National Geographic’s new Secrets of the Penguins trailer shows just how intelligent the tuxedoed birds are and how they’re really family-oriented. Blake Lively (Another Simple Favor) narrates the three-part documentary series, which promises to reveal never-before-seen behavior.

The docuseries comes from Emmy winner Nat Geo Explorer Bertie Gregory and is executive produced by National Geographic’s Pam Caragol, Lightstorm Earth’s James Cameron and Maria Wilhelm, and Talesmith’s Ruth Roberts and Martin Williams. Secrets of the Penguins premieres on April 20, 2025 at 8pm ET/PT on Nat Geo, and on April 21 on Disney+ and Hulu. It arrives on Disney Channel on Earth Day, April 22.

National Geographic released the following description of the three-part docuseries:

“While many documentaries have explored penguins, Secrets of the Penguins takes it to a whole new level. Talesmith’s team, led by Bertie and over 70 world-class scientists and filmmakers, embarked on a two-year, globe-spanning adventure—from the rocky beaches of Cape Town and the icy shores of South Georgia Island to the tropical Galapagos and Namibia’s desert caves—capturing penguins like never before. Pushing the boundaries of wildlife filmmaking, a three-person crew endured an astonishing 274 days filming on the Ekström Ice Shelf in Antarctica, home to a colony of 20,000 emperor penguins.

Facing one of the planet’s harshest environments, they captured never-before-seen moments like a bonded pair of emperors practicing egg transfers with a snowball to hone their skills for the moment they would need to transfer a real egg, tenacious chicks navigating brash ice amid climate change, and young penguins using their beaks to hoist themselves out of a crevasse.

With breathtaking, award-winning cinematography and cutting-edge camera technology, the series captures even more never-before-seen and rare moments in the wild. For the first time, witness healthy ‘rockaroni’ chicks—a rare hybrid of rockhopper and macaroni penguins—offering a fascinating glimpse into potential evolution and adaptation. Other remarkable scenes include a brave rockhopper fending off a southern sea lion, the first-ever footage of a hidden cave colony of African penguins, and clever Galapagos penguins teaming up for a daring heist: stealing fish straight from pelican beaks and skillfully herding sardine bait balls.”

Secrets of the Penguins Episode Guide

“Heart of the Emperors”
The emperors are the largest and strongest penguins, living in the coldest and most extreme environment on Earth. Embedded with an Antarctic colony, National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory encounters social skills never filmed before, discovering bonds forged from birth between family, friends, and strangers are the difference between life and death.

“Survival of the Smartest”
Millions of years ago, a group of penguins left the ice, riding powerful currents and arriving in strange new lands. They reshaped traditions for deserts and tropics—and even to live among humans. Tested to the extreme, they became perhaps the smartest of all penguins. National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory discovers the penguins’ problem-solving, “talking,” and enduring search for new worlds.

“Rebels with a Cause”
It takes a special type of courageous penguin to survive the fierce Southern Ocean, but 40 million crowd its isolated, rocky outposts, and they are some of the most successful penguins on Earth. National Geographic Explorer Bertie Gregory follows the rockhoppers, gentoos, and macaronis to discover a world of risk-takers, rebels, and unconventional parents.

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