It was not your standard bagels-and-coffee briefing.
Walking into the Next on Netflix 2026 event, the atmosphere felt less like a corporate update and more like a mysticism-soaked speakeasy.
The air was thick with the aura of a tarot card reading, a fitting motif for a streamer trying to predict the future of entertainment.
It was slick, unashamedly showbiz and made a definite statement.
If the goal was to look into the future, the cards revealed a strategy that is doubling down on Australian IP, as well as making space for sweeping international production investment across the country.
Productions are underway in practically every corner of Australia and New Zealand.
The Next on Netflix event set out to predict the future of entertainment. Image: supplied
Getting the feet under the desk
Taking the stage for the main presentation was Amanda Duthie, the recently appointed head of content for Netflix Australia and New Zealand.
Having been in the chair for just over three months, Duthie acknowledged that she and content manager Katherine Slattery are the custodians of a slate largely commissioned before their arrival.
But since taking their respective chairs, she says, “they’ve taken hundreds of meetings, received hundreds of pitches”, and arguably filled “the top drawer, middle drawer, and the bottom drawer.”
Her vision for what comes next, however, is already distinct. Speaking to Mediaweek, Duthie revealed she is looking for big bets and stories that evoke the same visceral reaction as a Baby Reindeer or Squid Game.
“Absolutely,” Duthie said when asked if she was hunting for the next global phenomenon.
“It is the ones that excite you, and even the ones that scare you, that you do wake up in the middle of the night going ‘Oh, my goodness. That is a big bet.’ But that’s a bet I absolutely want to take.”
Heartbreak High series 3 premieres in March. Image: supplied
Goodbye Hartley High, hello 1901
The showcase confirmed that Heartbreak High Season 3 will land on Netflix on March 25, 2026. It marks the final year for Hartley High’s graduating class, a show Duthie credited with creating a whole industry dedicated to translating Aussie slang for global audiences.
“There were websites to help viewers understand what ‘no wuckas’ means, what a ‘gronk’ is and what it means to get ‘munted’”, Duthie joked to the crowd.
While one door closes at Hartley High, another opens in 1901. The streamer revealed a sneak peek for My Brilliant Career, a modern interpretation of the Miles Franklin classic.
Duthie described the series as the OG of women’s aspirations, which fits into the slate as a counter-balance to darker content with necessary joy and lightness.
The streamer revealed a sneak peek for My Brilliant Career. Image: supplied
The international hybrid model
What stood out from the slate was the sheer scale of international productions setting up shop locally.
Apex: An action thriller starring Charlize Theron and Taron Egerton, filmed in the Blue Mountains and Canberra, dropping April 24, 2026.
War Machine: A sci-fi actioner with Alan Ritchson, filmed in Victoria, arriving March 6, 2026.
The Golden Ticket: A reality competition series based on the world of Willy Wonka, produced by Eureka Productions and filmed on the Gold Coast.
Breakers: A surfing drama starring The Boys’ Antony Starr, filmed in Margaret River, WA.
And when asked about finding the line between newly legislated local content quotas versus international investment, Duthie was unfazed.
“What is so great is it is not something we have to worry about because we are absolutely already doing it,” she told Mediaweek.
“Yes, we are commissioning those originals, but also to be having that international production working with our crews means we have a pipeline of continuous employment.”
Twenty years after Petey lost the best friend he ever had, Allen’s back. Image: supplied
Animated nostalgia and local legends
The slate also leaned into nostalgia and animation. Daley Pearson’s Ludo Studio is bringing Allen to the screen. It’s a quirky film about a man who’s been reunited with the best friend he ever had. Meanwhile, the Stranger Things universe expands with Tales from ’85, an animated series produced by Flying Bark.
For Duthie, the transition from previous commissioning roles such as ABC, SBS, and even Stan to the streaming giant offers a distinct advantage in speed and simplicity.
“I think the difference is that it doesn’t require that international financing piece, which might have required the English uncle or the French cousin,” Duthie noted. “That is liberating to just be looking at local stories for local stories’ sake.”
With a slate that spans from the dusty plains of 1901 Australia to a retro-futuristic chocolate factory, the Netflix 2026 prediction seems clear. Local chaos travels well.
Full presentation content list
Australian originals
Heartbreak High Season 3
Premiere: March 25, 2026
Synopsis: It is the final year for the graduating class of Hartley High. When a revenge prank goes wrong, Amerie and her friends must cover up a secret or risk losing everything.
Production: Fremantle Australia, NewBe.
My Brilliant Career
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: Set in 1901 Australia, Sybylla (Philippa Northeast) is a modern woman with the ambition to be a writer, while her family is determined to marry her off.
Cast: Philippa Northeast, Christopher Chung, Genevieve O’Reilly.
Production: Jungle Entertainment.
Allen
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: A film from Ludo Studio. Twenty years after Petey lost his best friend, Allen is back.
Cast: T.J. Power.
Production: Ludo Studio.
Breakers
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: Two best friends from the US are drawn into a seemingly perfect surfing community in Margaret River, led by a charismatic but mysterious figure.
Cast: Antony Starr, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai.
Production: Clerkenwell Films (BBC Studios).
International productions (made in ANZ)
Apex
Premiere: April 24, 2026
Synopsis: A grieving woman (Charlize Theron) testing her limits in the wild is ensnared in a deadly game with a ruthless predator.
Cast: Charlize Theron, Taron Egerton, Eric Bana.
Filmed In: Blue Mountains (NSW) and Canberra (ACT).
War Machine
Premiere: March 6, 2026
Synopsis: During the final stage of US Army Ranger selection, a training exercise turns into a fight for survival against an unimaginable threat.
Cast: Alan Ritchson, Dennis Quaid, Jai Courtney.
Filmed In: Victoria.
The Mosquito Bowl
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: Following Pearl Harbor, four top college football stars enlist in the Marines and play a legendary game while preparing for the invasion of Okinawa.
Cast: Nicholas Galitzine, Bill Skarsgård.
Filmed In: Queensland.
The Golden Ticket
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: A reality competition series based on the world of Willy Wonka. Contestants must survive a “retro-futuristic dreamscape” of games and temptations.
Production: Eureka Productions.
Filmed In: Gold Coast (QLD).
East of Eden
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: A modern interpretation of the Steinbeck masterpiece exploring the multigenerational saga of the Trask family.
Cast: Florence Pugh, Christopher Abbott, Mike Faist.
Filmed In: Auckland, New Zealand.
Stranger Things: Tales from ’85
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: An animated series set in the winter of 1985. The original characters must fight new monsters in Hawkins.
Production: Flying Bark (Animation).
Steps
Premiere: 2026
Synopsis: An animated musical comedy that reimagines the story of Cinderella’s “evil” stepsisters.
Cast: Ali Wong, Stephanie Hsu.
Production: Netflix Animation.
Main image: Content Director, Netflix ANZ, Amanda Duthie. Image: supplied.