With the 2025-26 TV season officially in the history books, this week found the industry collectively looking ahead to the next calendar year. Multiple networks and streamers kept Manhattan’s many event venues booked and busy with the annual gathering of advertisers, celebrities, executives, and journalists known as Upfronts Week. It’s an opportunity for participating outlets to tease what’s in store for the 2026-27 season, and get a sense of what TV trends they’re either setting or following.
For Gold Derby’s purposes, Upfronts Week is also a prime time to preview potential 2027 Emmy contenders even as Phase 1 of the 2026 Emmys continues apace. What was striking about this year’s various lineups is how light the overall marketplace feels for new shows that could match returning champs like Season 3 of The Pitt or Season 2 of The Studio — both of which are anticipated to lead their respective 2027 Emmy races sight unseen.
In a notable sign of the times, the closing slot at Upfronts Week didn’t go to a legacy network or an established streamer, but to YouTube, which threw a big Brandcast attended a bevy of big-name creators and celebrities. Already the world’s most-viewed platform for digital video, YouTube will have the Oscars in its arsenal starting in 2029, and could earn its first-ever Emmy statuettes before then as it pushes its original content engine into another gear.
Read on for Gold Derby’s report card from the various upfront presentations we attended this week either in person or virtually. For the record, we focused our attention on new offerings rather than renewals — and awarded bonus points for showmanship.
Upcoming 2026-27 shows: Count My Lies (Hulu), Cry Wolf (FX), The Land (Hulu), The Shards (FX), The Spot (Hulu), VisionQuest (Disney+)
Biggest new hit: The combination of former Disney kids Lindsay Lohan and Shailene Woodley squaring off as grown-ups for a riff on The Hand That Rocks the Cradle seems like ratings catnip for a certain generation of viewers. If nothing else, you can bet it’ll be among the most memed shows of 2027.
Biggest new awards contender: In a lineup heavy on prestige crime dramas featuring big names, Disney’s new shows need something a little extra to stand out from the crowd. To that end, Cry Wolf has the benefit of starring two Oscar winners, Brie Larson and Olivia Colman, which will go a long way towards making Emmy voters tune in.
Biggest question mark: With ‘80s nostalgia rapidly being supplanted by late-‘90s and early-aughts nostalgia, Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis may have missed their window with The Shards, a 1981-set yarn about rich teens — including Kaia Gerber and Homer Gere — behaving badly. But the August release date might pull in some lazy late summer eyeballs.
Best presentation moment: Anne Hathaway opened the event and Olivia Rodrigo closed it out with a three-song set — a bookended pairing that feels just right for the in-the-works Princess Diaries 3. How do you say “Drivers License” in Genovian?
Overall grade: 5/5
Just like its CinemaCon presentation, Disney’s Upfront Week shindig was big on stars and blockbuster brand names. But this one also benefitted from a more cohesive presentation geared towards the adults in the room. The Mouse House clearly has a preferred genre lane for its FX and Hulu outlets — crime and lots of it — while Disney+ will continue to house the company’s all-ages IP-derived series like Marvel’s VisionQuest and the second season of the Star Wars series Ahsoka. You know what you’re getting when you tune into a Disney platform, and that consistency is good for business… and maybe awards.
Upcoming 2026-27 shows: Elle, The Greatest, Ride or Die
Biggest new hit: The cult of Legally Blonde seems likely to embrace the prequel series, which rewinds the clock to Elle Woods’ high school years. With a July 1 launch date, the series surprisingly didn’t get a full court press at the upfront — and the lack of a Reese Witherspoon appearance was much remarked upon — but perhaps Prime Video knows that it’s a series that doesn’t need any additional promotion to find its audience.
Biggest new awards contender: Hailing from Best Actor winner and Prime Video’s new favorite producer Michael B. Jordan, The Greatest dramatizes the early years of Muhammad Ali, played by newcomer Jaalan Best, who impressed the audience in early trailer footage. The Ali estate is involved with the series, which boasts strong period production values and Jordan’s tireless advocacy behind the camera. That’s a good (right) hook for an Emmy campaign.
Biggest question mark: Arnold Schwarzenegger already has one Emmy statuette on his shelf for executive-producing the 2014 docuseries Years of Living Dangerously. But playing Santa Claus in The Man With the Bag could be his ticket to an acting nod. That Christmas story is one of three films that Amazon is sending directly to Prime Video — the other two are a live action Voltron adventure and the rom-com You Deserve Each Other — making them eligible in the newly renamed Best Movie category as well as the Movie/Limited acting races. Not for nothing, but Ah-nuld always said he’d be back…
Best presentation moment: Prime Video seriously pumped up the jams, hiring Kacey Musgraves, Diplo, and Shaboozey — both of whom also played the afterparty — to keep the crowd grooving. Consider our Amazon Music playlists updated.
Overall grade: 4/5
Much like Disney, Prime Video has a content strategy that’s (mostly) working at scoring eyeballs if not statuettes. Via the much-discussed Page to Prime program, the streamer monitors Amazon’s book publishing side to see what’s popping with readers, and then snaps up the TV rights to those page-turners. That’s how they’ve ended up with Dad Lit hits like Reacher and The Terminal List, YA breakouts like The Summer I Turned Pretty and Off Campus, and comic book-based shows like The Boys and the upcoming Sex Criminals. They’ve also got the money to put on a great show — distracting from the weak Emmy slate.
Upcoming 2026-27 shows: Crystal Lake (Peacock), Dig (Peacock), The Five Star Weekend (Peacock), The Good Daughter (Peacock), Line of Fire (NBC), Newlyweds (NBC), The Rockford Files (NBC), Sunset PI (NBC), Ted: The Animated Series (Peacock)
Biggest new hit: Yes, we know we just said that ‘80s nostalgia appears to be over. But ‘80s horror franchises are a separate creature, especially a franchise that’s been lingering in the woods waiting for the right moment to slay again. That’s why we’re eyeing the Friday the 13th prequel series Crystal Lake as a potential Peacock breakout especially with Linda Cardellini playing Jason Voorhees’s bloody mama. If the long-in-the-works show is as good (and hopefully better) than the best entries in the film franchise — that would be IV, VIII and X — Friday fans will be thrilled and chilled.
Biggest new awards contender: Even though the trailer struggled to sell the premise, Dig has to be considered a contender for reuniting Parks and Recreation collaborators Amy Poehler and Mike Schur. Their previous series received 14 nominations, including six acting nods for the widely adored Poehler. Having fellow Emmy favorite Hugh Laurie in the ensemble won’t hurt its chances either.
Biggest question mark: For us, it’s all about trying to game out which classic NBC casts will reunite for the network’s live variety special celebrating its 100th birthday. Will the Cheers gang get back together? How about the surviving Friends? And maybe, just maybe, we’ll get Michael Knight and KITT, both of whom really need to make an appearance in one of those four Fast & Furious shows that Vin Diesel is bringing to Peacock in a couple years.
Best presentation moment: Speaking of reunions, the highlight of the NBCU event was Liz Lemon cueing up a lavish musical number starring Jenna Maroni and featuring a very special cameo by Tracy Jordan. That means the 30 Rock cast will definitely be on hand to celebrate NBC 100.
Overall grade: 3/5
While NBC and Peacock had their success stories during the last TV season — The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins for the former and All Her Fault for the latter — both are still looking for that transformative year that puts them on par with the Big Three of HBO, Netflix, and Apple TV when it comes to the Emmys. This slate won’t get them there, but expect some doubles in lieu of home runs.
Netflix
Upcoming 2026-27 shows: A Different World, East of Eden, The Hawk
Biggest new hit and biggest new awards contender: East of Eden has already seen a notable spike in social media awareness courtesy of internet favorite Florence Pugh. The Oscar-nominated actress takes center stage in the limited series version of John Steinbeck’s classic novel, previously adapted to the big screen in a 1955 film that made James Dean an immortal acting icon. Unless the series lands with a major thud in the fall, Pugh is a shoo-in for acting honors and can potentially bring her co-stars and collaborators along for the awards circuit ride.
Biggest question mark: Happy Gilmore 2 may be among Netflix’s most-watched movies ever, but golf comedies still aren’t guaranteed holes in ones at the Emmys or in the ratings. (Witness Apple TV, which is trying to make its Owen Wilson series Stick stick in voters’ minds.) The same fate could befall Will Ferrell’s return to series television, The Hawk, which reunites him with fellow Not Ready for Primetime players Molly Shannon and Chris Parnell.
Best presentation moment: Those Hunting Wives Malin Akerman and Brittany Snow celebrated the breakout success of the show’s first season — and soon-to-drop Season 2 — with some down-home line dancing.
Overall grade: 3/5
It’s no secret that Netflix increasingly sees itself as being more than a source of binge-worthy series television, expanding into live events, live experiences and theatrical features. That’s why traditional TV shows almost took a backseat during the upfront, which promoted the company’s push into other genres and media formats over the next year. Make no mistake, Netflix is still churning out plenty of returning hits — but its fall offerings feel light on fresh scripted fare.
Warner Bros. Discovery
Upcoming 2026-27 shows: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (HBO), High Value Target (TNT), Lanterns (HBO), The Librarians: The Next Chapter (TNT), Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness (HBO), Stuart Fails to Save the Universe (HBO), War (HBO)
Biggest new hit: The DC Comics-derived Lanterns occupies the late-summer spot where The Penguin took flight two years ago on its way to big ratings and 24 Emmy nominations and nine wins. The pairing of Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre as two hard-traveling heroes is a great bit of casting that has the potential to expand the series beyond the usual members of the Green Lantern Corps.
Biggest new awards contender: With Curb Your Enthusiasm over, Emmy voters have to find another way to shower Larry David with nominations. He’s made that job easier with the new sketch-comedy series Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness, made in collaboration with President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground production company. That’s pretty, pretty good company to keep.
Biggest question mark: He’s baaaack. Harry Potter and his Wizarding World friends are returning for an eight-episode adaptation of the first book in J.K. Rowling’s fantasy series. The handwringing over this revival — and Rowling’s divisive place in pop culture — will continue until the first episode drops, but there is a younger generation of Potter readers out there for whom the feature films are old news. We’ll see if enough of them tune in to make HBO commit to go the distance with adaptations of all seven books.
Best presentation moment: Noah Wyle and Katherine LaNasa took the stage for a well-deserved Pitt victory lap and teased that Season 3 will be set around the holidays. At this point, it’s going to take a superhero to knock the medical drama out of front-runner status at both the 2026 and 2027 Emmys.
Overall grade: 2/5
WBD execs opened the upfront by directly acknowledging “the Ellison in the room,” as Paramount Skydance seeks to complete its takeover. Maybe that’s why the company didn’t go out of their way to put on a big show, getting the audience in and out of Madison Square Garden in a little under an hour, skipping any big musical acts and only offering a modest assembling of big stars. Consider this low key upfront a placeholder for whatever WBD becomes next.
Fox
Upcoming 2026-27 shows: Baywatch, The Interrogator
Biggest new hit and biggest new awards contender: As one of only two new shows premiering on Fox this fall, The Interrogator ticks both of these boxes by default. Stephen Fry wrote and stars in this procedural, playing an ex-MI6 agent who has since set up his own crime solving shop overseen Jenna Elfman’s former CIA operative. While the primetime crime time market is certainly oversaturated, The Interrogator could potentially find an audience, and Fry also happens to be a respected industry veteran who has been nominated for multiple awards — but never an Emmy.
Biggest question mark: Nobody asked for a Baywatch revival, but will anyone who grew up in the ‘90s be able to resist tuning in for at least one episode? The early footage that screened at the upfront strikes a bizarrely prestige tone with slicker production values and bigger action set-pieces than the David Hasselhoff version. Maybe audiences will be there for this update after all.
Best presentation moment: Jon Hamm and Joel McHale were paired as presenters and made a strong case for why they should get their own buddy comedy series.
Overall grade: 2/5
It’s no accident that most of Fox’s upfront was dedicated sports and news — the two areas where the company dominates. The Fox network itself seems more or less content to coast along as a line item on the balance sheet, bringing in just enough revenue with scripted programming to keep the lights on, but not making waves in the ratings game or the awards race.
