Netflix unveils Australian slate for 2026

Netflix has unveiled its upcoming 2026 slate across Australia and New Zealand, with the inaugural slate under newly appointed content director, Amanda Duthie.

The former SBS and Stan exec said Australia plays a unique role as “both the home of powerful local stories and a production base for ambitious global projects”, adding that the slate “brings together stories that differ widely in tone, scale and ambition, from every corner of the country.”

She added: “The stories are confident and curious, revisiting classics with fresh creativity, placing distinctive characters at the forefront while remaining authentic to Australia and where we see ourselves in the world.” (To read Duthie’s in-depth interview with Broadcast International, click here.)

The 2026 slate, unveiled at a launch event in Sydney today, includes the third and final season of Heartbreak High, which premieres on Netflix on 25 March and follows Hartley High’s graduating class as they say goodbye school, hello adulthood.

My Brilliant Career is a series adaptation of Miles Franklin’s iconic novel. Filmed in South Australia, the series centres on Sybylla (Phillipa Northeast), a shockingly modern young woman with one searing ambition: to be a writer. With an irrepressible taste for fun, the choice between adventure and a safe marriage is easy, until she falls in love. Should Sybylla marry, or should she throw herself to the winds of fate and risk a creative life?

Prevoiusly unveiled Breakers, led by Antony Starr, alongside Oliver Edis, Annabel Wolfe and D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, is the first Netflix series to shoot on the coast of Western Australia, and follows the story of two backpacking friends who are drawn into a close-knit surf community.

It is produced by Baby Reindeer firm Clerkenwell Films and explores power, loyalty and belonging, with the Busselton beachfront as the backdrop of a fictional town. The cast also includes Heartbreak High alumni Asher Yasbincek, Sherry-Lee Watson and Brodie Townsend.

The launch also featured international productions, filmed and produced in ANZ, including the adaptation of John Steinbeck’s classic novel East of Eden through a contemporary lens. Shot in New Zealand, the limited series places renewed focus on character and moral complexity.

There is also previously announced Wonka: The Golden Ticket - an unscripted series filmed on the Gold Coast by Eureka Productions - which is set inside a retro-futuristic dreamscape. The high-stakes social experiment challenges players physically and mentally as they navigate games, tests and temptations designed to probe their instincts, resilience, and ability to thrive in chaos.

Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 is an animated series made by Sydney-based Flying Bark Productions, in which the original characters must fight new monsters and unravel a paranormal mystery terrorising their town.

Films on the slate include: Allen, a heartwarming tale of friendship and adventure created by Bluey producer Ludo Studio; War Machine from Australian filmmaker Patrick Hughes; wilderness thriller Apex, starring Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton; and The Mosquito Bowl, which is based on the true story of four college football stars who enlist in the Marines following the attack on Pearl Harbor. 

Steps, an animated film from Netflix Animation Studios, is also being produced in Sydney (sharing animation production with Vancouver), with the feature aiming to bring a fresh twist to Cinderella.