Fall is in the air at last, but just because cooler temperatures are on the way doesn’t mean the season won’t be steamy on your TV screen.
If you like your men with pointed ears, head to Middle Earth for the second season of Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Just as Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings film trilogy brought us Viggo Mortensen’s Aragorn and Orlando Bloom’s Legolas, Amazon Prime Video’s series fleshes out J.R.R. Tolkien’s iconic characters with an epically eye-catching cast. As iconic villain Sauron, Charlie Vickers channels his considerable charm for dark purposes; it’s easy to understand how Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) was fooled. Playing half-elf, half-man Elrond, Robert Aramayo’s piercing gaze has all the intensity required of the leader destined to eventually help Frodo destroy Sauron’s ring. Maxim Baldry as Isildur, meanwhile, appears to be in fighting form in the trailer for Season 2, where he can be seen putting his muscles to good use in a battle against a giant spider. Premieres August 29 on Amazon Prime Video
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Season 2 • Photo Ben Rothstein, Prime Video.
From wizards and orcs to British spies: Slow Horses is coming back to Apple TV+ for a fourth season. Based on the “Slough House” series of novels by Mick Herron, the series stars Gary Oldman as the misanthropic leader of a group of second-rate MI5 agents who still manage to score high marks in the sex appeal department. As the somewhat disgraced (but always distinguished) operative River Cartwright, Jack Lowden’s talent for looking good in a suit has people talking about the Scottish actor’s potential as the next James Bond. Playing the genius hacker Roddy Ho, Christopher Chung might be the hottest tech support guy to ever shoot dirty looks from behind a computer screen, while Kadiff Kirwan makes compulsive gambler Marcus Longridge more appealing than he has any right to be. Premieres September 4 on Apple TV+
Slow Horses Returns Season Four • courtesy AppleTV+.
The Walking Dead lives on, and it’s in large part due to the enduring sexiness of Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon. Spinoff series The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol is returning to AMC for its second season, and fans can expect the veteran undead monster hunter to deliver his usual brand of hunky badass. Reedus isn’t the only non-zombie in the cast worth a look: As the hardened fighter Stéphane Codron, French actor Romain Levi achieves the near-impossible: He makes face tattoos look good. Premieres September 29 on AMC
The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book of Carol S2 • courtesy AMC.
Set in the Australian Outback, Netflix’s epic drama Territory follows the explosive decline of a cattle-ranching dynasty. Playing Marshall Lawson, Sam Corlett of Vikings: Valhalla fame trades furs and swords for flannels and rifles (and he’s even more drool-worthy Down Under than he was in 11th century England). Michael Dorman’s blue eyes were clearly made to stare out from under the brim of a cowboy hat, and Clarence Ryan brings the same ferocity that he displayed in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga to the role of Nolan Brannock. Premieres October 24 on Netflilx
Territory • courtesy of Netflix.
For more cowboy fantasy fulfillment, you can count on Paramount’s Yellowstone. While Kevin Costner will not be rejoining the cast for the second half of the hit Western’s fifth (and final) season, there’ll be no lack of familiar faces on the ranch. Back for the first time since Season 3 as the young John Dutton, Josh Lucas proves he was born for a moustache and sideburns; Luke Grimes as Kayce Dutton is the embodiment of rugged country charisma. Playing conflicted attorney general Jamie Dutton, Wes Bentley has an irresistible brand of pathos, while Cole Hauser as fan-favorite character Rip Wheeler is proof that everybody loves a bad boy. Premieres November 10 on Paramount
Yellowstone • courtesy of Paramount Network.
Legions of loyal fans will be transported to the Scottish Highlands once again when historical fantasy Outlander returns to Starz for the second half of its seventh season. As soldier Jamie Fraser, Sam Heughan is like the hero on the cover of a romance novel come to life—and the next installment of the series promises plenty of action for the soldier, with Jamie and wife Claire (Caitriona Balfe) abandoning the colonies to head back to their homeland. Richard Rankin as hot-blooded time traveler Roger MacKenzie will spend Season 7, Part 2 searching for his son with wife Brianna (Sophie Skelton) and looking irresistible, whether in 18th or 20th-century garb. Premieres November 22 on Starz
