This post was originally published on here
February is traditionally a slightly quiet month, but this week’s list of the best new shows and movies is packed full of brilliant and diverse viewing options. We’ve pulled together six top choices on this page offering you a range of TV shows and films across a whole load of different genres.
The latest SpongeBob movie, subtitled Search For Squarepants takes the lead this week as it arrives on Paramount Plus, but that’s not all. There’s also the new season of the gripping espionage thriller The Night Agent on Netflix (which, despite the similar title and genre is a different show to The Night Manager on Prime Video), the action-packed Predator: Badlands on Hulu, a brand new Australian mystery drama, and much more besides.
The SpongeBob Movie: Search For Squarepants
Available: US
Where to watch: Paramount Plus
Big breaking news for fans of the world’s most beloved sea sponge: the latest SpongeBob Squarepants film will be making its streaming debut later this week on Paramount Plus! In the new movie, SpongeBob (voiced, as always, by Tom Kenny) and his Bikini Bottom crew set off on an all-new escapade, following the ghostly Flying Dutchman (Mark Hamill) on an adventure to the bottom of the ocean. There, SpongeBob must undertake a series of perilous trials if he wants to become a swashbuckler as brave as Mr Krabs.
Released late last year, Search For Squarepants was a critical and commercial hit. It’s always a delight to hang out with these characters again, and the new movies do not disappoint. The SpongeBob Movie: Search For Squarepants swims into Paramount Plus on February 17.
The best Paramount Plus movies are packed full of classics.
The Night Agent season 3
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
This espionage thriller has been a huge hit for Netflix, bagging the title of 2023’s most-watched series on the streamer. The Night Agent season 3 reunites us once again with Peter Sutherland (Gabriel Basso) – an FBI agent who has found himself tangled up in a vast conspiracy. Season 2 ended with the strong likelihood that Richard Hagan (Ward Horton) would become the president of the United States, something that would result in the villainous Jacob Monroe (Louis Herthum) getting access to national secrets.
Peter was tasked by his handler, Catherine (Amanda Warren), with acting as a double-agent and infiltrating Jacob’s circle, which seems to be where season 3 will kick off. The Night Agent remains as twisty, tense, and exciting as ever. All 10 episodes will be dropping onto Netflix at once on February 19, and we can’t wait to see where this latest batch of episodes takes Peter.
Find more recommendations in our list of the best Netflix shows.
Predator: Badlands
Available: US
Where to watch: Hulu
The latest entry in the long-running Predator franchise raised more than a few eyebrows when it hit cinemas last year thanks to its unique premise: this time around the Predator is the hero. Sacrilege! We should have had more faith in director Dan Trachtenberg, however, as this is an endlessly entertaining adventure. Dek (Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi) is a young Yautja (the proper name of the Predator’s species) keen to prove himself by slaying an alien monster. Along the way he teams up with a damaged Weyland-Yutani synthetic known as Thia (Elle Fanning) who is searching for her lost sibling.
With a winning double-act at its heart and some extraordinary violence (enacted not on people, but on hordes of villainous synthetics) this is arguably the most fun the franchise has been since the original movie. Great Friday night viewing.
We have a full Predator: Badlands review, as well as a guide to the best movies on Hulu right now.
Watching You
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Disney Plus
This new Australian thriller series looks like it will be a good, tense watch. Engaged paramedic Lina Phillips (Aisha Dee) has an ill-advised one-night stand with a stranger named Dan in her friend Axel’s rental property, only to discover that they have been secretly filmed. Soon, the footage is being used to blackmail her. Lina sets out to discover who is behind the plot. She naturally suspects Axel, but it quickly becomes clear that not everything is as it seems, and both Lina and her fiancé Cain (Chai Hansen) come under threat.
Watching You is inspired by J.P. Pomare’s best-selling novel, The Last Guests. The twisty six-episode series debuts on Disney Plus on February 20 and will keep you guessing all the way to the finish line.
Take a look at our list of the best shows on Disney Plus to watch right now.
The Iron Claw
Available: US/UK
Where to watch: Netflix
This bruising 1970s-set drama tells the melancholy true story of the Von Erich family: a troubled wrestling dynasty in Texas, who are stars in the ring, but beset by multiple tragedies. Kevin (Zac Efron, in an impressive starring role) is the oldest of four sons raised by Fritz Von Erich (Holt McCallany), himself a former wrestler turned coach who instils a need in his children to always be the toughest and never to show any vulnerability to the world, even when things go terribly wrong.
Starring alongside Efron are Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, and Lily James in a dark, heavy, but undeniably compelling drama that’s of interest to more than just wrestling fans.
Here are our picks of the best movies on Netflix ready to stream this February.
The Last Thing He Told Me
Available: US
Where to watch: Apple TV
Jennifer Garner returns as Hannah Hall, a woman whose husband, Owen (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), has vanished under mysterious circumstances, leaving only a note urging her to protect their stepdaughter, Bailey (Angourie Rice). That will prove to be tricky: Hannah and Bailey’s relationship is strained at best, even without the FBI sniffing around them. Hannah quickly discovers that Owen was up to his neck in intrigue, which she will have to get to the bottom of if she and Bailey are to survive.
The Last Thing He Told Me is adapted from Laura Dave’s novel of the same name. It hasn’t had as much buzz as some of the other thrillers on Apple TV, but we’re here for its slow burn mystery. The first episode of the new season drops on February 20 before moving to a weekly release schedule.
Check out our guide to the best Apple TV shows.
Our guide to the best Prime Video shows is packed full of unmissable TV choices.
