It was a very interesting and intense year for the streaming market in Poland. The most important event during these twelve months was undoubtedly the launch of the Max platform. It is a one-of-a-kind library of the best series, films straight from the cinema, shocking documentaries, popular entertainment offers, news programs and broadcasts of the most important sporting events.
The undisputed leader of the ranking was the HBO Original series “Dragon Bloodline”which will return to users with a third season in some time.
The series “From Here”, about the nightmare life of the inhabitants of a certain town who found themselves there voluntarily and are unable to get out of it, was ranked fifth in the ranking. Currently, you can watch three seasons of this amazing production on the platform. Fans of the series compete with each other in trying to explain various theories, puzzles and symbols invented by the creators of this surprising series. Another season has already been announced.
The most watched Polish series in 2024 was “Skazana”, the final season of which was launched together with the Max website. The production with a great cast and Agata Kulesza in the main role was also released on other European markets.
Seventh place goes to Colin Farrell and the HBO Original series “Penguin”which was chosen by many critics as the best series of the past year.
Another Polish series “Thaw” with Katarzyna Wajda in the main role was also in the top ten. It is the most watched non-English-language series in Europe and the second most watched non-English-language production in the world after “City of God”. Filming for the third season of “The Thaw” has recently begun. Among the cast we will again see Katarzyna Wajda, Bartłomiej Kotschedoff, Andrzej Grabowski, Ewa Skibińska and Tomasz Schuchardt.
The crime series “Detektyw” also ranked high in the ranking, which was also the most popular and best-rated series on IMDB. The series “True Detective: Nightfall” and Jodie Foster, as well as Kalie Reis are nominated for the 2025 Golden Globes.
The thirty most-watched programming items on Max include two more Polish productions: the series “Szadź” and the shocking documentary series “Lowcy Łowcy”. This four-episode documentary is the most frequently chosen documentary series not only in Poland but also in Europe.
Max is currently working on 15 Polish programming items, some of which will be available on the platform next year. On January 31, the first episode of the long-awaited series “Przesmyk” directed by Jan P. Matuszyński will be available on the website. The production tells the story of Ewa Oginiec, who, after a personal tragedy, wants to withdraw from the interview and start a normal life. Everything becomes complicated when her partner, who is also an agent, is exposed by Russian intelligence and disappears without a trace.
“Isthmus” is a thriller showing viewers the contemporary espionage environment during an emerging conflict and many international tensions. It is also the story of an individual entangled in the specific nature of work in the secret services, from which one can never really give up. The series shows the mechanism of international provocation, as well as the fight between intelligence services in the reality of hybrid war. The roles in the series will be played by, among others, Lena Góra, Karol Pocheć, Bartłomiej Topa, Leszek Lichota, Andrzej Konopka, Jan Englert, Tomasz Ziętek, Eliza Rycembel, Ewelina Starejki, Antoni Sztaba and Piotr Żurawski.
Plans for 2025 also include the series “A Decent Man” – a multi-layered, suspenseful psychological thriller. The authors of the script are Krzysztof Czeczot and Marek Modzelewski (author of “Klara” and two parts of “In-Laws”). The director is the winner of the Gdynia Film Festival and Polityka’s Passport – Aleksandra Terpińska (“Other People”).
The Max platform is also preparing a documentary series “33 photos from the ghetto” presenting the behind-the-scenes of an astonishing discovery. In December 2022, Maciej Grzywaczewski found 33 old negatives of photos taken by his father. These are the only pictures documenting the events that took place inside the ghetto walls in April 1943, made by someone other than German soldiers.
In the same year, we will also see the second season of “Pati”, in which we will be able to follow the heroine’s fate after her stay in prison. Ola Adamska returns in the main role.
Another Polish program proposal for the coming year is also “City of Frost”. A dark drama about complicated blood ties, in which the fight for the inheritance of a deceased father reveals numerous family secrets and conflicts. After the death of Jan Mróz, his children face an unexpected change in his will, which ruins their plans and relationships. The series combines intriguing criminal threads with the tense atmosphere of the hermetic community of Hel, leading viewers through the maze of love, betrayal and envy. The main roles will be played by Magdalena Popławska, Jacek Koman, Grzegorz Damięcki and Bartosz Gelner. The series is shot on the Hel Peninsula and in Warsaw.
In 2025, cult foreign productions will also return to the platform, such as “The White Lotus”, the action of which takes place this time in Thailand, or the second season of “The Last of Us” with Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey in the main roles.
This year we will also see further adventures of Carrie Bradshaw and her friends in the third season of “Just Like That”. The iconic “Hacks” and “Gilded Age” will also return to the website with subsequent seasons.
The medical series “The Pitt” starring Noah Wyle will debut on the website in January. Later in the year, we will also see a series from Stephen King’s universe – “It: Welcome to Derry” and a spin-off of “Game of Thrones” – “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight”.
In the coming year, you will also be able to see the mini-series “Task”, telling the story of an FBI agent conducting a mysterious investigation into an unusual criminal robbing pharmacies. Mark Ruffalo will star in the main role.