Netflix Announces Shows and Movies to Debut in 2018

Netflix is gearing up to fill its library shelves in 2018.The Los Gatos, California-based company, [...]

Netflix is gearing up to fill its library shelves in 2018.

The Los Gatos, California-based company, which accounts for 51 percent of American streamers, announced Thursday at a showcase event in Rome that it will be adding a slew of new television series and movies from around the world.

"Our belief is that great storytelling transcends borders," Netflix's Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos told audiences at the showcase, according to Time. "When stories from different countries, languages and cultures find a worldwide platform where the only limitation is the creator's imagination, then unique, yet universal, stories emerge that are embraced by a global audience."

Among the new additions slated to hit sometime this year are seven original series from European creators. An unnamed Dutch series will center on a group of students who open a portal to a demonic world; Mortel, a French series, tells the story of a group of teenagers bound together through supernatural forces; and Italian series Luna Nera, set in the 17th century, is about a woman suspected of witchcraft.

The streaming network also unveiled new original series from Germany, Spain, and the U.K.

One such series is Idris Alba-starring comedy Turn Up Charlie. Alba will also be executive-producing the series.

British series The English Game and the Italian original movie Rimetti A Noi I Nostri Debiti (Forgive Us Our Debts) were also included in the announcement.

While the announcement includes plenty of fictional stories, it also includes a handful of documentary series, including an untitled series from France about the 1984 murder of Grégory Villemin, a four-year-old boy. The 2004 miniseries The Staircase will also be getting new episodes.

The streaming service, which reaches 117 million subscribers worldwide, previously announced plans to spend $7.5 billion on new content in 2018, along with intentions to produce and release an estimated 700 TV shows and movies.

The new productions in "the 700-range" include at least 80 original productions from outside of the United States, such as the psychological thriller Dark, made in Germany, and returning seasons of past original series.

Other content subscribers can expect to see in 2018 are Netflix originals, like Stranger Things, and licensed content, such as AMC's The Walking Dead.

Meanwhile, several other series are expected to return in 2019, with Netflix recently announcing the renewal of GLOW and several new series in their freshmen seasons, including On My Block and Alexa & Katie.

New series Everything Sucks got the axe, joining a list of one-and-done series at Netflix including prolific producer Chuck Lorre's Kathy Bates pot comedy Disjointed, which was cancelled after its initial two-season, 20-episode order was completed, Girlboss, Gypsy, and The Get Down.

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