2023 was a pretty great year for Jewish TV, from new Netflix movies to Hallmark Hanukkah specials and amazing new limited series. Looking at 2024, there are some pretty promising new Jewish-themed shows coming our way, along with new seasons of crowd favorites. Let’s look at the most anticipated Jewish TV of this coming calendar year:
New shows:
“We Were the Lucky Ones” (Hulu)
This is by far the show we’re most excited for in 2024. Based on the Georgia Hunter novel, which is loosely based on her own Polish Jewish family’s tale of Holocaust survival, it stars an incredible cast, including Joey King, Logan Lerman, Amit Rahav (“Unorthodox,” “Transatlantic”), Israeli film star Lior Ashkenazi, Hadas Yaron and her “Shtisel” co-star and love interest Michael Aloni.
“The Lady in the Lake” (Apple TV+)
OK, we’re just as excited for this show, starring the amazing Natalie Portman as Jewish housewife turned journalist Maddie Schwartz in 1950s Baltimore who becomes obsessed with the murder of local waitress Cleo Sherwood, played by Moses Ingram (“The Queen’s Gambit”). Based on a novel by Laura Lippman, it tackles racism, classism and sexism. Directed by Israeli academy award nominee Alma Har’el, it’s bound to be a truly mesmerizing show.
“Masters of the Air” (Apple TV+)
Producers Stephen Spielberg ,Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman — the men behind “Band of Brothers” and “The Pacific” — are bringing us a new WWII TV series about the 100th Bomb Group of the air force, known as the “Bloody 100” for the number of soldiers these bomber pilots and airmen lost during the war. The show features some of the Jewish members of the group, including Major Robert Rosenthal (played by Nate Mann) and Lt. David Friedkin, played by Freddy Carter.
This much-anticipated “Shtisel” prequel was supposed to come out in 2023, but unfortunately its release has been delayed. We’re still very excited to spend some time with Libby and Nuchem in Antwerp, especially after watching “Rough Diamonds” last year.
“The Tattooist of Auschwitz” (Peacock)
The upcoming series based on the somewhat controversial book about Lale Sokolov, the tattooist of Auschwitz, has an incredible cast, including Harvey Keitel, Jonah Hauer-King (“The Little Mermaid”) and Melanie Lynskey. It will also be scored by Oscar award-winning composer Hans Zimmer.
“Bros” (Netflix)
This Israeli show was meant to premiere on Netflix last November, but its release got pushed back after the October 7 attacks, in which the show’s sound engineer, Lior Waitzmann, was killed. A Netflix exclusive, it tells the story of two childhood friends who co-own a bar and are fellow soccer fans. Troubles with their business, and an upcoming big game of their favorite team, Beitar Jerusalem, put their friendship in peril.
This mesmerizing show about an insular Haredi community in coming to the Jewish streaming service this March, and we can’t wait.
“The Big Cigar” (Apple TV+)
“The Big Cigar” is based on a 2012 Playboy article about how one Jewish film producer helped the founder of the Black Panther Party escape to Cuba. Alessandro Nivola, whose paternal grandmother was a German Jewish refugee, plays producer Bert Schneider. Jewish actor Noah Emmerich, whose aunt was classmates with Anne Frank, plays Schneider’s brother. Jewish actress Jaime Ray Newman, wife of Israeli filmmaker Guy Nattiv, plays Roz Torrance.
There’s a new series from “Dead To Me” creator Liz Feldman coming, and “No Good Deed,” about a real estate dispute, sounds just as potentially addictive. We don’t know yet if there will be any Jewish content in the show, but Feldman did give us some Jewish rep in “Dead to Me,” and Abbi Jacobson plays a queer character named Leslie Fisher, who could be Jewish? Either way, we’ll be watching.
“Before” is another show with no known Jewish content as of yet, except that it stars Judith Light and Billy Crystal, as a child psychiatrist named Eli, so we feel like it should be on this list.
New seasons:
“Somebody Feed Phil” (Netflix)
Season seven of our favorite Jewish gourmand, Phil Rosenthal’s delightful show is coming to Netflix sometime this year and we can’t wait to watch (and drool) along.
“Curb Your Enthusiasm” (Max)
It is the end of an era. The last season of Larry David’s “Curb” is airing this year and we’re pretty, pretty, pretty sad about it.
