We're only a few months into 2026, and we've already seen one of the best new fantasy shows of the year in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. While the first season of the HBO series was so awesome, there are even bigger fantasy shows coming later this year, and we just learned the release date for one of them that we thought could be pushed to 2027.
It's not just that we have a lot of big fantasy shows coming this year. Some of the biggest shows coming this year, overall, are fantasy shows! I don't think it's hyperbole to say that this is the best year for fantasy shows in a long time.
With that, there are four fantasy shows that fantasy fans should be more excited to watch than the rest, and we have release dates for three of those shows so far. Of course, there are other fantasy shows coming this year, but these are the ones that should be the biggest of the bunch.
Let's get the list started with the one we're most excited about, House of the Dragon season 3.
House of the Dragon season 3
Premiere date: Sunday, June 21
House of the Dragon season 3 is only one month away! After waiting two years since season 2 ended, fans are chomping at the bit to watch this new season. There's a lot of interest in one major battle early in the season, the Battle of the Gullet, that should set this season apart from the first two seasons.
Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D'Arcy, Rhys Ifans, Steve Toussaint, Fabien Frankel, Tom Glynn-Carney, and Ewan Mitchell are all back for season 3. It's going to be one wild ride!
I don't want to hype it up too much or give away too many spoilers, but I really do think this season, with everything that's about to happen, is going to be the most exciting and shocking season so far. I know there's a lot of distrust among the fandom and those behind the series, but I have high, high hopes that Ryan Condal and his team have pulled off something incredible. We'll just have to wait and see, though.
House of the Dragon season 3 will air Sunday nights on HBO all summer long.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3
Premiere date: Wednesday, Nov. 11
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 3 will be released much sooner than expected. For a while, we were worried that The Rings of Power season 3 wouldn't be released until 2027, but that's no longer the plan.
Prime Video announced that The Rings of Power season 3 will premiere on Wednesday, Nov. 11. We also got the first look (above) of Charlie Vickers as Sauron in the Iron Crown.
We also learned that Rings of Power season 3 is getting a big-time jump to the War of the Elves. It's one of the most interesting parts of this conflict around Sauron's rise. It's going to be really interesting to see what happens.
We have eight episodes in The Rings of Power season 3 to watch later this year. And, there are some fascinating new characters joining the party, too, including one played by Jamie Campbell Bower.
There's still a lot we don't know about the season, but I'm sure that when we start to learn more, it's going to be a big deal. This is already shaping up to be the biggest season of the series so far.
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Premiere date: Friday, Dec. 25
Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone is the first season of HBO's upcoming series based on J.K. Rowling's book series of the same name. The series is scheduled to premiere on Christmas Day, which will be quite the gift to fans of the series around the globe.
Two and half decades after the Harry Potter movies starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint started, HBO has tapped Francesca Gardiner to adapt Rowling's book series. Based on the trailer, we're getting a straight retelling of the Harry Potter series beginning with the events of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. In the story, Harry will find out that he's actually a wizard, start attending a wizarding school, and trying to stop someone from obtaining a rare magical object known as the Philosopher's Stone.
We have an entirely new cast in the Harry Potter series, as well, led by Dominick McLaughlin, who stars as Harry Potter, Arabella Stanton, who plays Hermione Granger, and Alistair Stout, who plays Ron Weasley.
Obviously, there's been a lot of controversy around the Harry Potter world recently because of Rowling. I'm sure many fans who grew up reading the books and watching the movies will be sitting out the TV show because of her, but there's no doubt that Harry Potter is going to be one of the biggest releases of the year. The conversation about this show, good or bad, is going to dominate the rest of the year.
The Witcher season 5
Premiere date: TBD
Although The Witcher season 4 wasn't the best season of the hit Netflix original fantasy series, I included it on the list in hopes that fan interest will surge around the final season. I have a feeling more fans will tune in to the series coming to an end with the fifth season.
We don't know when exactly The Witcher season 5 will arrive, but we know that it will be released sometime later this year. Netflix confirmed as much earlier this year. I have a feeling we'll probably see The Witcher season 5 released sometime around November or December. That's when most seasons of the series have been released, aside from the third season that premiered in the summer.
Liam Hemsworth, Anya Chalotra, and Freya Allan are back for The Witcher season 5. We should finally see a conclusion of the trials and tribulations for Geralt, Yennefer, and Ciri, but how true will they stay to Andrzej Sapkowski's vision? We'll have to wait and see to find out!
Those are the four big fantasy shows to get excited to watch in 2026! We'll share more information about each show as we find out.
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