Sequels and reboots: the historical series that will be revived this year

BarcelonaThe explosion of series and platforms means there aren't enough fresh ideas to meet all the demand, or the audience's ability to embrace new universes is limited. That's why one of the popular options is to revive past titles and try to give them a new lease on life. Few consolidate a new life beyond their original run, but these are the most notable attempts being prepared for the 2025/2026 season.

Malcolm

The family series that put Bryan Cranston on the map before Breaking Bad is set to give fans a treat in the form of four episodes that will resume the plots that ended in 2006. The story will focus on Hal and Lois's 40th wedding anniversary, while also revealing how things are going for an adult Malcolm, who has fathered a daughter. It will be available on Disney+ in December 2025.

Buffy, the Vampire Slayer

Sarah Michelle Gellar will reprise her role as Buffy Summers for the new incarnation of the teen series, though she'll likely be mentoring a new vampire slayer. For now, Disney-owned Hulu has optioned a pilot directed by Chloé Zhao, written by Nora and Lillia Zuckerman, and the main cast has already been announced. If the platform likes the result, the series should arrive in the first half of 2026.

Baywatch

Although the deal hasn't been finalized yet, industry sources assume Fox will take on a new season of the series about lifeguards and their iconic red swimsuits. Production company Fremantle has been working on the development of this iconic '90s series, starring David Hasselhoff and Pamela Anderson, for some time and has signed several writers to write the new episodes.

Prison Break

One brother condemned to death. The other, determined to help him escape and clear his name. This was the starting point of Prison Break, a fiction that, over five seasons, entertained Fox viewers between 2005 and 2009. Now, Hulu is preparing a rebootBut it has already warned that it won't feature the same characters as the original series, but will simply be set in the same universe. Filming of the pilot episode began in June in West Virginia (USA), with Emily Browning, Lukas Gage, and Drake Rodger in the lead roles. If the pilot is successful, the series should premiere by the end of the year.

King of the Hill

Created by Mike Judge (Beavis and Butt-Head) and Greg Daniels, this animation about rural American society returned to Disney+ this August 4th after fifteen years of silence with the same creators and also bringing back the original voice actors, including Pamela Adlon and Kathy Najimy. Johnny Hardwick, who played the character of Dale, was able to complete some recordings before his death in 2023. Before airing the new episodes, the platform announced that it was renewing it for one more season, which will be the fifteenth.

Murder, She Wrote

The Mysteries of Mrs. Fletcher currently have no plans to return to television since the series was canceled in 1996, but there is a project for the big screen. The film about the beloved writer and detective will not feature Angela Lansbury, who passed away three years ago, and Jamie Lee Curtis will take on the role. The actress has already explained that she doesn't want to imitate her iconic predecessor and that the challenge, in fact, is to bring her own curiosity to the character.

Scrubs

Aired between 2001 and 2010, the medical dramedy Scrubs will revive the fictional Sacred Heart Hospital to resolve the remaining questions, such as whether JD and Elliot's marriage actually came to fruition. Creator Bill Lawrence is involved in the project, as are the main cast of Zach Braff, Sarah Chalke, and Donald Faison. It aired on Disney's ABC channel, so it will likely be available in Catalonia on that platform throughout the next season.

Clueless

The symmetric case in Murder, She Wrote This is an iconic film from the 90s, released under the title Clueless in English and which very freely updated a Jane Austen classic, with Alicia Silvestone, Brittany Murphy and Paul Rudd in the cast. Now it will try to have a new life in series format and it will not be the first attempt, since in the 90s a version was made and, years later, an attempt was made to make a spin-off centered on the character of Dionne (played by Stacey Dash), but it didn't come to fruition. For now, NBC's Peacock platform has already secured Silverstone's commitment to reprise her most iconic role.

One Tree Hill

Netflix will premiere the return of next year One Tree Hill, one of the longest-running teen series, which aired from 2003 to 2012. The upcoming series is set two decades in the future to see how Brooke and Peyton have become teen mothers and experience the same struggles, but from the other side. Sophia Bush and Hilarie Burton will reprise their most famous roles and are serving as executive producers of the new series.