The best new TV shows in August 2025

Chief of War

Fri 1 Aug

Apple TV+

This historical drama is being tipped as the successor to the Game of Thrones “must-see” crown. Starring, written and produced by Jason Momoa (Fast X, A Minecraft Movie), this nine-part epic charts the unification and colonisation of Hawai'I.

Based on true events during the late 18th century, this marks a milestone moment for Polynesian representation, involving indigenous performers and framing. An ensemble cast includes Luciane Buchanan, Temuera Morrison, Te Ao o Hinepehinga, Cliff Curtis, newcomer Kaina Makua, Moses Goods, Siua Ikale‘o, Brandon Finn, James Udom, Mainei Kinimaka and Te Kohe Tuhaka. The story centres on Ka'iana (Momoa), a ferocious warrior attempting to unite four belligerent kingdoms before Western colonisation.  

Eyes of Wakanda

Fri 1 Aug

Disney+

The new action-adventure series follows the adventures of brave Wakandan warriors throughout history. In their globe-trotting adventure, our heroes must embark on dangerous missions to retrieve Vibranium artifacts and protect their nation from its enemies.  

Each instalment in this four-episode animated series takes place in a different historical period, as we look at the story and greatest triumphs of the legendary Hatut Zaraze and this is their story. While the voice cast includes Winnie Harlow, Cress Williams, Patricia Belcher, Larry Herron, Adam Gold, Lynn Whitfield, Jacques Colimon, and Jona Xiao, this ambitious expansion to the Black Panther universe offers more insights into one of the MCU’s most fascinating fighting forces.

Platonic

Weds 6 Aug

Apple TV+

One of Apple TV+’s smartest shows returns for a second season, again bringing together real-life besties, Seth Rogen (The Studio, The Fabelmans) and Rose Byrne (Bridesmaids, Damages). Former party pals Will and Sylvia navigate their occasionally debilitating mid-life chaos, careers, and complicated relationships – all while clinging to a not-so-simple friendship.

Season two’s cast includes Luke Macfarlane and Carla Gallo, and introduces Aidy Bryant, Kyle Mooney, and Beck Bennett as guest stars. We pick up with the pair contending with some unforeseen hurdles, including work, weddings, and partners with crises. The duo tries their best to be each other’s rock - but sometimes rocks break things.  

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Wednesday

Weds 6 Aug

Netflix

There are new foes and woes, as everyone’s favourite storm cloud stalks the Gothic halls of Nevermore Academy. Jenna Ortega (The Fallout, Hurry Up Tomorrow) stars as the titular Addams daughter, as season 2 demands she navigate family, friends, and old adversaries, propelling her into another year of delightfully dark and kooky mayhem.  

Armed with her signature razor-sharp wit and deadpan charm, Wednesday is also plunged into a new bone-chilling supernatural mystery. There’s plenty of familiar faces, including Morticia, Gomez and Pugsley, along with a host of alluring and intriguing guest spots. Nothing is what it seems this time around. She might be back at school willingly, but is she quite so in charge of her own destiny?

Ridley

Sun 10 Aug

ITV

The ever-reliable Adrian Dunbar (Line of Duty) returns for another season of this crime drama, after quite a wait. Retired detective Alex Ridley still lends his skills to the police service as a consultant, because some mysteries require a bit of experience. Together with DI Carol Farman, who has now taken over, he’s got plenty on his plate.

The action will take the intrepid pair from the atmospheric British moors to the pulsating beats of an illegal rave, in the endless pursuit of justice. Still coming to terms with the loss of his wife and daughter, Ridley fills his downtime performing in the jazz club he partly owns. Whether it’s playing piano with intricate time structures or piecing together intricate pieces of a puzzle, he won’t let you down.

Alien: Earth

Weds 13 Aug

Disney+

In the year 2120, the Earth is governed by five corporations: Prodigy, Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic, and Threshold. In this Corporate Era, cyborgs (humans with both biological and artificial parts) and synthetics (humanoid robots with artificial intelligence) exist alongside humans.  

But the game is changed when the wunderkind Founder and CEO of Prodigy Corporation unlocks a new technological advancement: hybrids (humanoid robots infused with human consciousness). The first hybrid prototype, named Wendy, marks a new dawn in the race towards immortality. After Weyland-Yutani’s spaceship collides into Prodigy City, Wendy and other hybrids encounter mysterious life forms more terrifying than anyone could have ever imagined.  

Butterfly

Weds 13 Aug

Prime Video

A character-driven spy thriller exploring complex family dynamics, Butterfly is set within the treacherous world of global espionage. Daniel Dae Kim (Hawaii Five-0, Lost) plays David Jung, an enigmatic, highly unpredictable former US intelligence operative now living in South Korea.

His life is blown to pieces when the consequences of an impossible decision from his past come back to haunt him. Reina Hardesty (The Secret Art of Human Flight) plays Rebecca, a deadly, sociopathic young agent who is relentlessly pursuing him. It soon emerges that she works for Caddis, a sinister spy organization, who have very good reasons to want him out of the picture.  

Hostage

Thurs 21 Aug

Netflix

Two world leaders, one crisis, Suranne Jones, and a load of intrigue… sign us up for that. State visits are always fraught with diplomatic obstacles, but this one goes worse than everyone could have imagined. When the British Prime Minister’s husband is kidnapped and the French President is blackmailed, the two premiers must navigate a dangerous conspiracy.

With the world looking on, elections looming and loved ones in danger, the stakes are pushed to increasingly dizzying heights. Starring Suranne Jones (Gentleman Jack, Doctor Foster), Julie Delpy (Before Sunrise, Meet the Barbarians) and Corey Mylchreest, and written by by Matt Charman (Bridge of Spies, Treason), this political thriller is rammed full of captivating performances.

Invasion

Fri 22 Aug

Apple TV+

A sweeping, character-driven science fiction drama series, Invasion follows different perspectives of Earth’s takeover by alien forces. Set across multiple continents, season three welcomes back Golshifteh Farahani, Shioli Kutsuna, Shamier Anderson, India Brown, Shane Zaza, Enver Gjokaj and Billy Barratt, and introduces new series regular Erika Alexander.

We last saw some of the stories begin to intersect, as matters collapsed into total conflict. Increasingly, it seems mankind’s only hope against the incursion to to act together. While the vast mothership watches over everything, elite units are getting ready to take the fight to the invaders. But will the uneasy relationships last long enough to save the day?

Upload

Mon 25 Aug

Prime Video

Robbie Amell stars in this innovative sci-fi comedy from Greg Daniels (The Office, Parks and Recreation). In a technologically advanced future, holographic phones, self-driving vehicles, AI assistance, and 3D food printers are normal, and humans can now choose to be “uploaded” into a virtual afterlife when they find themselves near-death.

Now, in this four-part series finale, sentient AI is rapidly turning evil, threatening to wipe out Lakeview (and the rest of the world). On top of greedy executives, lingering mysteries, plus heartbreak in VR and IRL, our characters are tested like never before. The only way they can get through it all and save humanity from deletion is by teaming up one last time.  

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf

Weds 27 Aug

Prime Video

Chris Pratt suits up and straps in again for this Navy SEALS drama, based on the best-selling novel by Jack Carr. This time we get a prequel series, as we examine the origins of elite operator, Ben Edwards (Taylor Kitsch). From his journey through the ranks with the United States Navy to the clandestine side of CIA Special Operations.  

Everything takes place seven years before the events of the 2022 hit series The Terminal List, which was based on the book by New York Times best-selling author Jack Carr. Now this adrenaline-charged espionage thriller continues to explore the darker side of warfare and the human cost that comes with it.

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