It’s hard to believe December is just around the corner. It seems like it was only yesterday that I was watching Twisters in the movie theater and enjoying the warm summer weather. Now, I have to stress out about traveling for the holidays and shopping for loved ones.
As an escape, I tend to turn to Netflix to find my next latest binge-worthy series. And the streamer’s December lineup looks like it won’t disappoint. From a British spy show to a black comedy about a desirable L.A. home, Netflix might be saving its best shows for last in 2024.
Need more recommendations? Check out the best new shows to stream this week, as well as the best shows on Netflix, best shows on Hulu, best shows on Amazon Prime Video, and best shows on Disney+.
Black Doves (December 5)
I love a good spy show, and one set in England, with a cast of talented actors and an intriguing storyline, seems right up my alley. Black Doves stars Keira Knightley as Helen, a woman who holds a lot of secrets. She’s a covert spy posing as a politician’s wife, and she’s very, very good at her job. Her only flaw? Jason (Andrew Koji), who is the only man she’s ever loved. Helen’s having an affair with Jason, and she doesn’t mind the potential risk it poses to her current job.
When Jason is murdered, Helen is understandably upset, and she’ll risk everything, including her ongoing undercover assignment and even her own life, to exact revenge. With a cast that includes Ben Whishaw (Passages), Sarah Lancashire (Happy Valley), Kathryn Hunter (Andor) and Tracey Ullman (Into the Woods), Black Doves isn’t playing around with its prestige status. It’s great to see Knightley in a lead role again, and one that promises to showcase her underrated talents as a dramatic actress.
The Great British Baking Show Holidays (December 9)
The holidays are peak baking time. That’s a problem for me because I cannot bake at all. It’s also great for me, because I can watch all the baking specials that pop up around this time and dream about eating all the confections that are made. The absolute best of these specials is, of course, The Great British Baking Show Holidays, which is a spinoff of the main The Great British Baking Show that just wrapped up its current season.
Like past seasons, this current one assembles amateur bakers from past seasons to bake holiday-specific treats like gingerbread houses and fruitcakes. Paul Hollywood, Prue Leith, and Noel Fielding all return to advise the bakers or, in Paul’s case, stare them down with his steely blue eyes, and they will be joined by new co-host Allison Hammond, who has enlivened the show with her boisterous laugh, off-color jokes, and wonderful personality. After this current season is over, I still won’t be able to bake, but I will sure know what I’ll be eating for the rest of the holiday season.
No Good Deed (December 12)
Real estate, and the prospect of finding an ideal home that won’t annoy you, feels like a walking death. But what happens once you find your dream home and you discover there are others who want the same thing you do? That’s a recipe for disaster, but it’s also an ideal setup for a black comedy.
Dead to Me showrunner Liz Feldman’s new show, No Good Deed, assembles an all-star cast consisting of Friends actress Lisa Kudrow, Ray Romano, Luke Wilson, Linda Cardellini, Abbi Jacobson, Teyonah Parris, and more to skewer house hunters and the absurdity of the real estate market in Los Angeles. Everyone wants the 1920s Los Feliz home that’s at the center of the show, and they will do anything to get it … and that might include murder. The cast alone is enough to sell No Good Deed, but the show’s primary setting, in an actual historic Spanish-style villa, is sure to satisfy all the real estate porn lovers in the audience.