New York City has always been more than a backdrop—it’s a character in its own right. From the art-house energy of Brooklyn to the skyline-dominated drama of Manhattan, the Big Apple continues to attract productions from across the globe. With its unique combination of cultural diversity, historic neighborhoods, and state-backed tax incentives, the 2025–2026 production cycle is shaping up to be one of the busiest years yet for New York’s entertainment industry.
Here are some of the most exciting film and TV projects currently in the works, either set in New York, filming there, or rooted in its storytelling DNA.
Good Sex
Good Sex is a sharp, emotionally resonant romantic dramedy that stars Natalie Portman as Ally, a successful couples therapist approaching her 40th birthday. After ending a long, unfulfilling relationship, Ally finds herself thrown back into New York City’s chaotic dating scene. What she doesn’t expect is to fall into two completely opposite relationships at the same time—one with a free-spirited 20-something Brooklyn hipster (Tucker Pillsbury), and another with a refined, successful 50-something Manhattanite (Mark Ruffalo). As she juggles both, Ally experiences a romantic awakening that forces her to question everything she thought she knew about love and self-worth.
- Cast: Natalie Portman, Mark Ruffalo, Tucker Pillsbury, Rashida Jones, Meg Ryan, Tramell Tillman
- Director/Writer: Lena Dunham
- Filming Dates: July 1 – August 19, 2025
- Platform: Netflix
Best Medicine
Best Medicine is a heartfelt comedy with a sharp edge. Josh Charles stars as Dr. Martin Best, a brilliant but blunt Boston surgeon who abandons his prestigious medical practice and retreats to a quaint East Coast fishing village—one he used to visit as a child. Tasked with caring for the quirky, often needy locals, Martin’s acerbic personality quickly alienates him. But beneath his standoffish exterior lies a man struggling with phobias and unresolved trauma. As the community pushes back, Martin discovers that sometimes the medicine you need isn’t clinical—it’s personal.
- Cast: Josh Charles, Abigail Spencer, Josh Segarra, Annie Potts
- Based on: British series Doc Martin
- Platform: Fox
- Filming Location: Upstate New York
- Filming Dates: July 28 – December 22, 2025
Buyback
Buyback is a gripping coming-of-age short film that takes a hard look at America’s gun culture. When three suburban teens discover how easy it is to acquire illegal firearms in their town, they concoct a scheme to turn them in for cash through a local government buyback program. At first, it feels like a victimless hustle—but as their world begins to unravel, the teens must confront the ethical consequences of their actions. It’s a story of moral gray zones, desperation, and the quiet violence simmering beneath suburbia.
- Cast: Emmet Smith, Eileen Zyko Wolter, Luca R. Stagnitta, Krissy Jordan
- Director: Jared Goodman
- Genre: Short Film / Drama / Heist
Happy Hours (Working Title for Good Sex)
Happy Hours was the working title used for the Netflix project Good Sex, featuring Natalie Portman, Mark Ruffalo, and others. Though the title has since been confirmed as Good Sex, the romantic and comedic plot remains the same, blending emotional depth with sharp humor in a story of love, identity, and second chances in New York.
Magazine
Set in the hyper-literary world of 2011 New York City, Magazine is a coming-of-age story that follows Nora, a 21-year-old intern working at one of the most elite and powerful publications in the country. As she tries to carve out her identity in a workplace filled with ego, ambition, and unspoken hierarchies, Nora finds herself entangled in personal and professional challenges that will shape her life forever. The series offers a rare look into the insular world of East Coast publishing, through the eyes of a young woman on the rise.
- Lead: Lily McInerny
- Director: Alexandra Pechman
- Setting: New York literary scene
- Release Window: August 2025
Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed
This half-hour thriller blends black comedy with suburban suspense. In Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, a recently divorced mother, played by Tatiana Maslany, falls into a bizarre rabbit hole of youth soccer politics, neighborhood secrets, blackmail, and eventually—murder. With Jake Johnson playing her ex-husband, the show explores the absurdity of modern parenting culture and the darkness that can lurk behind suburban smiles.
- Cast: Tatiana Maslany, Jake Johnson
- Creator: David J. Rosen
- Director: David Gordon Green
- Platform: Apple TV+
- Episodes: 10 (30 minutes each)
Souvenir (Slow Horses Season 4)
Season 4 of Slow Horses, tentatively referred to as Souvenir, centers around the mysterious disappearance of a superforecaster from the Prime Minister’s office. As the investigation unfolds, Claude Whelan and MI5’s internal politics come under fire, with Diana Taverner emerging as a prime suspect. Meanwhile, Jackson Lamb and his team of misfit spies (the “slow horses”) stir up their usual chaos as British intelligence faces its biggest crisis yet. A rogue Russian operative’s sudden appearance only raises the stakes.
- Cast: Gary Oldman, Kristin Scott Thomas
- Platform: Apple TV+
- Genre: Spy thriller / Political drama
Tower of Babel
Tower of Babel is a prestige drama that pits two real estate developers against one another in a high-stakes battle for dominance over the Manhattan skyline. Edgar Ramírez stars as Moises Saladín, a magnetic heir to a Latin American real estate dynasty, while Jacob Scipio plays Abe Alonso, a bold upstart from the outer boroughs trying to claim his piece of the American dream. As their rivalry spirals into obsession, their families become entangled in a dangerous game of ambition, betrayal, and power.
- Cast: Edgar Ramírez, Jacob Scipio, Leslie Grace, Mariana Di Girolamo, Liz Caribel Sierra, Armando Rivera
- Showrunners: Roberto Patino and Cassius Corrigan
- Platform: Hulu (via Onyx Collective)
- Filming Start: July 14, 2025
Unaccustomed Earth
Based on Jhumpa Lahiri’s acclaimed short story collection, Unaccustomed Earth is a richly layered Netflix drama set in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It focuses on a tightly-knit Indian-American community where an affair between a wife and her long-lost love threatens to upend everything. The series delves into themes of generational identity, cultural expectation, and the fine line between passion and scandal.
- Lead: Freida Pinto
- Showrunners: John Wells, Madhuri Shekar
- Director: Ritesh Batra
- Episodes: 8
- Platform: Netflix
- Filming: Summer 2025
You Deserve Each Other
This enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy flips the engagement narrative on its head. Naomi (Meghann Fahy) is engaged to Nick (Penn Badgley), but she’s completely over him—too bad whoever breaks the engagement first has to foot the bill for their nonrefundable wedding. Cue a battle of pranks, sabotage, and emotional warfare as the couple tries to get the other to end things first. Along the way, they rediscover the spark that brought them together in the first place.
- Cast: Meghann Fahy, Penn Badgley, Natalie Morales, Justin Long, Kyle MacLachlan, Ana Gasteyer, Hope Davis
- Directors: Marc Silverstein and Abby Kohn
- Platform: Amazon MGM Studios / Prime Video
- Filming: NYC, July 2025
- Expected Release: 2026
Young Stalin
Young Stalin is a bold, historical thriller chronicling the 1907 Imperial Bank heist in Tbilisi, led by a young Joseph Stalin—then known as “Soso.” Before he was a dictator, he was a revolutionary gangster orchestrating robberies, dodging the Tsar’s secret police, and navigating the wild underbelly of the Russian Empire. This origin story captures Stalin at his most dangerous and charismatic.
- Lead: Cosmo Jarvis as Stalin
- Director: Géla Babluani
- Co-writer: Simon Sebag Montefiore
- Production: Independent Film Project, Access Entertainment
- Timeline: Filming begins 2025–2026
Conclusion: Why New York Stays in the Spotlight
From romantic misadventures and political conspiracies to real estate rivalries and revolutionary heists, New York continues to be one of the most versatile and in-demand locations in the entertainment world. These upcoming films and series aren’t just shot in New York—they are shaped by its spirit, its architecture, and its unmatched storytelling energy.
Want to get involved with these productions? Visit Project Casting to explore the latest casting calls, auditions, and industry opportunities in New York and beyond.
