What are the biggest TV shows and web series in September 2023? Sex Education season 4 leads the pack of new releases this month, alongside Gen V, a college-set spin-off series based on The Boys. The former sees everyone’s favourite sex therapist Otis Milburn (Asa Butterfield) finally in college, hoping to set up his new clinic while trying not to come across as a loser to his new peers’ awkward glares. Marking the final chapter in the lives of the Moordale Secondary’s sex-obsessed gang, Sex Education returns September 21 on Netflix. Chase that down with a healthy dose of Compound V, as a group of gifted students at Godolkin University compete for the top ranking in Gen V. It premieres September 29 on Amazon Prime Video.
On the local end, filmmaker Hansal Mehta is back with the latest instalment in his Scam biopic franchise, this time focusing on the scheming Abdul Karim Telgi, who built himself an empire by printing counterfeit stamp paper. Scam 2003: The Telgi Story is out September 1 on Sony Liv. Then there’s The Freelancer, in which an ex-cop turned mercenary heads out on an extraction mission to seek a young girl held captive in the war-torn lands of Syria. Based on the Sirish Thorat book ‘A Ticket to Syria,’ the war-thriller drops September 1 on Disney+ Hotstar.
Jawan to The Equalizer 3: The Biggest Movies in September
September also brings the much anticipated second season of The Wheel of Time, as the channeller Moiraine Damodred (Rosamund Pike) and gang await the arrival of the Seanchan army from across the sea. You can learn more about the aforementioned TV shows and more below, and also feel free to discover the complete list of upcoming web series at our entertainment hub.
The Wheel of Time season 2
When: September 1
Where: Amazon Prime Video
As it turns out, during the treacherous encounter with the Dark One in the season 1 finale, Moiraine Damodred (Pike) and Rand al’Thor (Josha Stradowski) were never actually victorious, simply setting him free out into the Two Rivers. While the latter, who was revealed to be the Dragon Reborn, went into hiding to protect those close to him, Damodred was now deemed powerless, having lost her connection to the One Power in the battle. Threats old and new are now making their way towards the Westlands, including the Seachan army, who have the power to control and enslave the Aes Sedai – the women who can channel the One Power.
Well, now that Damodred isn’t capable of channelling it herself, she vows to protect Rand and guide him in using his newfound powers, with some assistance from her loyal Warder Lan (Daniel Henney). Amidst all this, Rand is dealing with an identity crisis, no longer wanting to be a spoke in the wheel and still coming to terms with being the Dragon Reborn. The Wheel of Time season 2 draws heavily from books two and three — ‘The Great Hunt’ and ‘The Dragon Reborn’ — of Robert Jordan’s epic fantasy saga, albeit it won’t follow the events as closely. Much of the original cast returns, including Marcus Rutherford as the blacksmith Perrin Aybara, and Zoë Robins as Nynaeve al’Meara.
The first three episodes of The Wheel of Time season 2 are out September 1 on Amazon Prime Video, after which it will follow a weekly schedule until October 6.
Scam 2003: The Telgi Story
When: September 1
Where: Sony Liv
After the staggering success of Scam 1992, National Award-winning filmmaker Hansal Mehta is taking another dive into the world of deceit, this time tracking the rise and downfall of Abdul Karim Telgi — from his humble beginnings as a fruit seller in Karnataka to the notorious scammer who organised the biggest stamp paper counterfeit in the country. Gagan Dev Riar (A Suitable Boy) essays the lead role, establishing contact with people working within the law and growing his business to eventually cost the government an alleged Rs. 30,000 crore. Often referred to as a ‘snake’ by some of his peers in the trailer, he’s also seen recording phone conversations with people of authority, as a form of insurance.
Adapted from the book ‘Telgi Scam: Reporter’s ki Diary,’ it’s worth noting that Mehta is simply serving in a showrunner’s capacity this time, handing over directing duties to Tushar Hiranandani — best known for writing ABCD (Any Body Can Dance). Scam 2003: The Telgi Story also stars Mukesh Tiwari (Gangajal), Sana Amin Sheikh, and Shaad Randhawa (Ek Villain Returns).
All episodes of Scam 2003: The Telgi Story will be available to stream September 1 on Sony Liv.
The Freelancer
When: September 1
Where: Disney+ Hotstar
When Aliya Khan (Kashmira Pardeshi) got happily married at the young age of 21, she didn’t expect her husband to trick and escort her to Syria for their honeymoon — cut off from all familial contact and to serve some nefarious goals. Distraught by her disappearance, the father Inayat Khan (Sushant Singh) gets himself gunned down in public to grab the attention of a certain mercenary friend. Avinash Kamath (Mohit Raina) is the ‘Freelancer’ he was looking for, who takes on the extraction mission to find Aliya by preparing to venture into the war-torn hostile lands. Only one problem though: his handler (Anupam Kher) thinks it’s already too late to save her, raising the stakes for an otherwise calm and collected operative.
After the roaring success of Khakee: The Bihar Chapter, Neeraj Pandey has returned with The Freelancer, an adaptation of the book ‘A Ticket to Syria,’ which adds some elements of parental love to dramatise the story. The show is also poised to jump back and forth in time, displaying Kamath’s failures early in his career to the experienced, grey-haired mercenary he’d grown into. Other notable additions to the cast lineup are John Kokken (K.G.F: Chapter 2), Ayesha Raza Mishra (Made in Heaven), and Sarah-Jane Dias (Tandav).
The first four episodes of The Freelancer are out now on Disney+ Hotstar.
The Changeling
When: September 8
Where: Apple TV+
While exploring the woodlands in Brazil, Emma Valentine (Clark Backo) encounters a scary old woman, who ties a red string around her wrist and grants three wishes — all of which will come true when the string naturally falls off. She warns NEVER to cut it off, which Emma’s boyfriend Apollo (Lakeith Stanfield) sees as a prank and snips it off as a romantic gesture, as they look ahead and welcome a child into their family. Things seem to be going fine until Emma starts showing disinterest towards the kid, almost as if exhibiting symptoms of postpartum depression. One night, she commits a horrifying act and escapes into the night, kickstarting a twisted chase across a dreamlike New York City, as an emotionally-wrecked Apollo tries to reunite with his wife.
In his quest, he ventures into enchanting lands from fairy tales, ranging from a secret island full of witches to a freakish cult — all the while grappling with unkind memories of when his father abandoned him. Despite the changing moods and terrains, The Changeling is largely a tale about parenthood, an internal crisis that festers within Apollo when he realises he’s failed in his duty as a father, as well as that of a husband. Kelly Marcel, who rose to prominence with Fifty Shades of Grey, adapted Victor LaValle’s eponymous horror novel for Apple TV+.
Stanfield also serves as the executive producer on the eight-part-long series, which ropes in Adina Porter (True Blood) as Apollo’s mother Lillian, Amirah Vann (Star Trek: Picard) as Emma’s sister, and musician Samuel T. Herring as a man he befriends on the journey.
The Changeling is out September 8 with a three-episode premiere, after which the remaining five episodes drop weekly until October 13.
The Morning Show season 3
When: September 13
Where: Apple TV+
As The Morning Show’s news team adjusts to the post-pandemic work routine, co-host Alex (Jennifer Aniston) wants a seat at the big table, hoping to make a change at the organisation and further her position as a bigwig. Things take a turn for the worse when the outlet becomes the target of a cyber attack — live on air — compromising private messages and bringing certain truths to light, causing everyone to confront their values, both outdoors and within the newsroom. As the future of the network is thrown into question, Alex befriends a billionaire tech titan Paul Marks (Jon Hamm) who intends to acquire UBA, though his intentions are unknown.
Meanwhile, the lead co-host Bradley (Reese Witherspoon) questions Alex’s involvement in the buyout, plus the nature of her relationship with Paul. At the same time, Stella Bak (Greta Lee), President of News, has some plans laid out for running the place, which I’m assuming would be the backstabbing moment for Alex, who’s been gunning for the role since the beginning. As you might’ve guessed by now, The Morning Show season 3 is set after a brief time jump from the COVID-19 period, which is something showrunner Kerry Ehrin was looking to move past. There are a lot of returning faces this time, including Billy Crudup as UBA’s CEO Cory Ellison, Mark Duplass as Chip, and Karen Pittman as Mia Jordan.
The first two episodes of The Morning Show season 3 are set to drop September 13 on Apple TV+. The remaining six episodes will follow a weekly release schedule — every Wednesday — until October 25.
Kaala
When: September 15
Where: Disney+ Hotstar
India’s leading film and music production label T-Series is foraying into web series with Kaala, the latest crime thriller from Bejoy Nambiar, who previously worked on Netflix’s Fame Game. In it, an Intelligence Bureau (IB) officer — played by Avinash Tiwary (Khakee: The Bihar Story) — is thrust into the murky world of power and black money when he’s asked to solve a simple case involving some local criminals. There isn’t much information to chew on for now, but the production quality appears to be high, which is to be expected from a company that has largely worked on creating big cinematic experiences. Kaala also stars Rohan Vinod Mehra (Four More Shots Please), Nivetha Pethuraj (Boo), Taher Shabbir (Guilty), and Hiten Tejwani (Jogi) in key roles.
All episodes of Kaala will be available to stream September 15 on Disney+ Hotstar.
Sex Education season 4
When: September 21
Where: Netflix
In the aftermath of Moordale Secondary’s closure, Otis (Asa Butterfield) and friends have transferred over to the highly progressive Cavendish College, where lawn yoga is commonplace and there’s a new group of popular kids on the block called the ‘Coven,’ who strangely are extremely nice. Otis is still trying to keep in touch with Maeve (Emma Mackey), who was forced to leave for America before their relationship grew into something special. To keep his mind busy, he decides to continue his role of providing sex-related advice to his college peers, albeit he’s got a rival sex therapist now — O (Thaddea Graham). Oh, and also the wheelchair-bound Isaac is in the same college studying art, so we can expect a clash between him and Otis.
Otis’ troubles don’t end at school though, as Sex Education season 4 has him grapple with the idea of not being the only child at home. There’s a small time jump from when his mom Jean (Gillian Anderson) gave birth to a baby, so she’s mostly stuck at home caring for her, whilst still dreading the idea of being a single mother. Also, the gasp from when she opened her paternity test — might be misleading — could indicate that Jakob (Mikael Persbrandt) isn’t the father. For now, it’s too early to say. Meanwhile, Eric (Ncuti Gatwa) is trying not to come off as a loser, while Adam (Connor Swindells) thinks ‘mainstream education’ isn’t for him — whatever that means.
With a new school in the picture, season 4 understandably brings in a bunch of new faces. But the most recognisable from the bunch has to be Dan Levy (Schitt’s Creek), who plays Maeve’s writing instructor in the US, Thomas Molly. Most of the original cast return, including Kedar Williams-Stirling as Jackson Marchetti, Alistair Petrie as Moordale’s former headmaster Michael Groff, Mimi Keene as Ruby Matthews, and Aimee Lou Wood as Aimee Gibbs. Netflix also dropped sexually suggestive character posters for the new season, which is clearly a reference to the Lars von Trier film Nymphomaniac.
All eight episodes of Sex Education season 4 drop September 21 on Netflix.
Castlevania: Nocturne
When: September 28
Where: Netflix
Trouble is always brewing in the Castlevania universe, and so Netflix is back with a spin-off that deals with its newest threat Erzsebet Báthory (Franka Potente), a foretold Vampire Messiah, who plans to devour the sun and unleash all kinds of nightmarish fiends on the revolutionaries. Yep, Castlevania: Nocturne is set in the year 1792, during the height of the French Revolution, when citizens of the lower class started rebelling against inequality and for societal change. Amidst all this, Richter Belmont (Edward Bluemel), who’s picked up on his family’s tradition of vampire hunting, prepares to hunt down the larger evil. If his name wasn’t a dead giveaway for you, he’s a descendant of the notorious Trevor Belmont, the protagonist of the four-season-long Castlevania anime, which ended in 2021.
Much like his ancestors, Richter also brandishes a demon-smacking whip, but he’s not alone on this journey. Joining him on the crusade are Maria (Pixie Davis), a young magic-honing girl with leadership qualities, the fearless swordswoman Annette (Thuso Mbedu), and Edouard (Sydney James Harcourt), a former opera singer who now joins the battle against the nocturnal beasts. Even the thrill-seeking vampire Olrox (Zahn McClarnon) is against the vampiric world domination, though he can’t stomach teaming up with Richter’s group, having killed his mother years ago. More importantly, though, I highly doubt Richter himself would be fine with being on the same team as the beast who stripped his childhood away from him. Tensions run high in this series.
All eight episodes of Castlevania: Nocturne stream September 28 on Netflix.
Gen V
When: September 29
Where: Amazon Prime Video
While Godolkin University’s got its fair share of college kids partying and being loud, it is more famous for housing hormonal, aspiring superheroes until they’re well-trained and ready to be set free into the wild. Serving as a spin-off of The Boys, Gen V largely unspools through the eyes of the blood-bending Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclaire), one of the newest students on campus looking to earn the top rank and become the first black woman in The Seven. Unfortunately, she’s got a target on her back — everyone does, as it’s soon revealed that they must partake in a Hunger Games-esque battle royale for survival, putting their physical and moral boundaries to the test and proving themselves worthy.
This isn’t the first time she’s been featured in The Boys’ universe, as keen-eyed viewers might have noticed her database profile when Hughie Campbell (Jack Quaid) and Starlight (Erin Moriarty) visited the Red River Institute in season 3. As the students continue vying for top grades and putting on the goriest displays of their powers — exploding genitalia and all — a dark conspiracy within the school is brought to light, throwing everything into question. Gen V also stars Chance Perdomo (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) as the magnet-powered Andre Anderson, Lizze Broadway (Ghosted) as the size-shifting Emma Meyer, and Patrick Schwarzenegger as the fire-bending Golden Boy.
Gen V debuts September 29 on Amazon Prime Video with a three-episode premiere. The remaining five episodes drop every Friday until November 3.
