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The 15 Best Things Coming to Netflix in December

See Angelina Jolie's 'Maria,' Keira Knightley's 'Black Doves,' NFL's 'Christmas Gameday' and more


spinner image Angelina Jolie in maria
Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas in 'Maria'
Netflix

Baby, it’s cold outside. So make a mug of hot cocoa and kick back on the sofa with the latest gifts from Netflix. This month, you can unwrap a couple of Oscar hopefuls (hello, Angelina Jolie!), a smorgasbord of original series (Squid Game’s back!), and see live NFL action on Christmas day.

Coming December 4 

Churchill at War

In this enthralling new four-part docuseries about Britain's larger-than-life prime minister during WWII, we’re treated to a wealth of newly colorized archival footage from the home front and the front lines, plus stirring audio clips of the poetic orator’s famous radio speeches, which rallied his nation to keep a stiff upper lip and to defeat the Nazi scourge “whatever the cost may be.”

Coming December 5

Black Doves, Season 1

Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw team up for this six-part, London-set espionage-thriller limited series about a spy (Knightley) posing as a politician’s wife who learns that her lover has been murdered while engaged in the dark art of international intrigue. To learn the truth behind the killing, she teams up with an old assassin friend (Whishaw) to exact some bloody cloak-and-dagger vengeance.

Coming December 6

Biggest Heist Ever

Veteran documentary filmmaker Chris Smith, 54, (Tiger King) has made several films about stranger-than-fiction characters. But his latest features his strangest yet. Meet Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan and Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein, aka “The Bitcoin Bonnie and Clyde.” These unlikely perpetrators of the biggest financial heist in human history made off with $4 billion in stolen cryptocurrency and confounded authorities while they partied and posted nutty videos on social media. A bizarre true-crime tale told by a master storyteller.    

Mary

Netflix’s Christmas-themed programming isn’t just limited to British baking shows and Lindsay Lohan rom-coms. Director D.J. Caruso’s faith-based epic tells the coming-of-age story of the mother of Jesus (Israeli actress Noa Cohen), whose fulfillment of a divine prophecy leads to the miraculous virgin birth of a child who will grow up to change the course of history and threaten the rule of the paranoid and power-mad King Herod (Anthony Hopkins, 86).

Coming December 9

The Great British Baking Show: Holidays, Season 7

Everybody’s favorite food-tasting duo, Paul Hollywood, 58, and Prue Leith, 84, are back with another holiday-themed installment of the long-running baking competition series. With a lineup of fan-favorite contestants returning from previous seasons, it’s anyone’s guess whether there will be collapsed soufflés or overcooked tarts. But one thing’s for certain: Expect a yule-log challenge.

Coming December 10

Jamie Foxx: What Happened Was…

The Oscar-winning actor and ace standup comedian finally breaks his silence about the mysterious “medical condition” that put him in the hospital in the spring of 2023. Turns out, it was far more serious than we ever knew. In fact, it nearly ended his life. Proving the old saying that that which does not kill us only makes us stronger, Foxx, 56, prowls the stage like a man reborn, getting the last laugh on the Grim Reaper. 

Coming December 11

Maria

In recent years, Pablo Larraín has given us intimate and idiosyncratic biopics about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (2016’s Jackie) and Princess Diana (2021’s Spencer). With Maria, the Chilean director completes his trilogy on the complex lives of iconic 20th-century women. Angelina Jolie, who turns 50 in June, summons her inner diva to play Maria Callas, the world’s greatest opera singer, in what is already being touted as a serious Oscar contender. 

Queer Eye, Season 9

Get ready for a makeover, the boys are back. The Fab Five return with a new season of hot messes, handy self-improvement tips, and surprisingly moving transformations. This time around, things will look a bit different. For starters, the new season is set amidst the sparkle and kitsch of Las Vegas. And second, there’s a brand-new expert — welcome, interior designer Jeremiah Brent — who better hit the ground running if he plans on sticking around for Season 10.    

Coming December 12

No Good Deed, Season 1

Ray Romano, 66, and Lisa Kudrow, 61, star as Paul and Lydia Morgan, a married couple who attempt to start over by putting their picture-perfect LA home on the market. But this house has secrets. As a who’s who of nosey neighbors and prospective buyers (Luke Wilson, 53, Linda Cardellini, 49, Denis Leary, 67) start measuring for drapes and poking around, they threaten to unearth things that these sellers would rather keep buried. The eight-episode series comes from the creator of the terrific Dead to Me.   

Coming December 13

Carry-On

Imagine Die Hard as a comedy-infused thriller set at LAX during the holidays. Now replace Bruce Willis’ street-wise New York cop with Taron Egerton (Rocketman) as a low-level TSA officer who’s about to have a very bad day. This twisty cat-and-mouse game involves a mysterious figure (Jason Bateman, 55) who puts Egerton through his paces in order to smuggle a suspicious package onto a busy Christmas Eve flight. Jeez, as if air travel wasn’t hard enough this time of year! Sofia Carson costars.

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Coming December 17

Aaron Rodgers: Enigma

This behind-the-scenes documentary series gets up close and personal with the controversy-magnet NFL quarterback, who shares his thoughts on the x’s and o’s of the sport as well as the nuts and bolts of his life off the field. Rodgers was undeniably one of the all-time greats in his years as a Green Bay Packer, but Enigma catches him at awkward moment in his career. Having just returned from a season-ending injury, his New York Jets are not only flailing, they’re spiraling into a mess of personnel moves that may or may not be placed at Rodgers’ feet.

Coming December 20

The Six Triple Eight

Written and directed by Tyler Perry, 55, this inspiring true story tells the tale of the first (and only) unit of color to serve overseas during World War II. Kerry Washington stars as the army captain whose unit ensured that news from home would reached American GIs fighting overseas while breaking barriers and serving a country during a time when that country didn’t want to serve them.

Coming December 24

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Nate Bargatze's third Neflix special is available December 24.
Getty Images

Your Friend, Nate Bargatze

If you don’t know who Nate Bargatze is, or if you only know him from his hosting gigs on Saturday Night Live, then you’re in for a Christmas Eve treat. Bargatze is one of the funniest stand-up comics working today. With his southern twang and self-deprecating humor, he’s bound to have you laughing so hard, you might do an eggnog spit-take. Seriously, don’t miss this one. 

Coming December 25

Christmas Gameday

After spending years on the sidelines letting its rival networks and streamers cough up big bucks for the rights to broadcast live sporting events, Netflix decided that it wants to be a player in that arena, with this double-header of Christmas Day NFL games. The action kicks off with the Kansas City Chiefs vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers at 1 pm ET and continues with the Baltimore Ravens vs. the Houston Texans at 4:30 pm ET. 

Coming December 26

Squid Game, Season 2

Nothing could go better with an afternoon of cleaning up torn, discarded wrapping paper than the hugely anticipated return of this twisted Korean import about a group of financially-strapped contestants competing in a series of life-or-death challenges inspired by children’s games. Lee Jung-jae returns as Gi-hun, and this time around, he’s got an agenda as mysterious as those masked dudes in the Pepto-pink jumpsuits. Let the games begin! 

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