Every single week, our TV and film experts will list the most important ten streaming selections for you to pop into your queues. We’re not strictly operating upon reviews or accrued streaming clicks (although yes, we’ve scoured the streaming site charts) but, instead, upon those selections that are really worth noticing amid the churning sea of content. There’s a lot out there, after all, and your
10. Sunny (Apple TV+ series)
Apple TV+ likes to keep it weird with their trips into the sci-fi realm. Here, Rashida Jones portrays an American ex-pat, Suzie, who finds herself alone in Japan when her family goes missing. As a result, a domestic robot enters her life, and this “relationship” begins to work out better than anticipated. Can they also solve the mystery of what happened to Suzie’s husband and son? Expect this season to keep you guessing the answers to that question, and you might want to also check out Rashida’s appearance in another Apple+ series, Silo because that Rebecca Ferguson-starring series remains a sleeper.
9. Trigger Warning (Netflix movie)
Jessica Alba stepped away from filmmaking for awhile to run her enormously successful business, but she’s back on sets and ready to make up for lost butt-kicking time. Here, her special-forces commando returns home and finds that it’s not such a welcome place. Soon enough, she’s looking for answers in her father’s death, and there is, of course, a violent gang that is interested in deterring her efforts. Alba clearly relished the stunt work and is finally appearing to enjoy Hollywood again. Good for her, and the popcorn-crunching audience will reap the benefits.
8. Sausage Party: Foodtopia (Prime Video/Amazon series)
The ridiculously popular R-rated animated movie from 2016 follows up with a spin off, in which the filthy jokes shall fly for a longer collective runtime. Naturally, Seth Rogen is sill forcing the leading Frank (a sausage) while the group of profane grocery items attempts to come together as a community. That should (not) go well, and Rogen will be joined again by former co-stars Kristen Wiig, Edward Norton, Michael Cera, and David Krumholtz. New characters will be portrayed by Sam Richardson, Will Forte, and more.
7. The Bear (FX series streaming on Hulu)
This third season seemingly set out to make viewers hate Carmy, and mission accomplished? However, that conversation with Joel McHale’s Mean Chef might provide some closure for Jeremy Allen White’s character to start leaving his trauma behind. Jamie Lee Curtis’ Momma Berzatto was undoubtedly a source of that toxicity, too, and she received some redemption in “Ice Chips,” so here’s to Carmy cleaning up his emotional act without berating his fellow Chefs with so many non-negotiables in the process.
6. A Family Affair (Netflix movie)
As if it wasn’t awkward enough to navigate the ups and downs of being a movie star’s assistant, Joey King portrays a young woman who has to deal with her boss (Zac Efron) dating her mom (Nicole Kidman). This movie is a breezy way to spend some steaming time in between Netflix’s many current binge-worthy series, and seriously, I’m starting to wonder where Nicole Kidman finds time to star in projects on so many streaming services lately.
5. My Lady Jane (Prime Video series streaming on Amazon)
A “radical retelling” happens to be the all-the-rage method of engaging with historical fiction stories, and the Bridgerton crowd is enjoying this twist on Lady Jane Grey’s real-life fate while wondering what would have happened if she had escaped execution. This dramatic and romantic series is based upon the best-selling novels by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows.
4. Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+ series)
Well, well, well. This series took off so well for Apple TV+ that a single Scott Turow book won’t be enough to fill the newly announced second season. So much for a “limited series” status! Fortunately, there’s a great well of Turow source material to be inspired by, and the author will serve as an executive producer alongside David E. Kelley, J.J. Abrams, and Jake Gyllenhaal. Oddly enough, Gyllenhaal’s Roadhouse will receive a sequel film, too, so he might be the 2024 king of unexpected followups, and he will also be seen in sister Maggie’s The Bride! as well. Everything is truly coming up Gyllenhaals.
3. Supacell (Netflix series)
Traditional superhero movies and TV shows are out of vogue for the moment, but clearly, audiences do retain an insatiable appetite for inventive stories about those who happen to have extraordinary powers. Such is the case with the South Londoner characters of Supacell, which follows ordinary-but-superpowered people while highlighting sickle cell disease and the social issues tied to its suffering. Rapman (whose real name happens to be Andrew Onwubolu) created the show, and fans await word of a second season.
2. The Boys (Prime Video/Amazon series)
The penultimate season episode ended with a Starlight cliffhanger, and poor Hughie thought his year was getting better, but oh, he has no idea. From here, we will hopefully find out more about this shape-shifting business and how Homelander continues to cope with A-Train’s betrayal. Speaking of which, Deep will live to rue the day that he tossed Ambrosia into the closet without water, and y’all, Tilda Swinton voiced an octopus. We live in amazing TV times, and next week’s episode, “Assassination Run,” both destroyed and invigorated me, and it’s worth watching upon debut because there will be intense spoilers flying around.
1. House of the Dragon (HBO series streaming on Max)
For sure, the dragons deserve better on this show, and this week, we will see how Team Black and Team Green respond to losing two of their key weapons at Rook’s Rest, simply because Alicent made a grave mistake and then refused to right that ship, so that Aegon could remain on the Iron Throne. That hasn’t worked out so well, but then again, that merciless teasing of Aemond also did not bode well for the Targaryens. They really are their own worst enemies, and nope, they do not deserve to have those dragons.