The entertainment industry was shocked when Netflix lost subscribers for thefirst time in a decade in the first quarter of 2022. Wall Street lost faith instreaming and suddenly the days of unbridled growth and unprecedented budgetsfor big TV series seemed over. __
Nevertheless, it will not be much less in the short term with the contentsupply and the associated series choice stress. Also in 2023, hundreds of newseries will compete for the attention of the viewer, the new economic realitymay not be visible until later in the offer. Last year the conversation was alot about very expensive blockbuster series like House of the Dragon and_The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power_. The success of a much smallerproduction like The Bear , one of the best series of 2022, proves that thereis a demand for authentic stories with ‘real’ flesh and blood characters. ThatAmerican drama series, about a tormented star chef who has to take over asimple sandwich shop after the death of his brother, stood out for itsrealistic depiction of kitchen life.
The streaming and TV highlights of 2023 are difficult to predict. For example,last year around this time hardly anyone knew The Bear was coming at all.Nevertheless, many productions have already been announced that lookpromising.
Fleishman is in Trouble
Writer and New York Times journalist Taffy Brodesser-Akner edited her debutnovel Fleishman Is in Trouble to a miniseries and strict top actors JesseEisenberg, Claire Danes and Lizzy Caplan for the leading roles. Recentlydivorced Toby Fleishman, in his forties, enjoys modern Manhattan dating life.And then his ex-wife Rachel suddenly disappears. The series has alreadyreceived rave reviews in the US.
Disney+, February 22
Daisy Jones & The Six
Another book adaptation, this time based on a novel about the rise and fall ofa fictional rock group in the 1970s that is very reminiscent of Fleetwood Mac,a band that was constantly in conflict despite great success. In the series,the characters look back on their heyday twenty years after the end of theband Daisy Jones & The Six. Actress Riley Keough, a granddaughter of ElvisPresley, plays the role of the charismatic frontwoman.
Prime Video, March 3
CAST
After The Lice Mother a new satire by Ilse Warringa, about a casting tycoonsimilar to Job Gosschalk who is canceled after revelations about histransgressive behavior. A discussion about whether such a plot is stillpossible after all the revelations about NPO icons such as DWDD and NOSSports seems inevitable. There are leading roles for Gijs Scholten vanAschat, Jacqueline Blom and Lykele Muus.
NTR, March 16
Arcadia
Ambitious futuristic co-production of NPO and VRT, set in a fictional societyin the near future. After a major catastrophe, resources are scarce and apoints system is introduced that measures people’s quality of life. Based onthis so-called citizen score, it is determined what each person may or may notdo in society. Tim Oliehoek ( Hendrik Groen ‘s secret diary) directs MonicHendrickx, Maarten Heijmans and Melody Klaver.
KRO-NCRV, 19 March
The White House Plumbers
Political miniseries about the Watergate scandal. _The White House Plumbers_tells the story from the perspective of E. Howard Hunt and G. Gordon Liddy,two loyal team members of President Nixon. They were nicknamed ‘the plumbers’.The two staged the break-in that ultimately marked the end of the presidency.
HBO Max, March
Queen Charlotte A Bridgerton Story
The success of costume drama Bridgerton is further expanded with a prequelseries about the young Queen Charlotte. The story shows how Charlotte becamepowerful and influential. There is also room for the love story with KingGeorge. The young talent India Ria Amarteifio takes on the role of Charlotte.
Netflix, May 4
1985
Belgian thriller series based on true stories about the infamous Bende vanNijvel, which committed a number of gruesome robberies in the mid-1980s. Thewave of violence is one of the major Belgian collective traumas of recentdecades. The series follows three young adults – including young star TijmenGovaerts – who accidentally end up in the eye of the gang’s storm.
NPO, May
Ferry The series
The fourth series of Netflix hit Under cover is a prequel that follows thefilm Ferry , which showed how the unpredictable Brabant drug king (FrankLammers) met his great love Daniëlle (Elise Schaap). Old acquaintances such asMonic Hendrickx, Raymond Thiry and Yannick van de Velde return. A new face isTygo Gernandt as Ricardo, Ferry’s unreliable business partner.
Netflix, Mid 2023
Masters of the Air
The creators of the war series Band of Brothers and The Pacific are backwith another mega production. Masters of the Air is about pilots of theAmerican Eighth Air Force. During World War II, they are tasked withdestroying strategic points in Germany. Tom Hanks and Steven Spielbergproduce.
Apple TV+, in 2023
Macro Mafia season 5
It’s been five years Macro Mafia one of Videoland’s well-watchedhobbyhorses. The series, with leading roles for Achmed Akkabi, Nasrdin Dcharand Robert de Hoog, tells about the battle between a number of leaders in theAmsterdam drug world. The young team of makers of the bloody series knows verywell how to incorporate current developments in the criminal circuit into thestory. MM5 will be the first season without Akkabi as showrunner.
Videoland, in 2023
Full Circle
Steven Soderbergh’s new series ( Ocean ‘s Eleven, Magic Mike and muchmore) is about an investigation into a failed kidnapping. We don’t know muchmore, but Soderberg’s work is almost always worthwhile.
HBO Max, in 2023
Plus: new seasons of succession and other hit series
This spring, all eyes are once again on the dysfunctional Roy family. In thefourth season of succession , the crown jewel of HBO Max, the battle forsuccession to media mogul Logan Roy continues. Masterful dialogues, dirtygames and a lot of humor too. Other hits will also return in 2023, such as theinfluential science fiction series BlackMirror (Netflix) and the alwayssurprising Fargo (Prime Video). Furthermore, the crime series TrueDetective revived. In True Detective: Night Country (HBO Max) JodieFoster plays a detective who has to solve a missing person case in Alaska.
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