Your binge watches are on hold

Bad news hun: filming for series like 'Euphoria', 'Pose' and 'Stranger Things' has been postponed amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thanks to the global pandemic we’re currently in the middle of, it’s not exactly business as usual. Events like Cannes Film Festival, the Met Gala and Glastonbury have all been cancelled, meaning that everyone’s cultural calendar has been cleared. But it’s not like we had any plans of going out anyway: the UK Government has urged self-isolation whilst other European governments have instigated civilian lockdowns.

For many cooped up inside right now, the only thing bringing solace is a Netflix subscription. So we hate to break the bad news, but we’re going to be rewatching old faves for a while as filming on some of today’s most popular tv shows has been suspended. Want to see if your go-to binge-watch is among them? Keep reading.

Stanger Things

Another slice of eighties nostalgia, this horror-drama set in small town Indiana drawing on Stephen King and Cold War conspiracy theories has got audiences well and truly hooked. Launching the careers of Finn Wolfhard and Millie Bobby Brown whilst bringing Winona Ryder back from obscurity, it’s one of Netflix’s biggest and most enduring success stories. Given the fears around coronavirus contagion, the streaming service has shutdown production on all of its in-house projects…meaning that Stranger Things season four is currently on hold. 

 

Pose

This envelope-pushing drama centres on the ballroom community of 1980s NYC and one young man’s dance school dreams. No doubt precipitating the 80s revival currently being spearheaded by Dua Lipa, the series’ immediate draw was its iconic outfits, throwback music and major Flashback vibes. But what solidified its status as a contemporary classic was its unflinching portrayal of the HIV/AIDS crisis: as well as the nuances of trans identity not often explored on screen. Unfortunately for all you Billy Porter fans out there, as of 14 March production on the Fox drama was brought to a halt as coronavirus concerns escalated.

 

Euphoria

Back when Euphoria premiered last summer, we instantly fell in love. With its emotional nuance and hard-hitting treatment of addiction, depression and abusive relationships — as well as its realistic queer characters — it’s everything we wished had been on tv when we were teens and more. We were happy to hear that HBO had started rolling cameras for Euphoria season two but that joy was short-lived after it was announced that filming has been postponed due to COVID-19. I guess we’ll have to wait a little bit longer to see if Jules and Ru get back together…

 

Peaky Blinders

First launching a lifetime ago in 2013, this interwar drama about Birmingham gangsters has been so influential that it single-handedly brought back the bakerboy cap…though we all wish it hadn’t. On March 18, director Anthony Byrne posted a message on the show’s official Instagram page explaining that production on season six had been halted, cushioning the harsh blow with a shoutout to all the healthcare workers keeping the UK public safe. Over and out. 

 

The Witcher

Suspiciously like Game of Thrones, which wrapped its final episode only months prior, this fantasy drama featuring monster-hunters, magic and gratuitous sex scenes dropped on Netflix last December. Call us basic, but we clearly had no issues with its derivative formula and it broke records after 76 million households watched the show in its first four weeks. Obviously it was renewed for a second season but, like Stranger Things, its production has been halted until COVID-19 blows over. 

 

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Euphoria