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I've pored over Netflix's release schedule to bring you the best movies and TV shows premiering on the service this month. The biggest gift TV fans will get this December is a new season of Korean sensation Squid Game, but that's not all Netflix is leaving under the tree. There's also No Good Deed, a black comedy series headed up by Ray Romano and Lisa Kudrow; a sprawling adaptation of One Hundred Years of Solitude; and my outsider pick, The Kings of Tupelo, a batshit true-crime doc.
Squid Game, Season 2
Netflix's big Christmas present is coming a day late with the December 26 release of season two of Korean dystopian sci-fi drama Squid Game. Season two was written, directed, and produced by Hwang Dong-hyuk, the genius behind season one, and Lee Jung-jae will return as Player 456, who's re-entering the game to tear it apart from the inside. Season one cast members Lee Byung-hun, Wi Ha-jun, and Gong Yoo are coming bac,k too, where they'll join a fresh crop of competitors, so everyone can play a new bunch of deadly games. Can't wait.
Starts streaming December 26.
No Good Deed
Ray Romano and Lisa Kudrow star in this black comedy about the cutthroat world of real estate in Los Angeles. No Good Deed follows three families competing to buy the same 1920s Spanish-style villa in Los Feliz, each convinced the house will make their dreams come true. But it's actually all a bigger nightmare than trying to buy a real house in Los Angeles. The all-star cast also includes Linda Cardellini, Luke Wilson, Teyonah Parris, and Denis Leary.
Starts streaming December 12.
The Kings of Tupelo: A Southern Crime Saga
Wanna hear something weird? Last week I was reading about a ricin attack on President Obama that the FBI traced back to Tupelo, Mississippi and a feud between a karate instructor and an Elvis impersonator. I thought, "I need a documentary series about this right away, so I can learn more about the eccentrics involved and the place that gave birth to them." Then Netflix announced The Kings of Tupelo. Maybe I should have wished for world peace, but this show is a more-than-adequate consolation prize.
Starts streaming December 11.
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Based on the masterpiece of magical realism by Nobel-Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez, One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the epic story of generations of the cursed Buendía family, condemned to solitude for 100 years. José Arcadio Buendía (Marco González) and Úrsula Iguarán (Susana Morales) are cousins and lovers who set out to build a perfect town called Macondo, but the result is not the Utopia they'd envisioned.
Starts streaming December 11.
Churchill at War
There's a time in every man's life when he become extremely interested in World War II. If you or anyone you know has reached this point, you should be aware of Churchill at War. This Netflix original docu-series looks at the role Britain's leader played during World War II and examines how his complex character affected the fate of his nation and Western Civilization at the time of its greatest peril. If your dad is visiting for the holidays, plop him in front of the TV for this one.
Starts streaming December 4.
Black Doves
In Black Doves, Keira Knightley plays a no-nonsense wife and mother who happens to be a a top-level spy. Ben Whishaw plays a suave assassin who never met a bottle of Champagne he wouldn't drink. This unlikely pair are thrown together by dire circumstances and must find a way to work together to prevent geopolitical catastrophe. If you like international intrigue, dry British humor, and knife fights, don't miss this series. It's currently sitting at 97% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Starts streaming December 5.
Compliance (2012)
Not enough people have seen 2012's Compliance, an unnerving thriller that becomes even more disturbing when you learn that it all happened, almost exactly as filmed, many times. Compliance tells the story of an online weirdo who gets his kicks by calling fast-food places and pretending to be a cop so he can talk wage slaves into doing horrible things to each other. It's an examination of both cruelty and subservience that's difficult to watch but totally fascinating for the points it makes about human nature under capitalism.
Starts streaming December 5.
Jentry Chau vs. the Underworld
Ali Wong, Bowen Yang, and Lori Tan Chinn lend their voices to this animated fantasy series about a seemingly ordinary teenager whose life is turned inside out when she discovers she has supernatural fire-abilities. The title character is thrown into a confrontation with demons and uncovers shocking secrets from her family's mysterious past, all while navigating high school. This is going to be a lot of young people's favorite show.
Starts streaming December 5.
A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter
In A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter, pop star Sabrina Carpenter performs holiday standards and newer songs, acts in comedy sketches, and has many celebrity friends drop by to join her to make jokes, drink eggnog, and sing duets. It's like a throwback to the star-driven variety shows of the 1970s, but instead of Ruth Buzzi and Rip Taylor, you get Chappell Roan and Shania Twain, as well as a ton of other celebrity "friends."
Starts streaming December 6.
Biggest Heist Ever
I cannot get enough of freakshow crime documentaries, and Biggest Heist Ever might be the freakiest. It tells the story of aspiring rapper Razzle and her tech-mogul-wannabe boyfriend. Like the title says, these two doofs pulled off the biggest heist in human history, making off with billions in Bitcoin, despite being absolute idiots. I mean, look at this video; this lame stole more money than anyone else, ever. Every other thief in history should be ashamed.
Starts streaming December 6.
Mary
This biopic (I guess?) tells the story of Mary, no-last-name-needed, the mother of God. According to The Telegraph, this movie "angered Palestinians and Christians alike" before it even came out. (Agnostics, on the other hand, just shrugged.) This is enough of a reason to see it. Here's an unrelated fun fact about Mary: According to Catholic doctrine, Mary is the only person whose body is in heaven. She's not a soul or an angel; she's just a regular person walking around up there. This is not addressed in Mary.
Starts streaming December 6.
The Great British Baking Show: Holidays
While there are a lot of great shows streaming, most of them are disturbing, intense, or suspenseful. Sometimes, as my wife puts it, "You just want to watch a show about cupcakes." If that's you, watch the new holiday episodes of The Great British Baking Show, a "competition" reality show where everyone is fully committed to making elaborate baked goods, but no one is a jerk about anything and no one gets murdered. It's mindless, but not stupid, and all the food looks amazing. In short: This is the ultimate show about cupcakes.
Starts streaming December 9.
Jamie Foxx: What Had Happened Was
Jamie Foxx has some explaining to do. In this Netflix performance, Foxx comes clean about his "near-death experience," a medical crisis that caused the award-winning actor/comedian to fall into a coma for weeks. I didn't even know he was sick, but now I must know all the details. If you are too, give What Had Happened Was a watch.
Starts streaming December 10.
Polo
This Netflix sports documentary series was executive produced by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, so it's got a royal pedigree. Whether the involvement of the Duke and Duchess of York is enough to get anyone interested in a game that no one you know has ever played remains to be seen, but if you've ever wondered about the world's most exclusive sport, or if you like looking at rich-people shit for some reason, check out Polo. Also: If you have a few million dollars to spare, please establish a polo training center in a blue-collar community so real people can take over the sport in one generation. It would be really funny.
Starts streaming December 10.
Queer Eye, Season 9
It's time for more Queer Eye, the reality show where a pack of gay men change the lives of good-hearted, regular people who need new clothes, new furniture, and new lives. Even though this series has been running for approximately 83 years and each episode is pretty much the same, it's not boring at all. Every great story is about transformation, and watching caterpillars change into butterflies never gets old. I've cried when I've watched this show, not gonna lie.
Starts streaming December 11.
Carry-On
This Christmas-themed thriller is set in at Los Angeles International Airport on Christmas Eve, where a TSA agent who couldn't get the holiday off matches wits with a terrorist mastermind. Taron Egerton plays everyman TSA dude Ethan Kopek who receives a phone call from a mysterious traveler (Jason Bateman) threatening to kill his girlfriend if he doesn't allow a dangerous package onto a Christmas Eve flight. This is, I think you'll agree, a great set-up for a single-location thriller.
The Six Triple Eight
Tyler Perry gets historical in The Six Triple Eight, a movie detailing World War II's only Women’s Army Corps unit of color, the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. Their job during the war was sorting through a backlog of millions of pieces of mail addressed to American soldiers. Kerry Washington plays Captain Charity Adams who heads up a division of 855 women who help defeat Hitler by making sure letters get to their intended recipients. Because you can't win a war with low morale.
Starts streaming December 20.
Last month's picks
Emilia Pérez
Emilia Pérez is a genre-defying movie that blends comedy, drama, musical numbers, and action into a potion Netflix describes as "an opera that’s not an opera." It stars Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, and Selena Gomez, and tells the story of high-powered attorney Rita (Saldaña) assigned to help a Mexican cartel leader (Gascón) fake their death and undergo gender reassignment. Look for this one on Oscar night.
Starts streaming November 13.
Rob Peace (2024)
Directed, adapted by, and starring Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 years a Slave), Rob Peace dramatizes the true story of Robert Deshaun Peace, a brilliant young man from a poor background in Newark, New Jersey whose attendance at Yale is cut tragically short. Jay Will plays the title character, Mary J. Blige plays his devoted mother, and Ejiofor plays Peace's imprisoned father.
Starts streaming November 9.
Hot Frosty
Lacey Chabert stars in a lighthearted holiday confection in which a snowman turns into a regular man—but he's totally hot. Chabert and the former snowman—an abomination if you think about too much—fall in love, despite the differences in their backgrounds. This is really all there is to say about Hot Frosty. You're either in or you're out with a movie like this.
Starts streaming November 13.
Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson (Live)
Circus matches are nothing new to boxing—Muhammad Ali fought a Japanese professional wrestler at the height of his career—and Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson might be the greatest novelty boxing match ever staged. It will give us a chance to see Iron Mike step into the ring one more time, with the added bonus that he might punch Jake Paul's head clean off, although I'd put my money on a tepid exhibition match with a subtext of "just give me my check."
Starts streaming November 15.
Hallmark Christmas movie collection
Attention should be paid to Hallmark's Christmas movies. The greeting-card-company-turned-cable-network-for-some-reason churns out Christmas-themed romantic comedies with the ruthless efficiency of a German industrial plant. They're usually not bad either, if you're into that sort of thing. I haven't seen any of the movies Netflix is streaming in November, but I assume all are perfectly serviceable background movies for wrapping presents and putting lights on the tree. Here's the list.
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A Biltmore Christmas (2023)
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A Merry Scottish Christmas (2023)
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A Heidelberg Holiday (2023)
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Christmas Island (2023)
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Christmas on Cherry Lane (2023)
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Christmas with a Kiss (2023)
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Miracle in Bethlehem, PA (2023)
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Christmas in Notting Hill (2023)
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Haul Out the Holly (2023)
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Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up (2023)
Starts streaming November 1.
Meet Me Next Christmas
Christina Milian stars in a holiday movie about Layla, who is desperately trying to get her hands on tickets to the sold-out Pentatonix Christmas Eve Concert. A bright-and-cheery romantic comedy powered by the a cappella musical stylings of Pentatonix is both a can't-miss holiday movie concept and literally my worst nightmare. Meet Me Next Christmas also stars Kofi Siriboe as James, who, unlike me, is handsome and charming and presumably likes listening Pentatonix.
Starts streaming November 6.
Pedro Páramo
Based on Juan Rulfo’s seminal work of magical realism, Pedro Páramo stars Manuel García-Rulfo from The Lincoln Lawyer as the title character, who finds himself in the ghost town of Comala, where the past and present coexist. Described by Netflix as a "mesmerizing story of desire, corruption, and inheritance," Pedro Páramo is the directorial debut of frequent Scorsese cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto, so we know for sure it's going to look amazing.
Starts streaming November 6.
Arcane (Season 2)
You wouldn't think a cartoon series based on the online game League of Legends would be a critical favorite, but the first season of Arcane earned a perfect 100% fresh rating from Rotten Tomatoes. Season 2 picks up where 1 left off, with League of Legends champions Vi and Jinx on different paths in the looming showdown between Piltover and Zaun. This is the final chapter of Arcane, and it will be arriving in three acts, on Nov. 9, 16, and 23.
Starts streaming November 9.
Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley
No matter how many Elvis documentaries, feature films, and TV miniseries are made, there's always room for one more. Return of the King: The Fall and Rise of Elvis Presley takes us behind the scenes of Elvis' greatest moment, the '68 Comeback Special, where, for a single hour, Presley shook off more than a decade of terrible movies, cynical cash-grab albums, and bad career decisions (courtesy of overbearing manager Col. Tom Parker) to remind the world why they called him the King in the first place.
Starts streaming November 13.
The Lost Children
On May 1, 2023 a Cessna carrying four Indigenous children and their parents crashed in the Colombia wilderness. With the all the adults dead, the children, ages 13, 9, 4 years, and 11 months, were forced to survive 40 days in a harrowing jungle. Featuring archival footage and interviews with the survivors and the people who risked everything to find them in the trackless wastes, The Lost Children is an unbelievable story of survival.
Starts streaming November 13.
Cobra Kai (Season 6 – Part 2)
They say this season of Cobra Kai will conclude the series, but I wouldn't bet on it. I would bet on the scrappy teens of the Miyagi Do karate school at the Sekai Taikai international hi-YAH competition, where they'll face off against the greatest teen martial artists on the planet. I have a good feeling about their chances. Even though the Americans are underdogs and their karate school is rife with internal conflict, I think they'll rise to the occasion in a surprisingly uplifting way, and take home the trophy or the black belt or whatever the prize in a karate tournament is.
Starts streaming November 15.
Adam Ray Presents: Dr. Phil UNPLUGGED
Comedian Adam Ray does a lot of impressions, but his portrayal of blowhard TV doctor Dr. Phil as a foul-mouthed, oversexed reprobate is the standout by a mile. It's not just that he looks and sounds like Dr. Phil, Ray is so in touch with Dr. Phil's Dr. Phill-ness, it's like he's channeling the man's id, saying everything you know Dr. Phil would say if he could. That impression takes center stage in Adam Ray Presents: Dr. Phil UNPLUGGED
Starts streaming November 19.
A Man on the Inside
Ted Danson headlines a comedy series about aging. Danson plays Charles, a retired professor at loose ends who takes a job as an undercover detective at a nursing home. Charles soon finds that the geriatrics are fun-loving rapscallions who love partying (and crime, apparently). Season one of A Man on the Inside is based on a true story and sees Charles searching for a stolen necklace, but I'm hoping future season will see Danson tackle the mystery of who keeps moving my pills, determine the identity of the lady who keeps saying she's my daughter, and figure out who keeps shitting my pants.
Starts streaming November 20.
Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy
I don't want to alarm you, but according to Netflix documentary Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy, retailers often use questionable tactics to get people to buy things—often things they don't even need! Through interviews with whistleblowers and industry insiders, this documentary shines a light on the covert psychological manipulation that capitalists use to make you spend money, with an eye on the true price of out-of-control consumption.
Starts streaming November 20.
The Merry Gentlemen
With Hot Frosty and The Merry Gentlemen, Netflix is leaning into the combination of hunky guys and Christmas this year. The titular gentlemen are strippers, employed by Ashley (Britt Robertson) in an effort to save her parents' small-town performing arts venue. Expect a lot of abs, a lot of laughs, and lot of old fashioned Christmas romance in this mildly horny holiday flick.
Starts streaming November 20.
Spellbound
Netflix is gunning for animation superiority: The streaming service has employed heavy hitters like director Vicky Jenson (Shrek), songwriter Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast) and voice actors including Rachel Zegler, Nicole Kidman, and Javier Bardem to bring Spellbound to life. This family-friendly fantasy tells the tale of Ellian (Zegler), the princess of Lumbria, who embarks on daring quest to save her family and kingdom after a spell transforms her parents into monsters.
Starts streaming November 21.
The Piano Lesson
Adapted from the stage play by August Wilson and starring Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington, and Danielle Deadwyler, The Piano Lesson follows the lives of the Charles family, whose family legacy is expressed on a piano decorated with carvings by their enslaved ancestors. One brother (John David Washington) hopes to sell it, while his sister (Danielle Deadwyler), refuses to give it up.
Starts streaming November 22.
Our Little Secret
Our Little Secret is a holiday-scented romantic comedy that stars Lindsay Lohan, the queen of Christmas, along with Kristin Chenoweth, Ian Harding, and Tim Meadows. Lohan plays Avery, whose holiday visit with her boyfriend's family gets really weird. See, she used to date his brother, so, to keep the peace and survive the holiday, the pair agree to keep their past a secret. Hilarity and romance ensue.
Starts streaming November 27
The Madness
Netflix is closing out November with the premier of The Madness, an action series blissfully free of Christmas cheer. Colman Domingo stars as Muncie Daniels, a media pundit who witnesses a murder deep in the Pennsylvania woods. The killing leads to a deep, dark conspiracy, forcing Daniels to fight for his very life and comes to grips with the fact that what he thinks he knows of the world is not true.
Starts streaming November 28.
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