The TV & Film Look Ahead To 2026

2026 is here, so it’s time to look forward to a lot of new content coming. For TV and film, I wouldn’t be surprised if all my cores were satisfied this year. I certainly know Star Wars will. Outside of my cores, there’s a good amount of content that’s already been announced, so I’m easily able to talk about some other highlights for the year. So time to reveal what I’m looking forward to in 2026.

The Mandalorian and Grogu… After three great seasons, the original Star Wars Disney+ series is also starting off a return to cinema for the franchise in over five years. From the trailer, there’s many cute Grogu moments, while also showing the youngling being more active. Away from Din on his own part of a mission. There’s also plenty of other action to look forward to, with Zeb seen briefly. It certainly looks to be a great watch come May.

For TV series this year, there’s potentially two. Both announced at Celebration Japan last year, Maul – Shadow Lord, and Visions Presents: The Ninth Jedi should both be out this year. I absolutely cannot wait to see what new stories will be told with Maul during the rise of the Empire. As for The Ninth Jedi, I can see this alternate universe story being a popular one. I enjoyed the Visions episodes from it, so I’ll likely be checking it out.

Maul defends with a red lightsaber against the blue 'saber of Obi-Wan, whose back is to the camera.

First up of core franchises with a milestone anniversary, Sonic the Hedgehog is 35. So far, there is little known about what is coming. If a new series was being developed, this is the year to debut it. With CrossWorlds bringing a lot of characters back to the public eye, I’m hoping such a series could feature them in some way. Perhaps as an anthology where we see them on their own adventures. Maybe with them all coming together to face off against a huge threat at the end.

And with Pokémon, it is the 30th anniversary. The Aardman series won’t be releasing in 2026, so what else could there be aside from a continuation of Horizons? Well, it’s about time we got a new movie, right? The last one we got was Secrets of the Jungle back in 2020 (Japanese release year). I feel the time is right for a new one, especially with Demon Slayer proving anime films have a place at the cinema. On the other hand, it could easily be another live action effort. Even one not related to Detective Pikachu.

And lastly for my cores is Power Rangers. It’s known that the series is happening. All that’s known is that Jonathan E. Steinberg and Dan Shotz are showrunners for the project, which will be developed in the UK. Production is happening this year, but whether the series will release this year is a very big unknown. While I’d hope so, I also wouldn’t want it rushed out at the expense of its quality. This reboot could be a big thing for Power Rangers, so I certainly want to see it successful.

An orange armoured person reaches out to a baby dinosaur hiding behind a black armoured person.

A series that feels similar to Power Rangers is Armorsaurs. I mentioned it in the 2025 look back, as Disney had released previews of various episodes. Which I feel has shown it to be a great watch. The series, a hybrid of live-action and animation, will be arriving for the UK early this year. It will be fun to see a new tokusatsu series all about teamwork and dinosaur mechs. I just hope all the episodes are available to watch on release.

The second Mario movie is diving into galactic exploration with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. And though the Galaxy games are getting a lot of representation, with the star-hopping and Rosalina appearing, Sunshine also gets time to… uh… shine. As Bowser Jr. is also introduced. With a paintbrush that can be used to create many things. I’m sure I’ll be at the cinema for this one, too. With it coming in April, I very much doubt I’ll have a review for it until the home release.

Pixar are bringing out another Toy Story. Which truly brings the story to the modern age, as the toys have to contend with something taking Bonnie’s attention away from them. A tablet. What kind of antics will be happening across this new adventure? What is Woody doing back with the gang? And what story themes will Toy Story 5 hold? I’m interested in finding out, which can happen in July.

A bear holds a beaver in its mouth, while a group of other animals - including more beavers, deer, and a duck - surround them facing in the same direction.

Before that one, however, will be Hoppers. A new original from Pixar, this one feels it will be a riot of fun. With the premise of stopping the destruction of wildlife habitats, the twist here is that the person working with the animals to stop that has become an animal themselves. Or at least a robotic one that can still understand the other animals. I’m sure this will be my first cinema visit for the year when it comes in March.

Looney Tunes movie have been in a bit of tight spot. Coyote vs Acme getting shelved. The Day The Earth Blew Up taking an age to find a release date. Well, both have finally been saved by Ketchup Entertainment. Though most of the world have already got the latter last year, the UK has been kept waiting. But finally, it is releasing early this year. The trailer for it is delightfully wacky, so I’m sure it will be a hoot to watch.

As for Coyote vs Acme, its release date comes in August worldwide. It seems weird for me to be excited for what is effectively a courtroom drama movie when I’ve never seen any before. But that’s the power of it being with characters recognisable to me. It will be entertaining to see this one play out, and how the friendship between Coyote and attorney Kevin Avery develops. And what other Looney Tunes characters enter the picture.

Aslan the lion fills the centre of the image, with other characters from the Chronicles of Narnia series - such as the white witch - surrounding him.

The Chronicles of Narnia. Such a lovely fantasy series. Both the miniseries from the BBC in the 80s and the feature films from Disney and Walden Media that released from 2005. Yes, I have never read the books, and yes I probably should do so. Now, a new version is in development at Netflix, with the first film covering a book that has yet to be adapted. The first in the chronological timeline of events, long before the Pevensie children set foot in Narnia. Consider me intrigued.

And lastly, LEGO. It has been said that Universal Pictures have a deal for five LEGO movies. There is very little information known about them, just who is directing each of them. Films will be coming from Aaron and Adam Nee, Jake Kasdan, Patty Jenkins, and Joe Cornish. It seems unlikely that any of those will be coming this year, but there’s still plenty of other ways for LEGO media to release.

After all, the Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight game releases this year. Seems a good time to get some cross-media synergy going with a new DC Super Heroes direct-to-video film. Maybe one of the other series that LEGO is releasing sets for, such as Fortnite. Or, go completely mad with speculation to suggest a racing series releases using Speed Champions sets. Or even a LEGO Power Rangers short film now that a Megazord has been approved from Ideas.

There’s quite a bit to be looking forward to, then. Along with a few other things such as Project Hail Mary and Street Fighter. There’s room for surprises, of course. And maybe a few things catch my attention not yet on my radar. Especially in the TV space. I will hopefully start covering a lot more media I watch this year, including a return to some old favourites and, just like Jurassic World, those I’ve had on the list for quite a number of years.

Related Posts

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply