Netflix has had a big year in 2026, and it all started with the release of The Rip in January. With stars like Matt Damon and Ben Affleck at the helm, The Rip became the most-watched Netflix movie of the year, a title it held firmly until the premiere of War Machine. The Alan Ritchson-led sci-fi epic collected over 125 million views during its first 30 days streaming on the platform, and although it’s been more than two months since its premiere, it’s still one of the platform’s top 10 most-watched titles around the world. Netflix started the year strong with the premiere of the Stranger Things series finale, which had so much anticipation behind it that the streamer put the episode in theaters. Netflix will do the same thing with The Adventures of Cliff Booth, which is coming to theaters in IMAX for two weeks before its streaming debut.
Stranger Things was written, created, and produced by the Duffer brothers, Ross and Matt, who have a new show that just launched on Netflix today. The Duffer brothers serve as executive producers on The Boroughs, the new sci-fi series starring Alfred Molina and Alfre Woodard. The show was written and created for TV by Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews, and while the Duffer brothers did not earn a writing credit, it’s said that they were heavily involved in the creative direction of the series. Reviews for The Boroughs dropped online yesterday, and the show has amassed enough scores to hold a strong 92% from critics on the aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes. It also stands strong at 84% on the audience-driven Popcornmeter, proving that the show is not just designed for critics. Both of these scores are higher than the 82% from critics and 52% from fans on Rotten Tomatoes for the final season of Stranger Things.
What Is ‘The Boroughs’ About?
Netflix released an official synopsis for The Boroughs to go along with the release of the first trailer a few weeks ago, and it reads as follows:
“In a seemingly perfect retirement community, a grieving newcomer’s monstrous encounter inspires him to join a misfit crew of unlikely heroes who uncover a dark secret that proves their “golden years” are more dangerous, and they are more formidable, than anyone expects.”
The rest of The Boroughs ensemble cast consists of Denis O’Hare (American Horror Story) as Wally, Clarke Peters (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing) as Art, Bill Pullman (Independence Day) as Jack, Jena Malone (The Hunger Games) as Claire, Carlos Miranda (Station 19) as Paz, Seth Numrich (Under the Banner of Heaven) as Blaine, Alice Kremelberg (Renegade Nell) as Anneliese, Rafael Casal (Blindspotting) as Neil, Dee Wallace (E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial) as Grace, Ed Begley Jr. (Young Sheldon) as Edward, Jane Kaczmarek (Malcolm in the Middle) as Lilly, Eric Edelstein (Twin Peaks: The Return) as Hank, Mousa Hussein Kraish (Your Lucky Day) as Dr. McGinnis, and Beth Bailey (The Harder They Fall) as Kayleigh.
Check out all episodes of The Boroughs on Netflix and stay tuned to Collider for more updates and coverage of the show.
- Release Date
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May 21, 2026
- Network
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Netflix
- Showrunner
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Jeffrey Addiss, Will Matthews
- Directors
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Augustine Frizzell, Kyle Patrick Alvarez, Ben Taylor
