I've pored over Netflix's release schedule to bring you the best movies and TV shows premiering on the service this month. The biggest thing coming to Netflix in February is Zero Day, a political thriller series starring the legendary Robert De Niro. But there's a lot of other great shows and movies crammed into February, including Amy Schumer-driven rom-com Kinda Pregnant, and Netflix original rom-com La Dolce Villa, dropping just in time for Valentine's Day.
Zero Day
This is the first time Robert De Niro has starred in a TV series, so Netflix is going big with Zero Day, a political drama/thriller series detailing the aftermath of a deadly cyberattack. De Niro plays respected former President George Mullen, who's heading up the investigation of an information attack that killed thousands of Americans. Mullen must navigate a world of shady tech moguls, government power brokers, and his own past if he's going to prevent a second, even deadlier cyber-disaster.
Starts streaming February 20.
Kinda Pregnant
In this Netflix original romantic comedy, comedian Amy Schumer plays Lainy, a woman who is so jealous of her pregnant friend, she straps on a fake stomach and tells everyone she has a baby on board too. Her mountain of lies grows with her fake belly, but things get really complicated when Lainy meets the man of her dreams. If you're into Schumer's brand of comedy or just like a little frothy rom-com action, check out Kinda Pregnant.
Starts streaming February 5.
La Dolce Villa
Just in time for Valentine's Day comes La Dolce Villa, a Netflix original rom-com set in a romantic Italian village. Scott Foley plays Eric, a businessman who's lost his mojo, who travels to Italy to stop his daughter from wasting her money restoring a crumbling villa she bought for a Euro. Along the way, he rediscovers his lust for life, laughter, beauty, and love. I bet the old Villa actually isn't such a dump after all. La Dolce Villa also stars Maia Reficco, Giuseppe Futia, and Violante Placido.
Starts streaming February 13.
Home Improvement, Seasons 1-8
If you're in the mood for comforting nostalgia, you could do much worse than Tim Allen's iconic late 90s/early aughts series; it's the ultimate, mildly amusing, totally mindless family sit-com. Allen plays Tim Taylor, host of home improvement show-within-a-show Tool Time and patriarch of a suburban Detroit family that has all kinds of sit-com style dilemmas. The Taylors' mix-ups and lighthearted hassles fill up eight seasons of episodes, so feel free to binge them all at once while pretending it's 2004.
Starts streaming February 1.
Space Jam (1996)
Speaking of comforting nostalgia, 1996's cartoons-meet-basketball comedy Space Jam is coming to Netflix. The movie pairs ancient sports superstars like Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Charles Barkley with ancient cartoon superstars like Bugs Bunny, Yosemite Sam, and Daffy Duck, and then has them play basketball on another planet. Somehow, this weird concept works and results in a movie that's great fun and superior in every way to the recent reboot.
Starts streaming February 1.
Celebrity Bear Hunt
In this reality show version of The Most Dangerous Game, professional survival guy Bear Grylls hunts a group of 12 celebrities in the jungles of Costa Rica. Sadly, the cast is made up of British celebrities like Shirley Ballas, Mel B., and Boris Becker, and losing contestants aren't gunned down like rabid wildebeests when Grylls catches 'em; but still, Celebrity Bear Hunt puts privileged people in uncomfortable situations (always good TV), and the scenery is beautiful.
Starts streaming February 5.
Grimsburg
In this Fox cartoon for adults, Jon Hamm voices hardboiled detective Marvin Flute. Flute has cracked some of the most complicated and dark cases in history, and now he's returning to his home town to tackle his most puzzling mystery: his own family. Judging from the trailer, Grimsburg looks pretty funny with sharp writing and a talented voice cast, so I'm going to give this one a shot.
Starts streaming February 5.
Sweet Magnolias, season 4
Sweet Magnolias is the kind of feel-good, heartfelt, emotional series that never makes it past my algorithm, but enough people dig it that it's coming back for a fourth season. In season 4, The Magnolias' world is shaken and their bonds are tested by a town tragedy and a destructive storm. I don't know for sure, but I have a feeling that love and hope will ultimately save the day—it seems like that kind of program.
Starts streaming February 6.
The Åre Murders (Season 1)
I'm not sure why icy Northern European nations make such great neo-noire murder series, but I'm glad they do. Swedish Netflix original The Åre Murders tells the story of one of Stockholm's finest, officer Hanna Ahlander, whose vacation at a ski resort in Åre is interrupted by a missing person case. A young woman has disappeared, and the understaffed local cops need Ahlander's skills to solve the mystery, but can they trust her enough to work together?
Starts streaming February 6.
Surviving Black Hawk Down
This Netflix original documentary series tells the story of the Battle of Mogadishu made famous in Black Hawk Down. Speaking of, both that film and Surviving Black Hawk Down. were produced by Ridely Scott, who gathered survivors of the incident on both sides to tell the story of the harrowing day when two American helicopters were shot down in Somalia. If you like true-life war stories, don't miss it.
Starts streaming February 10.
The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep
It's probably going to be more than a year until a new Witcher game comes out, but in the meantime, check out The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep, a feature-length anime movie that continues the adventures of the famous monster hunter Geralt. Based on one of the original Witcher stories, Sirens of the Deep finds Geralt at a seaside village, investigating a series of attacks. At the risk of spoiling the story, there are monsters bedeviling the town—merpeople, mankind's ancient, soggy enemy.
Starts streaming February 11.
Cobra Kai, season 6 – part 3
This is it: the end of the Cobra Kai saga that began back in 1984 with The Karate Kid. (But since Cobra Kai never dies, it might not actually be the end.) The new version of the Karate Kid story takes place in a weird alternative universe version of the San Fernando Valley where everyone's life revolves around youth karate, and literally everyone remembers the All Valley championship of 1984. Cobra Kai's mix of campy, "remember the 80s?" nostalgia, fighting, and over-amped teen drama shouldn't be as entertaining as it is.
Starts streaming February 13.
Resident Alien, season 3
I don't feel like Resident Alien gets enough love. The quirky, inventive comedy sci-fi series is entering its third season, and the first two were awesome. The titular alien, played by Alan Tudyk, is no longer on a quest to destroy all mankind. With the gray aliens on the way to end humanity, Harry (or more accurately, the alien wearing Harry's skin) now wants to save the earth and thwart the invasion, all while trying to navigate the weird culture of people without blowing his cover.
Starts streaming February 13.
Love is Blind, season 8
It's been five years since Love is Blind launched, and to mark the anniversary, Netflix is releasing a new season of the romance-based reality show. Season 8 is set in Minneapolis and finds another crop of singles agreeing to meet and date romantic partners—and potentially get engaged—without ever seeing each other. As a life choice, waiting until the wedding to lay eyes on your fiancee seems unwise, but as a television diversion, it's top notch.
Starts streaming February 14.
Running Point
Kate Hudson stars in this basketball-based comedy series created by the always inventive Mindy Kaling. Hudson plays Isla Gordon whose family owns storied Los Angeles basketball team, the LA Waves. When her brother is forced to step down as president, Isla takes over, setting up a classic culture-clash of a woman entering a massively male-dominated space. Will she win over skeptical players, fans, investors, and her own brothers? I'd bet on "yes," now that sports betting is allowed in the U.S.
Starts streaming February 27.
Last month's picks
Back in Action
In Back in Action, the star power is turned up past 11. This action-comedy stars Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz as CIA agents who left the undercover life to raise a family together. But when their cover is blown, these seemingly normal parents come out of retirement to kick ass, take names, and make jokes. It's been over a decade since Diaz has appeared in a feature, so expect something special, and expect extreme leves of screen charisma from Back in Action's stars.
Starts streaming January 17.
Cunk on Life
Cunk on Life illustrates what would happen if the BBC hired the dumbest person on Earth to host a sweeping documentary that examines the meaning of life. Philomena Cunk, played by comedian Diane Morgan, travels the world to interview real academics, philosophers, and other very smart people, ostensibly to ask big, important questions, but really to test their patience with her deadpan, stupid persona. If you like comedy that's actually funny, don't miss Cunk on Life.
Starts streaming January 2.
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The beloved stop-motion characters created by Aardman Animations are back in Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, in which Gromit (he's the dog) becomes concerned with his master's over-reliance on technology. Wallace has invented a high-tech garden gnome, but it turns evil, forcing an absurd showdown. The roller coaster pace and precise comic timing raise the chaos high enough to earn Vengeance Most Fowl a rare 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Starts streaming January 3.
Interstellar (2014)
Christopher Nolan directed this science fiction story about a group of astronauts who fly through a wormhole in search of a new home planet for humans to crap up. With a cast that includes Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, and Michael Caine, thoughtful ideas about down-to-earth values, and a heavy dose of Nolan's unique cinematic style, Interstellar is required viewing.
Starts streaming January 1.
Don't Die: the Man Who Wants to Live Forever
Sorry for spoiling this Netflix original documentary, but its subject, entrepreneur Bryan Johnson, is not going to live forever. He's not going to achieve his more modest goal of living to 200 either. That foreknowledge adds to the poignancy and ridiculousness of Johnson's pursuit—dude is spending millions per year to forestall Death, and Death just does not care. While you and I are probably not going to that level, we're all doing something (even if it's just fretting) and Don't Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever asks some interesting questions about our relationship to the end of life.
Starts streaming January 1.
Missing You
Missing You is a mystery-thriller from novelist Harlan Coben, so expect plot twists that will leave you saying "whoah." Rosalind Eleazar plays detective Kat Donovan whose fiancé Josh, played by Ashley Walters, disappeared years before. When she sees his face on a dating app, Donovan tries to get to the bottom of a mystery that spins in wildly unexpected directions. If you're looking for a potboiler-mystery series, check out Missing You.
Starts streaming January 1.
Jerry Springer: Fights, Camera, Action
If you wanted to pinpoint the moment Western Culture fell off the cliff that led to—gesturing vaguely at everything—this, the popularity of The Jerry Springer Show is a solid contender. Through interviews with the people responsible and plenty of footage from the show, Jerry Springer: Fights, Camera, Action takes viewers behind-the-scenes of the Chicago-based talk show that built an empire on fistfights and scandals, both in front of and behind the camera.
Starts streaming January 7.
American Primeval
This limited series takes viewers back to an 1857, and explores the explosive collision of culture, religion, and community that gave birth the American West. American Primeval doesn't shy away from the darkness and despair of history as its characters fight for survival and control in a lawless, brutal frontier. The cast includes Taylor Kitsch as Isaac Reed, a broken man intent on self-destruction, and Kim Coates as Mormon leader Brigham Young, who uses his personal army, the Nauvoo Legion, to keep his followers alive at any cost.
Starts streaming January 9.
Hereditary (2018)
I love horror movies, and Hereditary is the best one that been made in the last decade at least. Ari Aster's masterpiece is not a movie for the faint-of-heart. It's legitimately disturbing in a primal way, a carefully paced, slow-burn of dread that builds to a shocking conclusion. The cast is amazing, but Toni Collette's portrayal of a mother struggling with mental illness stands out as one of the most unsettling performances in horror movie history.
Starts streaming January 15.
You Hurt My Feelings
It's impossible to not like Tina Fey. In You Hurt my Feelings, the writer-turned-actress plays a novelist whose world is shaken when she overhears her husband's actual opinion of her newest book. Directed by Nicole Holofcener (Friends with Money) and bearing the A24 Films mark of quality, You Hurt my Feelings earned unqualified raves from critics for its subtle, smart story about the lies we tell each other.
Starts streaming January 26.
