Murder and mayhem seem to be the theme for this week’s streaming selection. If you’re ready for a heavy drama thriller series, The Day of the Jackal follows the methodical story of an assassin with a thousand faces and the pursuit to catch him before he carries out his next mission. On the lighter side, Bad Sisters makes a return with its second season, and now the Garvey sisters have to deal with the ramifications of, you know, murdering somebody. And if you just want a bit more action and chaos, Cobra Kai is back with its penultimate batch of episodes and gearing up for its series finale in 2025.
The documentaries are here to bring us back down to earth, including Larger Than Life: Reign of the Boybands, summoning up that nostalgia of the that you can only get from near-perfect choreography. Alternatively, have your mind blown by the true story of the infamous Stanford Prison Experiment. Finally, laugh it out with two of this year’s best comedy movies as they make their way to the Disney family of streaming services with Deadpool & Wolverine going to Disney+ and Thelma taking its place on Hulu.
7 The Day of the Jackal
Peacock — Miniseries — November 14
Drop into a political thriller based on Frederick Forsyth’s novel about a legendary assassin who is a master of disguise, and the effort to catch him before he can complete his next hit. The Day of the Jackal may sound familiar, as this isn’t the first time it has been adapted to the screen. Shortly after the novel’s release, it was quickly made into a movie starring Edward Fox in 1973; and then again with Bruce Willis in 1997 — Forsyth famously requested to have the title changed and his name removed from the latter of which.
Now it’s being remade again, but for the first time as a 10-episode miniseries starring Eddie Redmayne. Early reviews have been mixed between love and hate, but that means it’s easy enough to judge if it’s for you within the first episode or two.
The first five episodes of The Day of the Jackal were released together on November 14th, and new episodes from the second half will be coming out each Thursday through December 19th.
6 Bad Sisters
Apple TV+ — Season 2 — November 13
The Garvey sisters are back in the Apple TV+ dark comedy Bad Sisters. After accelerating the deserved passing of John Paul Williams, the five ladies of the Garvey family have to sort out the not-so-small inconveniences of murdering somebody.
Things are a little different this season. The villain you love to hate, JP, is obviously not making a return; but taking his place is a pair of quirky and slightly buffoonish cops, adding a bit more of a Fargo-esque quality than the first season. Fiona Shaw, fresh off of True Detective: Night Country, is also joining the cast as Roger’s religious sister to add some new and wild energy.
The first two episodes were just released, and a new episode will be coming out each Wednesday for a conveniently-timed finale on December 25th. Season 3 hasn’t been officially announced yet, but given certain clues in the episode titles, it feels like creator and star Sharon Horgan probably has more in mind for Bad Sisters.
5 Cobra Kai
Netflix — Season 6, Part 2 (of 3) — November 15
It was a wild comeback story for the long-shot YouTube Red startup series to be resurrected and go on to be one of Netflix’s longest-running series. However, as fans likely know, this is currently planned to be the final season for Miyagi-Do, and they’re off to Barcelona for a world championship.
However, don’t get too excited for the finale yet, this isn’t quite the end. If you’re the type of watcher that likes to wait until everything is released before binging through to the end, you’ll have to keep waiting because Netflix opted to split the sixth season into three parts. The final part of Cobra Kai doesn’t have a release date yet, but it will come in 2025.
4 The Stanford Prison Experiment: Unlocking the Truth
Hulu — Limited Docuseries — November 13
If you’ve never heard of the Stanford Prison Experiment, buckle up for a documentary about one of history’s most egregious examples of junk science. It all started when professor Philip Zimbardo hired a group of Stanford undergrads for an experiment where they were split into groups of prisoners and guards. With some creative motivational suggestions from Zimbardo, the fake guards quickly devolved into sadistic and morally reprehensible treatment of their prisoners, and Zimbardo went on to tell the story for years to come.
The documentary dives into the deeper story and includes interviews with some participants, including their experiences at the time and how it has stuck with them through the rest of their lives. The series was produced and aired by National Geographic, and all three episodes are immediately available to stream on Disney+ and Hulu.
3 Larger Than Life: Reign of the Boybands
Paramount+ — Documentary — November 15
Were you a fan of N’Sync, Backstreet Boys, 98 Degrees, or any of the other boy bands that led the pop era of the late 90s and early 00s? Larger Than Life takes a look inside the ups and downs of the musical phenomenon that filled the airwaves and brought massive crowds of fans to concert stadiums around the world.
In a mix of archival footage and interviews with the performers, you get a glimpse of how they changed music, and how their life in music changed them. This documentary doesn’t go super deep with its 95-minute runtime, but there are interesting stories and experiences that promise a bit of Larger Than Life nostalgia.
2 Deadpool & Wolverine
Disney+ — Movie — November 12
After earning more than one billion dollars and demolishing records in the box office, yet again, the latest movie from the merc with the mouth is finally arriving on Disney+. And of course, this time he actually got one of the real X-Men to show up without cheap editing tricks.
Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are finally together to give us the buddy superhero movie, not to mention all the fan-service moments and inside jokes you could ask for. If you’re not already sold, I don’t know what to tell you. Stop reading and go watch it on Disney+.
1 Thelma
Hulu — Movie — November 15
Thelma is this year’s dark horse comedy that you may have missed, but shouldn’t. 93-year-old Thelma Post is the victim of a con when a phone scammer tricks her into thinking he is her grandson and giving up a large sum of her money. She sets out on a journey to get back her savings. Packed with some action and a lot of funny gags, this is the thing with older people we actually wanted to see this year.
June Squibb continues Hollywood’s tradition of actors playing younger characters — she’s actually 94 in real life. Joining her on the quest is Richard Roundtree, the original Shaft. Clark Gregg and Parker Posey are also appearing for the hijinks in Thelma.
