This page tracks what's actually worth watching on Disney+ each month — updated as new titles land, not republished from scratch. Right now, that's August 2026: FX's most explicit adult drama sharing catalogue space with a Jonas Brothers reunion, a Production I.G Star Wars anime continuation, and a National Geographic documentary from The Lion King's director.
The Shards — FX/Hulu (Aug 5, US) · Disney+ (Aug 6, international)
- Genre: Thriller / Mystery
- Setting: 1981 Los Angeles
- Executive Producer: Ryan Murphy
- Where to Watch: FX + Hulu (US) · Disney+ (international)
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The Shards is Bret Easton Ellis's most personal novel — decades in the writing because of how close the events are to his own prep-school experience — scripted by Ellis himself across all eight episodes and handed to Ryan Murphy. Set among a circle of privileged 1981 LA prep-school seniors targeted by an elusive serial killer, it premieres August 5 on FX/Hulu in the US and August 6 on Disney+ internationally, with two episodes airing simultaneously before a weekly schedule. Reception has been genuinely split — critics called it superficial, some audiences called it worse — and that split is itself useful information: Ellis's novel works on cold, dreamlike ambiguity, and the question that decides whether this adaptation is for you is whether Murphy preserved that blur or flattened it into a standard slasher thriller. Go in without reading reviews first and form your own read.
Futurama: Season 14 (Aug 3) — Still Sharp After Two Cancellations
IMDb8.5/ 10 · Series overall
Futurama has been cancelled twice, revived twice, and is now seventeen seasons deep. Season 14 drops August 3 with a two-episode premiere, Billy West, Katey Sagal, and John DiMaggio back in full form. The Hulu-era run figured out what most animated revivals miss: instead of chasing 2001 nostalgia, it skewers 2026 — generative AI overreach, gig-economy precarity, late-stage streaming culture — with the same absurdist precision that made the original so rewatchable. Fourteen seasons in, it's still a good show on its own terms, not a nostalgia play.
Star Wars: Visions Presents — The Ninth Jedi (Aug 5) — A Real Sequel, Not a Rerun
Production I.G's original Star Wars: Visions short "The Ninth Jedi" (2021) was 17 minutes long and felt like the most complete Star Wars story in years — a young girl in a future where the Jedi are extinct, her father's lightsaber forge, a world running on its own internal logic with no Skywalkers in sight. Star Wars: Visions Presents — The Ninth Jedi is a genuine eight-episode continuation, not a re-airing of the short — it picks up after the events of "The Ninth Jedi" and its follow-up short "Child of Hope," following Lah Kara as she continues her Jedi training under Margrave Juro on a quest to save her father and stop a mysterious Sith leader. All eight episodes dropped simultaneously rather than weekly, so it's fully bingeable. Watch the original 17-minute short first — search "Ninth Jedi" on Disney+ — then go straight into the series.
More New This Month
- Wizards Beyond Waverly Place: Season 3 (Final) (Aug 5) — All four finale episodes drop simultaneously, closing out David Henrie's run as an older, wearier Justin Russo handing the torch to a new generation. The ending was planned from the start, and it shows in the writing.
- Camp Rock 3 (Aug 14) — The Jonas Brothers step into mentor roles for a new generation of young musical talent, sixteen years removed from the original. It earns some goodwill by genuinely shifting the spotlight onto its new cast, particularly viral YouTube singer Liamani Segura.
- Venom: The Last Dance (Aug 25) — Arrives via Sony's streaming deal. Tom Hardy's full unhinged dual-character performance for two hours, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Juno Temple in support, $478 million worldwide, zero apologies — a Friday-night watch that isn't trying to be more than that.
- Travis Barker: Louder Than Fear (Aug 13, Hulu US / Disney+ international) — From Blink-182's pop-punk dominance through surviving a near-fatal 2008 plane crash to becoming modern rock's most in-demand producer, Barker's life has played out almost entirely in public. The documentary promises unprecedented access to personal archives covering the physical recovery and the Kourtney Kardashian marriage — real material, if it delivers the private account.
- Lion (National Geographic, Aug 19) — Jon Favreau's first Nat Geo documentary series, executive produced alongside veteran wildlife EP Mike Gunton with a Hans Zimmer score. Filmed over four years, it follows a lion cub named Kio's journey from vulnerable youngster to pride leader. The connection to Favreau's hyper-realistic 2019 Lion King — where his team developed the virtual-production techniques to capture lifelike animal behavior — makes the pivot to real wildlife a natural next step.
- Jurassic Park, Men in Black, Sonic the Hedgehog, Cheaper by the Dozen (Aug 1) — Catalog additions for family movie night, including Jurassic Park's Disney+ debut in select regions.
- LEGO Disney Princess: Magical Mayhem (Aug 21), Disney Princess: The Ultimate Concert Celebration (Aug 16), Big City Greens: Season 5 (Aug 22), The Simpsons: "Yellow Mirror" (Aug 26) — rounding out the month's family and animation slate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's new on Disney+ this month? This page tracks the month's actual notable releases — right now (August 2026) that's FX's The Shards (Aug 5/6), Futurama Season 14 (Aug 3), Star Wars: Visions Presents — The Ninth Jedi (Aug 5), and Venom: The Last Dance (Aug 25).
Is The Shards available on all Disney+ accounts? It airs on FX/Hulu in the US and Disney+ internationally. It's rated TV-MA — account owners may need to adjust parental controls to unlock TV-MA content on their profile.
Is Wizards Beyond Waverly Place Season 3 the final season? Yes. Disney confirmed Season 3 is the last season, with all four final episodes premiering simultaneously on August 5, 2026.
Is Star Wars: Visions — The Ninth Jedi new content or a rerun? New content — an eight-episode continuation of the original 2021 short and its follow-up, not a re-airing of either.
When does Venom: The Last Dance premiere on Disney+? August 25, 2026, as part of Sony's ongoing streaming distribution arrangement with Disney.
How often is this page updated? Monthly, as new titles are confirmed — this is a running guide, not a one-time post, so check back rather than looking for a new URL each month.