Our Most Anticipated Upcoming Netflix Originals (2021 & Beyond)

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With HBO Max now out in the wild, you may be wondering what Netflix has in store next. While we’re working on huge previews of everything coming to Netflix in 2020, 2021, and beyond, we thought we’d pick out our favorite upcoming titles. 

Each of the core team here at What’s on Netflix has picked our most anticipated series, movies or franchises in some places. There’s nine in total but of course, this is just a fraction of what Netflix does actually have coming out soon.


Avatar: The Last Airbender

We begin with Avatar: The Last Airbender that has the potential to be Netflix’s biggest show behind the likes of Stranger Things.

The live-action reboot of the Nickelodeon series has been in development for some time and should be gracing our screens either towards the end of 2021 or later.

The original creators being on board gives us high hopes for the projects unlike some of the other adaptations Netflix has done that have fallen relatively flat on their faces.

The animated series just recently dropped on Netflix and instantly rose to the top of the Netflix charts.


Narnia Universe

That’s right, Netflix has access to the entire library of Narnia books and they’ll be adapting in various forms over the coming years.

It’s a massive undertaking with Disney having a fair crack at it over the last couple of decades.

An architect is in place for the universe and we’re already hearing snippets about what we can expect. Either way, we can’t wait for a whole new generation to be introduced to Narnia.


Millarworld Universe

With each major streaming service having a superhero universe on it Netflix is following suit. Disney+ has Marvel and HBO Max has some access to the DC universe and Netflix has Millarworld (and others too!).

Mark Millar is a comic book veteran who’s worked in the Marvel universe but is also known for Kingsman and Kickass.

Netflix has extensive access to his entire catalog and has teased how there’ll be plenty of crossovers.

The first title set to release as part of the Millarworld universe is Jupiter’s Legacy which is due to release in May 2021.


Army of the Dead Universe

army of the dead universe

Zack Snyder has become a major force in recent years pioneering DC’s efforts in creating a shared universe and while that effort is seemingly now over, his efforts move towards the Army of the Dead Netflix universe which kickstarts in May with the headline Army of the Dead movie.

A prequel movie is in the works as is an anime series too called Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas.


Midnight Mass

midnight mass netflix cast grid

Of the new Netflix projects from horror guru Mike Flanagan, we’re perhaps most excited for Midnight Mass.

Here’s what you can expect from the horror project:

“A community experiences miraculous events and frightening omens after a mysterious priest’s arrival.”


Magic the Gathering

One of the largest card and most played card games in the world, there’s a huge amount of lore and history behind the colorful characters of Magic the Gathering. The potential to explore the vast worlds of MTG is an exciting prospect and with the series set to focus on one of the most popular Planeswalkers of the franchise, Chandra Nalaar, fans have every right to be excited. The directors of Avengers: Endgame, the Russo Brothers, will be working on the anime series, and as fans of the card game itself, you can bet they’ll make an incredible series.


The Sandman

One of the most anticipated Originals amongst subscribers, myself included, we’ve been waiting eagerly for any news related to The Sandman, and it’s eventual arrival on Netflix. The series, based on the comic-book characters created by Neil Gaiman, is expected to be one of the most mind-blowing, and thought-provoking Originals we’ve seen yet.

We’re still waiting on a cast list, but if The Sandman has even half of the cast featured in the audiobook reading of the comic series, then the hype train is firmly ready to be boarded.

Held prisoner for several decades, Dream, the manifestation of dreams, escapes from the mortal wizard that kept him prisoner. Upon returning to his real, Dream finds his world in a state of disrepair and seeks to fix the damage caused by his long absence.


Resident Evil

Despite my better judgment, I genuinely do believe that the Resident Evil series has a major amount of potential to be one of the best Originals that Netflix can offer. There’s a lot that Constantine, the production studio, can get wrong, exhibit A being the movies, but there’s also plenty they can do to make sure it’s done right.

Survival horror, gore, and staying loyal to the source material is the perfect recipe for success and to have fans flocking to Netflix to watch the series.

There are at least two projects (although there is another rumored to be in development) with those being the live-action series and the anime series Infinite Darkness.


One Hundred Years of Solitude / Cien Años de Soledad 

Netflix is bringing this modern classic to our screens for the first time ever. But perhaps there’s a good reason we’ve never had an adaptation before?

One Hundred Years of Solitude is a sweeping magic-realist novel by Colombian author, Gabriel García Márquez. Following the Buendia family over the course of a century, the plot is notoriously fiddly, featuring dozens of characters and fantastical events. Until now, García Márquez and his family refused to sell the rights for an adaptation. They believed no movie could do the intricacies of the plot justice and were especially disgusted by any suggestion of an English-language adaptation. However, Netflix must have said something right. The family has agreed to a Spanish-language limited series adaptation, with Gabriel García Márquez’s sons serving as executive producers.

While many literary fans are (understandably) skeptical, we think this will be a very popular series.

Are you looking forward to any of our picks? Let us know in the comments.

Written by

Founder of What's on Netflix and based in Norwich in the United Kingdom, Kasey has been tracking the comings and goings of the Netflix library for a decade having started the site in 2013. Kasey maintains the what's new library, keeps the coming soon lists up-to-date and writes about new and upcoming Netflix movies, series and games.

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Official Netflix Synopsis: "A young boy known as the Avatar must master the four elemental powers to save a world at war -- and fight a ruthless enemy bent on stopping him."


Rating: TV-14
Language: English
Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy
Cast: Gordon Cormier, Kiawentiio, Ian Ousley
Season Additions:
  • - Season 1 was added to Netflix on February 22nd, 2024
  • - 3 Seasons was added to Netflix on May 15th, 2020