Each week our staff of film and television experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.
15. Silo (Apple TV Plus)
You know who rocks? Rebecca Ferguson, that’s who. She rocks in Mission: Impossible. She rocks in Dune. And she rocks in Silo. The future-set Apple TV+ sci-fi series is about a community of people who live in an underground silo due to the toxic conditions of the outside world. Literally toxic, not “social media is bad for your mental health” toxic. Ferguson is joined by Tim Robbins, Common, Harriet Walter, and new addition Steve Zahn.
14. A Man On the Inside (Netflix)
SNL. The Comeback. The Office. Parks and Recreation. Brooklyn Nine-Nine. The Good Place. Rutherford Falls. What do all these shows have in common? Michael Schur. Regis Philbin’s son-in-law (it’s true) has either written for and/or created all of them. He’s one of the most important names in comedy this century, and he has a new show on Netflix. A Man on the Inside follows retired widower Charles, played by Cheers and The Good Place legend Ted Danson, who goes undercover in a retirement community to solve a mystery.
13. Blitz (Apple TV Plus)
Is Saoirse Ronan capable of giving a bad performance? (No.) The actress gives one of her best in Blitz, the new film from director Steve McQueen. The story follows a young boy, played by Elliott Heffernan, who is sent to the English countryside for his safety by his mom (Ronan) during World War II, and the journey they go on to reunite. Another Oscar nomination, her fifth, is possible.
12. Smile 2 (Paramount Plus)
Allow me to say something controversial yet brave: Skye Riley >>> Lady Raven.
11. Creature Commandos (Max)
If you enjoy the Harley Quinn show and/or James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, you’ll love Creature Commandos. The animated series tracks a secret team of incarcerated monsters — including Frankenstein, The Bride of Frankenstein, and G.I. Robot — who are recruited for missions deemed too dangerous for humans. “When all else fails… they’re your last, worst option,” the Max description reads. Every episode was written by Gunn, while the cast includes Indira Varma, Sean Gunn, Alan Tudyk, Zoë Chao, David Harbour, Maria Bakalova, Frank Grillo, and Viola Davis. It’s a fun introduction to the new DCU.
10. Star Wars: Skeleton Crew (Disney Plus)
The last few Star Wars shows have been not great, to put it mildly, but Skeleton Crew looks like a fun Amblin-y throwback. It follows four kids who make a mysterious discovery on their seemingly safe home planet, then get lost in a strange and dangerous galaxy where they cross paths with Jod Na Nawood, played by Jude Law. It’s Stranger Things meet Star Wars, a winning formula.
9. A Nonsense Christmas With Sabrina Carpenter (Netflix)
It will be a very kitschy Christmas with A Nonsense Christmas With Sabrina Carpenter, a new Netflix special starring the “Please Please Please” singer. There will be holiday covers, special guests (including a duet with Chappell Roan), and, if her live show is any indication, double entendres galore. Pair it with an espresso martini.
8. Black Doves (Netflix)
In Black Doves, the always wonderful Keira Knightley plays Helen, an undercover professional spy who has been passing on her politician husband’s secrets to the shadowy organisation she works for: the titular Black Doves. But when her secret lover Jason is assassinated, an old friend (Paddington’s Ben Whishaw!) is tasked with keeping her safe. Together, they set off on a mission to investigate who killed Jason, which, as often happens with these kinds of shows, leads them into a vast conspiracy. Pepe Silvia will be watching.
7. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice (Max)
One of the biggest movies of 2024 is a decades-later sequel about a horny dead guy. Obviously. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is better than it has any right to be, thanks to a fun cast (including returning stars Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, and Catherine O’Hara and newcomers Jenna Ortega, Justin Theroux, and Willem Dafoe) and energetic direction from Tim Burton. There’s no topping the “Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)” scene, but the wedding got close.
6. Carry-On (Netflix)
Carry-On makes a single-setting thriller star out of the unsung heroes of the holiday season: TSA agents. Ethan (played by Taron Egerton) is tasked with outsmarting a mysterious traveler (Jason Bateman) who blackmails him into letting a dangerous package slip onto a Christmas Eve flight. Carry-On is directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Orphan, The Shallows, and Black Adam, but don’t hold that last one against him) with a script from Ratchet & Clank (!) writer TJ Fixman.
5. Secret Level (Prime Video)
Created by Tim Miller (Love, Death, & Robots), Secret Level is an animated anthology series with original stories set within the worlds of video games. There’s Armored Core, Mega Man, Pac-Man, Spelunky, and The Other Worlds, among others. The voice cast includes Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kevin Hart, Keanu Reeves, Gabriel Luna, Temuera Morrison, Ariana Greenblatt, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje.
4. Conclave (Peacock)
Discover what all the fuss over the vaping cardinal is about. Directed by Edward Berger (the Oscar winning All Quiet on the Western Front), Conclave is about the messy drama behind selecting a new pope. Per the official synopsis: “Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with running this covert process after the unexpected death of the beloved Pope. Once the Catholic Church’s most powerful leaders have gathered from around the world and are locked together in the Vatican halls, Lawrence uncovers a trail of deep secrets left in the dead Pope’s wake, secrets which could shake the foundations of the Church.” Such drama queens.
3. Red One (Prime Video)
There’s two ways of thinking about Red One. The first: it’s an action-comedy about a jacked security bro (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) who teams up with a muscular hacker (Chris Evans) to locate a ripped Santa Claus (J.K. Simmons). The other: The Rock peed in bottles on set. The choice is yours!
2. Dexter: Original Sin (Paramount Plus)
The Dark Passenger-verse expands with Dexter: Original Sin, a prequel to the original series and Dexter: New Blood. This one is set in 1991 and follows Dexter Morgan (played by Patrick Gibson) as he transitions from student to serial killer with guidance from his father Harry (Christian Slater). Michael C. Hall will reprise his role, sort of, as the voice of young Dexter’s inner monologue. Will there be a treadmill? Find out!
1. Joker: Folie à Deux (Max)
My favorite review of Joker: Folie à Deux — the sequel to 2019’s Joker starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga that landed with a thud at the box office — comes from director / camp icon John Waters. “Finally, a love story I can relate to,” he wrote for Vulture. “So insane, so well thought out, so well directed, so much smoking! It’s Jailhouse Rock meets Busby Berkeley with a 9/11 That’s Entertainment! ending that will make you shake your head in cinematic astonishment. Stupid critics. Gaga so good. Joker so right. Die, dumbbells, die!” I am now convinced it’s a masterpiece.
