There’s seemingly still plenty of winter left for settling in with a good series. From new thrillers and returning favourites to sharp comedies and standout documentaries, we’ve rounded up the releases (both new and those worth revisiting) that have our attention this month.
In Vogue — The 90s
When & Where to Watch: Disney+
Starring: Anna Wintour, Edward Enninful, Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell & Victoria Beckham
Fashion’s most transformative decade is revisited through the eyes of Vogue editors Anna Wintour, Edward Enninful, Tonne Goodman and Hamish Bowles, alongside the designers, models and cultural figures who defined it. From grunge and hip-hop to Hollywood glamour and the rise of the supermodel, In Vogue: The 90s unpacks the moments that moved fashion beyond the runway and into popular culture.
Dark Matter — Season 2
When & Where to Watch: Premieres August 28th on Apple TV+
Starring: Joel Edgerton, Jennifer Connelly, Alice Braga & Jimmi Simpson
The mind-bending sci-fi thriller returns for another season in which every decision can open the door to another life, or another nightmare. Having fought his way home through the multiverse, Jason Dessen tries to settle his family into a safe new world, but his obsession with ‘the Box’ puts them back on the run. Meanwhile, Amanda and Ryan join forces in a desperate bid to find their way home. Both cerebral and emotionally charged, Dark Matter’s second season is an even more addictive journey than the first.
Derek
When & Where to Watch: Netflix
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Kerry Godliman, Karl Pilkington & David Earl
Ricky Gervais adopts a gentler, more sentimental register in Derek, his mockumentary-style comedy set inside a British care home. Gervais plays the tender-hearted title character, whose unfailing kindness shapes the eccentric community around him, including devoted manager Hannah, played by Kerry Godliman (Gervais’ beloved wife in After Life), and magnificently exasperated handyman Dougie, played by Karl Pilkington. Beneath its bawdy humour lies a heartfelt meditation on ageing, loneliness and the quiet dignity of care, making Derek one of Gervais’s most unexpectedly moving (and overlooked) works.
Blood Sacrifice
When & Where to Watch: Premieres August 20th on Netflix
Starring: Jakob Oftebro, Peter Andersson, Electra Hallman & Alexander Abdallah
From Lupin and Hijack creator George Kay comes this taut Scandi noir set in Stockholm. When two police officers are found brutally murdered in the archipelago, investigator Thomas (Oftebro) is forced to seek help from his estranged father, Alfred (Andersson), a retired detective with whom he shares a complicated past. As the killings continue, their uneasy alliance becomes as compelling as the case itself.
The Four Seasons — Seasons 1 & 2
When & Where to Watch: Netflix
Starring: Tina Fey, Will Forte, Colman Domingo, Kerri Kenney-Silver, Marco Calvani, Erika Henningsen & Steve Carell
If The White Lotus followed a quarterly vacation with friends, with a little less death and a little more humour, you’d have The Four Seasons. Tina Fey’s warmly observed comedy follows three couples whose decades-long friendship is tested across a series of getaways and increasingly complicated life changes. Across two seasons, divorce, complex relationships, grief and parenthood are explored, painting a nuanced portrait of marriage and midlife.
Black Doves
When & Where to Watch: Netflix
Starring: Keira Knightley, Ben Whishaw & Sarah Lancashire
With another season set for release later this year, now is the perfect time to make your way through Black Doves’ first season. Keira Knightley leads this slick, fast-paced espionage thriller, in which she stars as Helen Webb, a politician’s wife, mother and covert operative whose carefully constructed double life threatens to collapse after her secret lover is murdered. Enter Sam, a Champagne-drinking assassin played by Ben Whishaw, who is called home to protect his old friend. Together, they’re drawn into a conspiracy that begins in London’s underworld and threatens to ignite an international crisis.
Lucky
When & Where to Watch: Apple TV
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Annette Bening & Timothy Olyphant
Anya Taylor-Joy leads as the titular Lucky Armstrong, a career con artist raised inside the grift who thinks she has finally found her way out, until a multimillion-dollar heist falls apart and drags her straight back in. Forced into hiding, with the FBI closing in on one side and a ruthless crime boss on the other, she has to outrun both while the family secrets she has spent a lifetime burying start surfacing. Adapted from Marissa Stapley’s bestselling novel across seven tightly wound episodes, Lucky is one of the year’s most propulsive thrillers.
