It’s officially summer holiday season in the northern hemisphere (sorry, readers in Australia and New Zealand), and that means it’s time to put the TV on for the kids before you go on family vacation.
You won’t want to stick any of the following new movies or TV shows on for them, though. None of them are family friendly, so I’d advise you to load up something else on one of the world’s best streaming services instead.
However, once they’re tucked up in bed, I implore you to throw on one or more of these seven great-looking films and TV series. That said, maybe don’t start this week’s number one choice before you head off for a good night’s rest yourself, because it is terrifying in the best way possible. — Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter
Obsession (Peacock)
I’m not joking when I say Obsession, the breakout movie hit of 2026 so far that’s finally landed on Peacock, is frighteningly fun. I spent weeks thinking about this supernatural horror after seeing it, and I’ll readily admit that I felt uncomfortable for the first few nights post-watch, too.
For those who don’t know: Obsession follows Bear (Michael Johnston), a lovesick loser who has a crushe on one of his besties Nikki (Inde Navarrette). When Bear stumbles upon an item called the One Wish Willow, he buys one and uses it to make Nikki fall in love with him. It’s a spur-of-the-moment action that ends up having horrifying and deadly consequences, and will have you constantly repeating Nikki’s “No, no, no, no, don’t do thaaaaat!” line in your head as the plot progresses.
Before you stream it, check out our review of Obsession to see why everyone’s, well, become obsessed with a film that, on a reported budget of just $750,000, has made $400m globally, broken horror film box office records, and turned Navarrette into a serial awards contender. And hey, if Peacock isn’t available in your region yet, see where you can rent or but the Curry Barker-directed phenomenon instead. — TP
Heartstopper Forever (Netflix)
Guys… the end we’ve been dreading is here. Nick and Charlie’s wholesome relationship has been an IP central to Netflix original content, but now it all ends with Heartstopper Forever.
If you’re bummed out because we’re not getting a full fourth season, don’t be. As Nick, Charlie, and the gang all brace before going their separate ways to university, a feature film actually reflects their growing maturity and crises of confidence much more fittingly.
Heartstopper Forever really is forever… at least, it is in my house, where I’ll be replaying it so much that Netflix might issue a warning. Its spirit and generation-defining impact will live on, and that might be the most special achievement the streamer has ever been responsible for. — Jasmine Valentine, entertainment reporter
Ride or Die (Prime Video)
Whoever thought to cast Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham together in an Amazon action comedy show needs a raise immediately. Ride or Die gives us the entertainment duo that we didn’t know that we needed and plenty of laughs along the way.
The pair play best friends Debbie Claybourne and Judith Burton, who thought they knew everything about each other. But, when Judith (Waddingham) turns out to be an international assassin when a mysterious figure emerges, their worlds are turned upside down.
Tackling everything from menopause to, well, the complexities of life, this Prime Video Original is an incredible amount of fun. And, surely that’s the most important thing in life, right? — JV
Lucky (Apple TV)
Is there anything Anya Taylor-Joy can’t do? Ever since she made her debut in Robert Eggers’ The Witch, I’ve been impressed by just how varied each of her roles are.
In Apple TV’s Lucky, she plays a con artist forced to go on the run after a heist goes wrong. Across seven episodes, we follow Luciana ‘Lucky’ Armstrong as she tries to evade the FBI and a ruthless crime boss, hoping that she’ll live up to her nickname and make it out alive. It seems that breaking the law runs in her family, too, as Timothy Olyphant stars as her father who’s in prison when the story begins.
The first two episodes are out now, and something tells me this will be another Apple Original for me to get hooked on. — Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer
The Hawk (Netflix)
If you ask me, Will Ferrell and golf feels like a natural TV marriage. The Hawk on Netflix is proving me right, with Ferrell playing Lonnie Hawkins, a top golfer in 2004. Two decades on and he’s trying to recapture his magic late in his career. However, he refuses to believe he’s anything other than one stroke away from golf’s greatest comeback.
If you’ve ever watched Happy Gilmore or The Phantom of the Open, this is for you… even if you’re pretending that you actually know the first thing about the sport, which is easily done. — JV
Descendants: Wicked Wonderland (Disney+)
The Descendants franchise continues over on Disney+ with Wicked Wonderland, which marks the fifth installment in the series (even I didn’t think that there had been so many).
Picking up shortly after Descendants: The Rise of Red, Red and Chloe return from their time-travelling adventures to find that the Queen of Hearts is trapped. The once notorious villain now has a nice streak, but that gives way to a new evil: Maddox Hatter.
Personally, I still can’t believe that a UK 2010s popstar is playing one of the most iconic fictional queens of all time. If you’re British, it has to be seen for that reason alone. — JV
Murder 101 (Prime Video)
Prime Video’s new three-part docuseries is a fascinating one. Murder 101 is about a high school sociology class based in rural Tennessee who help revive a decades-old case into a shocking present-day hunt for a killer.
It’s the sort of thing you’d expect to find in a work of fiction, Netflix’s How to Get Away with Murder springs to mind, but this is 100% real. You can also check out the podcast of the same name if you’d like to dive in deeper.
Ultimately, this program showcases the power of a local community as we follow a group of students turned amateur sleuths. I’m already locked in. — LB
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tom.power@futurenet.com (Tom Power)
