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Fall 2019 TV Survey: 40 Most Anticipated Returning Shows

For Rotten Tomatoes’ annual Fall TV Survey, we asked thousands of our users what they’re most looking forward to in the coming TV season and to reflect on the best shows from seasons past.

We first asked TV fans which returning fall TV shows they were most looking forward to, allowing them more than one vote to spread the love around.

American Horror Story took the top spot with 25% of the vote. No. 2, the second season of Mindhunter, which has already launched on Netflix, got 24.31% of the vote, besting The Good Place (23.7%) by a hair.

Read on to find out all of Rotten Tomatoes users’ most anticipated returning series.

Disagree with the survey results? Tell us in the comments who you think should have made the list or have been ranked higher.

The Voice: Season 17 (2019)

#40

Adjusted Score: -0.264%

Synopsis: Singers square off for a coveted recording contract in this reality talent contest from the producers of "Big Brother" and... [More]

Starring: Adam Levine, Jennifer Hudson, John Legend, Blake Shelton

Chicago Med: Season 5 (2019)

#39

Adjusted Score: -0.088%

Synopsis: Season 5 of the drama series opens with the aftermath of the car accident that almost killed Manning (Torrey DeVitto)... [More]

Starring: Oliver Platt, Roland Buck III, Jessy Schram, S. Epatha Merkerson

Directed By: Vincent Misiano

Fresh Off the Boat: Season 6 (2019)

#38

Adjusted Score: -0.088%

Synopsis: Season 6 of the comedy series opens with Jessica (Constance Wu) and Honey (Chelsey Crisp) arguing about their involvement in... [More]

Starring: Randall Park, Constance Wu, Hudson Yang, Forrest Wheeler

Directed By: Angela Tortu, Kim Nguyen (IV), Kristin Rapinchuk

You: Season 2 (2019)
88%

#37

Adjusted Score: 90.608%

Critics Consensus: Penn Badgley's perversely endearing serial stalker keeps looking for love in all the wrong places during a second season that maintains the subversive tension while adding some welcome variations on the series' formula.

Synopsis: The dark drama returns for its second season, with Joe now laying low and hiding from his ex in LA.... [More]

Starring: Victoria Pedretti, Penn Badgley, Elizabeth Lail, Luca Padovan

Chicago Fire: Season 8 (2019)

#36

Adjusted Score: -0.176%

Synopsis: The firefighters and paramedics of Firehouse 51 risk their lives to save and protect their city. As these heroes forge... [More]

Starring: Jesse Spencer, Daniel Kyri, Alberto Rosende, Taylor Kinney

Marvel's Runaways: Season 3 (2019)
91%

#35

Adjusted Score: 88.094%

Critics Consensus: By focusing on its strong ensemble and the character moments fans have come to love, Runaways ends its three season run on an exciting -- and surprisingly introspective -- high note.

Synopsis: In an action-packed Season 3, the Runaways frantically search for their captured friends Chase, Gert, and Karolina. The kids go... [More]

Starring: Rhenzy Feliz, Ariela Barer, Lyrica Okano, Gregg Sulkin

Riverdale: Season 4 (2019)

#34

Adjusted Score: -0.088%

Synopsis: Drama based on characters from the Archie comic-books series is set in Riverdale, where aspiring musician Archie deals with life,... [More]

Starring: KJ Apa, Camila Mendes, Lili Reinhart, Sarah Habel

The Conners: Season 2 (2019)
86%

#33

Adjusted Score: 52.979%

Synopsis: After a sudden turn of events, the Conners are forced to face the daily struggles of life in Lanford in... [More]

Starring: John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, Sara Gilbert, Michael Fishman

FBI: Season 2 (2019)

#32

Adjusted Score: -0.088%

Synopsis: A crime drama that chronicles the exploits of the New York office of the FBI.... [More]

Starring: Missy Peregrym, Zeeko Zaki, Ebonee Noel, Jeremy Sisto

The Expanse: Season 4 (2019)
100%

#31

Adjusted Score: 101.904%

Critics Consensus: Smart and thrilling as ever, The Expanse's fourth season doesn't miss a beat, successfully navigating network changes without losing any of its rich character work or narrative complexities.

Synopsis: Season 4 of The Expanse, its first as a global Amazon Original, begins a new chapter for the series, with... [More]

Starring: Steven Strait, Cas Anvar, Dominique Tipper

Grey's Anatomy: Season 16 (2019)
100%

#30

Adjusted Score: 61.604%

Synopsis: In Season 16 of the medical drama, Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) faces the possibility of losing her medical license after admitting... [More]

Starring: Ellen Pompeo, Justin Chambers, Chandra Wilson, James Pickens Jr.

Directed By: Michael Medico

Shameless: Season 10 (2019)
40%

#29

Adjusted Score: 17.601%

Synopsis: From producers John Wells and Paul Abbott, this outrageous family drama is based on the long-running hit UK series and... [More]

Starring: William H. Macy, Emmy Rossum, Shanola Hampton, Justin Chatwin

How to Get Away With Murder: Season 6 (2019)
80%

#28

Adjusted Score: 35.202%

Synopsis: A law professor and a group of her best students are drawn into a real-life murder conspiracy.... [More]

Starring: Viola Davis, Billy Brown, Jack Falahee, Aja Naomi King

black-ish: Season 6 (2019)

#27

Adjusted Score: -0.088%

Synopsis: Season 6 of the comedy series sees a lot of changes in the family's dynamics. Jack (Miles Brown) and Diane... [More]

Starring: Anthony Anderson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Laurence Fishburne, Yara Shahidi

The Masked Singer: Season 2 (2019)

#26

Adjusted Score: -0.352%

Synopsis: A singing competition in which artists perform in disguise.... [More]

Starring: Nick Cannon, Anthony Anderson, Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy

The Man in the High Castle: Season 4 (2019)
92%

#25

Adjusted Score: 92.144%

Critics Consensus: The Man in the High Castle finds something close to closure, wrapping up major threads to bring everything full circle in sufficiently dramatic fashion.

Synopsis: Juliana Crain is on a mission to take down Reichsmarschall Smith, as the Nazis use the Die Nebenwelt Portal to... [More]

Starring: Alexa Davalos, Luke Kleintank, Rupert Evans, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa

New Amsterdam: Season 2 (2019)

#24

Adjusted Score: -0.264%

Synopsis: The new medical director breaks the rules to heal the system at America's oldest public hospital. Dr. Max Goodwin sets... [More]

Starring: Amber Janea, Ryan Eggold, John Higgins, Freema Agyeman

Directed By: Kate Dennis

Supernatural: Season 15 (2019)
100%

#23

Adjusted Score: 44.003%

Synopsis: Twenty-six years ago, Sam and Dean Winchester lost their mother to a mysterious and demonic supernatural force. Subsequently, their father... [More]

Starring: Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins, Mark Sheppard

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel: Season 3 (2019)
82%

#22*

Adjusted Score: 85.4%

Critics Consensus: As visually spectacular as ever, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel's witty banter flies with comedic fury -- but shallow social commentary and wandering storylines highlight the show's increasingly superficial tendencies.

Synopsis: Midge and Susie discover that life on tour with Shy is glamorous but humbling, and they learn a lesson about... [More]

Starring: Rachel Brosnahan, Michael Zegen, Alex Borstein, Tony Shalhoub

South Park: Season 23 (2019)
50%

#21

Adjusted Score: 26.402%

Synopsis: An animated adult series about foul-mouthed primary school children living in a Colorado town. Rude, crude and seriously funny, it... [More]

Starring: Matt Stone, Trey Parker, April Stewart, Isaac Hayes

The Simpsons: Season 31 (2019)

#20

Adjusted Score: -0.264%

Synopsis: Matt Groening's subversive, animated satire about Springfield's hapless first family became a cult favorite when it premiered on Fox in... [More]

Starring: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith

Directed By: Matthew Nastuk, Steven Dean Moore, Mark Kirkland, David Silverman

9-1-1: Season 3 (2019)
75%

#19

Adjusted Score: 52.803%

Synopsis: From creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk (the "American Horror Story" franchise, "Nip/Tuck"), new procedural drama 9-1-1 explores the high-pressure... [More]

Starring: Angela Bassett, Peter Krause, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Oliver Stark

Directed By: Alonso Alvarez, Tina Mabry

Silicon Valley: Season 6 (2019)
94%

#18

Adjusted Score: 94.584%

Critics Consensus: Though the strangeness of reality threatens to one-up it, Silicon Valley's final season is funny, fearless, and still playing by its own rules to the very end.

Synopsis: A series on the evolution of the Northern California high-tech mecca.... [More]

Starring: Thomas Middleditch, Amanda Crew, Josh Brener, Martin Starr

Directed By: Mike Judge, Liza Johnson, Matt Ross, Alec Berg

The Blacklist: Season 7 (2019)

#17

Adjusted Score: -0.264%

Synopsis: Season 7 of the crime drama opens with Red (James Spader) being kidnapped by Katarina Rostova (Laila Robins); Liz (Megan... [More]

Starring: James Spader, Megan Boone, Diego Klattenhoff, Amir Arison

The Rookie: Season 2 (2019)

#16

Adjusted Score: -0.176%

Synopsis: The trials and tribulations of a 40-year-old LAPD rookie.... [More]

Starring: Nathan Fillion, Afton Williamson, Eric Winter, Melissa O'Neil

Directed By: Rachel Feldman

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: Season 21 (2020)
80%

#15

Adjusted Score: 33.684%

Synopsis: Lieutenant Olivia Benson leads a team that finds justice for victims of the city's worst crimes. NYPD Detectives Odafin Tutuola,... [More]

Starring: Mariska Hargitay, Ice-T, Kelli Giddish, Peter Scanavino

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: Season 14 (2019)
89%

#14

Adjusted Score: 70.493%

Synopsis: Season 14 of the seriously dark comedy about four dissolute friends who run a struggling pub in Philadelphia.... [More]

Starring: Rob McElhenney, Glenn Howerton, Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson

Directed By: Heath Cullens, Kimberly McCullough

The Good Doctor: Season 3 (2019)

#13

Adjusted Score: -0.088%

Synopsis: A talented young surgeon with savant syndrome ruffles feathers while saving lives at a prestigious hospital's pediatric surgical unit.... [More]

Starring: Freddie Highmore, Antonia Thomas, Nicholas Gonzalez, Chuku Modu

Directed By: Mike Listo

Arrow: Season 8 (2019)

#12

Adjusted Score: -0.352%

Critics Consensus: Oliver Queen's final adventure hits emotional peaks while spearheading the game-changing "Crisis on Infinite Earths," giving the Emerald Archer a rousing sendoff.

Synopsis: The eighth season of the superhero show opens with Oliver (Stephen Amell) traveling to Earth-2 with his friend Diggle (David... [More]

Starring: Stephen Amell, Katie Cassidy, David Ramsey, Paul Blackthorne

Directed By: John Behring, James Bamford, Michael Schultz, Wendey Stanzler

NCIS: Season 17 (2019)

#11

Adjusted Score: -0.176%

Synopsis: Season 17 of the drama series follows directly from the events of the final episode of the previous season. Ziva... [More]

Starring: Mark Harmon, David McCallum, Pauley Perrette, Sean Murray

Rick and Morty: Season 4 (2019)
94%

#10

Adjusted Score: 95.904%

Critics Consensus: Rick and Morty's fourth season is both an exciting progression and a delightful return to form that proves more than worth the two-year wait.

Synopsis: Mad scientist Rick Sanchez moves in with his daughter's family after disappearing for 20 years and involves them in his... [More]

Starring: Justin Roiland, Sarah Chalke, Chris Parnell

Directed By: Erica Hayes

Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan: Season 2 (2019)
67%

#9

Adjusted Score: 68.376%

Critics Consensus: Jack Ryan's second season is both more refined and more predictable, doubling down on its espionage set-pieces while toning down its titular character's moral complexities to create a more straight-forward spy show.

Synopsis: After tracking a potentially suspicious shipment of illegal arms in the Venezuelan jungle, CIA Officer Jack Ryan heads to South... [More]

Starring: John Krasinski, Abbie Cornish, Wendell Pierce, Ali Suliman

Directed By: Patricia Riggen

The Crown: Season 3 (2019)
90%

#8

Adjusted Score: 97.801%

Critics Consensus: Olivia Colman shines, but as The Crown marches on in reliably luxurious fashion through time it finds space for the characters around her, providing ample opportunity for the appealing ensemble to gleam, too.

Synopsis: A decades-spanning historical drama chronicles the tale of Queen Elizabeth II and how she and her prime ministers impacted postwar... [More]

Starring: Claire Foy, Olivia Colman, Tobias Menzies, Vanessa Kirby

The Flash: Season 6 (2019)
85%

#7

Adjusted Score: 37.402%

Synopsis: Scientist Barry Allen acquires super speed through a freak accident and becomes known as the Fastest Man Alive in this... [More]

Starring: Grant Gustin, Candice Patton, Danielle Panabaker, Carlos Valdes

The Walking Dead: Season 10 (2019)

#6

Adjusted Score: -0.352%

Critics Consensus: A few changes in front of and behind the camera allow TWD create space for compelling new stories and some seriously scary new adversaries.

Synopsis: The Walking Dead is a story that started 10 years ago with one man trying to find his family. That... [More]

Starring: Norman Reedus, Danai Gurira, Melissa McBride, Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Directed By: Laura Belsey

Modern Family: Season 11 (2019)
79%

#5

Adjusted Score: 79.232%

Critics Consensus: A heartfelt goodbye that leaves the door open, Modern Family's final season is a touching tribute to the show and a fitting enough farewell to one of TVs favorite families.

Synopsis: At the start of Season 11, Alex (Ariel Winter) is in Antarctica for his research, Haley (Sarah Hyland) and Dylan... [More]

Starring: Ed O'Neill, Julie Bowen, Sofía Vergara, Ty Burrell

This Is Us: Season 4 (2019)
90%

#4

Adjusted Score: 79.205%

Synopsis: The Pearson family's generational story unfolds in this emotional drama. In moments of joy and heartbreak, revelations emerge from parents... [More]

Starring: Mandy Moore, Milo Ventimiglia, Sterling K. Brown, Chrissy Metz

The Good Place: Season 4 (2019)
100%

#3

Adjusted Score: 103.4%

Critics Consensus: A wild philosophical ride to the very end, The Good Place brings it home with a forking good final season.

Synopsis: Follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell, "House of Lies," "Veronica Mars"), an ordinary woman who enters the afterlife, and thanks to... [More]

Starring: Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil

Mindhunter: Season 2 (2019)
99%

#2

Adjusted Score: 103.896%

Critics Consensus: Mindhunter expands its narrative horizons without losing sight of the details that made its first season so rich, crafting a chilling second season that is as unsettling as it is utterly absorbing.

Synopsis: The Behavioral Science Unit's killer instincts move from theory into action when the FBI joins in a high-profile hunt for... [More]

Starring: Jonathan Groff, Oliver Cooper, Christopher Backus, Robert Aramayo

American Horror Story: 1984 (2019)
87%

#1

Adjusted Score: 61.252%

Critics Consensus: A near-perfect blend of slasher tropes and American Horror Story's trademark twists, 1984 is a bloody good time.

Synopsis: In the summer of 1984, five friends escape Los Angeles to work as counselors at Camp Redwood; as they adjust... [More]

Starring: Emma Roberts, Cody Fern, Matthew Morrison, Leslie Grossman

*No. 22 reflects write-in votes; a few of the top titles included The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Mr. Robot, Chicago P.D., A Million Little Things, and Blue Bloods. (Some titles confirmed return dates after our survey was conducted; others, like popular write-in Star Trek: Discovery, have yet to announce.)

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