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 time is valuable.
10. Black Doves – Netflix series
A six-episode first season is the right length to hook viewers in and thank the streaming gods that a second season is coming. This is comfort food for those who enjoy spy and gay-best-friend content with John Wick callbacks aplenty. Keira Knightly recently admitted that she “would actually be the worst spy in the entire world,” so it’s a good thing that she became an actress and (to paraphrase) can portray one on TV. Ben Whishaw and his hair are the yin to her yang, and they shine alongside fellow cast members Sarah Lancashire, Andrew Buchan, Tracey Ullman, Ella Lily Hyland, and Andrew Koji.
9. Joker: Folie à Deux – WBD movie streaming on Max
After a majority of Joker viewers ditched the theatrical release for this musical, they are now at least watching it at home to the degree that it’s on the streaming charts. Never before has a film that was both a box-office and critical darling (and a The Hangover guys surprise) given the world such a middle finger in the form of a sequel. It’s safe to say that there will not be a third movie, but if you want to see how Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) and “Lee” (Lady Gaga) ended up in the biggest-budgeted mishap of the year, at least it’s part of a streaming package now.
8. Star Wars: Skeleton Crew – Disney+ series
What, another Star Wars series so fast after The Acolyte? It’s happening. This series stars Jude Law as Jod Na Nawood, a pirate who tangos with the Force but probably not in a trustworthy way. Four kids cross paths with him after leaving their home planet and finding themselves lost in a strange and dangerous galaxy (far, far away). It’s like Stranger Things meet Star Wars, if an analogy needs to be made.
7. Juror #2 – Max Original film
Get your dad on high alert if he didn’t hear that Clint Eastwood’s latest film hit streaming instead of spending time in theaters. Nicholas Hoult stars in this story that illustrates how jury duty might be dreadfully boring and terribly inconvenient for most people, but this guy is experiencing a worst-case scenario. Try not to think too much about current events while watching this and do enjoy the cast including The Night Agent‘s Gabriel Basso, Zoey Deutch, Toni Collette, Kiefer Sutherland, Chris Messina, Leslie Bibb, and the possibly most omnipresent actor of our times, J.K. Simmons.
6. Landman – Paramount+ series
Michelle Randolph has opened up about that viral daddy-daughter scene that likely helped this show become such an immediate streaming hit for Paramount+. Beyond those banal jokes (and imagine Taylor Sheridan giggling to himself in his writing “bunker” while whipping that scene up), this show also offers a fine ensemble including Billy Bob Thornton at his most “Billy Bob” as well as Jon Hamm as a Texas-tea titan and Demi Moore as his underutilized wife. The show also stars Ali Larter going into full Real Housewives mode as well as Jacob Lofland, Michael Peña, and countless other ensemble members.
5. Subservience – XYZ films movie streaming on Netflix
Yeah, it never works out well when a M3GAN setup launches a film. Megan Fox stars as an android hired to cook and keep house when an ailing mother (Madeline Zima) needs bedrest. The father (Michele Morrone) can’t manage to keep it in his pants, so to speak, and then the Megan-bot grows jealous and homicidal, and sometimes, unsophisticated sci-fi is just fine for entertainment purposes. This film left sequel territory wide open, so we could hear more developments on whether Megan-bot will be back with a vengeance.
4. Secret Level – Prime Video/Amazon series
It’s obviously a big month for animated streaming series, and this show hails from the LOVE, DEATH + ROBOTS crew with 15 episodes that function as love letters to gamers. An all-star cast includes Arnold Schwarzenegger, Keanu Reeves, Gabriel Luna, Claudia Doumit, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and Ariana Greenblatt, each of whom appear in episodes devoted to Warhammer 40,000, Crossfire, Dungeons & Dragons, PAC-MAN, Exodus, and various PlayStation Studios games. Pull up your gaming chair and enjoy.
3. Red One – Prime Video/Amazon movie
Every year, at least a few A-listers gather ’round and make holiday movies meant to keep the kids busy for at least a few hours. This year, the dominating pair would be Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Chris Evans. Naturally, this movie is about a frantic rush to save Christmas, and the specific permutations of how this film settles into the same customary holiday story structure might involve jacked-up deltoids. No? Maybe.
2. Carry-On – Netflix movie
With the holiday travel season in full swing, of course this movie about Christmas Eve airport perils has taken off, too. Taron Egerton stars as a TSA agent who is being threatened through an earbud by a villainous Jason Bateman, who is aided by the always underrated Theo Rossi. This isn’t exactly the The Outsider and Emily The Criminal crossover that the world has been waiting for, but it’s close and worth putting in the queue.
1. Dexter: Original Sin – Showtime series streaming on Paramount+
Long before Dexter Morgan sailed into a hurricane and somehow survived being “fatally” shot in upstate New York, younger Dexter (Patrick Gibson) began his 1990s tenure with the Miami Metro Police Department as an intern. This series will see him realize his Dark Passenger’s presence while working alongside his dad, Harry, to hone his serial killing Code. This series stars Christian Slater, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Molly Brown, Patrick Dempsey, Alex Shimizu, and Reno Wilson. Don’t worry, Michael C. Hall’s voice still performs the inner Dexter monologue that his audience loves so well.