Netflix’s Ripley, Prime Video’s Fallout among April’s must-see TV
In series coming to a screen near you, Andrew Scott becomes Patricia Highsmith’s sociopath, while Kaikōura is the setting for a new Kiwi drama. By James Croot.
Abumper crop of fresh and returning series makes the prospect of snuggling up in front a screen even more attractive, as the nights get longer and the weather colder this month.
For free-to-air fans, the options include new seasons of The Hotel Inspector (April 2, TVNZ 1), My Kitchen Rules NZ (April 9, TVNZ 2), David Lomas Investigates (April 9, Three), 7 Days (April 4, Three), Call the Midwife Michael
and My Life is Murder Douglas is
(both TBC, TVNZ 1), as Franklin.
well as the Bravo debut of Orlando Bloom: To the Edge (April 23).
TVNZ+’s line-up has the final episodes of Star Trek Discovery (April 4), British romantic-dramedy Alice & Jack (April
3), Kiwi mixed martial arts reality competition Relentless (April 9) and UK comedy Dead Hot (April 12), while Neon has the Sandra Oh-starring episonage thriller The Sympathiser (April 15) and Disney+ boasts United States action-drama Tracker (April 3), South Korean dramatic-thriller Blood Free (April 10) and Spanish true-crime tale See You in Another Life (April 17).
More Loot (April 3) and The Big Door Prize (April 24) arrive on Apple TV+, while Netflix’s ever-eclectic roster has everything from a second helping of Heartbreak High (April 11) to debuts of the Cate Blanchett-narrated nature series Our Living World, anime The Grimm Variations (both April 17), French comedy Fiasco (April 30) and an animated update of hit 1970s sitcom Good Times (April 12).
However, this is Stuff To Watch’s list of the 10 shows we’re most excited to see over the next four weeks.
Fallout (April 11, Prime Video)
Based on one of the most-beloved video game series of all time, this eight-part post-apocalyptic drama is the story of haves and have-nots in a world in which there’s almost nothing left to have.
Two-hundred years after a virtualextinction event, the gentle denizens of luxury fallout shelters are forced to return to the irradiated hellscape their ancestors left behind – and are shocked to discover a complex, gleefully weird and highly violent universe waiting for them.
Among the thespian players signed on for this adventure are Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell, Kyle MacLachlan and Leslie Uggams.
Franklin (April 12, Apple TV+)
Michael Douglas headlines this eight-part period drama based on the 2005 book A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Stacy Schiff.
Opening in December 1776, it sees the passion and power of famous electrical experimenter Benjamin Franklin put to the test when – as the fate of American independence hangs in the balance – he embarks on a secret mission to France.
Also stars Daniel Mays, Ludivine Sagnier, Eddie Marsan and Noah Jupe. Friends Like Her (April 15,
ThreeNow) Kiwi journalist-turned novelist SarahKate Lynch wrote this six-part drama which revolves around working mum-ofthree Nicole (Morgana O’Reilly) and ladywho-lunches Tessa (Tess Haubrich).
Friends since their backpacking days (Nicole is even bearing a baby for Tessa), cracks develop in their relationship when an earthquake devastates their small coastal town of Kaikōura.
Jarod Rawiri, Vinnie Bennett, Elizabeth Hawthorne, JJ Fong and Jodie Rimmer also feature.
On the Roam (April 22, Neon)
Eight-part documentary series which sees the Aquaman and Fast X star (and honorary Kiwi) Jason Momoa travelling across the US to meet extraordinary individuals blazing their own path. The subjects include craftsmen, motorcycle fabricators, musicians and athletes.
“Those with an allergy to giant effusive personalities will want to look elsewhere for their travel-porn fix, but otherwise, there are far worse things than hanging out with the endearingly goofy Momoa,” wrote Decider’s John Serba.
Ripley (April 4, Netflix)
Andrew Scott (All of Us Strangers, Sherlock, Fleabag) is the latest actor to take on Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley in this eight-part adaptation of her 1955 book The Talented Mr Ripley.
A grifter scraping by in early 1960s New York, he is hired by a wealthy man to travel to Italy to try to convince his vagabond son to return home. However, it becomes just the first step into a complex life of deceit, fraud and murder.
Dakota Fanning and Johnny Flynn have significant roles, while eagle-eyed viewers should also look out for a former Ripley – John Malkovich.
Sugar (April 5, Apple TV+)
Colin Farrell plays the eponymous American private investigator in this eight-episode drama. It follows his investigation into the mysterious disappearance of Olivia Siegel, the beloved granddaughter of legendary Hollywood producer Jonathan Siegel.
Those joining the Irish actor include Amy Ryan, James Cromwell and The Sandman’s Kirby.
Testify (April 8, TVNZ+)
When a charismatic young pastor clashes with his father’s evangelical mega-church, he joins forces with a queer podcaster and his estranged brother to uncover a conspiracy of historic abuse.
But as they get closer to the truth, a web of lies unravels, powerful enemies emerge and their powerful father fights back – with explosive results.
Billed as a “bold new Kiwi drama”, it stars Craig Hall, Vinnie Bennett and Kat Browne.
Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story (April 26, Disney+)
This four-part, all-access documentary series follows the sometimes tumultuous history of the popular US rock band, after it made a rapid rise from playing New Jersey clubs to global fame and charttopping success in the mid-1980s.
It promises to feature four decades of personal videos, unreleased early demos, original lyrics and never-before-seen photos, as the group’s eclectic members relive their triumphs and setbacks, greatest hits, biggest disappointments and most public moments of friction.
The Veil (April 30, Disney+)
Elisabeth Moss is joined by Little Birds’ Yumna Marwan for this six-episode thriller about two women who travel from Istanbul to Paris and London, one of them possessing a secret that the other needs to expose. Written by Peaky Blinders’ Steven Knight, this “deadly game of truth of lies” also stars Josh Charles.
We Were the Lucky Ones
(April 17, Disney+)
An adaptation of the 2017 book of the same name by Georgia Hunter, this eightpart World War II-tale dramatises the Holocaust from the perspective of Polish Jewish family the Kurcs.
Joey King (The Kissing Booth) and Logan Lerman (Hunters) are siblings Halina and Addy, while writer-director Erica Lipez has previously been involved with series like The Morning Show, Suits and Bates Motel.