Here Are All the TV Shows Coming to HBO Max This Week, Including ‘Abbott Elementary’

A fresh batch of arrivals is landing all week long, covering animated comedy, superhero action, unscripted renovation, family drama, workplace laughs, crime intrigue, and cozy kids’ adventures. Below you’ll find quick primers so you can jump in knowing the essentials on plots, casts, and creative teams.

Dates below reflect when each title becomes available this week on HBO Max. If you’re catching up, we’ve also included who’s behind the camera and who plays whom, so you can decide what to queue up first.

‘Women Wearing Shoulder Pads’ (2025)

This stop-motion adult animated comedy follows a wealthy Spanish woman who relocates to Quito in the 1980s to breed guinea pigs for profit, only to find her world complicated by a mysterious stalker and a circle of ambitious women. Created by Gonzalo Cordova, the series is produced by Cinema Fantasma with episodes directed by Beto Petiches and Ric Vargas “Calaka.” Voice actors include Pepa Pallarés, Gabriela Cartol, Kerygma Flores, and Nicole Vazquez. It arrives Monday August 18.

Across its first season the show leans into the era’s glossy ad world and regional business rivalries as the lead navigates family pressure and notoriety. The production blends handcrafted stop-motion with stylized miniature sets, and Cordova serves as creator and writer with producers Roy Ambriz and Arturo Ambriz guiding the animation pipeline.

‘Bargain Block’ (2021– )

This home-renovation series trails builders and designers Keith Bynum and Evan Thomas as they buy neglected Detroit properties and transform them into affordable starter homes, working with realtor Shea Hicks-Whitfield. Produced by High Noon Entertainment, the show documents each project from demolition to design reveal with Bynum leading aesthetic choices and Thomas overseeing construction. It arrives Thursday August 21.

Episodes typically follow the duo as they source budget materials, craft custom pieces, and stage the finished homes while navigating inspections and neighborhood needs. The series spotlights Detroit’s housing stock and market dynamics, and recurring segments feature walkthroughs with buyers and on-site problem solving by the team.

‘Peacemaker’ (2022– )

This DC series centers on Christopher Smith, also known as Peacemaker, a jingoistic mercenary pressed into black-ops work after the events of ‘The Suicide Squad.’ Created and run by James Gunn, the show stars John Cena as Peacemaker with Danielle Brooks as Leota Adebayo, Freddie Stroma as Adrian Chase Vigilante, Jennifer Holland as Emilia Harcourt, and Steve Agee as John Economos. Season 2 adds Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr. and Tim Meadows as Langston Fleury. It arrives Thursday August 21.

The new season continues Peacemaker’s missions with A.R.G.U.S. while digging into his past and the fallout from prior operations. James Gunn writes the season and directs key episodes, tying character arcs into the broader DC universe. Supporting players return across the team’s investigative threads and field operations as the show balances action with character-driven humor.

‘The Heritage’ (2025)

This family crime drama follows three siblings and their partners as an inheritance from their late father fractures long-standing bonds and pulls the family into legal and personal conflict. Presented as a Max Original, the series sets up a season-long dispute over the will that forces the siblings to confront buried history and shifting loyalties. It arrives Friday August 22.

Episodes track parallel storylines around probate maneuvering, business interests, and the siblings’ competing narratives about their father’s legacy. The show is positioned as a contemporary ensemble drama focused on family relationships amid criminal and corporate pressures, with the estate battle serving as the spine for the first season.

‘Abbott Elementary’ (2021– )

Set in a Philadelphia public school, this mockumentary sitcom was created by Quinta Brunson, who stars as second-grade teacher Janine Teagues. The ensemble includes Tyler James Williams as Gregory Eddie, Janelle James as Principal Ava Coleman, Sheryl Lee Ralph as Barbara Howard, Lisa Ann Walter as Melissa Schemmenti, Chris Perfetti as Jacob Hill, and William Stanford Davis as Mr. Johnson. Directors across the run include Randall Einhorn and Jennifer Celotta. It arrives Saturday August 23.

Episodes chronicle teachers juggling limited resources, district mandates, and their own ambitions while trying to support students. The series uses documentary-style interviews and classroom vignettes, with writing and producing led by Brunson alongside a room that mines school-day logistics, parent relations, and workplace friendships for storylines.

‘The Cleaning Lady’ (2022–2025)

This crime drama was developed by Miranda Kwok from the Argentinian series ‘La chica que limpia’ and follows Élodie Yung as Thony De La Rosa, a Cambodian-Filipino surgeon who works as a cleaner in Las Vegas and becomes entangled with organized crime to help her ailing son. Cast members include Martha Millan as Fiona De La Rosa, Adan Canto as Arman Morales, Oliver Hudson as FBI agent Garrett Miller, Eva De Dominici as Nadia Morales, Sean Lew as Chris, and Faith Bryant as Jaz, with later seasons featuring Naveen Andrews as Robert Kamdar, Kate del Castillo as Ramona Sanchez, and Santiago Cabrera as Jorge Sanchez. It arrives Saturday August 23.

Across its seasons the show blends medical expertise and underworld cover-ups as Thony navigates visa hurdles, surveillance pressure, and shifting alliances. Episodes balance procedural cleanups with serialized arcs around family safety, law enforcement investigations, and power struggles inside criminal networks, with Kwok leading development and producing alongside Warner Bros. Television.

‘Toad & Friends’ (2023– )

Based on Kenneth Grahame’s ‘The Wind in the Willows,’ this animated series follows Toad, Mole, Ratty, Badger, and new friend Hedge as they tackle adventures along the riverbank. Voice performers include Adrian Edmondson, Rishabh Shah, Reuben Joseph, Seána Kerslake, Ryan Sampson, Amalia Vitale, and Simon Paisley Day, with writing by Ciaran Murtagh and Andrew Barnett Jones and producing by Helen Howells. It arrives Sunday August 24.

Season 1 presents self-contained stories that introduce familiar settings like Toad Hall and the Wild Wood while bringing in kid-friendly plots about teamwork and responsibility. The production targets preschool and early-elementary viewers and features 26 short episodes designed for standalone viewing or playlist marathons.

Share what you’re planning to watch first this week in the comments!