June 2024 TV preview: House Of The Dragon, The Bear, The Boys, and 16 other shows to watch

Disney+’s latest Star Wars TV project has gone heavy on vibes and low on plot in the lead-up to its release. Created by Russian Doll’s Leslye Headland, it is set about 100 years before The Phantom Menace (near the end of Disney’s shiny new High Republic era), and centers on Squid Game’s Lee Jung-jae, who is playing a Jedi pursuing a former Padawan (Amandla Stenberg) accused of becoming a Dark Side assassin. But as for the actual story, or even the structure of the new series, many things remain unclear. What role does Carrie-Anne Moss’s Indara play in the Star Wars-noir-ish vibes? Or Manny Jacinto, playing a Jedi-skeptic smuggler in the Han Solo vein? We’ll have to wait and see for The Acolyte’s premiere to understand whether this latest dose of Star Wars TV is more Andor or The Book Of Boba Fett. [William Hughes]

This six-episode miniseries, based on the ESPN 30 For 30 podcast The Sterling Affairs, dives into an extremely tumultuous, scandal-plagued time for the Los Angeles Clippers basketball organization. Ed O’Neill plays owner Donald Sterling, whose life was upended when racist remarks he made surfaced, and Laurence Fishburne tackles coach Doc Rivers. Jacki Weaver, Cleopatra Coleman, and Kelly AuCoin round out the cast. [Tim Lowery]

Julio Torres, the co-creator of HBO’s weird and wonderful series Los Espookys, returns to the network with another excellently titled show, Fantasmas. In his latest project, which he also wrote and directed, he stars as himself, a man with out-there, color-popping dreams who embarks on a quest throughout New York City to find a golden earring. Along the way, he runs into folks played by the likes of Emma Stone, Paul Dano, Steve Buscemi, and Julia Fox. [Tim Lowery]

Author and journalist Candice Carty-Williams adapts her 2019 novel Queenie into this new Hulu show. In it, Dionne Brown plays a 25-year-old Jamaican Brit, Queenie Jenkins, who is experiencing a quarter-life crisis that pushes her to rethink everything from her situationship and work drama to her family dynamics and health. The cast includes Samuel Adewunmi, Tilly Keeper, Bellah, Sally Phillips, and Jon Pointing. [Saloni Gajjar]

To no one’s surprise, David E. Kelley is adapting a legal thriller book into a TV show. Presumed Innocent, which already got a Harrison Ford-led big-screen treatment, is now an eight-part drama starring Jake Gyllenhaal. He portrays prosecutor Rusty Sabich, whose life turns upside down when he becomes the prime suspect in a high-profile case. The stacked ensemble features Renate Reinsve, Ruth Negga, Elizabeth Marvel, Bill Camp, Peter Sarsgaard, O-T Fagbenle, and Lily Rabe. [Saloni Gajjar]

In case the guy exploding from a super-powered chicken flying through his chest in the recent trailer didn’t make it clear, The Boys is feeling no obligation to slow down or grow up as it moves into its fourth season—even as the conflict between Supes and Supe-killers gets ever more complex and bloody. Now we’ve got Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) launching plans for biological warfare, while Antony Starr’s Homelander serves up a frothy blend of fascism and milkshakes. The Boys has become one of the most interesting superhero TV shows out there by pretty much never pulling a punch from either its violent or comedic side, and the glimpses we’ve gotten of its fourth batch don’t suggest it’ll be relenting any time soon—no matter how much Jack Quaid’s Hughie might be begging for peace. [William Hughes]

The way Bridgerton season three’s first part ended left most fans screaming with joy. Yes, Colin (Luke Newton) finally confessed his feelings and proposed marriage to Penelope (Nicola Coughlan). And then the show... cut to black. It probably frustrated viewers, who have to wait a month to find out what this new facet of Colin and Pen’s relationship looks like. The remaining four episodes of season three also focus on Penelope struggling to keep the secret that she’s Lady Whistledown, Francesca’s (Hannah Dodd) romance with a suitor, and, hopefully, more “Kanthony.” [Saloni Gajjar]

Hello again, Westeros. House Of The Dragon is back with a fresh war between BFFs-turned-enemies Rhaenyra Targaryen (Emma D’Arcy) and Alicent Hightower (Olivia Cooke). The eight new episodes follow up on the heartbreaking season-one finale, in which an all-out dragon brawl led to the death of Rhaenyra’s son. Suffice it to say the members of Team Black and Team Green are fired up to battle for the Iron Throne, perhaps none more so than Daemon (Matt Smith) and Aemond (Ewan Mitchell). The returning cast also includes Eve Best, Rhys Ifans, Steve Toussaint, and Fabien Frankel. [Saloni Gajjar]

Set in ’70s and ’80s Miami, Hotel Cocaine chronicles Roman Compte (Danny Pino), a Cuban exile who works at the Mutiny Hotel. The venue is at the center of Florida’s drug trade, drawing the attention of dealers and high-profile clients, as well as the CIA and FBI. Can Compte keep the operation afloat to achieve his “American Dream”? Yul Vazquez and Michael Chiklis co-star in the drama. [Saloni Gajjar]

Can anyone beat Tatiana Maslany’s impeccable Orphan Black performance? It’s TBD but Krysten Ritter tries with the spinoff Echoes. The show takes place three decades after the original, with a woman named Lucy suffering from amnesia and on the run from dangerous people. Meanwhile, Keeley Hawes plays an adult Dr. Kira Manning, a.k.a. the daughter of Maslany’s Sarah Manning, who helps Lucy out. [Saloni Gajjar]

The multigenerational dramedy Land Of Women centers on Gala (Eva Longoria), a wealthy woman forced to run away from her lavish New York City digs when her husband gets caught in financial schemes. Instead of fleeing alone, Gala takes her mother and teen daughter on a “vacation” to her hometown in Spain. It’s a perfect setup for the three women to bond in tough times while discovering their long-buried family secrets, no? [Saloni Gajjar]

Another June, another batch of one of the best shows of this decade. The Bear is back, baby, picking things up after its emotionally charged second-season ender. We can’t wait to see what Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), Syd (Ayo Edebiri), and Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) are doing now that their titular Chicago restaurant is up and running, not to mention the drama this delightful, moving, and fantastically shot and soundtracked series has in store. [Tim Lowery]

My Lady Jane reimagines the life of Lady Jane Grey (Emily Bader) after she avoids being killed by an executioner and realizes every day can be full of adventures, friendship, and love. This all leads to an arranged marriage that turns surprisingly steamy, her evolution into being the Queen, and the gusto to battle her rivals. Edward Bluemel and Jordan Peters co-star in the period drama. [Saloni Gajjar]

Mayor Of Kingstown season 3 (Paramount+, June 2)

Sweet Tooth season 3 (Netflix, June 6)

Criminal Minds: Evolution season 2 (Paramount+, June 6)

Power Book II: Ghost season 4, part 1 (Starz, June 7)

Shoresy season 3 (Hulu, June 21)

That ’90s Show season 2, part 1 (Netflix, June 27)