The upcoming slate of new Netflix content is officially in full swing this month. Though numerous original and previously released shows will appear in their catalog during April, here are the three shows we are most excited about streaming.
Beef
The most anticipated Netflix debut of April, Lee Sung Jin’s dark comedy Beef, is officially available to stream in full. Beef stars Steven Yeun and Ali Wong as two strangers involved in an incident of road rage, spinning a typically minor inconvenience into a time-consuming web of obsession. Lee’s writing credits recently included episodes of Dave and Tuca & Bertie, but this is the first show of his design, receiving credits as creator, executive producer, and writer of five episodes.
Beef currently holds a Rotten Tomatoes score of 98%, with reports coming in that the show is an exhausting but rewarding watch. Given its peculiar concept, it is no surprise that Beef comes from the television department of A24, which dominated the Oscars thanks to the recent viral success of Everything Everywhere All At Once.
The Diplomat
Keri Russell, a reliable highlight from shows like The Americans to movies like Cocaine Bear, stars in the upcoming Netflix series The Diplomat, which premieres on April 20. This political thriller displays a fictional take on the U.S. Embassy in London, where newly-appointed American ambassador Kate Wyler (Russell) navigates international and personal affairs. Rufus Sewell also stars in a leading role.
Though the show has received pre-release criticism for apparently glamorizing Wyler’s job, Russell’s star power and the excellent past credits of showrunner Debora Cahn (writer for Homeland and Fosse/Verdon) will hopefully make up for potential over-dramatizing in The Diplomat.
Sweet Tooth (Season 2)
Since it’s rare nowadays to find a universally well-received fantasy show equally entertaining for early teens through adults, we have Sweet Tooth heavily circled on our watchlist. This post-apocalyptic series premiered in 2021, and after almost two years of fans clamoring online for more, the sophomore season will show up on Netflix on April 27.
This comic book adaptation, spearheaded by Jim Mickle (writer/director of Stake Land, We Are What We Are), puts humans and half-human, half-animal hybrids in the same future universe. In the first season, half-deer hybrid Gus travels across this post-society world with the help of Jepperd, a human who protects him in the wake of hunters fearful of the hybrids’ existence.
Christian Convery (Cocaine Bear) and Nonso Anozie (supporting actor in Game of Thrones) lead the show alongside Adeel Akhtar and Neil Sandilands. Mickle picks up the story right where it left off, with each character in tense situations where every decision could decide the dying world’s fate.
