Sandokan Season 1 on Netflix: Exactly How Many Episodes You’ll Be Bingeing
The legend returns: Sandokan Season 1 hits Netflix US on January 19, 2026, with all eight episodes dropping at once after its high-budget international debut in Italy in December 2025.
Netflix is bringing the swashbuckling reboot 'Sandokan' to the US, and it is not a drip-feed situation. All eight episodes land on Netflix US on January 19, 2026. This one already aired in Italy in December 2025, pulled strong ratings, and despite being pitched early on as a limited series, Season 2 is already a go. So yeah, 'limited' turned out to be theoretical.
What is Sandokan?
It is a high-budget international adventure drama produced by Lux Vide as part of Rai Fiction's global slate. The leads: Turkish star Can Yaman as the legendary corsair, alongside 'Gossip Girl' alum Ed Westwick, Alanah Bloor, John Hannah, and Alessandro Preziosi. Jan Maria Michelini and Nicola Abbatangelo share directing duties.
Is any of this real?
Nope. Sandokan is a fictional folk-hero pirate cooked up by Italian author Emilio Salgari in the late 1800s. He headlined 11 adventure novels and earned the nickname 'The Tiger of Malaysia.' The series drops us into 1841 Borneo, where Sandokan leads a rebel crew against colonial forces. Things get complicated when he meets Marianna Guillonk, the British consul's daughter. Their romance (because of course) lights the fuse on a larger conflict. Enter Lord James Brooke, a very capable pirate hunter who wants two things: Sandokan in chains and Marianna on his arm. While the swords clash and ships burn, Marianna has to choose where her loyalties lie, and Sandokan grapples with identity, duty to his people, and the inconvenient timing of falling in love.
US release, runtime, and where else to watch
Netflix US drops the entire first season on January 19, 2026, all at once. Episodes run 51–61 minutes each. Outside the US, the show streams on Disney+ in select regions and on Voyo. In Italy, it originally aired on Rai 1 in December 2025. This Netflix launch is the series' official US debut.
Episode titles (all hit Netflix US on Jan 19, 2026)
- Episode 1: The Tiger of Malaysia
- Episode 2: The Pearl of Labuan
- Episode 3: Taken Hostage
- Episode 4: Singapore
- Episode 5: The Heart of the Jungle
- Episode 6: In the Dark
- Episode 7: Death of a Pirate
- Episode 8: The Price of Redemption
Other need-to-knows
- Netflix has acquired US rights to the series.
- Season 1 is 8 episodes; Season 2 is already confirmed.
- Current IMDb score sits at 6.7/10 (that number moves, as they do).
- Cast: Can Yaman, Ed Westwick, Alanah Bloor, John Hannah, Alessandro Preziosi.
- Directors: Jan Maria Michelini and Nicola Abbatangelo.
- Based on the 'Sandokan' novels by Emilio Salgari.
The episode titles are gloriously pulpy and the drop-all-at-once release is exactly how a swashbuckler should land. You in for Sandokan when it hits Netflix US on January 19?