Posted by Siseko Tapile
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One month, two headline series, and 127 films on day one. That’s how Paramount Plus plans to keep your queue full as summer fades. The streamer is mixing big franchise swings with comfort-watch library drops, live event specials, and family TV—basically, something for every mood.
The biggest swing is NCIS: Tony & Ziva, a fresh chapter for the global procedural that puts Michael Weatherly and Cote de Pablo back in the field together. The setup is simple and juicy: Tony and Ziva are living in Paris, co-parenting Tali, when Tony’s security firm is hit. That attack forces them into a European run-and-gun chase, balancing spycraft with parenting and old scars. The promise here isn’t just nostalgia—it’s a faster, more international NCIS tone with a personal stake baked in. The series premieres September 4.
If you’re here for muscle and mayhem, Tulsa King Season 3 lands September 21. Sylvester Stallone returns as Dwight Manfredi, now facing a rival that doesn’t play by the old rules: a deep-pocketed dynasty, the Dunmires. New faces join the storm—Robert Patrick, Bella Heathcote, Kevin Pollak, and Samuel L. Jackson. Jackson’s character, Russell Lee Washington Jr., passes through Tulsa on his way to New Orleans, setting up the already greenlit spinoff Nola King. Translation: the Tulsa King universe is widening, and Season 3 is the bridge.
On the film side, early September brings the streaming premiere of Andrew Ahn’s The Wedding Banquet. It’s positioned as a romantic drama with a modern pulse, and it lands as counterprogramming to the month’s heavier genre fare.
About that genre fare: September 1 drops a wall of movies—127 in total—across horror, sci-fi, action, and the 90s/2000s classics that always seem to hit the spot. Horror fans get the first eight Friday the 13th films, The Woman in Black, Sleepy Hollow, and the From Dusk Till Dawn trilogy. Sci-fi purists can cue up Arrival and A.I. Artificial Intelligence. Action heads get Face/Off, the full Blade trilogy, and Cloverfield. And there’s range beyond the blockbusters: Fatal Attraction, Frida, and the always-quotable Scary Movie land the comedic and prestige beats.
Families aren’t left out. The Tiny Chef Show returns September 10 with Season 3, and The Adventures of Paddington drops its third season a week later on September 17. Both shows deliver warm, low-stress viewing for weekends or weekday wind-downs. If you prefer real-world stakes, Air Disasters is back that same day with Season 22—still detailed, still tense.
Live and live-adjacent programming serves as appointment anchors throughout the month. The 2025 Video Music Awards special airs September 7. One week later, September 14 brings coverage of the Primetime Emmy Awards—a timely snapshot of TV’s power players heading into fall. Music fans get a tribute night on September 22 with A GRAMMY Salute to Earth, Wind & Fire Live: The 21st Night of September.
The CBS unscripted staples also return to set the weekly rhythm. Survivor sails into Season 49 on September 24, followed by The Amazing Race Season 38 on September 25. And to close the month with the familiar drumbeat of Sunday night journalism, 60 Minutes (Season 58) and 48 Hours (Season 38) arrive on September 28.
Want the month at a glance? Here are the key dates:
The range is the point. Franchise TV for weekly suspense. Award shows for live buzz. Reality competitions for routine. A massive library load to fill the gaps. It’s a calendar built to keep you bouncing from one tile to the next without hitting a dead end.
Franchise expansion drives subscriptions in 2025, and NCIS: Tony & Ziva checks every box. It brings back two proven leads, shifts the action to Europe for a fresh look, and leans into an espionage chase that can hook viewers who’ve never watched an NCIS pilot. Longtime fans get the payoff of a relationship that’s been a slow burn for years; new viewers get a clean on-ramp with cinematic pacing.
Tulsa King’s third season suggests a maturing crime saga with a different kind of antagonist. Instead of street-level rival crews, Dwight is up against an entrenched family network with money and reach. That raises the ceiling on the stakes and opens the door to bigger arcs—exactly what you want before splintering off to a new city with Nola King. The casting additions aren’t just stunt names; they’re signposts that the world is getting bigger, weirder, and more dangerous.
The 127-title library drop on September 1 is a retention play disguised as a party. Bulk releases like this fuel weekend binges, theme nights, and spontaneous rewatches. Horror gets a head start with Friday the 13th, laying the tracks for a fright marathon well before October. Sci-fi and action are covered with Arrival, Cloverfield, and Blade. The mix of Oscar winners, cult favorites, and popcorn staples means fewer arguments when it’s your turn to pick.
Family content is usually the difference between a subscription that sticks and one that pauses. Paddington’s new season gives younger kids a warm, storybook vibe. The Tiny Chef Show brings tactile, cozy humor that works for mixed-age viewing. These aren’t headline-grabbers, but they reduce churn because they’re the shows that actually run in the background while life happens.
Award shows and specials turn a streaming app into a live venue, even if you’re catching it timeshifted. The VMAs bring a younger, social-first crowd. The Emmys land in the sweet spot between summer finales and fall premieres. The Earth, Wind & Fire salute adds a multi-generational music event with built-in nostalgia—and yes, the date is intentional.
The CBS unscripted backbone—Survivor and The Amazing Race—sustains a weekly ritual that streamers need. One premieres, the other follows, and both keep you returning midweek. Round that out with Sunday’s 60 Minutes and 48 Hours, and you have a simple watch pattern: big dramas for suspense, reality for comfort, news to reset.
If you like a plan, here are a few easy watch routes:
Scheduling-wise, the month is neatly staggered. The library bomb hits on the 1st to cover the long weekend crowd. The NCIS spinoff launches midweek on the 4th, giving it room to breathe before the first Sunday special. Week two blends family drops and a new series (The Reunion on Sept 12) with the Emmys. Week three stacks kids TV with Air Disasters, then unleashes Tulsa King. Week four brings the reality pillars, and the final Sunday closes with news heavyweights. There aren’t many empty days—and that’s deliberate.
Put simply: if you cycle through genres and watch with others, September is a great month to be on Paramount Plus. The headliners bring fresh storylines, the library drop fills the gaps, and the week-by-week cadence makes it easy to keep the streak going without getting stuck on what to pick next.