30 Don't-Miss TV Series and Specials Coming to Your TV in Summer 2020
There’s enough good summer viewing on small screens—TV series and movies—to make every air-conditioning-loving couch potato happy. Whatever your platform—HBO, Showtime,Acorn, Disney Plus, Apple TV+, HBO Max, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu—we've rounded up the complete list of new summer TV series coming this year on network, cable, streaming and on-demand.
Gary Busey, Pet Judge
May 25, Amazon Prime
Gary Busey presides over court cases involving all kinds of domestic animals and their litigant owners.
Barkskins
May 25, National Geographic
Marcia Gay Harden stars in the series based on the novel by Pulitzer Prize winner Annie Proulx about surviving 1600s New France.
The Not-Too-Late Show
May 27, HBO Max
Elmo gets a talk show! See him interviewing Jimmy Fallon, the Jonas Brothers and more.
Related: Is Your Favorite Show Canceled or Coming Back? Find out With Our Guide to Fall TV 2020!
Love Life
May 27, HBO Max
Anna Kendrick stars in the new romantic comedy anthology series that follows one person’s love life per season.
Craftopia
May 27, HBO Max
Get ready for an epic kids’ crafting competition show hosted by the woman called the “millennial Martha Stewart,” YouTube influencer Lauren Riihimaki aka (LaurDIY).
Space Force
May 29, Netflix
Steve Carell stars in a witty workplace comedy—but The Office this is not (though writer Greg Daniels headed up both series). This time, he leads a group tasked with creating a sixth branch of the armed services for the government…in outer space.
Defending Jacob
May 29, Apple TV+
Did a 14-year-old boy really murder his classmate? And if so, how will his devoted attorney father (Chris Evans) react? All will be revealed—presumably—in the last installment of this compulsively watchable crime series, based on William Landay’s best-selling novel.
Laurel Canyon
May 31 and June 7, Epix
Take it easy and stroll down memory lane for this two-part docuseries that pulls back the curtain on the music scene in California in the 1960s and ’70s. Featuring all-new original interviews with Jackson Browne, Don Henley, Michelle Phillips, Graham Nash, Linda Ronstadt and more.
NOS4A2
June 1, AMC
It’s pronounced “Nosferatu,” get it? And for season two of the supernatural horror series (based on the novels by Joe Hill, the son of Stephen King), young artist Vic McQueen (Ashleigh Cummings) and child predator Charlie Manx (Zachary Quinto) remain more determined than ever to destroy each other. The race for the soul of an 8-year-old boy is at stake.
Fuller House
June 2, Netflix
The extended Tanner family—well, minus Lori Loughlin’s Aunt Becky—say goodbye in the revival’s final batch of episodes. How do they go out? With a triple wedding for the “she-wolf” pack of DJ (Candace Cameron Bure), Stephanie (Jodie Sweetin) and Kimmie (Andrea Barber). Fingers crossed that John Stamos’ Uncle Jesse sings!
Queer Eye
June 5, Netflix
The smash lifestyle-makeover series returns—for series five—as the Fab Five lifestyle gurus transform more stylistically challenged subjects with hip fashion savvy, this time in Philadelphia.
VH1
RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars
June 5, VH1
Don’t sashay away, because RuPaul is hosting a special version of the Emmy-winning reality series. The most popular queens return for a second attempt to earn the crown, win $100,000 and garner a spot in the Drag Race Hall of Fame. The premiere will follow the finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race on VH1.
Dear...
June 5, Apple TV+
This biography series profiles the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Spike Lee, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Stevie Wonder, Big Bird, and more—with a twist. Instead of the usual assortment of talking heads expounding into a camera, the stories will be told via letters written by fans whose lives have been changed through the stars’ work.
Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted
June 7, National Geographic
The king of the kitchen hits the road for season two, going off the grid and “off the recipe” for more missions to explore world culture, global cuisine and wide-ranging adventure. This time his itinerary includes West Sumatra, where he participates in an ancient bull run; South Africa, where he leaps out of a helicopter to search for mussels; and exploring the caves of Indonesia, looking for giant prawns.
The Bachelor: The Most Unforgettable—Ever!
June 8, ABC
Host Chris Harrison looks back at 18 years of romances, heartbreaks and contestants—and catches up (virtually) with the popular reality dating show’s alumni in this new weekly series.
Don't
June 11, ABC
Teams of competitors in this zany new comedy game show tackle various challenges, while abiding by instructions like “Don’t blink,” “Don’t stumble” or “Don’t look back.” Host Adam Scott keeps score and producer Ryan Reynolds provides voiceover commentary.
The Bold Type
June 11, Freeform
Jane (Katie Stevens) comes to terms with her double mastectomy, Sutton (Meghann Fahy) juggles new roles as a wife and stylist at Scarlet magazine and Kat (Aisha Dee) seeks a new direction in season four of the millennial dramedy.
Into the Dark
June 12, Hulu
Judy Greer stars in the premiere episode of the horror anthology series’ latest batch of episodes, in a tale about a woman whose emotional support dog may be killing anyone who adds stress to her life.