What are you going to be watching in July? With thanks to our friends at Nando’s, we round up everything coming to streaming services this month, including Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, Apple TV+, Neon and TVNZ+.
The biggies
Stranger Things (season four, part two on Netflix from July 1)
Holy hell I am excited for this. I kinda lost interest in Stranger Things during its second season, but I kept watching out of obligation. And I’m so glad I did, because season four has been incredible. The first volume, comprising seven out of the nine episodes, injected new life into the show (and introduced a new generation to Kate Bush) with new characters, subplots, and genuinely terrifying monsters. Now, the final two feature-length episodes are here and I can’t wait to see what happens. / Stewart Sowman-Lund
RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under (season two on TVNZ+ from July 30)
You heard it, RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under is coming back for another season! You also, by this point, know the drill. It’s America’s Next Top Model meets Project Runway meets a lip-sync extravaganza, as the best drag performers from across Australia and New Zealand compete to be our own next Drag Race superstar. I’ve heard on the sly to expect some real bogan drag this season, so be prepared for plenty of Aussie accents, a bit of Kiwiana, and RuPaul struggling to understand both. / Sam Brooks
Sherwood (on TVNZ+ from July 12)
British critics went wild over Sherwood, giving the BBC crime drama a steady stream of five star reviews and declaring it the best drama of the year. The series is inspired by true events and features a stellar cast led by Lesley Manville (Mum, Harlots), and follows two feuding families who live next door to each other in a mining village in Nottinghamshire. When two shocking murders occur that appear to be linked to long-running disputes from the 1980s miner strikes, the small community must confront old grievances in their search for answers. Grab the tissues, get ready for some must-see TV. / Tara Ward
Life After Life (limited series on TVNZ+ from July 8)
I’m a big fan of Kate Atkinson’s 2013 novel, which follows Ursula, a woman in the first half of the 20th century who is living in a constant cycle of life, death and rebirth. Aotearoa’s very own Thomasin McKenzie plays Ursula here, with the cast rounded out by Sian Clifford, James McArdle, Jessica Hynes and Patsy Ferran. The series received warm reviews when it debuted in the UK in April, and my bet is if you’re a fan of Atkinson’s incredible original, you’ll find much to like here. / SB
The notables
Resident Evil (on Netflix from July 14)
Didn’t we just have a Resident Evil reboot? Correct! Nevertheless, Netflix persists. This is less a reboot and more a strange sequel/adaptation of the popular zombie-killing video game series. It takes place 14 years after a deadly virus caused a global apocalypse (can’t relate), where Jade Wesker (Ella Balinska) is fighting for survival in a world overrun by infected creatures (zombies, they’re zombies) while being haunted by her past, her father and what happened to her sister, Billie (probably became a zombie). / SB
The Midwich Cuckoos (on Neon from July 4)
Just in case the real world’s current reproductive nightmares aren’t terrifying enough, there’s some freaky stuff about to happen in the village of Midwich that involves aliens impregnating women. Based on John Wyndham’s 1957 book and starring Keeley Hawes (Bodyguard) and Max Beesley (Bodies), this new science fiction drama sees all the women in Midwich inexplicably fall down on the same night, only to wake up pregnant. When the children are born, the town discovers they look like their mothers but behave like aliens. Tiny aliens colonising a quaint English village! Looks creepy as fuck. / TW
What We Do in the Shadows (season four on Neon from July 14)
Season three is when What We Do in the Shadows, already the funniest comedy on television, went from great to spectacular. It ended on a bittersweet note with – spoilers! – Colin Robinson dead (but regenerated, phew), Nandor off on an Eat Pray Love-style journey of self-discovery, and Nadja, accompanied by a kidnapped Guillermo, setting sail for London and a position on the Supreme Vampiric Council. With our five heroes scattered to the wind, the show could really go anywhere, and I can’t wait to for it to take flight once again. Bat! / Catherine McGregor
The Terminal List (on Amazon Prime Video from July 1)
Fans of The Bourne Identity and Mission Impossible should pump up their biceps and get ready for new high octane thriller The Terminal List. Chris Pratt stars as James Reece, a heroic Navy Seal officer who survives an ambush that kills the rest of his team. On his return home, Reece realises he’s at the centre of a conspiracy to kill, but who is out to get him? Why is he being set up, and how many car chase shoot outs can one TV show have? Only Chris Pratt knows the truth. / TW
The movies
Persuasion (on Netflix from July 15)
Jane Austen’s final novel has had a decent amount of screen time – real Austen heads still swoon for Ciaran Hinds as Captain Wentworth in the 1995 BBC version – but it remains one of the author’s lesser adapted works. Now her most “mature” book (the main character, Anne Elliott, is a positively ancient 27 years old) has been made into a film starring Dakota Johnson as Anne and relative unknown Cosmo Jarvis as Captain Wentworth. Going by the trailer, which has attracted some – how to put this diplomatically – energetic online response, fans of the original should prepare themselves for a more modern, comic tone than they might have expected, or indeed wanted. / CM
Licorice Pizza (on Neon from July 28)
It’s Paul Thomas Anderson, it’s the 70s, it’s got Bradley Cooper going full crazy, it’s got a Haim sister in it – what could possibly go wrong? According to critics, not much. According to me, quite a lot. It’s a muddled series of set pieces stretched to fit a film runtime, with a creepy underage romance as its main plot point. But like I said, that’s just me. / SS-L
Don’t Make Me Go (on Amazon Prime Video from July 15)
A John Cho project, filmed in New Zealand? Yes please! This film follows a single father (Cho), who takes his reluctant teenage daughter on a cross country trip to find her estranged mother (Mia Isaac) while he tries to fit an entire life’s worth of parenting into that single road trip. Expect tears, expect to see Jemaine Clement, and expect a general feel-good time with this one./ SB
This post is made possible by our friends at Nando’s.
The rest
Netflix
July 1
Stranger Things: Season 4: Volume 2
True Grit
Catch me If You Can
Black and White
July 3
Rabbit-Proof Fence
Firestarter: The Story of Bangarra
Art of Incarceration
The Final Quarter
Samson and Delilah
Jasper Jones
My Name is Gulpilil
Gurrumul
Murandak: Songs of Freedom
The Nightingale
July 6
Control Z: Season 3
King of Stonks
Hello, Goodbye and Everything in Between
Girl in the Picture
Uncle from Another World
July 7
Karma’s World: Season 3
July 8
Boo, Bitch
Capitani: Season 2
How to Build a Sex Room
The Longest Night
Ranveer vs Wild with Bear Grylls
The Sea Beast
Dangerous Liaisons
Incantation
Jewel
July 11
Valley of the Dead
For Jojo
July 12
Bill Burr: Live at Res Rocks
How to Change Your Mind
My Daughter’s Killer
July 13
Big Timber: Season 2
Hurts Like Hell
Sintonia: Season 3
Under the Amalfi Sun
DB Cooper: Where Are You?!
Never Stop Dreaming: The Life and Legacy of Shimon Peres
July 14
Resident Evil
Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Night
July 15
Country Queen
Farzar
Mom, Don’t Do That!
Remarriage and Desire
Alba
Love Goals
Persuasion
July 18
Too Old for Fairy Tales
Live is Life
My Little Pony: A New Generation: Sing-Along
StoryBots: Laugh, Learn, Sing: Collection 2: Learn to Read
July 19
David A. Arnold: It Ain’t For The Weak
July 20
Virgin River: Season 4
Bad Exorcise: Season 2
July 21
Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous: Season 5
July 22
Blown Away: Season 3
The Gray Man
July 25
Gabby’s Dollhouse: Season 5
July 26
DI4RIES
Street Food: USA
July 27
Dream Home Makeover: Season 3
Car Masters: Rust to Riches: Season 4
Rebelde: Season 2
Pipa
The Most Hated Man on the Internet
July 28
Another Self
Keep Breathing
A Cut Above
Oggy and the Cockroaches: Next Generation
July 29
Fanatico
Uncoupled
Rebel Cheer Squad: A Get Even Series
Purple Hearts
The Entitled
Detective Conan: Zero’s Tea Time
Neon
July 1
Gordita Chronicles
About Last Night
July 2
Sully
July 3
In Plain Sight
The Hunger Games
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
The Hunger Games: The Mockingjay – Part 1
The Hunger Games: The Mockingjay – Part 2
July 4
The Midwich Cuckoos
Contraband
July 5
Hitch
July 6
The Children of Men
July 7
Shades of Blue: Seasons 1-3
July 8
Felix and the Hidden Treasure
Hancock
July 9
How to Train Your Dragon
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
July 10
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax
Queenpins
July 11
Ella Enchanted
July 12
Henchmen
July 13
Dawn of the Dead
July 14
What We Do in the Shadows: Season 4
Looper
July 15
High
T2 Trainspotting
July 16
Clifford the Big Red Dog
July 17
A Mouthful of Air
July 18
Top of the Lake: Season 2
The Nutty Professors
Nutty Professor 2: The Klumps
July 19
Smurfs: The Lost Village
July 20
US Marshals
July 21
The Man Who Fell to Earth
Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat
July 22
Rap Shit
Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events
Ted
Ted 2
July 23
Welcome to Smallville
Apollo 12
July 24
Malignant
July 26
Days of Thunder
July 27
Law & Order: Organised Crime: Season 2
From Dusk ‘Til Dawn
July 28
Licorice Pizza
July 29
Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin
Bad Moms 2
July 30
Sing 2
July 31
The Many Saints of Newark
TVNZ+
July 1
Metalocalypse: Season 2-3
Mr Pickles
Samurai Jack
Les Miserables
La Belle Epoque
Ready to Fly
Riders of Destiny
Clean Hands
On the Wild Side
Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret
A Day Late and a Dollar Short
Sins in the Suburbs
She Made Them Do It
Savage Wild: Season 4
July 8
Life After Life
July 9
The Case Died with Her
July 12
Sherwood
The Bachelorette: Season 19
July 13
Hullraisers
Grimm: Seasons 1-6
July 14
Glastonbury 2022 Highlights
Glastonbury: 50 Years and Counting
July 16
My Online Nightmare
July 18
Passport to Freedom
July 23
Death at the Mansion: Rebecca Zahau
July 27
The Replacement
July 28
The Resort
July 29
Rutherford Falls: Season 2
July 30
RuPaul’s Drag Race Down Under
Sins of the City
Disney+
July 1
The Princess
Marvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Bee Season
A Cure for Wellness
Mack Wrestles
Made in America
Mirrors
True Story
July 4
America the Beautiful
July 6
Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story
Iberia’s Woodlands
July 8
My Super Ex-Girlfriend
Sommersby
This Boy’s Life
Tigerland
July 13
The Old Man
The Bob Burger’s Movie
Solar Opposites
Picket Fences: Seasons 1-4
July 15
ZOMBIES 3
Guess Who
Legend
Sunchaser
A Time to Kill
Unfinished Business
Hitler’s Disastrous Desert War
July 19
Aftershock
July 20
The Deep End
Australia’s Deadly Monsters
The Incredible Dr. Pol
Mickey Mouse Squad: La Batalla Por El Zasca
July 22
Copycat
Deck the Halls
Don’t Say a Word
Stay
July 26
Santa Evita
July 27
High School Musical: The Musical: The Series
Light and Magic
Something Bit Me!
July 29
Not Okay
Amazon Prime Video
July 1
The Terminal List
Get Out
Lady Bird
Split
American Made
Atomic BLonde
The Boss Baby
Captain Underpants
Pitch Perfect 3
Fifty Shades Darker
Blue Bayou
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
Old Henry
July 3
WNBA: Las Veegas Aces at Minnesota Lynx
July 5
This is the End
July 8
1up
Warriors on the Field
Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin
July 9
The Miseducation of Cameron Post
July 12
Seven Pounds
July 13
Angels and Demons
July 15
Don’t Make Me Go
James May: Our Man in Italy
Forever Summer: Hamptons
Ray Donovan: The Movie
July 17
WNBA: Atlanta Dream at Phoenix Mercury
July 20
Blade Runner 2049
July 22
Anything’s Possible
The Birthday Cake
July 24
WNBA: Connecticut Sun at Minnesota Lynx
July 29
Paper Girls
The Ides of March
Here Are Young Men
July 31
Inside Job
WNBA: Seattle Storm at Washington Mystics
Apple TV+
July 8
Black Bird
Duck and Goose
July 22
Best Foot Forward
Trying: Season 3
July 29
Amber Brown
Surface
Acorn
July 4
The Sommerdahl Murders: Season 3
Hustle
Single-Handed
July 11
Hidden Assets
United
July 18
Trivia
July 25
Hustle: Season 2
The Tunnel
Mystery Road
Shudder
July 2
God Told Me To
Texas Chainsaw
Leatherface
July 6
Meatcleaver Massacre
Mansion of the Doomed
July 7
On the 3rd Day
July 12
Cold Skin
Emelie
July 13
Broadcast Signal Intrusion
July 14
Good Madam
July 19
Howl
Jamie Marks is Dead
Knock Knock
Life After Beth
July 21
Moloch
This is GWAR
July 26
Level 16
The Dark
The Crucifixion
July 29
The Reef: Stalked