Welcome to the latest edition of our weekly guide to the best new shows and movies! Here you'll find seven fantastic films and TV shows that are all available to stream this week.
With so many options out there, it's always tough choosing what to watch. That's why we've put together this list, which covers many of the best streaming services, including Netflix, Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus, and HBO Max.
It's a particularly strong week for new shows, with both sci-fi comedy Murderbot and retro thriller Duster both receiving rave reviews. Meanwhile, one of the most acclaimed films of last year is finally hitting streaming. There's something for everyone here, and a lot to cover, so let's get straight into it...
Murderbot season 1
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Apple TV Plus
Alexander Skarsgård is excellently cast as a bored security cyborg who'd much rather be watching TV than working in this new sci-fi comedy. Having hacked his own systems and attained free will, the self-styled "Murderbot" must hide his new found sentience when he is assigned to provide guard duty to some hippy scientists, one of whom, David Dastmalchian's Gurathin, is growing suspicious.
Despite the title (which our hero adopts purely because he thinks it sounds cool) this series, inspired by Martha Wells' The Murderbot Diaries books, is a sweet, funny show about humanity and its many quirks, while Skarsgård's growing irritation with "stupid f*****g humans" is delightful – and relatable.
Maybe one day we'll be adding Murderbot to our list of the best Apple TV Plus shows.
Fear Street: Prom Queen
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
The fourth instalment in the Fear Street franchise takes us back to the late '80s for a retro-slasher inspired, once again, by R.L. Stine's novels. The Shadyside High annual prom is fast approaching, and the contest to crown the year's Prom Queen is heating up. It's not long, however, before some of the girls who have been tipped to win the competition start to go missing, and a hooded figure is spotted on campus…
Prom Queen is the first standalone film in the Fear Street universe, meaning that you don't have to have seen the original trilogy to enjoy it. If you have, however, then you'll know what to expect here: gore, gags, and a tense fight for survival.
Ready for even more scares? Check out our list of the best Netflix horror movies.
Duster season 1
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: HBO Max
Lost's Josh Holloway takes the lead in this action-packed new crime thriller co-created by JJ Abrams and LaToya Morgan. Holloway (looking unnervingly similar to how he did as Sawyer all those years ago!) plays Jim Ellis, a skilled getaway driver who teams up with FBI agent Nina Hayes (Rachel Hilson) to take down the high profile gangster who may have killed his brother.
Set in the 1970s, and with more than a dash of Tarantino in its DNA, this slick and stylish thrill ride makes the most of Holloway's Southern charm and talent for action. The first episode is already streaming and the early buzz around Duster has been super strong. Could this be one of the year's surprise hits?
For more quality TV, head over to our list of the best shows on HBO Max.
The Brutalist
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: HBO Max
Brady Corbet's epic historical drama is one of the year's buzziest films, and received a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars. It was beaten by the excellent Anora, but Adrien Brody took home a deserved Best Actor award for his performance as architect László Tóth, who we first meet in 1947 as he starts a new life in the United States.
Taking place over 30+ years (and more than three hours of screen time), we learn that Tóth is both a Holocaust survivor and a celebrated architect. Brody is simply astonishing in the role: brilliant, obsessive, and radiating trauma. Hope comes in the form of Guy Pearce's industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren, who commissions Tóth to design a community center, but their relationship soon starts to disintegrate. A big movie in every sense, The Brutalist is a powerful achievement full of ideas and artistry.
She the People season 1
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
Tyler Perry is behind this new comedy series about the election of Mississippi's first Black lieutenant governor. Antoinette Dunkerson, played by Terri J. Vaughn, must grapple with a sexist boss, while her family struggle to adapt to life in the public eye.
Perry is not exactly known for his subtle political commentary, and She the People doesn't look like it will focus on the nitty gritty of Antoinette's job, but it does look very funny. It's also a chance for Perry to work with familiar faces from his filmography, including Vaughn (who appeared in Daddy's Little Girls) and Jo Marie Payton (Meet the Browns). The season's first eight episodes are released this week, with the second batch of eight following in August.
Check out our guide to the best Netflix shows to watch right now.
Nonnas
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
Vince Vaughn, Susan Sarandon and Lorraine Bracco all star in this big-hearted comedy based on the real life story of Joe Scaravella who, following the death of his mother, hired a group of local grandmothers to work as chefs in his Italian restaurant on Staten Island.
Directed by The Perks of Being a Wallflower writer and director Stephen Chbosky, Nonnas is a witty and warm, but pleasingly grounded, film about surviving life's ups and downs. The cast, which also includes Talia Shire and Linda Cardellini is undeniably impressive, and the food being cooked looks delicious! A classic comfort film in the making, perhaps.
Doctor Who season 2
Available: UK
Where to watch: Disney Plus / BBC iPlayer
Doctor Who's second season is nearing its end, with the first of a two-part finale dropping on Disney Plus and BBC iPlayer this Saturday. The climax of the previous episode, The Interstellar Song Contest, ended with a game-changing reveal about the nature of the mysterious Mrs Flood, and with the TARDIS seemingly compromized by a mysterious force.
Details about what happens next are being kept closely-guarded, but we know from a clip shown on companion show Doctor Who Unleashed that Millie Gibson's Ruby Sunday is back once again, as is her awful ex-boyfriend Conrad (Jonah Hauer-King), freed from prison and seemingly teamed up with one of the Doctor's oldest enemies...
Keep up with all the hidden details this season with our guide to Doctor Who season 2 easter eggs.
Looking for something else to watch? Check out our list of the best Netflix movies or the best movies on Disney Plus.
