What’s Coming to Streaming, Including the Final Season of ‘Ozark’ and ‘History of the World, Part II’
Ozark returns to Netflix for its fourth and final season on Jan. 21, 2022. Fans will learn where Marty Byrde’s drug-trafficking journey ends. “Money is, at its essence, that measure of a man’s choices,” Jason Bateman’s Marty says in the provocative teaser, as his wife Wendy (Laura Linney), adds ominously: “Sometimes, if you don’t move forward, you die.”
Here are additional deals and projects:
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Hulu greenlit a series order for History of the World, Part II, a variety-series sequel to Mel Brooks’ 1981 comedy, History of the World, Part I. It will be executive produced and written by Brooks, Nick Kroll, Wanda Sykes, Ike Barinholtz, David Stassen, and Kevin Salter. “I can’t wait to once more tell the real truth about all the phony-baloney stories the world has been conned into believing are History!” Brooks stated.
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Roku has entered the world of scripted comedy. It acquired Children Ruin Everything, its first international acquisition, from Canada, to grow its roster. The comedy, from Kurt Smeaton (Schitt’s Creek), stars Meaghan Rath and Aaron Abrams. According to Roku, The show is about “living with the worst roommates of all: young children. Astrid and James struggle to find a balance between being mom and dad to two kids and being who they were before offspring.”
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Netflix greenlit a 10-episode spinoff of its To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before film franchise, called XO, Kitty. It centers on Lara Jean Covey’s (Lana Condor) little sister, Kitty Song Covey. Anna Cathcart, will reprise her role as Kitty from the movies. The plot: Kitty moves across the world to reunite with her boyfriend, only to discover relationships are more complicated than she thought. The series is being co-show run by Sascha Rothchild and creator Jenny Han, who wrote the best-selling book series that inspired the films.
Max
Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library, along with exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Thanks to the B/R Sports add-on, users can watch NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.
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Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses is hosted by Oscar winner Helen Mirren. The four-part competition series will debut a new episode every Sunday, beginning Nov. 28 through Dec. 19, on TBS and as part of Cartoon Network’s ACME Night. After that, it will stream on HBO Max early next year. Hogwarts Tournament of Houses celebrates the 20th anniversary of the film and continues the Wizarding World spirit with hundreds of trivia questions and special guest surprises.
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The comedy series Family Reunion has been renewed for a 10-episode third and final season on Netflix. “Family Reunion” stars Loretta Devine, Tia Mowry-Hardrict, Anthony Alabi, Talia Jackson, Isaiah Russell-Bailey, Cameron J. Wright, and Jordyn Raya James. Richard Roundtree returns in an ongoing role. For season three, Adrienne Carter and Arthur Harris will take over showrunning duties from creator Meg DeLoatch.
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Diary of a Wimpy Kid, premiers Dec. 3 on Disney+. The new animated adventure is the first book in Jeff Kinney’s bestselling series. Greg Heffley is a scrawny but ambitious kid with an active imagination and big plans to be rich and famous – he just has to survive middle school. What galls him: Greg’s lovable best friend Rowley seems to coast through life and succeed at everything without even trying.
Disney+
Disney+ is a video streaming service with over 13,000 series and films from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, The Muppets, and more. It is available in 61 countries and 21 languages. It is notable for its popular original series like “The Mandalorian,” “Ms. Marvel,” “Loki,” “Obi-Wan Kenobi,” and “Andor.”
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Tubi will debut The Freak Brothers, its first animated series, based on the cult classic underground comic on Nov. 14. The eight-episode series chronicles the escapades of a trio of stoner characters and their cat. They wake up from a 50-year nap, after smoking a magical strain of weed in 1969, and must adjust to life in modern-day San Francisco. The cast includes Woody Harrelson, John Goodman, Tiffany Haddish, and Pete Davidson.
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Meryl Streep, Gemma Chan, and Matthew Rhys are the latest cast additions to Apple TV+’s climate change anthology series Extrapolations. The eight episodes tell stories of how the upcoming changes to our planet will affect love, faith, work, and family on a personal and human scale.
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The anticipated return of the UK crime series Manhunt: The Night Stalker just launched exclusively in the U.S. and Canada on Acorn TV, with weekly episodes every Monday through November 8. Martin Clunes (Doc Martin) reprises his role as former London Metropolitan Police detective DCI Colin Sutton in a new season of the series.
Acorn TV
Acorn TV is an excellent choice for viewing television programming (and the occasional film) produced outside the United States, primarily content from the United Kingdom. The service also creates original content and has a library of hundreds of TV shows. Of particular note are their award-winning mysteries and dramas. Popular hits include “Happy Valley,” “Line of Duty,” “Murdoch Mysteries,” “MIdsomer Murders,” and “Poldark.”