Welcome to the week’s best new shows and movies! We’ve rounded up a selection of the finest films and series available on the best streaming services that are dropping over the next seven days, including the likes of Netflix, Max, Disney Plus, and more.
It’s a big week for great shows, with new seasons of Black Mirror, Doctor Who, and the much-anticipated new Apple TV Plus show Your Friends & Neighbors featuring Mad Men’s Jon Hamm all launching. But that’s not all! A classic movie has just popped up on Netflix after an absence, and Disney Plus is releasing a new documentary all about pets!
So grab some snacks, sit back, relax, and let’s plan your viewing schedule for the next week.
Doctor Who season 2
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Disney Plus / BBC iPlayer
Doctor Who returns this Saturday to BBC iPlayer in the UK and Disney Plus worldwide. The world’s longest-running sci-fi show is launching with a new jumping on point for viewers, and a new co-star in Varada Sethu as Belinda Chandra, a 21st century nurse swept away to an alien planet by some bulky red robots. Luckily, help is on hand in the form of Ncuti Gatwa’s mercurial Time Lord. The two join forces and spark a friendship that will cross space and time – but can he get her home?
A new season of Doctor Who is always welcome, and we’ll be covering every episode with reviews and other features. After a promising first season for Ncuti Gatwa’s Doctor, this looks like a bigger, bolder year with new monsters (a cartoon villain voiced by Alan Cumming looks especially fun) and higher stakes. And if you were a fan of Millie Gibson’s Ruby Sunday from the previous season, don’t worry. She’ll be back too, popping up throughout the series alongside the Doctor and Belinda.
Your Friends & Neighbors season 1
Available: US
Where to watch: Apple TV Plus
Mad Men star Jon Hamm returns in this intriguing new drama about a disgraced hedge fund manager who, in the wake of a painful divorce, turns to stealing from his wealthy neighbours in order to maintain his lifestyle and support his kids. But what if the people in his neighborhood hide secrets that are even darker than his? Slick, witty, and perhaps just a little bit sexy, this looks fantastic and addictive.
A new Jon Hamm project is always worth looking out for and this one boasts an impressive supporting cast, including the likes of Olivia Munn, Amanda Peet, Lena Hall and Aimee Carrero. Confidence is high with this one – although Your Friends & Neighbors hasn’t released a single episode yet (it starts with a double-bill on April 11) it has already been renewed for a second season.
Black Mirror season 7
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
There’s something rather fitting about Black Mirror coming back in the same week as Doctor Who. Both shows are diverse in their storytelling, but where Doctor Who usually tries to find the best in humanity, Black Mirror isn’t afraid to go grim when it needs to which, to be fair, is most of the time. The sci-fi anthology comes from writer and satirist Charlie Brooker, but while it is frequently funny, the laughs are usually of the gallows humor variety.
After a more horror-focused sixth season, this time around you can expect a back to basics Black Mirror, with six episodes exploring the darker sides of technology, AI, a device that allows people to step inside of old photographs, plus a sequel to season 4’s parody of Star Trek, ‘USS Callister.’ The big name cast includes the likes of Paul Giamatti, Rashida Jones, Will Poulter, Peter Capaldi, and more. Brooker and company take their time with Black Mirror, having produced just seven seasons over 14 years so far, but it’s always worth the wait.
Pets
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Disney Plus
And now for something just a little bit different… Pets is a documentary made by actor Bryce Dallas Howard about, you guessed it, our animal companions. Howard describes the film as being full of “pure innocence and happiness,” but it also doesn’t shy away from showing some of the more difficult situations that arise from living with animals, from the pain of losing a beloved pet to the more frustrating situations like dogs smashing down doors and rabbits climbing into your toilet!
Is it schmaltzy? Yeah, sure, probably. But Pets also looks deeply heartwarming and funny, the sort of thing to watch when you’ve had a hard day and need something to remind you of all the joy and kindness in the world. It’s available to stream on Disney Plus from April 11.
Lazarus season 1
Available: US
Where to watch: Max
Anime legend Shinichirō Watanabe, who directed the Cowboy Bebop series, returns with this new high-concept and highly anticipated thriller at Max. It’s set in a future where a scientist named Dr. Skinner has created a potent new pain killer called Hapna – only to reveal that everybody who has taken it will die within three years. The only hope for their salvation lies in finding Skinner within 30 days. Cue the formation of a new task force dedicated to finding Skinner before it’s too late and millions die.
Shinichirō Watanabe’s artistic pedigree speaks for itself, but this has added creative kudos thanks to the presence of John Wick director Chad Stahelski, who designed the action sequences for the series. This 13-episode season will run from April 6 to the end of June.
Check out our full review of Lazarus to find out what our critic thought of the new series.
Pulse season 1
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
Slightly surprisingly this is Netflix’s first ever English-language medical procedural. It comes with impressive credentials too, coming from creator Zoe Robyn and Lost co-showrunner Carlton Cuse. The series is set in Miami’s (fictional) Maguire Hospital and follows Danny Simms, a third-year medical resident played by Willa Fitzgerald. Danny is unexpectedly promoted when the hospital’s chief resident Dr. Xander Phillips (Colin Woodell) is suspended, meaning that the two of them will have to find a way to work together. Adding a fairly serious complication to this is the fact that Simms and Phillips are romantically entangled.
Mixing gripping medical drama plots with a complex relationship drama and some high stakes twists and turns – a hurricane hits the city at one point – Pulse is fun and addictive stuff. The series has dropped all 10 episodes of its first season, so if you’re looking for a new show to binge, this may be it.
The Addams Family
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
It’s an oldie but a goodie! Barry Sonnenfeld’s first Addams Family film from back in 1991 is a twisted but warm-hearted comedy about the creepy and kookie family of monstrous misfits. Based on cartoonist Charles Addams’s strip that originally ran in the The New Yorker, and the popular TV show, Burton’s film perfectly balances the tone of spooky thrills and good-natured gags (something the sequel, Addams Family Values, didn’t quite nail, by going a little darker), resulting in an enduringly funny movie for everyone whose taste is perhaps a little on the alternative side.
The leads are all brilliantly cast – Christina Ricci is perfect as Wednesday, as is Christopher Lloyd as Uncle Fester – and while it’s become a bit of a meme, it is true that the late, great Raul Julia as devoted Gomez, and Anjelica Huston as the icily glamorous Morticia Addams are absolutely hashtag couplegoals. The Addams Family is leaving the Netflix UK soon, but it launches in the US on April 9.
The White Lotus season 3
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Max/Now
With the third season of The White Lotus having aired its final episode this Sunday gone, now is the time to catch up with or binge in full one of the year’s best shows. The White Lotus changes locations and characters each year to tell a different story set in one of the many high-end White Lotus resort hotels around the world, with this season’s location being a wellness retreat in Thailand.
Into this beautiful setting come a cast of characters including the great Carrie Coon as lawyer Laurie Duffy, Walton Goggins as the mysterous Rick Hatchett, and Jason Isaacs as disgraced financier Timothy Ratliff. “At the end of the week, you will be an entirely different person,” says a character at one point – and how right they are! Full of mystery, mayhem, and intrigue, The White Lotus is always must-see TV. This season has, arguably, not quite hit the same highs as the first two, but it’s still essential viewing.
Looking for something else to watch? Check out our list of the best Netflix movies or the best movies on Disney Plus.