On our streaming radar this week: two of Hollywood’s biggest stars return to television together, a beloved sitcom welcomes a new generation, and some familiar faces return to haunt our screens. Plus, a Netflix movie that took me by surprise, and one I highly recommend adding to your watchlist.
First up is Brothers on Apple TV, a comedy with a premise almost too good to make up: it’s “based on a true rumor.”
Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson play fictionalized versions of themselves, alongside fictional versions of their families. But the question at the center of the show comes from their actual lives: could these longtime best friends also be brothers?
The speculation began after McConaughey’s mother revealed that she had known Harrelson’s father. The way she said it, and the timeline that followed, gave the two actors reason to wonder whether their connection went beyond friendship.
That possibility becomes the launchpad for a hilarious series. McConaughey’s character has political aspirations, while Harrelson is bound and determined to prove that they share more than a Hollywood résumé. With Lee Eisenberg serving as showrunner, the series turns that family mystery into a comedy about two very famous men trying to figure themselves out.
There’s a real Curb Your Enthusiasm feel to the show: recognizable personalities playing with their own reputations, awkward situations that keep escalating, and tremendous comedic chemistry. McConaughey and Harrelson are terrific together, and Holland Taylor, playing Matthew’s mother, adds another standout performance.
These two Texas boys might be more than movie stars and best friends. They might actually be family. But even if that rumor never proves true, they’ve made a hell of a great series out of it.
Brothers premieres September 23 on Apple TV.
Next, we’re heading back to Hillman College with A Different World on Netflix.
The beloved series, which began as a spinoff of The Cosby Show, introduced generations of viewers to life at a fictional historically Black college. This new chapter brings us back to campus through Deborah Wayne, the daughter of Dwayne Wayne and Whitley Gilbert, as she begins her own college experience.
Returning favorites include Kadeem Hardison, Jasmine Guy, Cree Summer, and Darryl M. Bell. But the new cast gives you plenty of reasons to stay, particularly Cornell Young IV and Chibuikem Uche. Both are fantastic, and both have superstar potential written all over them.
What interested me is how the show updates the experience. Its approach reminded me, in some ways, of how Bel Air took a familiar television world and gave it a different feel for a new generation. There’s still plenty of fun here, but this return to Hillman has its own personality.
For longtime fans, seeing those familiar faces feels like a homecoming. The new performers give that homecoming a future. You arrive excited to see the characters you remember, and you leave wanting to spend more time with the next class.
A Different World premieres September 24 on Netflix.
Then comes lucky number thirteen, although luck probably won’t do anyone much good in American Horror Story.
The long running horror anthology returns with a cast that reads like a reunion invitation fans have been waiting years to receive: Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts, and more. And yes, some of our favorite witches are back.
Created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, the series has built its identity around reinvention. We’ve visited a traveling freak show, checked into a haunted hotel, and lived through the apocalypse. This season brings familiar characters and nightmares together for another round of Halloween season terror.
For fans who have followed the series through its many transformations, those returning performers are a major reason to tune in. American Horror Story: 13 premieres September 24 on FX and Hulu.
Finally, Best of the Best is the Netflix movie I don’t want getting lost in your scroll.
The film follows two friends beginning their college adventures at UCLA and entering the competitive world of Bollywood fusion dance. Traditional Indian influences meet hip hop and other styles in a movie with incredible energy.
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan and Priyanka Kedia star, with Hasan Minhaj also starring and sharing writing credit with Prashanth Venkataramanujam.
What makes the movie work for me goes well beyond the dance floor. It brings you into a culture and a community with humor, heart, and a perspective that might challenge some preconceived notions along the way.
It’s wildly funny, inspiring, and phenomenally acted. And the dance numbers are insane. What these performers pull off is remarkable.
The title alone might not tell you what kind of movie you’re getting. That’s why I want to put it on your radar. I tuned in and found one of my most enjoyable streaming surprises.
Best of the Best is now streaming on Netflix, and I cannot recommend it enough.
