Don’t forget to mark your calendar.
So far, 2024 has been much better for television than expected, given the impact of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023. However, there was one genre that viewers were desperate to see more of, and that was period dramas. Aside from Bridgerton, there weren’t too many premieres to be excited about in the first half of the year.
The second half, however, has some very interesting titles that you might want to check out. Here are 8 of the most promising period drama premieres to look forward to in the coming months of 2024.
Winter Palace
A co-production of Switzerland’s RTS1, Play Suisse and Netflix, Winter Palace takes viewers to the snowy mountains and luxurious hotel of the early 1900s. The show lands in a sweet spot between a typical period drama and the modernity of The White Lotus, offering a different take on the aristocracy of the time.
The show was scheduled to wrap filming this spring and is expected to premiere later this year.
The War Rooms
The War Rooms, starring Victoria’s Jenna Coleman, was supposed to premiere all the way back in 2022, but has been delayed to this day. Viewers are hoping to see the show about Joan Bright in the second half of 2024.
As well as portraying Bright, who ran Winston Churchill’s secret Whitehall bunker during World War II, the star is also executive producing the show and is excited to share another story of an extraordinary woman with the world.
Rivals
Starring Alex Hassell, David Tennant, Aidan Turner and Victoria Smurfit, Rivals is a television series based on the 1988 novel of the same name by Jilly Cooper. The show was produced for Disney Plus, but will stream on Hulu in the United States.
The show introduces viewers to the highly competitive world of 1980s television, with Hassell and Tennant portraying two rivals, ex-Olympian Rupert Campbell-Black and Corinium Television controller Tony Baddingham.
Blitz
Produced by Apple TV Plus, this period drama follows a group of Londoners as they try to survive the German bombing raids of 1940 and 1941.
Written and directed by Steve McQueen, the film will star two of Hollywood’s hottest stars, Saoirse Ronan and Harris Dickinson. Many audiences were expecting the premiere to hit the festival circuit first, but for now, it is set to debut exclusively on Apple TV Plus later in 2024.
The Critic
The Ian McKellen-led thriller The Critic debuted at last year’s Toronto Film Festival, but has yet to be released to the masses. The story of the city’s feared and vicious theater critic, Jimmy Erskine, who is forced to make a pact with a young actress, is set to be the most intriguing premiere of the fall.
Lionsgate UK has acquired the rights to premiere the film in the UK and Ireland on September 13, but there’s no word yet on when it will hit streaming platforms.
Mr Loverman
Set to premiere soon during the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival, the show will follow Antiguan-born Londoner Barrington Jedidiah Walker as his marriage collapses after a decades-long affair with his male best friend is revealed.
The show will be led by Lennie James, who will portray Jedidiah Walker. The rest of the cast is currently unknown, but the show is set to air in the UK later this year.
Nautilus
The show was on the verge of cancellation when it was dropped by its original streamer, Disney Plus. However, AMC Plus became interested in the production and Nautilus was picked up.
A reimagining of Jules Verne’s 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Nautilus will focus on the origin story of an Indian prince turned crusading scientist, Captain Nemo. The series is scheduled to premiere in 2024.
White Bird
Based on the 2019 graphic novel of the same name by R.J. Palacio, this is another story set during World War II. It focuses on the life of a young Jewish girl in Nazi-occupied France who is hidden from the Nazis by a classmate and his parents.
The devastating time of war is balanced with gratitude, kindness and compassion, making the movie much more hopeful than heartbreaking. The movie will premiere on October 4, 2024.
