Upcoming sci-fi TV shows for 2022 (2023)

2022 has been a year of great sci-fi TV shows from long-awaited returning series, highly-anticipated premieres, and show revivals we didn’t know we even needed. From Stranger Things to Andor, viewers have been truly blessed with speculative futures and intergalactic travel throughout the year. We speak as if the year is over and it is definitely not! There are still many more upcoming sci-fi TV shows to come as we take a look through the TV releases yet to launch on our screens.

Take the Christmas Day release of Witcher prequel series, The Witcher: Blood Origin, for example. TV productions have been playing catch-up since the pandemic, but they’ve been working hard to provide fans with the shows they so sorely missed – some of which have been floating aimlessly waiting for their chance to continue. Thankfully, the wait is almost over as fans have finally begun to be bombarded with release date announcements and teaser trailers of their favorite shows.

Before we jump into the upcoming sci-fi TV shows for 2022 and 2023, it’s worth also paying heed to the best upcoming sci-fi movies of 2022 guide where there are plenty of new worlds to explore. Not forgetting, if you fancy discovering some of the best sci-fi movies of all time, we’ve a guide for that too. Let’s stay in the present for now though and take a look at the upcoming sci-fi TV shows we’re set to enjoy in the coming months.

The Peripheral

• Release date: October 21, 2022
• Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Gary Carr, Jack Reynor

Based on famed sci-fi writer William Gibson’s 2014 novel of the same name, The Peripheral straddles not one, but two alternate futures. In near-future rural America, Flynne Fisher (Chloë Grace Moretz) tackles uncertainty around whether the world she’s living in is in fact real. Throw it forward 70 years in a post-apocalyptic 22nd Century London and Wilf Netherton (Gary Carr) is drawn into a mystery surrounding a woman’s disappearance. Suddenly, their worlds collide through seemingly virtual time travel transforming this sci-fi thriller into a battle against dangerous forces brought to the forefront that threaten both their unique worlds and the people they love.

Doom Patrol (season 4)

• Release date: December 8, 2022
• Cast: Diane Guerrero, April Bowlby, Brendan Fraser, Matt Bomer

Doom Patrol from DC Comics is a superhero show with a bit of a twist. Each superhero has come to a point in their lives where they’ve found themselves with superhuman abilities, but only because they’ve suffered a horrible accident. They’re an unlikely set of heroes considering they’re each traumatized and outcast from society, but it sure doesn’t stop them from turning their downtrodden position in the world into something hero worthy with the help of their powers. With three seasons of battles and personal discoveries under its belt, Doom Patrol returns to HBO Max for season four later in 2022.

The Witcher: Blood Origin

• Release date: December 25, 2022
• Cast: Michelle Yeoh, Francesca Mills, Lenny Henry, Dylan Moran

Following on from the ongoing hugely successful The Witcher series on Netflix comes Blood Origin, a six-part mini-series that acts as a prequel set in an elven world 1,200 years before Geralt of Rivia. Monsters, men, and elves unite and reveal the genesis of the very first Witcher whilst also exploring the demise of the ancient elven civilization.

After several delays due to Covid, The Witcher: Blood Origin is now expected to hit the streaming platform on December 25, 2022. The trailer so far shows us a host of new characters to The Witcher franchise, with big action scenes set to the backdrop of some breathtaking landscapes.

Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Season 2)

• Release date: January 4, 2023
• Cast: Dee Bradley Baker, Michelle Ang, Rhea Perlman

A spin-off from The Clone Wars, season 1 of The Bad Batch followed the epic adventures of a new group of elite troopers, Clone Force 99. Season 2 promises to expand on the lead characters - Hunter, Wrecker, Crosshair, Tech, Echo, and sidekick Omega - as they continue to complete perilous missions across the galaxy. Each member of the Bad Batch has their own unique genetic mutation that will be further explored in what appears to be yet another animated hit from the Star Wars franchise.

Star Trek: Picard (Season 3)

• Release date: February 16, 2023
• Cast: Patrick Stewart, Michelle Hurd, Evan Evagora, Jeri Ryan

Up next, in what is set to be Star Trek: Picard’s final season, viewers will be treated to Patrick Stewart continuing to reprise his role as the iconic Jean-Luc Picard. It wouldn’t be Picard without him. Season 2 and 3 were filmed back-to-back to make up for delays, so fans will be delighted to hear despite season 2 dropping in March 2022, season 3 will return in February 2023. And the season 3 teaser trailer sees Picard reunite with his Next Generation crewmates including LeVar Burton as Geordi La Forge, Michelle Dorn as Worf, and Gates McFadden as Dr. Beverly Crusher.

The Mandalorian (Season 3)

• Release date: February 2023
• Cast: Pedro Pascal, Carl Weathers, Giancarlo Esposito

The Mandalorian and everyone’s favorite little guy, Baby Yoda, are returning for season 3. Mando (Pedro Pascal) left season 2 with some great open-ended storylines leaving viewers wanting more. Luckily, whilst we don’t have a release date just yet, The Book of Boba Fett, another Star Wars spin-off, has been releasing episodes in the meantime.

And The Book of Boba Fett aligns with The Mandalorian storyline, so much so that it’s been coined as a bridge between season 2 and 3 with episode 5 featuring the man himself.

Marvel’s Secret Invasion

• Release date: Spring 2023
• Cast: Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Cobie Smulders, Martin Freeman

Another MCU crossover event based on the comic books of the same name, Secret Invasion throws together Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and Skrull Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) once again after meeting for the first time in Captain Marvel. The pair will team up to explore the faction of shape-shifting Skrulls who have seemingly been infiltrating Earth for years. With a cast list of new and returning roles in the MCU, such as Cobie Smulders as Commander Maria Hill, Secret Invasion reportedly wrapped production in April 2022 and is expected to premiere exclusively on Disney+ later this year.

Halo (Season 2)

• Release date: Mid-to-late 2023
• Cast: Pablo Schreiber, Nastascha McElhone, Jennifer Taylor

One gaming franchise turned TV adaptation that has already boasted a successful first season is Halo. The dark, foreboding man of few words, Master Chief, returns for season 2 on Paramount Plus with a wealth of unfinished business.

Season 1 followed the Spartans, led by Master Chief, as they continued their war against the Covenant. Season 2 looks set to continue the epic battle with a cliffhanger season finale setting the story up for longevity. Described by Paramount Plus’ Chief Programming Officer, Tanya Giles, as “an expansive, world-building opportunity” for the streaming platform.

Fallout

• Release date: Mid-to-late 2023
• Cast: Walton Goggins, Ella Purnell, Kyle MacLachlan

This won’t be the first gaming franchise turned into a TV adaptation and it certainly won’t be the last, but Fallout has held fast as one TV show that has been highly-anticipated and long-awaited by fans of the iconic series. Officially confirmed for Amazon Prime, not much is known about the show just yet. What we do know is that Bethesda figureheads, Todd Howard and James Altman, are onboard as executive producers. This means that speculation has strongly steered towards the TV show closely following with the storyline of the main Fallout games.

The Three-Body Problem

• Release date: 2023 TBC
• Cast: Eiza González, Benedict Wong, John Bradley

Based on the novel of the same name from Cixin Liu, Netflix have also taken it upon themselves to transform this complex sci-fi book into an ambitious sci-fi adaptation for the streaming platform. The Three-Body Problem tackles space and time whilst looking at humanity’s first contact with aliens and impending alien invasion. A nanomaterials expert discovers a countdown that puts him under military investigation. To find the truth, he enters a mysterious VR game called Three-Body that will hopefully untangle the web of lies. The story takes place across a series of timelines, jumping backwards, forwards, and remaining in present-day throughout. With such an ambitious project comes a cast list full of big names. Maybe we’ll be able to add this one to our best sci-fi TV shows based on books list?

Ahsoka

• Release date: 2023 TBC
• Cast: Rosario Dawson, Hayden Christensen, Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Whilst we’ve been treated to a slate of new Star Wars content on Disney+ from The Mandalorian to The Book of Boba Fett in 2022, potentially 2023, we’ve also got a Mando spin-off, Ahsoka. Fans of Star Wars: The Clones Wars animated TV series were very excited to learn that Ahsoka Tano will get her own series in the ever-expanding Star Wars universe, and rightly so, as she’s a badass. Rosario Dawson takes on the titular character and Jedi padawan as she embarks on her own adventures, although there’s not much known about the plot thus far. We do know that Hayden Christensen is back as Anakin Skywalker in a great crossover with his appearance in Obi-Wan Kenobi. With a 2023 release date, it’s almost time to see what Ahsoka brings to the table when thrust into the limelight.

The Last of Us

• Release date: 2023 TBC
• Cast: Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Gabriel Luna

In our final entry from the gaming world, Sony’s iconic action-adventure series The Last of Us is set to hit screens in 2023. In-keeping with the game plot, lead characters Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Elle (Bella Ramsey) are thrown together in a post-apocalyptic America where they must fight to survive against cannibalistic creatures following an outbreak. It’s HBO’s first foray into a game turned TV adaptation and it’s a big one at that. Although initially planned to be adapted for film back when the game launched in 2013, The Last of Us seems to have finally found its home on the smaller screen, with the cast and crew taking their time to make sure they get this gaming world right.

The Rangers of the New Republic

• Release date: TBC
• Cast: TBC

Another addition to the Star Wars universe, Disney Plus are at it again with spin-off The Rangers of the New Republic, an adventure set within the timeline of The Mandalorian. This new live-action series comes again from the minds of Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni, but this time viewers are promised a tale that will “intersect with future stories and culminate into a climactic story event.”

For now, the plot and cast remain a mystery, with rumors suggesting the show is not currently in active development and may in fact be canceled or merged with the existing Mandalorian series. This is probably in part due to the social media post controversies surrounding Gina Carano and the subsequent firing from her role as Cara Dune.