Streaming News Round-up: ‘The Old Man’ Renewed, ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ Drops Trailer, ‘House of the Dragon’ to Get Immersive at Comic-Con

Just three episodes into its first season, the Jeff Bridges-led spy thriller “The Old Man” received a second season order from FX this week. The seven-episode drama kicked off on FX on June 16 and streams on Hulu. “The Old Man” is based on the Thomas Perry novel of the same name and centers on a former CIA agent who went AWOL decades ago. Now being hunted by enemies of all kinds, he must go on the run to save his life and those of the people he loves.

Joining Bridges in the series is John Lithgow, Amy Brenneman, Alia Shawkat, Bill Heck, Gbenga Akinnagbe, and more. The first season finale is scheduled to air on July 21.

Watch the trailer for ‘The Old Man’:

Upcoming deals and shows:

• It’s been 29 years since “Hocus Pocus” — and Disney+ has just announced that the iconic film’s sequel, aptly titled “Hocus Pocus 2,” will debut at the start of Spooky Season on Sept. 30. The Halloween movie will return original stars Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy as three sister witches out to wreak havoc on Salem, Mass. The Black Flame Candle has been lit, and the 17th-century Sanderson Sisters are gleefully primed for destruction.

Check out the trailer for ‘Hocus Pocus 2’:

• Westeros will be coming to San Diego next month as the four-day fan experience, “House of the Dragon: The Dragon’s Den,” provides an interactive experience to Comic-Con attendees. Walking in a Targaryen’s footsteps, each person will step from our world into the sights and sounds of King’s Landing, interacting with the people of the city, selecting their own dragon egg, and bravely demonstrating that they are worthy of a bond with a dragon. Having proven themselves true Targaryens, each person will hatch their personalized, virtual dragon egg in a new augmented reality app — House of the Dragon: DracARys — before exiting, enabling them to “raise” their dragon at home. The event is in anticipation of “House of the Dragon” premiering on HBO and HBO Max on Aug. 21.

• Apple TV+ has inked a first-look deal with Animal Pictures, the production company run by Maya Rudolph, Natasha Lyonne, and Danielle Renfrew Behrens. The company has “Russian Doll” at Netflix and Rian Johnson’s “Poker Face” coming at Peacock. Rudolph stars in “Loot,” Apple TV’s latest comedy series, while Lyonne stars in “Russian Doll” and “Poker Face.” “Loot” will debut its fourth episode on Apple on Friday.

• The HBO comedy “The Righteous Gemstones” is set to bring on Kristen Johnson for Season 3. The “Mom” and “Third Rock from the Sun” actress will play May-May Montgomery, a character who has a history with the Gemstones, a family of rich evangelicals, led by bombastic preacher Eli Gemstone (John Goodman). Steve Zahn has also joined the drama series.

• Hallmark content is available to Indian audiences for the first time with the launch of the company’s premium streaming service Hallmark Movies Now in the country. The subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service offers commercial-free, feel-good movies and series from the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.

• HGTV has greenlit a new eight-episode docu-series following newlyweds and real-estate experts Tarek El Moussa and Heather Rae El Moussa. “The Flipping El Moussas,” a working title, will document the couple’s house move, renovations, and other family matters. Following episodes premiering on HGTV, they will be available to stream on discovery+.