movies to watch

25. “Big Little Lies”
Synopsis: Three mothers with kids at kindergarten become friends, a friendship that will end… in murder.
What You Need To Know: So far, prestige-y TV drama has mostly leant towards being quite male-driven. “The Sopranos,” “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” “The Wire” — most of the most highly praised shows of the modern era had memorable female characters, but were unmistakably dude-centric. That’s starting to shift, with shows like “UnReal,” but could “Big Little Lies” be the one that helps actually change the culture a but, and do for Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon what “True Detective” did for Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson? The stars were initially adapting this adaptation of Australian author Liane Moriarty as a movie before shifting it to become a HBO series, adapted by “Ally McBeal” creator David E. Kelley, and now “Dallas Buyers Club” director Jean-Marc Vallée has been brought on to direct all seven episodes, Cary Fukunaga-style. Production starts soon, and it’s now cast up, with Shailene Woodley signed on for the third lead, and Alexander Skarsgard, Adam Scott, Laura Dern, James Tupper and Zoë Kravitz in support.
Release Date: Production gets underway in January: with Vallée helming all of it, getting it done in time for a 2016 airing might be a little tricky, even if a hole in the schedule opens, but we think it’s doable. We reckon an “Olive Kitteridge”-style slot in the fall makes the most sense.
24. “Divorce”
Synopsis: A woman tries to make a fresh start after a divorce.
What You Need To Know: Fans of bleak, testosterone-y “True Detective”-style HBO drama might run for the hills at the news that Sarah Jessica Parker is returning to the network, twelve years after “Sex And The City” wrapped up. But for one thing, they’re forgetting that before it was tainted by the terrible movies, that show was a groundbreaking and often terrific comedy. And there’s reason to believe that “Divorce,” starring and produced by Parker, could be something special. The cast is strong: Thomas Haden Church plays her ex-husband, Molly Shannon her best friend, and Talia Balsam, Robert Forster, Tracy Letts and Jemaine Clement all have roles. But the reason we’re really amped is that it’s created by the great Sharon Horgan, the Irish actress/writer who was behind both “Pulling” and the currently ongoing, absolutely brilliant “Catastrophe.” If “Divorce” can be half as raw, funny and charming about splitting up as “Catastrophe” is about getting together, we’ll be there every week.
Airdate: Not yet announced, but with “Girls,” “Togetherness,” “Veep” and “Silicon Valley” taking up HBO comedy slots until the summer, it could be paired with “Ballers,” but the fall seems more likely.
23. “Shots Fired”
Synopsis: An investigator and a special prosecutor investigate a series of racially charged shootings in a Tennessee town.
What You Need To Know: Aside from the occasional blip — “American Crime,” for instance — network TV mostly shies away from hot-button issues or bold ambition in their shows, but with ratings continuing to plummet, that’s starting to change, and Fox’s “Shots Fired” is the kind of show that even a big cable network would deem risky. Created, and set to be in part directed by, the great Gina Prince-Bythewood, writer-director of “Love & Basketball” and the wonderful, woefully underseen “Beyond The Lights,” it’s a highly topical thriller engaging with the issues that have reached a peak in the last few years involving violence towards African-Americans at the hands of police. “Ferguson: The TV Show,” essentially, and few filmmakers have shown such capacity for nuanced and whip-smart looks at racial issues identity in a commercial way as Prince-Bythewood. It’s already picked up to series by Fox, and has found a lead in the shape of the director’s “Love & Basketball” lead Sanaa Lathan.
Airdate: Network schedules are nebulous, but with the show being commissioned last month and being described as an “event series,” we imagine it’ll arrive in the summer.
22. “Atlanta”
Synopsis: Two cousins make their way up Atlanta’s rap scene.
What You Need To Know: In one of those strange “Capote”-ish coincidences (or perhaps not, given the success of “Empire”), two of the biggest cable networks are each premiering a comedy show set in the music world in Atlanta. HBO’s effort is “Brothers In Atlanta,” created by and starring comics Diallo Riddle and Bashir Salahuddin, directed by Tim Story and co-starring Maya Rudolph and Jaden Smith, but we’re a little more excited, sight unseen, on FX’s “Atlanta.” The show’s created by youthful polymath Donald Glover, who’s had about four different careers before hitting 30: going from “30 Rock” writer to “Community” star to star rapper as Childish Gambino to movie actor in “The Martian” and “Magic Mike XXL.” His show, in which he also plays the lead alongside Tyree Henry, should draw on all those skills, and is clearly a very personal project for an actor who’s long deserved a showcase like this. Speaking of, his right-hand-man in the show is played by the awesome Keith Stanfield, who’s broken out in things like “Short Term 12” and “Selma,” and should play beautifully off Glover. And it should get authenticity and flair from director Hiro Murai, who’s made his name in the music video world helming clips not just for Glover, but also for Earl Sweatshirt, Flying Lotus, Shabazz Palaces and Queens Of The Stone Age.
Airdate: FX picked this up to series in October: our guess is it’ll probably arrive in the summer at some point.
21. “The Crown”
Synopsis: Epic historical drama following the life of Queen Elizabeth II.
What You Need To Know: With “Downton Abbey” wrapping up, costume drama fans are in the market for a new obsession, and it might be here in the shape of Netflix’s “The Crown.” Ambitiously setting out to tell the entire life of Britain’s longest-running (and still going…) monarch, it comes from the pen of Peter Morgan, who’s had enormous success with this subject matter with the Oscar-nominated “The Queen” (and again on Broadway with “The Audience”). There are more awards-friendly names behind the camera too: “Billy Elliot” helmer Stephen Daldry directed the pilot, and Stephen Frears has done an episode or two as well. The cast, as you might imagine, is superb: Claire Foy, so good in “Wolf Hall,” has the lead role, “Doctor Who” veteran Matt Smith is future husband Philip Mountbatten, John Lithgow is Winston Churchill, Jared Harris is George VI, and plenty more British drama luminaries are involved as well. But will it be “Downton Abbey”-style pandering, or will have it a little more bite?
Airdate: Production was underway last summer: we expect it’ll hit Netflix late spring for Emmy qualification.

20. “11.22.63”
Synopsis: A teacher attempts to travel back in time to stop the assassination of JFK.
What You Need To Know: Though it’s popular enough for catching up on “New Girl” or whatever, Hulu’s original programming hasn’t yet had a breakout hit of the size of “House Of Cards” or “The Man In The High Castle” — last year saw “Difficult People” and “Casual” win acclaim, but seemingly not all that much buzz among the viewing public. But the network has some heavy hitters lined up for 2016, first and foremost this eight-episode adaptation of Stephen King’s best-selling time travel thriller. It’s the first foray into streaming drama for J.J. Abrams and his Bad Robot company, which automatically bestows a certain “Lost”-like mystique on the show, while Kevin MacDonald, director of “Last King Of Scotland” and “Touching The Void,” helms a couple of episodes, including the first. Aside from the “Sound Of Thunder”-ish time travel setup, the biggest selling point might be the cast: James Franco somehow found time to play the lead role, while Chris Cooper, Sarah Gadon, Cherry Jones, George MacKay and Josh Duhamel join him.
Airdate: February 15th
19. “Baskets”
Synopsis: A Paris-trained clown returns to the States, and can only find work at a rodeo.
What You Need To Know: Louis CK is more or less the crown prince of FX: while he’s taking a year or two off “Louie” to focus on a movie, he’s got three separate projects at the channel, including an animated pilot co-written with Albert Brooks, and “Better Things,” which stars long-time collaborator Pamela Adlon. The first to arrive, however, will be “Baskets,” which he co-created with Zach Galafianakis, who also stars in the title role. Seeming to fit nicely into the “Louie”/“Bojack Horseman” sad-com tradition, it’s the first small screen showcase for the “Hangover” megastar since since “Bored To Death,” and looks to be the strongest example yet of his particular comic voice, right down to a role for alter-ego/faux twin brother Seth Galafianakis. “Portlandia” and “Kroll Show” veteran Jonathan Krisel helmed the pilot, and the supporting cast seems to mostly involve newcomers, so Galafianakis is certainly the big draw here. The teaser trailer looks promising, and it hits in just a few weeks. First great show of 2016? Let’s hope so.
Airdate: January 21st
18. “Luke Cage”
Synopsis: A bartender with super strength and unbreakable city attempts to rebuild his life, but becomes embroiled in a battle for the city.
What You Need To Know: Marvel’s Netflix experiment got off to a pretty strong start in 2014: neither “Daredevil” nor “Jessica Jones” were perfect, but each had a lot going for them, particularly the latter, which was stealthily an examination of abuse and trauma disguised as a superhero noir. Jessica hadn’t even been hinted at in its predecessor “Daredevil,” so the third of five shows (“Iron Fist” will follow, with a “Defenders” team-up miniseries after that) is at an immediate advantage, as its central character was already a main character in “Jessica Jones.” The show, being run by Cheo Hodari Coker (“Notorious,” “Ray Donovan”), takes Mike Colter’s near-indestructible Luke to Harlem, with a predominately African-American cast including Alfre Woodard and Simone Missick. Arguably the best features of these shows have been the villains, and it’s too early to see whether villainous nightclub owner Cottonmouth can fill the shoes of Kingpin and Kilgrave, he’s got a very fine actor playing him, in the shape of “House Of Cards” veteran Mahershala Ali.
Airdate: September 30th
17. “The Night Manager”
Synopsis: A former soldier turned hotel concierge as recruited into British intelligence to help bring down an arms dealer.
What You Need To Know: Few novelists have remained as consistently filmable as John Le Carré, and after the recent “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” and “A Most Wanted Man,” 2016 brings two adaptations, one big-screen — “Our Kind Of Traitor,” with Ewan McGregor, Stellan Skarsgard and Naomie Harris — and this tantalizing miniseries, a collaboration between the BBC and AMC. Adapted by “Hanna” scribe David Farr and with all six episodes directed by Oscar-winning Danish filmmaker Susanna Bier (“Open Hearts,” “In A Better World”), this builds Le Carré’s 1993 novel out into six hours (giving it room to breathe in a way that the films have sometimes been lacking, according to some). And the cast is positively movie-quality: Tumblr heartthrob Tom Hiddleston in the lead role, Hugh Laurie as his adversary, and Elizabeth Debicki, Olivia Colman, Tom Hollander, David Harewood and Douglas Hodge in support.
Airdate: Unclear yet, but we suspect it’ll take the slot of either “The Walking Dead” or “Better Call Saul” when their current seasons wrap up in the spring.
16. “War And Peace”
Synopsis: Miniseries adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s epic novel of five aristocratic families around the Napoleon’s invasion of Russia.
What You Need To Know: Despite its sprawling 1200-page length, there have been multiple attempts to bring“War and Peace” to the screen, from the 3 1/2 hour King Vidor movie in 1956 to the acclaimed four-part Russian version in 1966 to a 1972 BBC miniseries. This new take, a collaboration between the BBC and the Weinstein Company, might be the starriest yet: Paul Dano and Lily James take the lead roles of Pierre and Natasha, while the supporting cast is a who’s-who of rising British names and established character actors, including James Norton, Tom Burke, Tuppence Middleton, Callum Turner, Greta Scacchi, Aneurin Barnard, Mathieu Kassovitz, Stephen Rea, Brian Cox, Gillian Anderson and, inevitably, Jim Broadbent. Emerging Brit director Tom Harper (“The Scouting Book For Boys”) is directing, and by reaction to the first episode, which aired in the U.K. this Sunday, he’s done a damn fine job with it.

 
12. “Preacher”
Synopsis: A conflicted preacher in a Texas town is possessed by a powerful supernatural force, and sets out on a trip with his hitwoman ex-girlfriend and an Irish vampire, to find God who has gone missing.
What You Need To Know: People have been trying to bring Garth Ennis’ “Preacher,” one of the most acclaimed comic books ever, to the screen for nearly two decades. Kevin Smith was working on a movie in the 1990s, Mark Steven Johnson developed a HBO series in the 2000s (bullet dodged…) and Sam Mendes was going to direct a few years back. In the end, it’s Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg who’ve managed the feat: they developed the show with “Breaking Bad” writer Sam Catlin, and saw it picked up by AMC, who’ve had a mega-success with another gory graphic novel adaptation with “The Walking Dead.” This is likely to be far more controversial thanks to its religious themes, but Rogen and Goldberg (who also directed the pilot) seem like a perfect fit for the puerile-yet-smart material, and from the looks of the trailer, they’ve pulled it off. The cast is fun too: Dominic Cooper in the lead role, and rising thesps Ruth Negga (“Criminal Justice”) and Joseph Gilgun (“This Is England”) co-starring.
Airdate: Apparently aiming for the middle of the year.
 
7. “Westworld”
Synopsis: The story of the guests, inhabitants and creators of Westworld, a wild west theme park using state of the art robot technology to give its clients everything they ever dreamt of.
What You Need To Know: Whatever the pay-cable version of a summer blockbuster is — that’s “Westworld.” Based on Michael Crichton’s sci-fi novel (which itself spawned a successful movie in the ’70s), this J.J. Abrams-produced HBO show is co-created (with his partner, Lisa Joy), and has a pilot directed by Jonathan Nolan, co-writer of “The Prestige,” “The Dark Knight” and “Interstellar,” and creator of “Person Of Interest.” Teasers suggest a midpoint of “Jurassic Park,” “Ex Machina” and “Deadwood.” And the cast is spectacular — Anthony Hopkins, Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden, Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright, Rodrigo Santoro, Ben Barnes, Jimmi Simpson, “Creed” star Tessa Thompson, “The Duke Of Burgundy”’s Sidse Babett Knudsen, Clifton Collins Jr and, stepping into Yul Brynner’s shoes, Ed Harris. It’s clearly HBO’s attempt for a new genre-flecked monster to fill the vacuum that “Game Of Thrones” will leave in a few years, and though it’s taken a little while (it’ll be almost two years, and a few recastings, since the pilot was shot), it shows every chance of being exactly that.
Airdate: Our bet is it’ll step into the big Sunday slot once “Game Of Thrones” wraps up in the summer, where “True Detective” aired last year.All that, plus new series of favorites like “Orange Is The New Black,” “Daredevil,” “Better Call Saul,” “Documentary Now!,” “Mr. Robot,” “Rectify,” “Catastrophe,” “Togetherness,” “Game Of Thrones,” “Broad City,” “The Americans,” “Bojack Horseman,” “Rick & Morty,” “UnReal,” “You’re The Worst,” “The Leftovers,” “Silicon Valley,” “Veep,” “House Of Cards,” Inside Amy Schumer,” “Doctor Who,” “The Last Kingdom,” “Halt & Catch Fire,” “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” “Red Oaks,” “Narcos,”  and “Transparent” (some others, like “Jessica Jones,” “Master Of None,” “Fargo” and “The Knick” either haven’t yet been formally recommissioned, or definitely won’t be returning until 2017). All that, and “Twin Peaks” coming back in early 2017. THERE’S TOO MUCH DAMN TV, PEOPLE. Let us know what you’re looking forward to in the comments.