What to watch this weekend.
Credit: Netflix / Prime Video / Amazon MGM Studios
Bawdy fantasy heroics. 80s nostalgia made flesh. Tense murder mysteries based on real life events. Jennifer Lopez and that guy from Ted Lasso in a quirky rom-com. The long-awaited return of the Scary Movie franchise. There is, almost certainly, something for everyone when it comes to new TV shows and movies to watch this weekend, and it’s all here in one very handy streaming guide.
I’m often late to a lot of the films and series that I include in these weekly guides – who has time to watch this much content? – and this week I caught up on Season 2 of The Chestnut Man on Netflix, which I found not just disappointing, but actually infuriating. It wasn’t even a bad season of TV, but the story choices were terrible. I still recommend the first season of the Nordic noir serial killer mystery, however. It tells a complete story, so you can easily skip Season 2.
As I do every week, I’ve scoured the internet for the best TV shows and movies streaming on Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV, Disney+ for you to watch this weekend. If you have any recommendations, tips or other thoughts feel free to shoot me a note. Let me know what you’re watching these days, or if you’ve enjoyed any of my recommendations, on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook. Be sure to also check out last weekend’s streaming guide below:
Alright, let’s dive right in!
New TV Shows To Watch This Weekend
The Legend of Vox Machina – Season 4 (Prime Video)
Critical Role’s animated fantasy series, The Legend of Vox Machina, returns with yet another perfectly-scored season of must-watch television. I’ve watched the first episode of Season 4 (three were released this week with new episodes dropping Thursdays) and it was excellent. The show follows a band of powerful, crude, irreverent but ultimately noble-minded heroes as they take on various evils. The new season introduces some fun new characters and conflicts. Genuinely one of my favorite adult animated shows with a really talented cast and lots of fun action. (I don’t even watch Critical Role’s D&D campaigns but I love this show!)
The Witness (Netflix)
This true crime miniseries is the retelling of the 1992 killing of Rachel Nickell who was sexually assaulted and stabbed 49 times in broad daylight as she walked through Wimbledon Common in South West London. Her 2-year-old son was the only witness to the horrific murder. Alex became the subject of intense press scrutiny and police questioning. With the killer still on the loose, and a wildly botched investigation, Alex’s father, André, moved him and his son to rural France. Netflix also released the documentary The Murder of Rachel Nickell to accompany the miniseries.
Not Suitable For Work (Hulu)
Mindy Kaling’s new sitcom about 20-somethings trying to get a start in their careers in Manhattan might be the light and breezy series you’re looking for if intensely tragic true crime isn’t on the table. Or maybe a good chaser. The series isn’t reviewing well, but audiences seem to be enjoying it as something of an old-school, somewhat nostalgic sitcom. The first three episodes are available now on Hulu.
Resident Alien – Season 4 (Netflix)
I loved the first three seasons of Resident Alien. Alan Tudyk is just brilliant and genuinely deserved awards for his performance as the alien, Harry. Something about Season 4 just didn’t capture me, however, and I’ve yet to finish it. Still, this is one of my favorite modern sci-fi comedies and now the fourth, and final, season is headed to Netflix this weekend on Saturday, June 6.
Love Island USA – Season 8 (Peacock)
Love Island UK – Season 13 (Hulu)
Well the thumbnail for Love Island USA pretty deftly explains why these shows are popular. Those are some incredibly good-looking people wearing close to nothing. The reality TV show isn’t on my radar and I doubt I’ll ever watch either the US or UK versions (oddly on totally different streaming services) but I have to also accept that my taste in TV shows is not the same as everyone else’s. Reality TV is popular for a reason!
New Movies To Watch This Weekend
Office Romance (Netflix)
J-Lo pairs up with Brett Goldstein, which is a genuinely odd coupling in a movie that I doubt I’ll ever watch, but to each their own. A “raunchy romantic comedy about a secret office romance” should certainly appeal to plenty of viewers, especially with Jennifer Lopez as its CEO / pilot star. Maybe don’t watch the trailer if you don’t want to know the entire plot, however.
Poor Things (Netflix)
Emma Stone and Mark Ruffalo star in this oddball adventure film from Yorgos Lanthimos about sexual liberation and debauchery. This is a couple years old now, but finally on Netflix for those of you who missed it in theaters. This hits Netflix on Sunday, June 7.
New Movies In Theaters This Weekend
Masters of the Universe
I had a bunch of He-Man toys as a kid and enjoyed the cartoons and basically got my entire introduction to Sword & Sorcery via Masters of the Universe before I was even aware of Conan the Barbarian or Frank Frazetta. So I’m pretty excited to see the new film, even if it looks a bit cheesy, and I’m headed to the film on Sunday afternoon with my son. The story follows an exiled Prince Adam who must return to Eturnia and face down Skeletor (played by Jared Leto). It looks fun.
Scary Movie
Speaking of fun, how long has it been since a new Scary Movie came out? I think the last one was during a phase when we weren’t actually getting many good horror movies to parody. The original, of course, came out after Scream and this one keeps its Ghost Face antagonist but spoofs a bunch of modern hit horror films from Smile to Weapons to Sinners and more. Critics have been quite critical, but audiences seem to be enjoying the new movie from Marlon and Shawn Wayans.
Trainspotting 30th Anniversary 4K Restoration
It’s hard to believe Trainspotting is 30-years-old. The Danny Boyle film (based on the novel by Irvine Welsh), which introduced many of us to Ewan McGregor and Kelly Macdonald and plenty of other great Scottish actors, tells the story of Mark Renton as he grapples with heroin addiction and tries to break free of a dead-end life. It’s hilarious, tragic and includes one of the most nightmarish scenes in the history of cinema. I first watched this as a teenager in the late 90s and it remains one of my favorite films from that decade. You can go see it in its 4k restoration in theaters now.
TV Shows Currently Streaming Weekly
Several big shows, like Euphoria, ended recently but we still have a ton of great series streaming weekly across a bunch of different streaming services. These are the ones I’m following.
From – Season 4 (MGM+)
The fourth season of FROM took a brief hiatus last weekend for a midseason Memorial Day break, but it’s back with its sixth episode on Sunday. So far, Season 4 has been very strong, giving us just enough in the way of new information and clues to keep things gripping and tense. The series follows a group of people who have, at various points, all found themselves trapped in a mysterious town filled with dark secrets, terrifying monsters and all manner of other horrors.
Widow’s Bay (Apple TV)
Widow’s Bay took some interesting turns in the last couple episodes. The terrific Apple TV horror-comedy series is about an island town off the coast of New England that’s suffering from a terrible curse. Grotesque sea hags, killer clowns, demonic self-help books and more plague the town and its mayor, Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys). We got a flashback episode to the year 1702 and learned more about the town’s founder, Richard Warren (Hamish Linklater) and his poor wife, Sarah (Betty Gilpin) as well as the town’s curse and how to lift it, though it appears our heroes have not achieved that just yet. We have three episodes left, dropping on Tuesday evenings, and no word yet on whether this is a single-season outing or will get renewed by Apple TV.
Your Friends & Neighbors – Season 2 Finale (Apple TV)
Your Friends & Neighbors
Credit: Apple TV
Your Friends & Neighbors gave us a deadly twist at the end of the penultimate episode of Season 2 and it’s going to wrap things up this week. With a third season already greenlit, and I’m having mixed feelings so far. The story of Andrew Cooper (Jon Hamm) and his life of crime is still compelling, but the season focuses far too much on side characters and their drama. Some of it works. The funeral episode was really excellent, for instance, but every episode focuses so much on Coop’s sister and ex-wife and her feud with her neighbors that there’s very little time for Coop to do what he does best: burgle his neighbors and fence the stolen goods. Though, to be fair, Coop screws this up more often than not. The tension and comedy and excitement of these burglaries is what viewers tune in for – not his sister’s failed teaching career or his ex’s mental breakdown. James Marsden is a fun addition to the series, however, and I’m still invested enough to keep watching.
Rivals – Season 2 (Hulu)
Set in Britain in the 80s’, the series is about the scheming and politics of TV broadcast in the Thatcher era. It’s also funny, sexy and extremely well-written with an excellent cast including David Tennant, Alex Hassell, Aidan Turner, Nafessa Williams, Bella Maclean, Danny Dyer and many more. A bit of romance, lots of great character conflicts, lovely English countryside and fantastic period costumes all make for a really excellent watch. I haven’t seen enough of Season 2 to say whether it’s as good as the first, but I’m hopeful.
Star City (Apple TV)
Star City
Credit: Apple TV
Apple TV’s hit sci-fi series, For All Mankind, explores a “what if” scenario: What if the Soviet Union had landed the first man on the moon, propelling a real space race that hadn’t fizzled out decades ago? Star City takes us to the other side of the Iron Curtain, exploring this hypothetical scenario from the Soviet side. I like that they’ve avoided having everyone speak Russian or with fake Russian accents and just cast a bunch of really talented British actors like Rhys Ifans and Anna Maxwell Martin. This looks excellent, and currently holds an 89% Rotten Tomatoes score. The first two episodes are out now, with new episodes dropping weekly on Thursday evenings. (Seeing Rhys Ifans here reminds me that HBO’s House of the Dragon Season 3 is just a few weeks away. I’m really hoping it’s a step up fro Season 2!)
Dutton Ranch – Season 1 (Paramount+)
Dutton Ranch
Credit: Paramount
Yellowstone fans seem pretty hyped about Dutton Ranch, which follows Rip and Beth from Montana to Texas where they try to live a life of peace, somehow not realizing that if you own a ranch in Taylor Sheridan’s universe, someone will try to take it from you and kill you in the process. This series feels like the ultimate fan-service spinoff, since Yellowstone fans seem to adore the Beth/Rip romance. I personally can’t stand Beth, who was amusing for a couple seasons but really wore out her welcome by the fifth. Critics and fans are all pretty upbeat about Dutton Ranch, however, so maybe I’m just being a stick-in-the-mud. I just can’t bring myself to finish Yellowstone. The new show also stars Annette Benning and and Ed Harris. Episodes drop weekly on Fridays.
Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed (Apple TV)
Tatiana Maslany stars in Apple TV’s new dark comedy series, Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, which I’ve started and find pretty entertaining so far. Maslany plays Paula, a divorced fact-checker who forms an online relationship with a male sex worker and finds herself the target of a blackmail scheme. Things get darker from there. It has excellent reviews from both fans and critics and I certainly plan to keep watching. The first three episodes are out so far, with future episodes dropping on Wednesdays (aka Tuesday evenings on Apple TV).
Amadeus (Starz)
The story of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his rival, Salieri, is at once quite funny and quite sad. Will Sharpe and Paul Bettany play these two in the new Starz series, though if you’re a fan of Amadeus the film, you’ll probably have a hard time accepting anyone in the roles not named Tom Hulce and F. Murray Abraham. New episodes drop on Fridays.
The Terror: Devil In Silver (AMC)
The Terror: Devil In Silver
Screenshot: Erik Kain
I’ve only seen the first season of The Terror but I thought it was absolutely phenomenal. Of course, it was about two British exploration ships trapped in the arctic and the horrors, er, terrors the officers and crew experience in this dreadful, isolated part of the world. The show was named after one of these ships, The Terror (the second was The Erebus) and it’s all based on a true story, though wildly embellished both out of necessity and for entertainment purposes. The third season, Devil In Silver, is based on the book by Victor LaValle, about a working class man mistakenly committed to a psychiatric hospital where things get very, very dark. Dan Stevens stars. New episodes drop Thursdays.
Welcome To Wrexham – Season 5 (Hulu)
Welcome To Wrexham
Credit: Hulu
Welcome to Wrexham is a sports documentary about the purchase of Welsh professional association football club, Wrexham A.F.C., by actors Rob McElhenney (It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia) and Ryan Reynolds. The series follows the pair’s attempt to revive the flagging franchise. Kind of a real-life Ted Lasso, if you will, but set in Wales. The series has a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, with an 87% from audiences.
Be sure to check out last week’s streaming guide right here.
What are you watching these days? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.