New Period Dramas Coming to Netflix in 2025 & Beyond

Are period dramas in right now? Looking at Netflix’s upcoming slate, you’d get that impression with quite an array of titles coming up from around the world. Below, we’ll look at Netflix’s movie and TV slate that all fall within the period drama genre, either due out in 2025, 2026, or beyond.

Before we get into it, we must stress that everything on this list is subject to change – especially release dates. When it comes to international period dramas, we’ll feature a few, but this won’t be an exhaustive list just because there’s so many. 2025 already kicked off with two great period drama titles with Number 24 on New Year’s Day and the excellent American Primeval a week later. 

One period drama series from Germany we’re currently awaiting news on the future is The Empress. Given season 2 knocked it out of the park when it comes to viewership, we suspect it’s a shoo-in renewal, but until we have confirmation, we can’t include it in the list below. 

Note: Titles are listed in alphabetical order.

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Bridgerton (Season 4)

Bridgerton season 3 was the biggest English language returning show of 2024, smoking out all of the other competition. We didn’t have to wait for a season 4 renewal, though, as the show had already received a dual-season renewal. 

Whether the series returns for a 2025 release date is unknown. It’s possible, but it does seem like a stretch, given the production schedule. At the latest, the new season will be hitting our screens sometime in 2026. 

Bridgerton extends beyond its mothership show, too. Netflix has live events around the globe set in the world of Bridgerton throughout 2025, and there are constant rumors of the spin-offs, including a follow-up to Queen Charlotte after they removed the limited series label from the series. 

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Death by Lightning

One of the titles that managed to get into our most anticipated debut shows of 2025 list was Death By Lightning, a new drama set in the late 1800s that charts the life (and eventual death) of the 20th President of the United States, James Garfield, and his admirer Charles Guiteau, who went onto assassinate him. It was filmed in Hungary in the latter months of 2024 and should be on our screens this year if everything goes to plan. 

Betty Gilpin, who was just seen in Netflix’s American Primeval, will be starring alongside Michael Shannon, Matthew Macfadyen, and Nick Offerman. 

We’ve got lots more on this new limited series in our full preview for the show here. 

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East of Eden

Florence Pugh leads a stunning cast for this brand-new adaptation of the 1952 John Steinbeck novel of the same name. Produced by Anonymous Content and FIFTH SEASON, the series is set in the farmlands of the Salinas Valley in California and follows two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, who are destined to reenact the fateful story of Cain and Abel. Joining Pugh in the series are Mike Faist, Ciarán Hinds, Christopher Abbott, and Martha Plimpton, among others. 

East of Eden is expected to be released in early 2026 after the impressive new production swept across New Zealand for filming between October 2024 and March 2025. 

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Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein

Although far more destined for the horror genre, this gothic horror being helmed by the master of horror himself, Guillermo del Toro, brings together an insane cast to bring the famous novel by Mary Shelley to life in a new incarnation. We’ve already discussed the movie at length, and it’s high up on our most anticipated list for 2025, but here are the basics. The plot covers Dr. Pretorius’s attempts at tracking down Frankenstein’s infamous monster in the hopes of continuing Dr. Victor Frankenstein’s experiments.

We’re expecting Frankenstein to arrive on our screens in the back half of 2025. 

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House of Guinness

One of two projects from Steven Knight on this list is House of Guinness, a highly ambitious Succession-style family drama following what happens with the Guinness family after the patriarch of the family passes away and his legacy and empire is in the hands of his children. 

We’ve been tracking the show’s production across the United Kingdom, and its lavish sets, costumes, and a compelling plotline that’s not been fully explored on screens makes us very excited for its expected 2025 release. 

Amongst the cast assembled for the series include Anthony Boyle, Jack Gleeson, James Norton, Louis Partridge, Dervla Kirwan, Danielle Galligan, and Emily Fairn. 

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Leviathan

Leviathan marks the second Scott Westerfeld novel to get adapted at Netflix following Uglies in 2024, although this project is very different from that sci-fi feature film. Being produced by the same animation studio behind Netflix’s Beastars, the series is set in 1914, just ahead of the Great War War, with the plot revolving around a fugitive prince and a girl in disguise meeting aboard a bioengineered airship, the HMS Leviathan, and change the course of history.

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Lockerbie

Jonathan Lee is writing and showrunning this new biopic limited series that’ll be looking back at the tragic events of the 1988 Lockerbie bombing. Produced by MGM Television, the new British series stars Connor Swindells, Patrick J. Adams, Merritt Wever, and Peter Mullan. 

It’s one of two major scripted series to come out in 2025 covering the events so it’ll be interesting to see how the series compares to the one that aired on Sky. 

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Nero

This new French film, created by Allan Mauduit, is directed by Allan Mauduit and Ludovic Colbeau-Justin and is due out in 2025. The cast includes Pio Marmaï, Olivier Gourmet, Alice Isaaz, Louis-Do de Lencquesaing, and Camille Razat. Set in 1504 in the south of France, the story follows Nero, a dangerous and cynical assassin who is betrayed by his master and long-time ally. Fleeing from relentless enemies, Nero must rescue and protect his orphaned daughter, Perla. It was filmed in Italy, France, and Spain throughout much of 2024. 

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Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man

After six almighty seasons, Peaky Blinders is back in 2025 for the long-speculated movie to see Cillian Murphy suit up again as the iconic Tommy Shelby. A big ensemble cast is coming back for the new movie that serves as a continuation of the series. Joining Murphy on the movie are a bunch of familiar faces from the series and plenty of new faces too. 

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Perfect Match (Season 1)

Some of the Asian period dramas Netflix has on offer right now are very much worth your time, and one new one joining the vast roster in 2025 is Perfect Match, which hails from Taiwan. Netflix released some first looks for this new series back in November, and it looks fantastic. It’s set during the Renzong era (early 1000s) in the Northern Song Dynasty. 

The story follows the five lively Li sisters and their spirited mother, Madame Li, known collectively as “The Six Tigers of the Li Family.” Frustrated by her daughters’ unmarried status in Luo-yang, Madame Li moves the family to Bianjing to find suitable matches. There, the women balance opening a teahouse with the comedic and heartfelt challenges of their search for love.

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The Electric State

It feels odd to include The Electric State on this list, given that it’s more sci-fi than a period drama. Still, the Russo Brothers and others attached to the enormous budget Netflix movie have been keen to stress that at its heart, The Electric State is set in the 1990s. Is that old enough to be considered a period drama? You be the judge, but we’re including it because it probably skirts the line. 

Set to feature plenty of aesthetics from an alternative 1990s, you’ll be following Millie Bobby Brown as Michelle, who is on a country-wide search for her brother with the help of a mysterious robot and a drifter. 

The Electric State lands on Netflix globally on March 14th, 2025.

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The Lady’s Companion (Season 1) 

Coming to Netflix from Spain and the same creator as The Cable Girls is The Lady’s Companion (Manual para señoritas), planned to be a multi-season period drama set in 1880s Madrid, coinciding with the Alphonsine era and the Restoration period.

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The Law According to Lidia Poet (Season 3)

The Law According to Lida Poet, an Italian series that focuses on the real-world figure of a young woman who became a trailblazer in the world of law, returned for a second season in 2024, and the character set her sights on politics. Surprisingly, the series got a third-season renewal despite dramatically lower viewing figures. We suspect this will get into production in 2025, presumably for a 2026 release date. 

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The Leopard

Easily the most ambitious project to ever come out of Netflix Italy will be dropping on our screens on March 5th, 2025. Also known as Il Gattopardo, the lavish new series will adapt the world-renowned novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa. The limited series is filmed across many picturesque locations throughout Italy and brings to life 1860s Sicily against the backdrop of revolution. The story focuses on Don Fabrizio Corbera, the Prince of Salina, who realizes his family fortune and status is at risk and must engineer a marriage to secure his legacy. 

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The Seven Dials Mystery

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The Swedish Connection

Coming from (you guessed it) Sweden, this new series is described as an ambitious World War Two drama that’s about the true story of Gösta Engzell, an anonymous bureaucrat at the Swedish Foreign Ministry who influenced government policies in such a way that helped save Jews in Nazi-controlled countries such as Norway and Denmark.

The cast for the show that’s due out in 2025 features Henrik Dorsin, Sissela Benn, Jonas Karlsson, Johan Glans, Marianne Mörck, Oscar Töringe, Loa Falkman and Olle Jansson.

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Also in the Pipeline (Or Not)… 

• Hong Rang – K-drama period thriller starring Jo Bo Ah, Lee Jae Wook, and Jung Ga Ram. 
• Last Samurai Standing – Japanese historical action drama set in 1878. 
• Love Untangled – This new Korean romantic comedy movie is set in the late 1990s.
• Lefter: The Story of the Ordinarius –  Turkish biopic film on “an aspiring footballer who defies his strict father to chase his dream.”
• The New Force – Coming from Sweden, this drama follows the struggles of Sweden’s first female police officers in 1958.
• Untitled Virgin River Prequel Series – Not yet officially greenlit, this potential spin-off would rewind the clock back to the 1970s for Netflix’s beloved romance drama series. 
• When Life Gives You Tangerines – Romantic K-drama series set in the 1950s.
• Winter Palace – Series focusing on Andre Morel, who, in 1899, envisions a five-star luxury hotel that will remain open throughout winter.

Let’s conclude with all the other announced period drama feature film and series projects that have been announced but are currently unclear where they are in development. Some of these could still be active, whereas we suspect others are inactive or have been dropped. 

• Black Samurai – Announced in 2022, this movie is based on 1970s pulp novels with John Schoenfelder and Russell Ackerman producing. No word on the status of the movie since. 
• Gordon Hemingway & The Realm of Cthulhu – First announced in 2021 with Spike Lee, Hank Woon, and Stefon Bristol attached in various capacities, this movie is set in East Africa in 1928. If it ever gets made, of course. 
• Stealing the General – John Patton Ford was announced to be writing and directing this feature film 
• The Council –  Announced in 2019 with Will Smith attached, the plot of this planned movie would’ve followed the crime syndicate consisting of seven African-American men who ruled Harlem in the 1970s and early 80s.
• The Harder They Fall 2 – Jeymes Samuel confirmed that a sequel to the Western starring Idris Elba, among others, would be coming back. 
• The Match – This Korean film was filmed but ultimately never released because of investigations into Yoo Ah-in. It’s set in the 1980s and 90s and is based on two real-life notable Go players
• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo – Leslye Headland is attached to direct this adaptation of the Taylor Jenkins Reid novel, although production hasn’t yet started. 
• Untitled Hannibal Film – Announced with Denzel Washington attached, this film from Antoine Fuqua centers on the ancient Carthaginian general Hannibal who, atop an elephant, came over the Alps and attacked Rome from the North.

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What new or returning period drama are you looking forward to watching on Netflix in the coming months and years? Let us know in the comments down below.