The new year is finally here: 2025 is gone, 2026 has arrived, and with it, a whole new set of movies and shows is gracing your favorite streaming services. Yes, it’s time for the Nerd’s Watch, the place to find out all the best genre titles coming to Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, Peacock, and more. Plus, we do the work for you. These are just the titles we think you’d care about.
What follows is a list of the best stuff streaming on all the big streaming services. We look at all those long, annoying lists and whittle them down to a few dozen titles that we think are noteworthy this month. Some are new, some are old, but either way, we’ll tell you why you should care. Or at least joke about it.
So sit back, grab your remote, and get ready for the Nerd’s Watch, highlighting the best movies and shows coming to streamers this month.
Image: SonyConan the Destroyer (January 1 on Netflix)
While not quite as masterful as its predecessor, Conan the Barbarian, there are few things better than watching Arnold Schwarzenegger in this incredible role.
Ghostbusters: Answer the Call (January 1 on Netflix)
Sue me, but I still think this new Ghostbusters, yes, the Paul Feig one starring women, is the best of the new crop of Ghostbusters films. It actually understood what made the original so perfect (goofy! funny! exciting!) and tried to do that, instead of relying on nostalgia. And no, I will not be answering the call about my opinion at this time.
Harry and the Hendersons (January 1 on Netflix)
I haven’t seen the movie in probably 30 or so years, but when it came out in 1987, it was the peak of visual effects and comedy. Bigfoot moves in with a family. What’s not to love?
Hellboy (January 1 on Netflix)
We didn’t quite know how good we had it when Guillermo del Toro was making incredible comic book adaptations over two decades ago, but yes, it was good.
11.22.63 (January 7 on Netflix)
This J.J. Abrams-produced miniseries, based on a Stephen King novel, never quite got the love it deserved when it was released, but it’s really, really good. James Franco (ugh, we know) stars as a man who travels back in time to stop the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II in Wonder Man. – Marvel StudiosThe Indiana Jones Saga (January 1 on Disney+)
The first four films in the franchise—Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, Last Crusade, and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull—swing their way back home to Disney+. But really, they belong in a museum.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage (January 22 on Disney+)
The second Venom movie, the one with Woody Harrelson as Carnage, is fun, weird, and worth checking out. Plus, we’re just excited to see Spidey’s symbiote foe on Disney+.
Wonder Man (January 27 on Disney+)
The first Marvel Studios project of 2026 is the long-awaited tale of an actor who is himself a superhero going after a superhero movie role. We’ve heard great things about the show, which is dropping all of its episodes at once.
28 Weeks Later (January 1 on Hulu)
Though 28 Years Later (the kick-off film in the new trilogy) dismissed this movie in its first 30 seconds, we still think the second entry in the zombie franchise is worth a watch.
Idiocracy (January 1 on Hulu)
The year 2026 is the 20th anniversary of this Mike Judge bomb that has since gone on not just to cult status but to terrifying levels of relevance we didn’t dare consider when it was first released.
Image: 20th Century FoxThe Abyss (January 1 on Hulu)
Long before he raised the Titanic or created Avatar, the phrase “James Cameron doesn’t miss” was already in full effect with this stunning underwater adventure drama.
Bodies Bodies Bodies (January 1 on HBO Max)
Looking for a smart, funny, creepy horror thriller to start 2026? Look no further than Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, a 2022 film about a group of friends who play a murder mystery game that gets too real.
Ex Machina (January 1 on HBO Max)
Alex Garland is still kicking ass with films like Civil War, Warfare, and 28 Years Later, but he may never top this sci-fi masterpiece starring Alicia Vikander, General Hux, and Poe Dameron. Sorry, those last two names should be Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac.
Green Lantern animated films (January 1 on HBO Max)
I haven’t seen these, but I thought it was cool that three Green Lantern animated films are popping up on Max, especially with Lanterns coming later this year. There’s Green Lantern: Beware My Power, Green Lantern: Emerald Knights, and Green Lantern: First Flight.
John Wick (January 1 on HBO Max)
Watch Keanu Reeves kick a whole bunch of butt to kick off the new year. Plus, John Wick: Chapter 2 and John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum are streaming there as well.
Image: MGMSpaceballs (January 1 on HBO Max)
I just realized that while I thought Spaceballs 2 was coming out in 2026, it’s actually not until 2027, and I got very sad. But, at least you can catch up with the unforgettable original on HBO Max.
The Twilight Saga (January 1 on HBO Max)
After a recent return to theaters, all five films in The Twilight Saga are coming back to streaming. That’s Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and both parts of Breaking Dawn.
The Hunger Games series (January 14 on Peacock)
Not to be outdone, The Hunger Games films are also popping back on streaming. That’s the original, Catching Fire, both parts of Mockingjay, and even The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. The new film in that series, Sunrise on the Reaping, will be out later this year.
Twisters (January 15 on Peacock)
How has it been over a year since the world finally got a sequel to Twister, called Twisters, and how has Universal not yet announced another sequel?
10 Cloverfield Lane (January 1 on Paramount +)
Before he reinvigorated the Predator franchise, director Dan Trachtenberg attempted the same with Cloverfield; the movie is great, even if the revival never happened. Mary Elizabeth Winstead and John Goodman star in this excellent sci-fi thriller.
Image: Warner Bros.A.I. Artificial Intelligence (January 1 on Paramount +)
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Steven Spielberg’s take on Stanley Kubrick’s vision of the future, and, well, it hits a bit different now than you’d imagine. Read this and check it out for yourself.
The Scream Trilogy (January 1 on Paramount +)
The fourth one is underrated, and the seventh one hits theaters in just a few weeks. But if you want to go back to the beginning, Paramount is bringing the first three Scream films to its streamer.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (January 1 on Paramount +)
Tom Holland is set to release his record fourth Spider-Man film in 2026, so what better way to get ready for July’s Brand New Day than taking it back to Homecoming?
The Crow (January 1 on Paramount +)
One of the earliest and best examples of what a comic book adaptation could be was this cult classic 1994 film starring Brandon Lee, who was tragically killed during filming. Paramount is also adding the second and fourth Crow films, The Crow: City of Angels and The Crow: Wicked Prayer, at the same time.
The Martian (January 1 on Paramount +)
Ridley Scott directs Matt Damon in this excellent, exciting adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel about a man stranded on Mars. And, it comes mere weeks before the second Weir adaptation, Project Mail Mary, hits the big screen.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
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