Picture Credit: Netflix
It’s once again been a busy start to the year for new international series. As it stands today, the streamer has released 96 new scripted (debut and returning) and unscripted non-English series so far in 2026 as of the time of publishing.
We’ve already taken a look at our picks of the English-language original series, so now it’s time to dive into the best foreign-language gems you might have missed. From gritty crime thrillers to sweeping period dramas, here are 6 (well, technically 7—we couldn’t resist sneaking in a bonus K-drama!) great new international series released on Netflix in 2026 so far.
Bandi
Country of Origin: France
Genre: Crime, Drama | Released: April 9, 2026
Picture Credit: Netflix
From Éric Rochant, the mastermind behind the hit French spy thriller The Bureau, comes this gritty and heartfelt crime drama shot entirely on location in Martinique. The series follows a large family of eleven orphaned siblings who are left to fend for themselves after the sudden death of their mother. Desperate to stay united and keep a roof over their heads, some of the siblings inevitably turn to the local drug trade and organized crime. Defined by its authentic West Indies flavor, it’s not serving up that which has not been done great elsewhere before, but because of where it’s from, it makes it incredibly unique. It’s got some compelling characters, its fair share of action, and it serves as a great follow-up to the British series Top Boy.
Sadly, as you may have seen, Netflix quickly opted not to renew the series for a second season. A surprise cancellation considering it actually picked up some decent viewership.
Lead Children
Country of Origin: Poland
Genre: Medical Thriller, Historical Drama | Released: February 11, 2026
Picture Credit: Netflix
Netflix Poland had a pretty good 2025, with some interesting titles that may not have become global hits but were solid from the region. Its 2026 slate is equally ambitious, and leading the chart is Lead Children (Ołowiane dzieci), one of the country’s best historical miniseries yet.
Inspired by a horrifying true story set in 1970s Communist Poland, it stars Joanna Kulig (Cold War) as an idealistic pediatrician who uncovers a massive lead poisoning epidemic among children living near a local smelting plant. Faced with a corrupt regime desperate to sweep the ecological disaster under the rug to protect its industrial image, she risks her career and life to blow the whistle. It’s a tense, bleak, and ultimately inspiring “contamination drama” akin to Netflix UK’s Toxic Town and, to a much lesser degree, HBO’s Chernobyl, although you’ll recognize some of the era’s themes.
Unfamiliar
Country of Origin: Germany
Genre: Espionage Thriller | Released: February 5, 2026
Unfamiliar. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2026
If you’ve been looking to scratch that spy thriller itch, Unfamiliar is the show for you. Susanne Wolff and Felix Kramer star as Meret and Simon Schäfer, two ex-agents of the German BND who are running a secret safe house in Berlin under assumed identities. They think they’ve left their lethal pasts behind, but the sudden arrival of a Russian GRU agent blows their quiet life wide open, putting them right back in the crosshairs of assassins. It’s a taut, six-episode cat-and-mouse game full of marital secrets, shifting loyalties, and pulse-pounding action across Europe. Fingers crossed, we get more in the future.
Jo Nesbø’s Detective Hole
Country of Origin: Norway
Genre: Nordic Noir, Crime Thriller | Released: March 26, 2026
Harry Hole. (L to R) Tobias Santelmann as Harry Hole in Harry Hole Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2024
Nordic Noir fans, your time has finally come. Famed author Jo Nesbø’s iconic anti-hero, Harry Hole, has made his way to Netflix in this highly anticipated nine-episode adaptation of The Devil’s Star. Tobias Santelmann is absolute perfection as the brilliant but deeply tormented Oslo homicide detective. As a string of ritualistic serial murders rocks the city, Harry must navigate a web of corruption while going head-to-head with his arch-nemesis—the utterly ruthless and corrupt cop Tom Waaler (played masterfully by Joel Kinnaman).
Sadly, this didn’t quite become the global hit we suspect Netflix wanted it to be, but for those who did check it out, many weren’t left disappointed.
The WONDERfools
Country of Origin: South Korea
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action Comedy | Released: May 15, 2026
PIcture Credit: Netflix
It wouldn’t be a What’s on Netflix list without some incredible K-dramas, and we’ve got a bigger list planned soon enough, but we had to feature at least a couple here.
First up is The WONDERfools, a delightfully chaotic and often nostalgic superhero comedy. Set in the apocalyptic panic of late 1999, the show reunites Extraordinary Attorney Woo star Park Eun-bin with director Yoo In-sik. Park plays a clumsy, terminally ill young woman who plots a fake kidnapping with two of her equally clueless friends. When a bizarre chemical accident miraculously resurrects her and grants the trio superpowers, they suddenly find themselves acting as the unlikely defenders of Haeseong City alongside a mysterious city hall worker (ASTRO’s Cha Eun-woo). It’s a hilarious, sometimes absurd, with some somewhat reasonable VFX work but it’s the kind of show that isn’t afraid to take risks and has grown an already loyal fanased because of it.
The Art of Sarah
Country of Origin: South Korea
Genre: Mystery, Thriller | Released: February 13, 2026
On the other end of the K-Drama spectrum is The Art of Sarah, a slick, stylish eight-episode thriller about obsession and deception. Shin Hae-sun stars as Sarah Kim, a woman who has built a luxurious high-society fashion empire entirely on a web of lies and fake identities. But when a body is discovered in a sewer beneath Seoul’s richest district, relentless detective Park Mu-gyeong (Lee Jun-hyuk) makes it his mission to unravel every stitch of her ever-shifting story. It’s excellently produced and well-acted and keeps you guessing throughout.
Museum of Innocence
Country of Origin: Turkey
Genre: Romantic Drama | Released: February 13, 2026
Picture Credit: Netflix
Rounding out our list is a breathtakingly tragic adaptation of Nobel Prize-winning author Orhan Pamuk’s acclaimed novel. Set in a beautifully recreated 1970s Istanbul, Museum of Innocence (Masumiyet Müzesi) follows Kemal (Selahattin Paşalı), a wealthy, engaged businessman who sparks a forbidden affair with his poorer, younger distant relative, Füsun (Eylül Lize Kandemir). What begins as a fleeting romance soon devolves into a lifelong, all-consuming obsession, leading Kemal to collect thousands of her everyday objects—from hair clips to cigarette butts—to build a shrine to his memories.
While I haven’t read the book, so I can’t make many comparisons there, I can tell you it’s a deep and beautifully produced series with each frame rich with detail, with no expense spared on making it as authentic to the time period as possible.
