The 10 Most Anticipated Shows of July 2023: Mid-month, a new Steven Soderbergh series, a revival of Justified, and a gentle reboot of The Real Housewives of New York City bring the heat to the small screen. After breaks of varying durations, the crews of Futurama and Minx have returned to work and are delivering packages of varying sizes. Nicole Kidman becomes a Lioness, Michelle Buteau discovers sex in the city, Timothy Olyphant dusts off his spurs, and Netflix tosses a coin for the last time to Henry Cavill’s Witcher.
The new seasons of The Afterparty, How to with John Wilson, and Below Deck Down Under are among our top television recommendations for the month of July.
The 10 Most Anticipated Shows of July 2023: (TBS) Miracle Workers: End Times
Premieres on 10 July
After Miracle Workers’ Season 4 premiere was delayed by several months, we began to fear it was the end of the world. The revolving cast of series regulars Daniel Radcliffe, Geraldine Viswanathan, Karan Soni, and Steve Busemi embody the resiliency of the characters in Simon Rich’s light-hearted anthology comedy. Heaven, the Middle Ages, and the Oregon Trail (with dysentery, of course) have all served as backdrops for the programme. Season 4 takes place in the type of post-apocalyptic desolation that the angel characters of Season 1 actively avoided. Radcliffe and Viswanathan portray a couple navigating the complete breakdown of society while still having to pay their bills and disappoint their parents. Rich may have left the show after the second season, but his eccentric relationship humour has not changed. — Danette Chavez
Season 2 of The Afterparty (Apple TV+)
debuts on July 12
In The Afterparty, everybody is a suspect. The second season of the Apple TV+ comedy by Christopher Miller and Phil Lord transports viewers to a wedding where the festivities turn lethal. This time, the murder of the betrothed sets the stage for a gripping whodunit. Tiffany Haddish returns as Detective Danner to assist Aniq (Sam Richardson) and Zoe (Zoe Chao) in solving the case. Following the pattern established in Season 1, each character will narrate their version of the night in a variety of genres and visual styles, ranging from a Bridgerton-esque period romance to a riveting noir. Elizabeth Perkins, Paul Walter Hauser, John Cho, Ken Jeong, Zach Woods, Anna Konkle, Poppy Liu, Vivian Wu, and Jack Whitehall will tell these tales. — Dianna Shen
Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest
Premieres on 13 July
Michelle Buteau is a standout in everything she does, from her appearances on Key and Peele to her role in BET+’s First Wives Club to her numerous hosting positions on reality television shows. Now that she is the creator, writer, and star of her own Netflix comedy, she can truly occupy centre stage. Survival of the Thickest is based on Buteau’s memoir of the same name, a collection of essays about growing up as a fat child in New Jersey and proudly embracing her adult body and personality. Mavis Beaumont, a struggling stylist whose mission is to dress women of all sizes, is a fictionalised version of the principal character in the series. Buteau continues to be the leader, assuring a hilarious and energising good time. Also starring are Tone Bell, Tasha Smith, and Garcelle Beaucelle. — Brianna Wellen
Full Circle (Max)
Premieres on 13 July
Steven Soderbergh directs an all-star ensemble in this six-part limited series about a wealthy American family and a botched kidnapping that leads to the discovery of multiple characters’ and cultures’ buried secrets. Zazie Beetz plays the chief investigator, while Claire Danes and Timothy Olyphant portray the kidnapped teen’s parents. Dennis Quaid, CCH Pounder, Jharrel Jerome (I’m a Virgo) and Jim Gaffigan co-star. Soderbergh is a talented individual who should always command attention, particularly when directing as opposed to producing. He is reuniting with Ed Solomon, the writer with whom he collaborated on the 2018 HBO series Mosaic, which was notable for its multimedia viewing experience (it was a choose-your-own-perspective mobile app and a TV series), and the 2021 direct-to-Max film No Sudden Move. The premiere of the series will consist of two segments, with new episodes being released weekly on Thursdays. — Joe Reid
The 10 Most Anticipated Shows of July 2023: Season 2 of The Summer I Turned Pretty (Prime Video).
Premieres on 14 July
Prepare for another summer of romance with Jenny Han, as the second season of the adolescent drama The Summer I Turned Pretty returns to Prime Video. Belly (Lola Tung) is embroiled in a heartbreaking love triangle between Conrad (Christopher Briney) and Jeremiah (Gavin Casalegno) during the sun-drenched days at Cousins Beach. Meanwhile, an unwelcome guest threatens to derail the future of Susannah’s (Rachel Blanchard) cherished home, compelling Belly to rally her friends and confront her own feelings regarding the challenges ahead. It’s another frenetic summer for the adolescent protagonist, who delves deeper into love, friendship, and self-discovery, which will undoubtedly be accompanied by even more of Taylor Swift’s music. — Dianna Shen
Season 14 of The Real Housewives of New York City (Bravo).
The premiere date is July 16
After several controversial and demoralising seasons of the second-most-established Housewives franchise, Bravo purged RHONY. The entire ensemble of Season 13 was fired, paving the way for a complete overhaul and an entirely new cast of characters in Season 14. The new cast is substantially more diverse, as well as significantly younger, with more than half of the female cast members in their 30s. The most notable of these six new Housewives is fashion expert Jenna Lyons, the former creative director of J. Crew who starred in her own Max series, Stylish with Jenna Lyons, in 2020. According to the preview, Lyons will be a significant (and enticing to at least one of her co-stars) presence in the ensemble, despite the trailer’s promise of numerous conflicts. The more things evolve… — Joe Reid
Season 2 of Below Deck Down Under (Bravo)
Premieres on 17 July
No longer a Peacock exclusive, Below Deck Down Under’s second season of inebriated debauchery, demanding charter guests, and crew hookups moves to Bravo. Captain Jason Chambers and chief stew Aesha Scott return to the Motor Yacht Northern Sun, but with a group of new crew members joining them, they struggle to provide the highest quality of service to their guests. Jason is one of Below Deck’s more hands-on captains, which only heightens Chef Tzarina’s anxiety. According to Bravo, Down Under Season 2 will feature “the arrival of a polarising familiar face” (there are so many to choose from!) and what Aesha calls a “love pentagon.” It will be difficult for that romantic drama to surpass Sailing Yacht’s Gary-Daisy-Colin love triangle, but if it succeeds, it could propel the third Below Deck spinoff to the top of the franchise rankings. — Claire Spellberg Lustig
The 10 Most Anticipated Shows of July 2023: The City Primaeval (FX) justification
The premiere date is July 18
Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) returns to television eight years after his last gunfight in this limited (for now) series based on Elmore Leonard’s City Primaeval: High Noon in Detroit. The U.S. Marshal now resides in Miami with his teenage daughter (played by Olyphant’s real-life daughter Vivian Olyphant, who is as mischievous as her father), presumably enjoying a more tranquil existence than he did in Harlan. But it’s not long before he’s on the trail of another charismatic fugitive — this time, Boyd Holbrook’s menacingly cocky Clement Marsell. Of all the revivals that have emerged in recent years, City Primaeval appears to be the most deserving. At this year’s ATX Festival, executive producer Dave Andron stated that this sequel series would address the original’s complex legacy regarding law enforcement and firearms violence. — Danette Chavez
Season 2 of Minx (Max)
Premieres on 21 July
Among the many programmes that were cancelled in 2022, Minx was fortunate enough to be picked up by Starz. In Season 2 of the 1970s-set comedy, which originally broadcast on Max before being abruptly cancelled and removed from the service, publisher Doug (Jake Johnson) and overachiever Joyce (Ophelia Lovibond) sell Bottom Dollar to a wealthy shipping magnate, portrayed by Weeds’ Elizabeth Perkins. The deal propels their erotic women’s magazine, Minx, to new heights, but the influx of cash and instant fame causes Doug and Joyce to compromise their principles and doubt their future role in the company. Fortunately for viewers, this future involves Minx’s stellar supporting characters, including Idara Victor, Lennon Parham, and Jessica Lowe, as they navigate the continued evolution of the erotic publishing industry and conduct their own soul-searching. — Claire Spellberg Lustig
Season 3 of How to With John Wilson on HBO
Premieres on 28 July
John Wilson has a slightly different perspective on the world than the rest of us. Nothing is too mundane or too personal to photograph. While a scene of a garbage heap or a juggler may not seem particularly meaningful on its own, Wilson is able to weave together segments to create poetic visual reflections on life. Season 2’s “How to Appreciate Wine” begins with questions about what bottle of wine to bring to a friend’s dinner party and concludes with Wilson discussing his encounters with NXIVM leader Keith Raniere at a college acapella event. This is the final season of the series, but due to Wilson’s work, we’ll never view a garbage can or a can of Bang energy drink the same way again. — Brianna Wellen
The 10 Most Anticipated Shows of July 2023: More notable July 2023 television premieres
- The Horror of Dolores Roach (Prime Video): Series debut on July 7 Quarterback (Netflix): Series debut on July 12
- What We Do in the Shadows (FX): Season 5 debut on July 13 Foundation (Apple TV+): Season 2 debut on July 14
- Special Ops: Lioness (Paramount+): Series premiere, July 23. Praise Petey (Freeform): Series premiere, July 21.
- Futurama (Hulu): Revival premiere, July 24
- Twisted Metal (Peacock): July 27 premiere of the series
- The Witcher Season 3 Part 2 premieres on July 27 on Netflix.
- Season 2 of Heels (Starz) premieres on July 28.
- Season 2 of This Fool (Hulu) premieres on July 28.
- Dark Winds (AMC+): Season 2 premiere, July 30. Good Omens (Prime Video): Season 2 premiere, July 28.