It’s been a great time for Netflix Originals over the summer with many new hits and returning hits making up the majority of the new additions heading to the service. Netflix looks to continue the summer fun well into August with a slew of brand new Originals to keep you entertained for when the sun is just a little too hot.
August 2016 is mostly filled up by debuts and actually is the calm before the start of the fall storm of new Originals. If you’re wondering why it’s mostly kids content, that’s normal for this time of the year given that most kids are now on school holiday.
Beat Bugs (Season 1)
August 3rd – Not available on Netflix AU
Announced a little earlier in the year, Beat Bugs is bring the music to Netflix in August 2016 with a Beatles inspired singalong show available on Netflix worldwide (excluding Australia) The show has some impressive talent on board with covers of Beatles tracks coming from P!nk, Sia, James Bay and Eddie Vedder on the bill along with plenty of others.
The Little Prince (2016 Movie)
August 5th – US Only
The Little Prince holds a special place in millions of hearts and therefore the pressure is on for Netflix to deliver on the promise of an authentic film adaptation of the famous children’s book.
From what we’ve seen so far, the movie looks to be among the best animated movies in 2016 exploring different animation styles from 2D, 3D stop-motion and Pixar quality 3D. It stars Jeff Bridges along with Mackenzie Foy as the lead roles.
The Get Down (Season 1)
August 12th – Available Worldwide
This is the show to watch in August. The Get Down, announced at CES earlier this year is full of promise at delivering an authentic and grounded series based in 1970’s New York. Directed and created by Baz Luhrmann (The Great Gatsby, Romeo + Juliet) it’ll likely have everything you’d expect from this director. It follows a group of rag tag teenagers who are running a muck in the streets of the Bronx.
Jaden Smith is the big actor pull here but he’s only appearing in 6 of the 13 hour long episodes. This is definitely our highlight of August 2016.
Project Mc2 (Season 2)
August 12th – Available Worldwide
While there’s plenty of children’s animation, the live action content still has a massive gap and that’s being filled mostly by Project Mc2. The first season debuted in 2015 to a very welcoming audience which quickly prompted the green lighting of a second season. A year on, we’re now ready to school where our science skilled spies are ready to get back on the job.
Bottersnikes & Gumbles (Season 1)
August 19th – Not available on Netflix UK, IE, AU, NZ & JP
Premiering in some Netflix regions is the TV adaptation of the famous book series Bottersnikes & Gumbles. The show has actually been released for quite some time as it was broadcasted by an Australian TV company back in December. Netflix managed to secure the rights to the first season and future seasons so hopefully a more timely arrival will be in order for future series. The animation style is strongly comparable to titles like Wallace & Grummit, Shaun the Sheep and Flushed Away and as a result, exudes charm and personality.
XOXO (Movie)
August 26th – Available Worldwide
To round out the month, Netflix is releasing a brand new comedy movie to join the likes of Adam Sandler’s library and Ricky Gervais’s Special Correspondents. The comedy centers around a EDM festival called XOXO where six strangers live collides at said festival. It’s not quite your coming of age movie but pretty damn close with a huge and credible cast on board.
Sarah Hyland is the big star here taking a break from her hit show Modern Family to perform as the lead with other stars including Ryan Hansen (2 Broke Girls), Ione Skye (Say Anything) and Graham Philips (The Good Wife) to name but a few.
Check back here on What’s on Netflix towards the end of the month where we’ll have your full August 2016 Netflix releases lineup.
