally Maki, Kensington Tallman, Liza Lapira, Tony Hale, Lewis Black and Phyllis Smith

Premiere Date:  December 11 on Disney+

Set between Inside Out and this summer’s hugely successful Inside Out 2, this four-episode Disney+ series tells the story of the folks in charge of Riley’s (Kensington Tallman) dreams. As Riley grows up, her dreams become more and more important so her emotions Joy (Amy Poehler), Disgust (Liza Lapira), Fear (Tony Hale), Anger (Lewis Black), and Sadness (Phyllis Smith) turn to acclaimed dream director Paula Persimmon (Paula Pell) and daydream director Xeni (Richard Ayoade) for Riley’s next big dream. It’s not just a spinoff of one of the year’s biggest movies; it’s also Pixar’s first official TV show.

4. Paris & Nicole: The Encore

Stars:  Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie

Premiere Date:  All three episodes premiere December 12 on Peacock

Over 20 years ago, best friends and gossip page regulars Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie became overnight mainstream celebrities when The Simple Life hit the airwaves. The series followed the two wealthy young socialites as they travelled the country doing entry-level jobs often very poorly. Now they reunite (apparently talks of their feud were greatly exaggerated) to catch viewers up on their lives and put together an opera based on their catch phrase “Sanasa.” That’s hot. 

5. Dexter: Original Sin

Stars:  Patrick Gibson, Christian Slater, Patrick Dempsey, Molly Brown, James Martinez, Christina Milian, Alex Shimizu, Reno Wilson and special guest star, Sarah Michelle Gellar. Michael C. Hall

Premiere Date:  December 13 on the Paramount+ with Showtime 

Set in 1991, this prequel spin-off of the Showtime series about a serial killer who lives by his very own unique code, follows a young Dexter (Patrick Gibson) as he begins his forensics internship at the Miami Metro Police Department. Christian Slater plays his father (the role James Remar played in the original series) and keep an eye out for Sarah Michelle Gellar who will recur as Dexter’s boss Tanya Martin. Michael C. Hall, who will reprise his Emmy-nominated role in next summer’s Dexter: Resurrection, narrates the series. After making its debut on Paramount+ on Showtime, the series will be available on Showtime starting December 15.

Amy Amatangelo, the TV Gal®, is a Boston-based freelance writer and a member of the Television Critics Association. She wasn’t allowed to watch much TV as a child and now her parents have to live with this as her career. You can follow her on Twitter (@AmyTVGal).

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