26 Things To Get Excited About In The World Of Entertainment In 2026

Following yet another rollercoaster year in the world of news, it’s time to put 2025 to bed and look ahead to a shiny new year.

And, at least when it comes to new music, film and TV in 2026, there’s already plenty to get excited about in 2026.

Here are 26 highlights from the entertainment sphere that we’re most looking forward to in the next 12 months…

Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show is going to be an absolute show-stopper

Bad Bunny rounded off 2025 as the most-streamed artist on Spotify in the world off the back of his hugely successful album Debí Tirar Más Fotos, and the next year is getting off to an exciting start for him as he follows in the footsteps of acts like Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd and Rihanna by headlining at the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Anyone who’s ever seen Bad Bunny performing at an awards show – or, indeed, in concert – will know that when it comes to his performances, he never does things by half, and given all of the furore surrounding his appointment as next year’s Halftime Show act, this could very easily be a Super Bowl for the ages.

Wuthering Heights looks set to become one of the year’s most talked-about blockbusters

Emerald Fennell sparked no end of discourse with 2023’s Saltburn, which she’s following up with a unique new adaptation of Wuthering Heights starring two of Hollywood’s biggest names right now, Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi.

Already, the film has come under fire for a variety of reasons, with both the director and star Margot urging critics to wait until they’ve actually seen the movie before they pass comment.

Meanwhile, a rumoured test screening appeared to suggest that Emerald’s take on the Emily Brontë novel makes the drain-gurgling, grave-humping, serial-murdering antics of Saltburn look positively tame by comparison.

Valerie Cherish is about to make her third – and final! – Comeback

Since its debut in 2005, Lisa Kudrow’s The Comeback has garnered a devoted cult following, with a second season premiering almost a decade after the first, earning its leading lady her 11th of a whopping 15 Emmy nominations.

After a break of another 11 years, Lisa is donning that iconic red wig for one last outing as Valerie Cherish in a third season of the toe-curling mockumentary, in which our anti-heroine will feature as the lead in a new sitcom written entirely by AI (oh, and one of our absolute faves is already confirmed to be in the cast as a new character, too).

Consider us sat…

Heartstopper says farewell in a very special way

The Comeback isn’t the only show fans are saying goodbye to in 2026, though, with Netflix’s hit teen drama Heartstopper also coming to an end in the year ahead.

After the events of the dramatic third season, which critics hailed for its more grown-up and less idealistic approach than its first two, Kit Connor and Joe Locke will wrap up Nick and Charlie’s love story with a new Netflix original movie, titled Heartstopper Forever, rather than a straightforward fourth run.

The curtain is also coming down on Hacks in 2026

Season four of the award-winning comedy Hacks came to an end with Deborah Vance finding herself back at zero after her brief stint as a late-night talk show host came to an end when she chose her integrity (and her writing partner Ava!) over corruption.

While we’re sure that Hacks could run and run, there’s definitely something to be said for quitting while you’re ahead and going out on a high, which is what we’re sure the show will be doing with its fifth and final outing next year.

Ariana Grande is hitting the road for the first time in seven years

Ariana Grande has released two albums (and starred in three hugely talked-about movies) since her last world tour in support of her releases Sweetener and Thank U, Next.

The No Tears Left To Cry singer has previously made no secret of the fact that touring isn’t exactly her favourite part of her job, but she’ll be taking her recent hit album Eternal Sunshine on the road for a string of shows in both North America and the UK from the summer onwards.

Her return to the stage is also noteworthy as Ariana has hinted that these will be her final live performances for some time, as she intends to focus on acting off the back of Wicked’s success in 2024 and 2025.

And Ariana Grande’s acting career just added one more very exciting string to its bow

On the subject of Ariana’s continued work in the acting world, 2026 will see the release of her next film Focker-In-Law, the third sequel in the Meet The Parents saga, but she’ll also be joining the American Horror Story universe in the run-up to Halloween.

While admittedly the once-great American Horror Story franchise is one we haven’t paid all that much attention to in recent years, Ariana’s debut isn’t the only reason fans will be flocking back to the show this year, with key cast members like Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts and even Jessica Lange taking on roles in the 13th season.

To coin a phrase: “Surprise, bitch…”

Ryan Murphy’s Monster is doing things a little differently this time around

But American Horror Story isn’t the only grim franchise Ryan Murphy is cooking up for 2026.

The various controversies surrounding each of Netflix true-crime drama Monster’s first three seasons have been too much for us to ever really get too excited about the show, but we have to admit that the fourth has intrigued us a little.

In Monster’s latest iteration, Ella Beatty will be taking on the role of Lizzie Borden, in what marks the show’s first major dive back in history, as well as its first series centred around a female protagonist.

Joining Ella in the cast will be Monster alum Charlie Hunnam and Vicky Krieps, while Billie Lourd and Rebecca Hall will also make appearances.

Meanwhile, Sarah Paulson will also be making a cameo as serial killer Aileen Wuornos – suggesting the show will dart around in time similar to how The Ed Gein Story examined its central figure’s impact on popular culture, as well as his crimes.

The next chapter in the 28 Years Later story has already got us guessing what’s next

Danny Boyle has previously been open about the fact he rebooted the 28 Days Later saga with the hopes of kickstarting a new trilogy, which began with last year’s hit dystopian thriller 28 Years Later.

This film and its sequel, The Bone Temple, were actually shot back-to-back, which is why fans only have to wait until January for the next instalment, which will dive deeper into Jack O’Connell’s mysterious and bizarre character, as well as reintroducing Cillian Murphy to the franchise after almost 25 years.

The Devil Wears Prada is back, and Miranda Priestly will see you now…

OK, so the trend of Hollywood sequels dominating the box office probably isn’t going anywhere in 2026, but at least there’s one long-awaited follow-up we can definitely get excited for.

Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt are all set to reprise their roles in a new part two to The Devil Wears Prada, which is due to hit cinemas 20 years after the original movie.

While much of the film’s plot is being shrouded in secrecy, we can also look forward to the return of Stanley Tucci as Nigel, some exciting new additions to the story and a seemingly never-ending run of celebrity cameos as Andy and the devilish Miranda are reunited.

Avengers: Doomsday just might have Marvel’s most star-studded cast to date

The next Avengers movie is also hitting cinemas in the coming year, with Marvel putting together an absolutely epic cast of stars for the crossover movie.

Avengers: Doomsday will see regular faces like Chris Hemsworth, Paul Rudd, Tom Hiddleston and Anthony Mackie mixing with newer additions to the MCU like The New Avengers’ Florence Pugh and David Harbour, as well as The Fantastic Four’s Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Joseph Quinn in their first Avengers project.

Meanwhile, X-Men stars like Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen and Alan Cumming will reprise their roles from the classic superhero movies, and Robert Downey Jr will be returning to the MCU in the exciting new role of Dr Doomsday.

And it’s still too early to tell whether Gwyneth Paltrow was playing it cool or being genuinely clueless when she said she had no idea what the film was…

But it’s not all about sequels and reboots, as Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey will undoubtedly be the film event of the year

Already known for his ambitious and epic approach to filmmaking, how does someone like Christopher Nolan follow the mammoth success of his Oscar-winning movie Oppenheimer? By adapting The Odyssey, naturally.

Nolan’s Odyssey is the first movie he’s ever made to be shot entirely on IMAX film, and is also his most expensive to date, which is understandable when you consider how many different locations and elaborate set pieces will be required to tell the story.

And that’s not even getting into the sprawling cast, which includes regulars in the Nolan-verse like Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Elliot Page and Robert Pattinson as well as newcomers Tom Holland, Lupita Nyong’o, Zendaya, Charlize Theron and Himesh Patel.

We’ll be seeing even more of Claudia Winkleman on our screens in 2026

Somehow, between two seasons of The Traitors and her final year at the helm of Strictly Come Dancing, Claudia Winkleman found time in 2025 to guest present a week of Graham Norton’s flagship BBC talk show while its regular host was out of the country.

Clearly, she did enough to impress producers, who have now given Claudia her very own talk show, which is expected to hit our screens in the next 12 months.

Meanwhile, how on earth is Celebrity Traitors going to top this year’s series?

As soon as we clapped eyes on the line-up for the inaugural season of The Celebrity Traitors, it was obvious that something very special was afoot – but few could have predicted just how many iconic moments the show was going to deliver.

With the regular series of The Traitors primed to make a comeback in the coming days, the BBC has already confirmed that the celebrity version will be back towards the end of 2026, and we’re already on tenterhooks to see how they manage to better the show that had the whole country hooked this past year.

There’s also another new reality TV show that’s caught our attention

Since The Traitors first arrived on our screens in late 2022, there’ve been a thousand attempts from different broadcasters to try and replicate its success with similar TV formats.

There are a few reasons that ITV’s latest reality TV offering just might do better than the rest.

For starters, The Neighbourhood is different enough from The Traitors to stand on its own too feet, and with Graham Norton at the helm, there’s at least one reason to keep tuning in night after night.

In the new series, real-life families and households will move into a purpose-built residential street, where they will battle it out with their new “neighbours” in a variety of challenges aiming to take home a prize pot of £250,000.

An ITV press release teased that competitors will form part of “a colourful community situated on ‘Keepyourenemies Close’”, where “real-life households from all walks of life move in and live side by side, finding themselves not only neighbours but also fierce competitors in the ultimate reality showdown”. 

Lily Allen brings West End Girl to life

There’s no denying that Lily Allen’s revelatory West End Girl was one of the top albums of 2025, with the Smile singer describing her latest release as a work of “autofiction” inspired by the breakdown of her marriage to Stranger Things director David Harbour.

Lily’s latest release was critically acclaimed, with many picking up on the fact that, perhaps inspired by her branching out into acting in 2021, West End Girl was the most theatrical release of the Brit Award winner’s career.

Next year, she’s set to embark on her first tour in seven years, which will begin in small, theatre-sized venues on both sides of the Atlantic, allowing her to bring the story of the album to life in what promises to be one of the most anticipated tours of the coming year, before taking the show to arenas later in 2026.

Disney’s new film Hexed has us intrigued

Between the recent sequels to Moana and Zootopia (and two more follow-ups to Frozen also in the works), it’s been a minute since Disney has given us a straight-up original story with 2023′s lukewarmly-received Wish.

For 2025, however, the iconic animation studio is finally giving film fans an original new story with Hexed.

So far, little is known about what we should expect from the story, other than that it’s about an awkward teenager who discovers that the traits that make him feel so separated from his peers are actually the key to unlocking a unique world of magic.

Woody and Buzz Lightyear have a new enemy to contend with in Toy Story 5

That being said, it’s not like we’re not excited about Disney’s latest sequel.

In 2026, the Toy Story gang will be back in action in a new story that promises a face-off with a very different type of Disney villain... technology.

Early promo materials show Woody, Buzz and their regular friends being introduced to a new tablet character Lilypad, voiced by Emmy nominee Greta Lee, who threatens to make them all obsolete.

If you thought the whistle had blown on Ted Lasso, think again...

The worst-kept secret in telly was finally confirmed just over a year ago, when Jason Sudeikis announced he was getting the band back together for new episodes of Ted Lasso.

Hannah Waddingham, Nick Mohammed and Brett Goldstein are all expected to return for the new batch of episodes, which will apparently see Ted bidding farewell to his AFC Richmond team to focus his attention on women’s football.

“It’s time to light the music, it’s time to light the lights” – because The Muppet Show is back

The Muppet Show celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2026 with a one-off return helmed by Seth Rogen which will be available to stream on Disney+.

While Seth will produce and co-write the special, woman of the hour Sabrina Carpenter will be on hosting and performing duties, fresh from her recent encounter with Miss Piggy on the last night of her world tour.

Teasing that if the show does well, there could be more episodes in the pipeline, Seth said: “I’ve been working the better part of the last decade to try to bring my favourite show back… and it looks like I’m getting close.”

Russell T Davies’ latest show promises to deliver plenty of impactful drama

Although primarily known to many as the showrunner of Doctor Who, over the years, Russell T Davies has helmed plenty of dramas that have delivered an impactful and hard-hitting punch – from It’s A Sin and the almost-stomach-churningly-prescient Years And Years to Cucumber.

This coming year, he is once again collaborating with Channel 4 on Tip Toe, starring Alan Cumming and David Morrissey as two neighbours slowly driven apart by rising tensions.

“Just as life should be settling down, the world around them is growing more tense,” an official synopsis has teased.

“Words become weapons, opinions become radicalised, and gradually, two neighbours become deadly enemies in a tense, suburban thriller which challenges everything we consider to be safe.”

Denis Villeneuve has a treat in store for Dune fans

While Denis Villeneuve initially intended his epic adaptation of the novel Dune to be a two-parter, it’s since been announced that he’ll be bringing Dune Messiah to the big screen as what has been billed as Part Three in the space opera.

Cast members Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya and Florence Pugh are among those returning for the next instalment, with Robert Pattinson also having been cast in an undisclosed role.

Madonna is promising us a new ‘sequel’ to one of the most beloved albums of her career

Sequel fever isn’t just affecting the world of film and TV, though, with Madonna recently teasing that her next album will be a “part two” of one of her best, Confessions On A Dance Floor.

For her new music, Madonna has once again teamed up with music super-producer Stuart Price, with whom she’s collaborated on some of the best music of her career.

And given this is the longest that the Queen of Pop has ever left it between albums (we’re now approaching seven years since her last release, 2019′s Madame X), the stakes are high – but we’re confident that she can deliver.

Who will take over from Claudia Winkleman and Tess Daly as the new hosts of Strictly Come Dancing?

The next season of Strictly Come Dancing will be the first since it launched in 2004 to be fronted by a completely new presenting team, following the exits of Tess Daly – who hosted the long-running BBC dance show since its inception – and Claudia Winkleman.

Rumours, of course, have already been rife about exactly who could be in the running, with Bradley Walsh, Alex Jones and Holly Willoughby among the favourites for the job, and Alan Carr having already ruled himself out.

Quite why there needs to be all this commotion when La Voix is right there and would be perfect at it remains to be seen, but we’ll be keeping a close eye on this one, anyway...

Bridgerton fans – prepare yourselves for a return to the Ton

Fans of the Netflix period drama have been kept waiting for the best part of two years for the next chapter in the romantic story, which this time around will focus on Luke Thompson’s character Benedict Bridgerton.

Previously known to fans for his desire not to settle down, Benedict has a change of heart after a chance encounter at a masquerade ball, which promises to be one of the most memorable sequences in Bridgerton history.

Showrunner Jess Brownell recently let viewers know they’re in for plenty of “juicy conflict and high stakes” lifted straight from the original Bridgerton books, which she said made this one the “easiest book to adapt” from the series so far.

It feels about time for Beyoncé’s Act III, right?

OK, call this one wishful thinking. But after 2022′s Renaissance and 2024′s Cowboy Carter, it stands to reason that Beyoncé would gift the world with the final part of her ongoing “three-act project” in 2026.

After her past explorations of dance and country music, speculation is rife that Bey will be rocking out on the third album in the trilogy, which we absolutely love the sound of.

What we’d love even more would be... a little music video or two? Maybe? Please?