The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Max This Month

There are some interesting shows and movies coming out on Max this month, including The Penguin, a spin-off series from 2022's The Batman movie. There's also an in-depth, two-part documentary about The Sopranos, and Born Evil: The Serial Killer and The Savior, a docu-series from Michael Bay about a very sinister serial killer.

The Penguin

This super-villain origin story details how Batman's nemesis The Penguin came to be. The Penguin takes place in the gritty Matt Reeves' Batman universe and features Colin Farrell reprising his role from The Batman as Oswald Cobblepot, a street thug whose plan for taking over Gotham's underworld involves dressing up as a bird and, I assume, killing the Batman.

Starts streaming September 19.

Wise Guy David Chase and The Sopranos

The Sopranos expanded what audiences can expect from a television series forever when it came out 1999, and Wise Guy, an HBO original docu-series, digs into why this show was so much better than every other show. Packed with interviews with The Soprano's cast, crew, and especially its creator David Chase, Wise Guy is a must-watch for fans of The Sopranos and anyone interested in the creative process behind a TV show.

Starts streaming September 7.

Born Evil: The Serial Killer and The Savior

Executive Producer Michael Bay’s first true-crime documentary series goes to some very dark places. It tells the story of Hadden Clark, cross-dresser, cannibal, and serial killer. Born Evil digs into Clark's crimes and personal history, because you don't end up this messed up without coming from a very messed up place. Fans of grisly true crime should not miss it.

Starts streaming September 2.

The Boy and the Heron (2023)

Animation master Hayao Miyazaki's The Boy and the Heron was universally lauded by critics and won an Academy Award for Best Animation when it was released, so if you're into quality films, you have to stream it. The lush, hand-drawn art is breathtaking, and that Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli magic is packed into every frame of this masterpiece.

Starts streaming September 6.

Cabin in the Woods

Anyone who has ever seen a horror movie knows that nothing good happens in a cabin in the woods, and this Max/Investigation Discovery series proves that the rule applies to real life too. The atrocities and murdered featured in each episode of this true crime show all happened in creepy, woodsy shacks.

If Cabin in the Woods isn't enough true crime for you, ID and Max are also premiering How (Not) to Get Rid of a Body and The Real Murders on Elm Street in September.

Starts streaming September 9.

I Saw the TV Glow (2024)

Director Jane Schoenbrun (We're All Going to the World's Fair) continues her examination of the dread and terror that hide behind the pixels in the digital world with I Saw the TV Glow, a psychological horror film about a sinister late-night television show called The Pink Opaque. Produced by A24, I Saw the TV Glow is one of those "elevated" horror movies, so if you're a horror fan with more than two brain cells to rub together, give it a shot.

Starts streaming September 20.

Harry Potter-mania

Put on your robe and wizard hat: Max is overloading its digital streams with Harry Potter in September, offering all eight Harry Potter movies, plus the "magical movie mode" version of Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone that contains directors' commentary, deleted scenes, trivia quizzes and more.

Here's the full list of films:

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone: Magical Movie Mode (2001)

Starts streaming September 1.

Last month's picks

Chimp Crazy

Chimp Crazy is an HBO original documentary that tells the story of nurse-turned-exotic-animal-broker Tonia Haddix, who battles law enforcement, animal rights activists, and common sense on behalf of a great ape that could rip her face off at any time because it's a wild animal, not a baby. There are also interviews and profiles of other chimp moms.

Starts streaming August 18.

Industry, Season 3

Working in an office sure is exciting on television! Season 3 of Industry continues the story of the back-biting, scheming, and vicious politics behind the scenes at London investment banking firm Pierpoint & Co., where people I would not want to hang out with in real life fight to get ahead in the corporate finance world. According to the HBO, this season, Pierpoint "looks to the future and takes a big bet on ethical investing," while "Yasmin, Robert, and Eric find themselves front and center in the splashy IPO of Lumi, a green tech energy company led by Sir Henry Muck."

Starts streaming August 11.

Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes

In 1964, actress Elizabeth Taylor recorded over 40 hours of interviews; this HBO original documentary dug 'em up and is playing The Lost Tapes for the first time. These intimate recordings go deep into the vagaries and contradictions of stardom and the forces that influenced Taylor's complicated life as an actress, an activist, and the most beautiful woman in the world.

Starts streaming August 3.

Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Chicago Bears

The long-running HBO reality show Hard Knocks is going behind the scenes and into the locker room of the floundering Chicago Bears. Can the squad's new, #1 draft quarterback Caleb Williams transform The Bears from a franchise with a 7 and 10 record in 2023 to a franchise with maybe an 11 and 6 record in 2024? Tune in to find out.

Starts streaming August 6.

Rick and Morty: The Anime

If you can't get enough Rick and Morty, Max is presenting a spin-off series that puts the titular characters in an anime setting. Directed by Takashi Sano, Rick and Morty: The Anime is a 10-episode series showing Rick "relaxing in a pseudo-world between multiverses," Summer helping Space Beth battle the Galactic Federation, and Morty falling in love with an atemporal being.

Starts streaming August 16.

Alien Encounters: Fact or Fiction, Season 1

Spoiler: Fiction.

Starts streaming August 8.

Taken Together: Who Killed Lyric and Elizabeth?

This HBO original true crime documentary tells the tragic story of the abduction and murder of Lyric Cook-Morrissey and Elizabeth Collins in Evansdale, Iowa, in 2012. The cousins were last seen riding their bikes near a park when someone snatched them in broad daylight. The bodies were discovered months later, but no one knows who was responsible for their deaths. This doc digs into theories around the crime through interviews with family members and authorities.