We’re in a slightly weird place in the streaming world this week (August 18-24). As summer and winter start to wind down in the northern and southern hemispheres, the world’s best streaming services appear to be withholding their biggest releases for the final few months of the year.
That’s not to say there aren’t some new movies and TV shows to catch over the next few days. From a popular HBO Max show making its long overdue return, to three interesting offerings from Netflix, you’re sure to find something worth watching with our help. So, read on to see what’s new. – Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter
Peacemaker season 2 (HBO Max)
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Everyone’s favorite DC comic book anti-hero is back. Peacemaker – real name Chris Smith – is back on our screens after three and a half years for his sophomore outing on Warner Bros Discovery’s recently rebranded streamer. This time, the titular character stumbles on a parallel world where life is everything he wishes he could be. Oh, and he’s being hunted by Rick Flag Sr, the newly-installed head of ARGUS and father of the man Peacemaker killed in 2021’s The Suicide Squad.
Episode 1 is out now – read my Peacemaker season 2 release schedule guide to see where you can stream it outside of the US and when new entries will air. Before you watch it, check out my Peacemaker season 2 guide for more details on its cast and plot among other things, and my Peacemaker season 2 review to see what I thought of its first five chapters. – TP
Hostage (Netflix)
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Suranne Jones as UK Prime Minister? If I woke up tomorrow and that was real life, I’d be made up. Instead, she’s playing fictional leader Abigail Dalton in new Netflix series Hostage, where she’s faced with putting her country first while dealing with the sudden abduction of her medic husband in French Guiana. To top it all off, her scheduled visit with French president Toussaint (Julie Delpy) doesn’t go swimmingly… especially when she starts being blackmailed, too.
I can’t think of a time we’ve seen two female world leaders coexist like this, let alone work together to overthrow the tests a patriarchal system consistently subjects them to. I’ve no doubt in my mind that Jones was going to knock this out of the park and I hope this is the start of her rise to global stardom, much like Sarah Lancashire experienced in Happy Valley. – Jasmine Valentine, entertainment writer
Eenie Meanie (Hulu/Disney+)
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Ready or Not star Samara Weaving leads the cast of this new Hulu and Disney+ offering, which sees her play the role of a troubled getaway driver.Indeed, we follow her as she’s dragged back into a life of crime when a former employer reveals they’ve got an opportunity to save her “chronically unreliable” ex-boyfriend.
This heist movie sounds perfect if you’re after an action flick this weekend, but we’ll have to wait and see what critics think of it first before we can recommend it ourselves. – Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer
Road to a Million season 2 (Prime Video)
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While most people were watching Squid Game: The Challenge with baited breath (and to be fair, so was I), I was watching Brian Cox do his best ‘M’ impression on Prime Video’s underrated reality TV show 007: Road to a Million. That said, considering how expensive it was to make, I’m surprised a second season was greenlit.
Nevertheless, I’m yet to see a competition series on par with this. We’ve all wanted to take a stab at being James Bond. Thankfully, we get to experience that from the safety of our sofa while James from Wigan screams his head off trying to win some money. This Amazon TV Original only gets more unhinged from there, so strap in. – JV
Long Story Short (Netflix)
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BoJack Horseman is one of the best Netflix shows and a personal favorite of mine, so you can imagine how excited I am about co-creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg’s new show Long Story Short. The adult animation series centers on a middle-class Jewish family and, more specifically, three siblings as they experience everyday events while looking back on their very religious childhood.
Given BoJack was equal parts hilarious and devastating, I’ve already stocked up on tissues for the weekend. It’s already been renewed for a second season, too, so there’ll be plenty more to enjoy in th future. – LB
Invasion season 3 (Apple TV+)
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Out of the five new Apple TV+ shows releasing in August, Invasion season 3 is the most underrated. But, that doesn’t mean I’m not excited for its arrival – not least because we’re set to learn the true intentions of the hostile aliens that have invaded Earth.
There have been theories about the extraterrestrials’ constant attacks throughout the Apple TV+ sci-fi saga, but this season promises to finally give us answers. Creator Simon Kingberg has confirmed we’ll see the main characters unite in a “low-key Avengers” storyline, so I’m expecting a climatic showdown.
So far, Invasion has seen mixed responses due to its slow-burn pacing, but many agree that last season greatly improved on the first, putting the Apple TV Original’s third season in good stead to be a world-saving (or -ending) spectacle. – Amelia Schwanke, senior entertainment editor
The Truth About Jussie Smollett? (Netflix)
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Before 2019, Jussie Smollett was known for his roles in shows like Empire and movies like The Mighty Ducks, but has since made headlines after being accused of staging a hate crime hoax.
The real-life case has more twists and turns than a Spanish soap opera, but that hasn’t stopped Netflix from going ahead with a 90-minute documentary about the case. The Truth About Jussie Smollett? will bring us interviews with police, lawyers, journalists, investigators, and Jussie himself to get the story straight, making this the best way to get the (hopefully) true story on the alleged fake story. – AS