The best streaming services including Netflix, Max and Hulu are adding new movies this week, and there’s good news if you enjoy dark thrillers as you’ll be spoilt for choice.
One of the biggest new movies on streaming this week is the premium video-on-demand premiere of “Blink Twice," this thriller features Channing Tatum as a tech billionaire who's hiding a dark secret and marks the directional debut of Zoë Kravitz. Other new thrillers to watch this week include “Cuckoo," “Handling the Undead” and “I Saw the TV Glow."
Below you’ll find a full guide to all the top new movies that you can watch this week across the most popular streaming platforms. And be sure to check our sister article that covers all the best new TV shows this week, perfect if you’re in the mood for a binge-watch.
‘Blink Twice’ (PVOD)
Zoë Kravitz makes her directorial debut in this psychological thriller with something to say. It’s a solid first attempt behind the camera for the American actress, and while it hits a lot of familiar notes for the genre, strong performances from its leads (Naomi Ackie and Channing Tatum) will keep you engaged throughout. The dramatic ending doesn’t quite hit the mark, but the first act, where there’s just a hint that something is amiss is particularly strong.
Frida (Ackie) is a cocktail waitress who manages to bluff her way into the company of tech tycoon Slater King (Tatum). What starts as an unforgettable evening of rubbing shoulders with the rich and powerful becomes even more exciting when Slater invites Frida to his private island for a spontaneous getaway. Once in this isolated paradise, Frida initially enjoys blissful tranquility, but soon becomes convinced that something isn’t quite right.
Buy or rent on Amazon now
‘Cuckoo’ (PVOD)
Following a family tragedy, teenage Gretchen (Hunter Schafer) must uproot her life and move from America to a small resort town in the German Alps to live with her father and his new family. If having to move to a new country wasn’t enough of a hurdle, Gretchen also has to deal with strange noises, disturbing visions and her father’s boss, Mr. König (Dan Stevens), who has taken a strong interest in her mute half-sister.
“Cuckoo” wasn’t the breakout box office hit that some expected, but it has enjoyed a healthy critical reception. The performances of Schafer and Stevens have been praised, alongside the creative filmmaking on display thanks to director Tilman Singer. If you’re looking for a horror that is deliciously unhinged this week, then “Cuckoo” should be your first choice.
Buy or rent on Amazon now
‘Handling the Undead’ (Hulu)
Hulu is adding this Norweighan horror mystery movie this week, and it looks like it could be a real sleeper hit. “Handling the Undead" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January, earning respectable scores at the time. Its 75% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes suggests it’s at least worth adding to your watchlist with critics praising its poignant tone and grounded narrative, but the slower pacing proved to be divisive.
Set in Oslo, it sees three families thrown into chaos when the dead mysteriously awaken on a hot summer day. In the aftermath, a family is forced to deal with a mother’s return before they had even griefed her passing, an elderly woman gets the love of her life back and a grandfather attempts to recuse his grandchild in the hopes of pulling his daughter out of a depression. These stories explore love, hope and accepting what we can’t control all through the lens of a zombie movie.
Watch on Hulu now
'Slingshot' (PVOD)
“Slingshot” failed to set the box office alight following a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it theatrical release at the very end of August, and now it’ll look to generate a little more audience interest as it makes its streaming debut. Starring Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne, and helmed by Mikael Håfström, this sci-fi thriller at least has a fairly intriguing premise which could be enough to earn it some attention.
It centers on an astronaut crew onboard a spacecraft handing to Saturn’s moon, Titan. The mission is a simple one, reach Titan, collect essential natural resources that are dwindling on Earth, and return as planet-saving heroes. However, getting to Titan will require a dangerous slingshot maneuver, that will either send them hurtling towards the moon’s surface or drifting into deep space. As the crew prepares for this critical moment, one of their rank struggles to maintain their sanity.
Buy or rent on Amazon now
‘His Three Daughters’ (Netflix)
I’ve been waiting for the Netflix release of “His Three Daughters” for months. I was fully sold on this Azazel Jacobs drama before seeing a single moment of footage. That’s because it brings together Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne and Elizabeth Olsen, in my opinion, three of the strongest actress currently working in Hollywood. And following the first trailer, and its early reviews (it’s 99% on Rotten Tomatoes) my hype levels are now even higher.
As the name suggests, the flick follows three distant sisters (Coon, Lyonne and Olsen) who reunite in New York City to help care for their sick father. Each sibling has a wildly different personality, and each processes their father’s illness in their own way. This leads to past tensions resurfacing, and a whole lot of quickwitted banter. I have a feeling this won’t just be among the best Netflix movies of the year, but one of the best flicks of 2024. Period.
Watch on Netflix from September 20
‘I Saw the TV Glow’ (Max)
Easily ranking as one of the best movies you (probably) missed in theaters, “I Saw the TV Glow” arrives on Max this week, and I’m really hoping its debut on the streaming service will ensure this fantastic psychological drama gets the attention it so richly deserves. Writer/director Jane Schoenbrun has crafted something dark but alluring here, and there’s so much substance to mull over that “I Saw the TV Glow” is the type of movie that will stay with you long after its haunting final moments.
Justice Smith plays Owen, a socially awkward teenager, who is introduced to a late-night TV show called “The Pink Opaque” by a rebellious classmate, Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine). Owen becomes obsessed with this offbeat TV show and starts to see his own reality mirrored on the television screen. However, when Maddy mysteriously disappears, and “The Pink Opaque” is canceled, Owen’s life is thrown into fresh turmoil as he tries to confront a hidden truth about himself.
Watch on Max from September 20
'The Garfield Movie' (Netflix)
Animated family movies have been thriving on Netflix this summer with “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and “Migration” ranking high on the streamer’s top 10 list. So, the arrival of “The Garfield Movie” will be most welcome for many, and it seems a strong bet that it will similarly rocket up the viewing charts, and perhaps even claim the No. 1 spot.
In “The Garfield Movie” the eponymous ginger house cat (voiced by Chris Pratt) reluctantly embarks on his wildest adventure yet when his long-lost father, a street-wise stray named Vic (Samuel L. Jackson) makes a surprise reappearance. Bringing his best pooch pal Odie (Harvey Guillén) along for the ride, Garfield is forced to trade his pampered life for a criminal caper as the ragtag crew attempts to pull off a dangerous high-stakes heist.
Watch on Netflix from September 21
