Welcome back to our guide to the best new shows and movies that are streaming this week. On this page you’ll find six recommendations for the hottest films and TV shows that are available to watch right now. We’ve picked titles from across a range of the best streaming services, providing you with plenty of viewing options.
The biggest thing this week is, of course, Stranger Things, which returns for the first part of its fifth and final season. That’s not all, though. There’s also the return of The Beatles Anthology, which looks better than ever thanks to a shiny new remaster, and the debut of Flight Risk on HBO Max.
Stranger Things 5
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
The biggest show on TV of the last few years reaches its final season – and it’s looking like an epic send off to the Hawkins gang. The new season sees the Duffer Brothers bring the story full circle by returning to the show’s very first arc – the disappearance of Will Byers (Noah Schnapp), with the show joining the dots between that initial horror and the chaos of the present. We’ll learn more about the Vecna‘s origins and his evil plans for the future. Can the gang finally stop him once and for all?
As has become the norm with Netflix’s biggest shows, Stranger Things 5 is being split into several blocks of episodes. The first four chapters drop onto Netflix this Wednesday, with the final two batches arriving in December.
Stranger Things is certainly one of the best Netflix shows.
The Beatles Anthology
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Disney Plus
A legendary documentary for a legendary band returns – and this time looking better than ever. The Beatles Anthology was first released in 1995 and told the intimate inside story of the Fab Four with participation of the then three surviving members. 30 years have passed but The Beatles’ legend remains as strong as ever. This new version expands the series from eight episodes to nine, with a brand new instalment catching up with Paul, George, and Ringo in the ’90s, when the documentary was first in production, and when they reunited to record two “new” songs, ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love.’
Improved technology has meant a much-improved picture and sound for these episodes, giving The Beatles a documentary that perfectly complements Peter Jackson’s great Get Back series.
Check out our picks of the best Disney Plus shows.
Chris Hemsworth: A Road Trip to Remember
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Disney Plus
Thor-star Chris Hemsworth takes a cross-Australia road trip with his 71-year-old father Craig, who has been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, in this touching documentary. As the father and son travel around the country, revisiting important places from their past, they also explore the science of social connection and how it can help memory function.
Some of the places they visit on the trip include their family home in Melbourne, which has been recreated to look as it did in 1990. They also go on a trip to Bulman, where Craig once worked as a bull wrangler! Insightful and moving, this is more than just a documentary for MCU fans.
Our list of the best Disney Plus shows is full of classics.
Flight Risk
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: HBO Max
Mel Gibson directed this schlocky, deeply silly, but still entertaining thriller. Madelyn (Michelle Dockery) is a US marshal responsible for catching mob accountant Winston (Topher Grace) in Alaska. She persuades him to give evidence that will make a lot of very bad people very angry, but needs to get him to safety first. She hires pilot Daryl Booth (Mark Wahlberg) to fly them to New York, but she didn’t plan for one thing – the man who picks them up is a hitman who has replaced the real Booth.
Yes, the premise is preposterous, but Flight Risk is a fun Friday night movie, with some pretty taut thrills. Wahlberg is all snarling menace (and a truly bizarre bald cap), while Grace adds a touch of dry humor to the situation. It’s very much a b-movie, but a watchable one.
These are the best movies on HBO Max.
IT: Welcome to Derry episode 6
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: HBO Max (US), NOW TV (UK)
SPOILERS FOR LAST WEEK’S EPISODE AHEAD! With last week’s episode finally giving us a full Bill Skarsgård Pennywise reveal, there’s a sense that the gloves are now off in this terrific Stephen King series. The next episode, titled ‘In the Name of the Father’ promises to pick things up in the wake of that catastrophic cliffhanger. The kids may have escaped the sewers, but they’ve drawn the ire of a monster. Meanwhile Dick Hallorann (Chris Chalk) and Leroy Hanlon (Jovan Adepo) must deal with the fall out of their disastrous military operation.
It’s quite remarkable, given that this is a prequel to an iconic novel, that we know very little of what will happen to most of these characters. That adds a compelling sense of dread to the show as it enters its last few episodes.
After The Hunt
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Prime Video
Challengers and Queer director Luca Guadagnino is on a bit of a roll at the moment – this is his third film in two years, this time adapting a screenplay by Nora Garrett. After The Hunt is set in Yale University and stars Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri, Andrew Garfield, and Michael Stuhlbarg. Roberts plays Alma Imhoff, a philosophy professor who finds herself in a dilemma when her favorite student, Maggie (Edebiri), accuses Alma’s friend and colleague Hank (Garfield) of assaulting her.
Stylishly shot, After the Hunt has proven controversial since its release earlier this year. It pokes at identity politics and supposed cancel culture in a way that feels, at times, like it’s trying to get a rise out of the audience. Even so, the performances – particularly from Julia Roberts – are terrific, and there’s no doubt that it succeeds in its attempts to stir up a debate.
Looking for something else to watch? Check out our list of the best movies on Apple TV.