Netflix‘s recent fantasy series that became a global sensation has now taken a hit, and it ends the TV-MA show’s dominance on the streaming service. Netflix’s lineup of TV shows in 2026 has been filled with both the return of hit series and the debut of shows that have gone on to make history, becoming some of Netflix’s most-watched series ever.
When it comes to the fantasy genre, subscribers have been served with a bit of both. For instance, Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender, the live-action adaptation of the masterpiece animated series that stands as one of the best fantasy shows of all time, recently returned with season 2. That series went on to perform well for Netflix, if down from season 1’s numbers.
As for new fantasy shows on Netflix in 2026, the South Korean fantasy romance series My Royal Nemesis, the Taiwanese Agent from Above, and more showed the genre’s power on the streaming service. They also stand as a representation of how Netflix’s non-English series are just as exciting as global fantasy hits like One Piece and The Witcher, including a recent release.
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01
Squid Game shattered records on launch in 2021, becoming Netflix’s biggest-ever series debut. Hwang Dong-hyuk’s South Korean thriller centres on a desperate gambler named Seong Gi-hun. What is his player number?
✓ Correct! Gi-hun is Player 456 — the last number drawn. Kang Sae-byeok (the North Korean defector) is 067, Cho Sang-woo (the Stanford-educated finance crook) is 218, and the mysterious elderly Oh Il-nam is 001. Squid Game became Netflix’s first show to hit #1 in every country it launched in, amassing over 1.6 billion hours watched in its first month alone.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is 456. Gi-hun’s number is the very last of the 456 players. 067 is Sae-byeok the defector, 218 is Sang-woo the Stanford grad, and 001 is the mysterious old man Oh Il-nam whose identity becomes the series’ biggest reveal. Squid Game became Netflix’s most-watched launch ever, hitting #1 in 94 countries.
02
The Tim Burton-directed Addams Family spin-off set at Nevermore Academy became Netflix’s second-biggest English-language debut in 2022 and launched a TikTok dance craze. Which young actress plays the deadpan title character?
✓ Correct! Jenna Ortega — a Disney Channel graduate and indie-horror favourite (X, Scream VI) — took the role Christina Ricci made iconic in the 1990s films and made it entirely her own. Her now-famous cello-accompanied dance scene became an overnight TikTok phenomenon, and her performance earned Wednesday two Emmy nominations despite airing mid-season.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Jenna Ortega. Millie Bobby Brown is Eleven on Stranger Things, Sadie Sink plays Max Mayfield (also Stranger Things), and Maya Hawke plays Robin. Ortega’s deadpan Wednesday Addams — and her viral cello-dance scene — turned the show into a global phenomenon in late 2022.
03
In 2013, Netflix released a dark political thriller starring Kevin Spacey as a ruthless congressman breaking the fourth wall. It became the first major streaming original to land a Primetime Emmy nomination and effectively invented prestige streaming TV. Which show was it?
✓ Correct! House of Cards — adapted by Beau Willimon from the 1990 BBC series — became Netflix’s first prestige original and proved a streaming service could go toe-to-toe with HBO. Kevin Spacey’s Frank Underwood and his asides to camera defined early streaming TV. Orange Is the New Black followed months later in July 2013 and became Netflix’s longest-running original at the time.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is House of Cards (February 2013). Orange Is the New Black launched five months later (July 2013), Arrested Development’s Netflix revival came in May 2013, and Hemlock Grove was a horror effort the same spring. House of Cards was the flagship — the first streaming original to earn a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Drama Series.
04
Peter Morgan’s The Crown famously recast its entire ensemble every two seasons to age the royal family. After Claire Foy played Queen Elizabeth II in seasons 1-2, which Oscar-winning actress took the crown for seasons 3-4?
✓ Correct! Olivia Colman — fresh off her Best Actress Oscar for The Favourite — played the Queen across seasons 3 and 4, covering the late 1960s through the early Thatcher years. Imelda Staunton took over for seasons 5-6, Helena Bonham Carter played Princess Margaret in seasons 3-4, and Gillian Anderson stole the show as Margaret Thatcher in season 4.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Olivia Colman. Imelda Staunton took over for the final two seasons (5-6). Helena Bonham Carter played the chain-smoking Princess Margaret during seasons 3-4 alongside Colman. Gillian Anderson delivered an Emmy-winning Margaret Thatcher in season 4. Colman anchored the show’s middle era fresh off her 2019 Oscar win.
05
The Duffer Brothers’ 1980s nostalgia juggernaut sees Eleven and the gang battle inter-dimensional horrors from a portal beneath the town’s Hawkins National Laboratory. In which fictional US town and state is the series set?
✓ Correct! Hawkins, Indiana — a fictional Midwestern small town that became one of TV’s most iconic settings. The Duffer Brothers chose Indiana for its unassuming, ordinary-America vibe, making the supernatural chaos feel more jarring. Derry is Stephen King’s It setting, Hill Valley is from Back to the Future, and Twin Peaks is David Lynch’s famous town.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Hawkins, Indiana. Derry, Maine is the fictional town from Stephen King’s It. Hill Valley is Marty McFly’s home in Back to the Future. Twin Peaks, Washington is David Lynch’s famous fictional town. Hawkins is The Duffer Brothers’ deliberately ordinary Midwestern setting — the flat, unassuming backdrop that makes Vecna’s horrors hit harder.
06
Netflix’s Regency romance juggernaut — based on Julia Quinn’s novels and famous for its colour-blind casting, string-quartet pop covers, and narrated gossip column — is produced by which prolific showrunner’s production banner?
✓ Correct! Shonda Rhimes — the creator of Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal — produces Bridgerton through her Shondaland banner as the first major fruit of her massive 2017 Netflix deal. Chris Van Dusen created the show, but Shondaland’s signature ensemble-romance DNA is all over it. Julian Fellowes did Downton Abbey, Ryan Murphy did Monster/Dahmer, and Jenji Kohan did Orange Is the New Black.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Shonda Rhimes (Shondaland). Ryan Murphy produces true-crime anthologies like Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Julian Fellowes is the Downton Abbey/Gilded Age creator — a different period drama entirely. Jenji Kohan is behind Orange Is the New Black and Weeds. Bridgerton was the first big payoff of Rhimes’ nine-figure Netflix deal.
07
La Casa de Papel (Money Heist) became a global phenomenon on Netflix after a modest Spanish TV debut — partly thanks to its gang’s instantly recognisable red jumpsuits paired with a mask of which famous figure?
✓ Correct! The Salvador Dalí mask — with its upturned moustache — became the show’s defining visual alongside the red jumpsuits, a nod to Spanish artistic rebellion and surrealist individuality. It inspired protest iconography worldwide, from Lebanon to France. The original Antena 3 version underperformed; Netflix acquired it in 2017, re-edited it, and turned it into a global sensation.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Salvador Dalí. Guy Fawkes is the V for Vendetta mask that Anonymous adopted. Che Guevara is a common revolutionary image but not the heist crew’s mask. Picasso is a frequent wrong answer given he’s the more globally-known Spanish artist — but the Dalí mask, with its iconic moustache, is the one fused forever with Money Heist’s red jumpsuits.
08
Netflix’s 2020 limited series about a Cold War-era chess prodigy named Beth Harmon caused a global surge in chess-set sales and was one of the streamer’s most-watched shows that year. Who played Beth?
✓ Correct! Anya Taylor-Joy — already a cult favourite from The Witch and Emma — broke out globally as Beth Harmon, winning the Golden Globe for Best Actress. The Queen’s Gambit pulled 62 million households in its first 28 days and caused such a chess-boom that Chess.com and retailers ran out of sets. It also made Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel a surprise bestseller almost 40 years later.
✗ Eliminated! The answer is Anya Taylor-Joy. Florence Pugh (Midsommar, Oppenheimer), Saoirse Ronan (Lady Bird), and Daisy Edgar-Jones (Normal People, Where the Crawdads Sing) are all frequent competitors in similar roles. Taylor-Joy’s Beth Harmon earned her a Golden Globe, a SAG Award, and turned Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel into a sudden bestseller.
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That would be The East Palace, another fantasy series from South Korea that was released on Netflix on July 17. The show went on to trend worldwide for weeks, cementing its place as a dark fantasy worth watching, thanks to an original story that mixed a period piece with a supernatural, action-packed journey. That said, The East Palace‘s global era has come to an end.
The East Palace Just Took A Major Hit On Netflix
The East Palace is no longer one of the most-watched TV shows in the world on Netflix, as it has left the streaming service’s global Top 10 TV Shows chart, according to FlixPatrol. The last time the TV-MA Netflix series was on the coveted chart was on Saturday, August 1, when the fantasy show was seen at 10th. On the following day, The East Palace was ousted from the list of Netflix’s most popular shows worldwide, with a return looking increasingly unlikely with every passing day. The East Palace peaked at #4 on Netflix’s global Top 10 on July 20.
The East Palace boasts a perfect 100% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes.
This does not mean that The East Palace has stopped trending on Netflix altogether, as the recent fantasy hit is still one of the most-watched shows on the streaming service in several countries, just that The East Palace‘s era as a global Top 10 show has come to a close. Right now, The East Palace is trending in 17 countries. Those include India, Nigeria, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, and more. The eight-episode Netflix limited series peaks at #2 in Thailand. The East Palace is not trending in the United States, with The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare leading the nationwide chart.
The East Palace’s Netflix Performance Is Still Worthy Of Praise
While it might no longer be one of the most-watched shows on Netflix worldwide, The East Palace‘s streaming run has been spectacular. According to official Netflix data, The East Palace has spent three consecutive weeks on Netflix’s global Top 10 non-English language TV shows chart. It ranked as high as 7th on the streaming service’s chart for the week of July 27 to August 2. The East Palace amassed 3 million views in that period, being Netflix’s most-watched TV show in two countries: Turkey and Ukraine.
The East Palace‘s total views for the previous week put it above a few recent Netflix global hits, such as Elize Matsunaga: Once Upon a Crime, as well as the fellow South Korean series Teach You a Lesson. The latter has become one of Netflix’s most-watched non-English language TV shows of all time, recording a whopping 62 million views with still a month remaining on Netflix’s accrual period for the chart. As such, The East Palace goes out with a strong final showing if it really does not find a way to return to Netflix’s global charts.
