Streaming’s Mid-June Heat Check: Disney’s Obamas-Backed Fantasy Series, Netflix Renewals, and the Shows Everyone’s Talking About

Disney+ Lands the Obamas for an Ambitious Animated Fantasy

Disney+ just greenlit something genuinely interesting — and no, it’s not another Marvel spin-off or a Star Wars sidequel. Journey (working title), a music-driven animated fantasy series, comes from Barack and Michelle Obama’s production company Higher Ground, marking their first major scripted animation project with the Mouse House.

The logline reads like classic Disney with a modern edge: a young heroine named Journey answers a mysterious call that leads her beyond the energy shield protecting her city and into forbidden lands, where she uncovers the truth about her father’s disappearance and discovers a powerful magic that might save her people. It’s got “epic adventure anchored by a remarkable young heroine,” in the words of Disney Kids & Family president Ayo Davis, and the creative team brings serious credentials.

Matt Munn, who worked on Ice Age: Collision Course and Spies in Disguise, created the series and serves as executive producer. Steve Loter, the Peabody Award winner behind Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur and Kim Possible, is also on board as an EP. ICON Creative Studio is handling production in association with Disney Television Animation.

Higher Ground has been steadily building its kids-and-family portfolio — Waffles + Mochi, We the People, Ada Twist, Scientist — but Journey represents a step up in ambition. This isn’t an educational short or a docuseries; it’s a full-blown fantasy adventure with original music, designed to sit alongside Disney+ staples like Bluey and the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2. If it lands, it could become one of those shows parents and kids actually agree on during family screen time — a category that’s surprisingly thin despite every streamer chasing it.

Dan Levy’s Post-Schitt’s Creek Era Is Officially Working

When Schitt’s Creek ended its six-season run in 2020 with a historic Emmy sweep, the obvious question was: what does Dan Levy do next? The answer, it turns out, is a crime comedy about directionless siblings who get blackmailed into organized crime — and Netflix just ordered a second season.

Big Mistakes premiered on Netflix in April 2026 to solid reviews and apparently strong enough viewership to earn a quick renewal. Levy stars as Nicky, an openly gay pastor, alongside Taylor Ortega, Laurie Metcalf, and a cast that includes Elizabeth Perkins and Boran Kuzum. The Guardian called it “far from a major error, but not quite a triumph either” — which is about as British a compliment as you can get, and honestly, a fair assessment of a show that’s still finding its footing.

What’s interesting here isn’t just the renewal — Netflix renews plenty of shows — but the fact that Levy is simultaneously developing a new first-look deal with the streamer while Big Mistakes Season 2 is already in the works. He’s building a production pipeline at Netflix, the same way Shonda Rhimes and Ryan Murphy did before him. The difference is Levy’s sensibility — warm, specific, character-driven comedy that doesn’t rely on meanness or shock value — fills a gap in Netflix’s comedy slate that’s been wide open since Grace and Frankie wrapped.

Levy told the press he’s “having the greatest time” and that Season 2 is “going to be WILD.” After the controlled, heartfelt precision of Schitt’s Creek, watching Levy cut loose with a crime-comedy premise that involves blackmail and organized crime feels like watching a perfectionist finally let themselves color outside the lines.

The Vampire Lestat Rises — And the Reviews Are Glowing

AMC’s Interview With the Vampire didn’t just get a third season — it got a full rebrand. Now titled The Vampire Lestat, the Anne Rice adaptation returned on June 7 and the early response suggests the name change was the right call.

Collider called the premiere “thrillingly reinvented” and declared it “one of the 21st century’s best” ongoing series. Decider’s review highlighted the show’s campy energy and a Lestat who’s “funnier the more seriously he takes himself.” The show has always been a critical darling — it sits at 98% on Rotten Tomatoes across its first two seasons — but the pivot to centering Lestat (played with magnetic theatricality by Sam Reid) seems to have unlocked something even the most devoted fans weren’t expecting.

The rebrand makes creative sense. Season 3 adapts Anne Rice’s second Vampire Chronicles novel, The Vampire Lestat, which shifts the narrative perspective from Louis to Lestat himself and expands the mythology dramatically. It’s a bigger, louder, more ambitious story, and the show is matching that energy. If you’ve been sleeping on this one because “another vampire show” felt exhausting, now’s the time to catch up.

What Else Is Moving in Streaming This Week

Beyond the headlines, several shows are quietly shaping the mid-June streaming landscape:

Netflix’s Renewal Spree. Alongside Big Mistakes, Netflix also renewed Devil May Cry for a third and final season, House of Guinness for a second go, and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder for another round — all while shows like Wednesday and Bridgerton remain the platform’s unshakeable pillars. The streamer canceled nine shows so far in 2026 — including three “quiet” cancellations that never got formal announcements — but the renewal activity suggests Netflix is betting hard on established IP and proven creators rather than swinging for the fences on unknown quantities.

Widow’s Bay Gets a Season 2. Apple TV+ renewed its genre-bending island mystery for a second season. The show has been described as broadly acclaimed with a passionate fanbase, joining Severance and Ted Lasso in Apple’s increasingly formidable drama stable. If you missed Season 1, now’s your window to binge before the discourse spoils everything.

The Calendar Is Stacked. June 22 brings House of the Dragon Season 3 to HBO and Max. June 25 delivers both The Bear Season 5 finale on Hulu/FX and Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 on Netflix. That’s three of the most-anticipated TV events of the summer landing within 72 hours of each other. Clear your watchlists accordingly.

Why This Week Matters

It’s easy to dismiss a random Monday in June as just another content treadmill cycle, but look closer: a $22 billion acquisition that reshapes streaming distribution, a former president’s production company launching a Disney+ fantasy series, a beloved comedy creator proving his post-hit era has legs, and a vampire show reminding everyone that prestige genre TV is alive and fanging.

The throughline is ambition. Fox isn’t content being a broadcaster anymore. Higher Ground isn’t satisfied making docuseries. Dan Levy isn’t resting on Schitt’s Creek royalties. AMC is betting that rebranding a hit show around its most charismatic character will pay off. Whether all these bets hit is another question — but in an industry often criticized for playing it safe, it’s refreshing to see this many players pushing chips to the center of the table at the same time.

Your move, Netflix. Your move, Amazon. The summer of 2026 is just getting started, and the pace isn’t letting up.

Sources: Animation Magazine, Deadline, Variety, Netflix press materials, Collider, Decider, The Guardian.