There are a lot of high-profile shows coming in September, including Agatha All Along and The Penguin, along with new seasons of shows like The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon – The Book of Carol, Frasier, Survivor, and Slow Horses. But there are also shows you might not even have heard about that are coming later this month or have even already premiered.
The three hidden September streaming TV shows that you don’t want to let fly under your radar this month come from Hulu (via FX) and Netflix. One is a drama thriller starring Jeff Bridges that is returning for its second season more than two years after the first season delighted audiences. The others are brand new shows that might become favorites.
English Teacher (2024)
Perfectly timed for back to school, English Teacher is a comedy drama starring creator Brian Jordan Alvarez as Evan Marquez, a high school teacher. The series follows Marquez’s personal and professional life as he tries to stay true to his principles. But with all the challenges that surround him, he sometimes finds it difficult to do so.
Similar to other workplace comedies, English Teacher follows Marquez’s interactions with his students and colleagues, each with their own unique personalities. There’s the abrasive, yet intelligent physical education teacher Markie (Sean Patton), for example, and the overly optimistic, yet slightly naive history teacher Gwen (Stephanie Koenig). You may recognize Alvarez for his recurring roles on shows like Will & Grace, where he played Estéfan, and Jane the Virgin, where he played Wesley. He brings the same humor to this role, earning the series a solid 97% Rotten Tomatoes critics score.
Stream English Teacher on Hulu.
The Old Man, season 2 (2022-)
You might have missed The Old Man when it premiered on FX in June 2022. The seven-episode first season is a wild ride as you go on a journey with Dan Chase (Jeff Bridges), a former CIA operative who has been living off the grid for three decades. When an intruder tries to attack him in his home, however, he realizes he has been found and needs to go into hiding. He comes upon an unsuspecting woman named Zoe (Amy Brenneman), who ends up an unwitting partner on the run with him.
There are lots of secrets uncovered in The Old Man that involve the FBI and Assistant Director for Counterintelligence Harold Harper (John Lithgow), along with his protégé, Angela Adams (Alia Shawkat). Gbenga Akinnagbe (The Wire) also stars as the hit man hired to kill Chase for reasons initially unknown.
The Old Man has a tremendously talented cast, a gripping story, and plenty of action scenes that show that well into his 70s, Bridges has still got it. Given the gap between seasons, you might have completely forgotten about this show, even if you watched season 1. Now, eight more episodes are coming weekly, starting this month, promising the same intensity.
Stream The Old Man on Hulu.
Penelope (2024)
Mark Duplass is best known in front of the camera for his role on The Morning Show, which earned him two Primetime Emmy Award nominations. But he and his brother, Jay, have their own film production company as well that has produced movies like Jeff, Who Lives at Home and the anthology series Room 104.
Penelope is his latest indie project. It’s a coming-of-age series about a 16-year-old young woman of the same name, played by Megan Stott. Feeling like she doesn’t fit in and being instinctually drawn to nature, she decides to leave her home to see if she can hack it in the wilderness.
Also starring Austin Abrams (Euphoria), Penelope serves as a wake-up call of sorts, a social commentary on our obsession with modern technology. But it’s also an inspirational show meant to encourage you to get outside and enjoy nature. Penelope is a different kind of coming-of-age drama that trades the usual high school antics for a young woman finding herself.
Stream Penelope on Netflix.