January 2026 arrives without asking permission — and makes it clear the year has no intention of warming up slowly. Streaming platforms kick off the calendar with highly anticipated returns, new seasons of established bets, and premieres that move between psychological thrillers, intimate human drama, epic fantasy, and the enduring pull of true stories. It’s a month that blends continuity and rupture: familiar characters are pushed to their limits, while new narratives test how far audiences are willing to go.

There’s political and moral tension, crimes that expose social fractures, romances built on silence and missed timing, and a renewed fascination with behind-the-scenes worlds — whether from the entertainment industry or from History itself. January also reinforces something streaming has been making increasingly clear: the comfort of the familiar continues to coexist with creative risk. From escapism in distant worlds to stories that are painfully real and intimate, the month’s premieres sketch out a dense, ambitious — and often unsettling — portrait.

This is not a start-of-year slate designed for automatic distraction. January 2026 asks for attention, stamina, and, above all, a willingness to dive into narratives that don’t promise easy answers — only strong stories, told without the need to please at all costs.

Apple TV+

Hijack – Season 2 | January 14
We reunite with Sam Nelson (Idris Elba). After surviving an entire season hijacked in the air, he now finds himself aboard a Berlin subway train, where passengers are taken hostage while, above ground, authorities race against time to save hundreds of lives. One wrong decision can lead to disaster.

Shrinking – Season 3 | January 28
I don’t quite understand the hype when all I see are the flaws in the show’s premise — but here we are, heading into a third season. Will I finally change my mind?

Amazon Prime Video

The Night Manager – Season 2 | January 11
Jonathan Pine (Tom Hiddleston) believed he had buried his past. Now living as Alex Goodwin — a low-level MI6 officer running a discreet surveillance unit in London — his life is comfortably uneventful. Until one night, a chance sighting of a former Roper mercenary triggers a call to action and leads Pine into a violent confrontation with a new player: Colombian businessman Teddy Dos Santos (Diego Calva).

On this dangerous new journey, Pine meets Roxana Bolaños (Camila Morrone), a businesswoman who reluctantly helps him infiltrate Teddy’s Colombian arms operation. Once in Colombia, Pine is plunged into a deadly plot involving weapons and the training of a guerrilla army. As allegiances fracture, he races to expose a conspiracy designed to destabilize an entire nation. Surrounded by betrayal at every turn, Pine must decide who he can trust — and how far he’s willing to go before it’s too late.

The Steal | January 21
A contemporary, high-stakes thriller about the heist of the century — and the ordinary employee caught at its center. During what should be a routine day at pension fund investment firm Lochmill Capital, Zara (Sophie Turner) and her best friend Luke (Archie Madekwe) are forced to carry out the demands of a violent gang that storms the building. But who would steal billions from the pensions of ordinary people — and why? Chief Inspector Rhys (Jacob Fortune-Lloyd) is determined to find out, even as his own struggles with gambling addiction and financial trouble threaten to compromise the investigation.

Disney+

The Beauty – Beautiful to Die For | January 21
In FX’s The Beauty – Beautiful to Die For, the world of high fashion takes a sinister turn when international supermodels begin dying under mysterious and disturbing circumstances. FBI agents Cooper Madsen (Evan Peters) and Jordan Bennett (Rebecca Hall) are sent to Paris to investigate. They soon uncover a sexually transmitted virus that transforms people into versions of hegemonic physical perfection — at a devastating cost.

The investigation puts them in the crosshairs of “The Corporation,” a tech billionaire (Ashton Kutcher) who secretly created a drug called The Beauty and will do anything to protect his trillion-dollar empire, including unleashing his hired killer, “The Assassin” (Anthony Ramos). As the epidemic spreads, Jeremy (Jeremy Pope), a man on the margins of society searching for purpose, is drawn into the heart of the chaos. Racing through Paris, Venice, Rome, and New York, the agents confront a threat capable of reshaping humanity’s future. The Beauty asks a chilling question: how far would someone go to achieve hegemonic perfection?

Magnum | January 27
Simon Williams, an aspiring Hollywood actor, struggles to break through. After a chance encounter with Trevor Slattery, an actor whose best roles appear to be behind him, Simon learns that legendary director Von Kovak is making a new version of the superhero film Magnum. Two actors at opposite ends of their careers pursue roles that could change their lives — while audiences are given a behind-the-scenes look at the entertainment industry.

HBO Max

The Pitt | January 8
We return to the most successful journey yet inside a Pittsburgh emergency room. Pure, unfiltered drama — unmissable.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms | January 18
One of the most anticipated premieres of the year. A century before the events of Game of Thrones, two unlikely heroes roam Westeros: a young, naïve yet courageous knight, Ser Duncan the Tall, and his diminutive squire, Egg. Set in an era when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne and the memory of the last dragon has not yet faded, great destinies, powerful enemies, and dangerous exploits await these incomparable friends.

Mel Brooks: The 99-Year-Old Man! | January 22
This documentary explores the life, career, friendships, and loves of legendary writer, director, producer, and performer Mel Brooks. One of Hollywood’s boldest satirists — from early television sketch comedy through film and stage hits — Brooks has held up a funhouse mirror to the human condition for nearly a century, using laughter as a path to resilience, connection, and joy.

MGM+

The Hillside Strangler | January 21
In the late 1970s, Los Angeles was the serial murder capital of the world. The Freeway Killers. The Toolbox Killers. The Dating Game Killer. The Skid Row Slasher. But none terrorized the city more than the Hillside Strangler — a phantom who abducted, raped, and murdered a dozen women and girls, leaving their bodies displayed on hillsides like grim trophies.

The crimes triggered the largest manhunt in LA’s bloody history, led by relentless homicide detective Frank Salerno. His pursuit revealed that the atrocities were committed by two men: Kenneth Bianchi and his cousin Angelo Buono. After the longest criminal trial in U.S. history, both were sentenced to life in prison. Now, for the first time in over 40 years, Salerno revisits the case that defined his career — and changed him forever. And for the first time on camera, Kenneth Bianchi is willing to speak.

Netflix

At Any Cost | January 1
Simon had the perfect life: a loving wife, children, a great job, and a beautiful home. Then his eldest daughter, Paige, ran away — and everything collapsed. When he finally finds her, vulnerable and addicted in a city park, Simon believes he has a chance to bring her home. But she’s not alone, and an argument escalates into shocking violence. In the aftermath, Simon loses his daughter all over again. His search for her will lead him into a dangerous underworld — and uncover secrets that could destroy his family forever.

His & Hers | January 8
Set in the suffocating heat of Atlanta, Anna lives in haunting isolation, drifting away from friends and her career as a news anchor. When she hears about a murder in Dahlonega — the quiet town where she grew up — she’s jolted back to life and throws herself into the case. Detective Jack Harper is suspicious of her involvement, drawing her into the crosshairs of his own investigation. Every story has two sides — His & Hers — which means someone is always lying.

People We Meet on Vacation | January 9
Poppy and Alex have been best friends for ten years, despite having almost nothing in common. She’s extroverted, chaotic, and always on the move; he’s reserved, methodical, and devoted to routine. Since college, they’ve shared a tradition: one weeklong vacation together every year.

But two years ago, something happened — and they haven’t spoken since. Now Poppy is determined to fix what broke and convinces Alex to take one last trip. Through memories, awkward silences, and unspoken feelings, they must confront what really happened — and what they’ve always felt for each other. A story about friendship, bad timing, missed choices, and the thin line between platonic and romantic love.

Seven Dials | January 15
England, 1925. At a lavish country house party, a seemingly harmless prank goes terribly, fatally wrong. It falls to the most unlikely sleuth — the effervescent and curious Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent — to unravel a chilling plot that will change her life, cracking the country house mystery wide open.

Suspicious Money | January 16
After discovering millions in cash inside a derelict stash house, trust among a team of Miami cops begins to fracture. As outside forces learn the scale of the seizure, everything is called into question — including who they can really rely on.

Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart | January 21
In the early hours of June 5, 2002, 14-year-old Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her bedroom in Salt Lake City, sparking one of the most high-profile missing-person cases in U.S. history. This gripping documentary tells the story in Elizabeth’s own words, alongside exclusive interviews with her family, investigators, and those closest to the case.

Blending archival footage with never-before-seen material, the film traces the harrowing nine months of Elizabeth’s captivity at the hands of Brian David Mitchell and Wanda Barzee. It explores the psychological toll on Elizabeth and her family, the relentless media scrutiny, and the unwavering determination that kept her alive — and her spirit strong — more than twenty years later.

Bridgerton – Season 4 | January 29
The fourth season of Bridgerton turns its focus to bohemian second son Benedict Bridgerton (Luke Thompson). Despite pressure from matriarch Lady Violet (Ruth Gemmell), Benedict refuses to settle down — until he’s captivated by a mysterious Lady in Silver at his mother’s masquerade ball.

With reluctant help from his sister Eloise (Claudia Jessie), Benedict searches society to uncover her identity. What he doesn’t realize is that the woman he longs for isn’t in the ballrooms at all — she’s Sophie Baek (Yerin Ha), a resourceful maid working for the formidable Araminta Gun (Katie Leung). Torn between fantasy and reality, Benedict must confront whether love can overcome the rigid boundaries of class — and whether failing to see two women as one might cost him everything.