While 2020 put a complete stop to the production of movies and TV shows, 2021 will be the year you get to watch absolutely all the things.
And 2021 is shaping up to be one hell of a year for the binge stans out there. From Marvel TV shows to brand new Aussie films, streaming juggernauts will no doubt be your happy place to consume all the sitcoms, horror movies and fantasy series in the new year.
Here are all the new release movies and shows to watch on streaming services in 2021.
New Release Movies And Shows On Netflix
Surviving Death
From director and executive producer, Ricki Stern (Reversing Roe, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work), and based on best-selling author and journalist Leslie Kean’s book, Surviving Death is an in-depth investigative series exploring the possibility of an afterlife. Over six episodes, Surviving Death explores questions that have been contemplated throughout time like what does it mean to die, and is death the end of our existence? They’re big questions but after 2020, why wouldn’t you ask them?
Pieces Of a Woman
First up, Martin Scorcese was an exec producer for this one. Martha (Vanessa Kirby) and Sean (Shia LaBeouf) are a Boston couple on the verge of parenthood whose lives change forever when a home birth ends in tragedy. From here, the couple has to navigate heartbreak, grief, a changing relationship and a publicly vilified midwife. Bring the tissues.
The Witcher Season 2
The release date is yet to be confirmed by Netflix but for now, The Witcher season two is set to land in 2021. And while you can definitely brace yourself for more mythical beasts and magic, you’ll also see a few familiar faces too including a slew of faces from Game Of Thrones. Henry Cavill will obviously reprise his role as Geralt of Rivia which nobody is mad about.
Stranger Things Season 4
Once again, there’s no official release date for Stranger Things season four but it has been slated to hit screens sometime in 2021. Keeping with tradition though, Netflix usually drops this series around Halloween so it’ll probably be a while until we know what really happened to Hopper at the end of season three.
New Release Movies And Shows On Stan
Gold
Starring Zac Efron, Gold is a new Aussie movie set to be a bit of a game-changer in 2021. When two drifters travelling through the outback stumble across the biggest gold nugget ever found, the dream of immense wealth and greed takes hold. They make a plan to protect and excavate their finds with one guy leaving to secure the necessary equipment. The other sticks around and has to endure the harsh desert climate, think wolves and various intruders. And we mean, Zac Efron back on our TVs, what’s not to love?
Bump
Keep an eye out on New Year’s Day for what will most likely be the series you watch when you, understandably, can’t get out of bed. Bump is a hilarious drama which follows the life of a girl going through high school who unexpectedly falls pregnant (and unexpectedly goes into labour at that).
All American Season 3
Hitting Stan on 19 January is the third season of All American. Based on the real-life high school years of former NFL star Spencer Paysinger, the last season of All American saw star wide receiver Spencer James (Daniel Ezra) facing a huge moral decision: turn his back on his success and return to his family or stay at the affluent Beverly Hills High School that can help further his football dream? The new season has been hotly anticipated because it will actually address the Black Lives Matter movement, following the social unrest, police brutality and protests in the US of 2020.
New Release Movies And Shows On Disney+
The Falcon And The Winter Soldier
Marvel fans need to get excited about the new series slated to hit 19 March of 2021—The Falcon And The Winter Soldier. This one follows the events of Avengers: Endgame where Falcon and Winter Soldier team up in a global adventure which tests their collective ability (and no doubt their patience too).
Loki
Prep yourself for some more Tom Hiddleston as he reprises his role as the mercurial villain Loki. This series follows the God Of Mischief in a time after Avengers: Endgame and it clocks in as Marvel’s first crime thriller. You’ll also be in for an epic cast line-up including Owen Wilson, Richard E. Grant, Sophia Di Martino, Gugu Mbatha-Raw and Wunmi Mosaku. Loki is set to land on Disney+ 7 May 2021.
Hawkeye
Marvel’s Clint Barton also has his own series coming in 2021 (the actual date is yet to be confirmed). The show will follow Clint as he trains Kate Bishop to essentially be the new Hawkeye and will also explore his time as Ronin (the superhero identity he kept during Avengers: Endgame).
Wandavision
Based on more Marvel Comics characters and happenings, Wandavision is a miniseries arriving on Disney+ in 2021 you need to schedule in. This one will follow the two characters of Wanda Maximoff and Vision who live seemingly normal suburban lives but they begin to suspect that not everything is really as it seems. Wandavision is Marvel Studio’s very first attempt at producing an actual sitcom so keep your eyes peeled.
New Release Movies And Shows On Amazon Prime Video
The Lord Of The Rings
It’s been kept on the down-low but one of the most exciting TV shows to put on your binge list for 2021 is Amazon Prime Video’s adaptation of The Lord Of The Rings. Based on JRR Tolkien's books, this part of the LOTR world will give a heap of the spotlight to Sauron. This one has been dubbed as one of the biggest shows to hit streaming services since Game Of Thrones (huge, we know) and word on the street is that a casual $1 billion has been thrown into production to bring this fantasy show to life.
The Stand
From 15 January, you can expect Stephen King’s apocalyptic drama The Stand to hit Amazon Prime Video. The epic series stars a stellar ensemble cast including Whoopi Goldberg and Alexander Skarsgard, alongside Australian actress Odessa Young. Five months after a bioengineered super flu strain, developed by the US military and named “Captain Trips”, sees the death of more than 99 per cent of the world’s population, hundreds of survivors come together to try and start their lives over.
And here's a film buff's guide to travelling Australia's most iconic film locations in 2021.
Image credit: Stan