Apple TV+ already has one of the strongest sci-fi lineups in streaming, and now it’s doubling down.
Two of the service’s best-known genre series are getting spinoffs, with one arriving very soon and the other setting up Apple’s next big expansion of the Monsterverse. If you’re the kind of viewer who signed up for Severance, stayed for Silo, and still thinks For All Mankind doesn’t get enough love, there’s a lot here to be excited about.
Star City Brings For All Mankind Back From a Very Different Angle
Before Apple TV+ had breakout sci-fi hits like Severance and Silo, it had For All Mankind. The alt-history space drama helped define the platform early on, and Apple is still investing in it in a big way.
Season 5 of For All Mankind premieres on Friday, March 27, 2026, with new episodes running through May 29. Then, on that same day, Apple will launch Star City, a brand-new spinoff set in the same universe.
That timing alone feels smart. Instead of letting momentum cool off after season 5, Apple is rolling straight into a companion series designed to show the other side of the story.
And that’s what makes Star City interesting.
Rather than following the American side of the alternate space race, the new show shifts perspective to the Soviet Union. Apple describes it as a paranoid thriller that revisits the moment the Soviets became the first nation to put a man on the moon, but this time from behind the Iron Curtain. The series focuses on cosmonauts, engineers, and intelligence officers inside the Soviet space program, along with the pressure and risk that came with trying to stay ahead.
That’s a very good hook. For All Mankind has always been at its best when it mixes giant historical what-ifs with personal tension and political fallout. Star City looks like it could do the same thing, just with a colder, more paranoid energy.
Apple says the series premieres on Friday, May 29 with two episodes, then continues weekly through July 10.
Monarch is Getting Bigger Too
Apple’s other major sci-fi expansion is happening in the world of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters.
The Monsterverse series has already become one of Apple TV+’s biggest genre plays, blending kaiju spectacle with a more character-driven family story. Apple launched season 2 on February 27, 2026, and it’s already clear the company sees this franchise as something much larger than a one-show project.
Back in December, Apple officially announced the first Monarch spinoff series, with Wyatt Russell set to reprise his role as young Lee Shaw. According to Apple, the new show follows Colonel Lee Shaw in 1984 as he goes on a secret mission behind enemy lines to stop the Soviets from unleashing a terrifying new Titan powerful enough to threaten the U.S. and shift the balance of the Cold War.
That premise sounds a lot more direct and mission-focused than Legacy of Monsters, which could be a great thing. Lee Shaw was one of the most compelling parts of the main series, and building a whole show around that era of the character makes a lot of sense, especially with Wyatt Russell back in the role.
Apple still hasn’t shared a release date for the new Monarch spinoff, so this one is likely further out. But the message is pretty clear: Apple doesn’t just want isolated sci-fi hits. It wants sci-fi worlds that can keep growing.
Apple TV+ Keeps Leaning into Sci-fi, and That Looks Like the Right Call
At this point, sci-fi isn’t just one category on Apple TV+. It’s one of the service’s clearest strengths.
Between For All Mankind, Silo, Severance, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, and now upcoming extensions like Star City, Apple has built a lineup that feels more curated than crowded. Instead of chasing volume, it keeps backing ambitious, high-concept shows that actually give people a reason to keep subscribing. That strategy looks even smarter when the spinoffs are coming from series fans already care about.
And yes, Apple TV+ still costs less than a lot of its rivals in the UK at £9.99 per month, which makes this growing sci-fi library even easier to justify if that’s your genre. It’s also included in Apple One plans.
Closing
Apple TV+ is turning two of its best sci-fi shows into bigger franchises.
Star City looks like the more immediate win, especially since it arrives right as For All Mankind season 5 wraps. But the new Monarch spinoff could be just as important long term if Apple wants its Monsterverse ambitions to keep growing.
For sci-fi fans, this is exactly the kind of move you want to see.
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