Stream On This Week: Very Odd Odd Couples, and Special Guests Recommend Studio 60, Tim Curry, and More

Welcome to the latest issue of Stream On, the weekly newsletter from Consequence that answers the eternally confounding question: What films and TV shows should you be watching? (Subscribe here!) We’re looking at all the new and recent releases from Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Prime Video, Paramount+, Peacock, HBO Max, and more for ideas — not to mention a Blast From the Past and streaming recommendations from this week’s trio of special guests, all British thespians!This Week’s PicksThe Christophers (Film)The Christophers (NEON)Directed by: Steven Soderbergh Cast: Ian McKellen, Michaela Coel, James Corden, Jessica Gunning Streaming on: HuluAn Ian McKellen-Michaela Coel two-hander directed by Steven Soderbergh? Oh hell yes. Irreverent and full of twists, this dramedy pits Coel’s struggling artist against a famous painter (who may have slipped in the public’s opinion after his time as a judge of artists on a reality TV show), as she surreptitiously prepares to forge his work. Soderbergh’s recent love for making small-in-scope movies with great casts (see also: Black Bag, Presence) has been a real pleasure to witness — movies seemingly executed for the pure love of the craft.LEGO Star Wars: The Mandalorian (TV)LEGO Star Wars: The Mandalorian (Disney+)Directed by: Chris Buckley Cast: Gavin Hammon, Amy Sedaris, Bill Burr, David Pasquesi, Katee Sackhoff, Emily Swallow, Giancarlo Esposito, Ming-Na Wen, Nick Nolte, Rosario Dawson, Taika Waititi, Temuera Morrison, Timothy Olyphant, Carl Lumbly, David Acord, Eric Bauza, Flula Borg, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee Streaming on: Disney+So this week The Mandalorian and Grogu, a feature film you could see in theaters this summer, arrived on Disney+. It’s… fine. (I laughed a lot at Jeremy Allen White’s emo nepo-baby Rotta the Hutt. He’s not like his dad, you guys!)The more enjoyable watch, though, is this 45-minute recap of The Mandalorian series told in the now-standard irreverent LEGO style. While Pedro Pascal doesn’t voice his signature role, they otherwise brought back a wild amount of the original series cast (Nick Nolte!!!) to riff on the events of all three seasons (plus The Book of Boba Fett). The only thing funnier than Moff Gideon snarling about wanting Baby Yoda’s blood for “reasons” is knowing that Giancarlo Esposito is the one saying those words.Stamptown (Comedy Special)Stamptown (Netflix)Created by: Zach Zucker Cast: Zach Zucker, so many others Streaming on: NetflixStamptown is one of the wildest comedy specials I’ve seen in a while, a long-running stage show filmed live during Netflix Is a Joke Fest. Brace yourself for music, jokes, chaotic clown work, random appearances by Neil Patrick Harris, and way more nudity than you might expect. It’s like a circus had a baby with a variety show and then forgot to put pants on the baby. Actually, that metaphor becomes shockingly literal at one point. It’s really hard to explain, in the end — but really enjoyable to watch.Mayday (Film)Mayday (Apple TV)Directed by: Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Kenneth Branagh, Maria Bakalova, Marcin Dorociński, David Morse Streaming on: Apple TVI didn’t enjoy Mayday as much as I enjoyed the previous feature by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, but the Dungeons and Dragons directors still rock at fun, inventive action. This time, they deliver an unconventional buddy picture set during the Cold War, with Ryan Reynolds as a fighter pilot stranded in Soviet Russia and Kenneth Branagh as the ex-KGB agent who might be his only way home. If you don’t have much patience for Reynolds in full-tilt movie star mode, you’ll want to skip this one, but if your Reynolds tolerance is pretty high then it’s a solid way to spend a lazy Friday night.Blast From the PastThe home screens of streaming services are always packed with the latest new releases, but we don’t spend enough time appreciating how much good library content is streaming across all of these platforms. Each week, Stream On will spotlight one less-than-new favorite (must pre-date the founding of Consequence, so 15 years or older) that deserves attention from modern-day eyes.Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: “Trials and Tribble-ations” (TV)Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (Paramount)Created by: Rick Berman, Michael Piller Cast: Avery Brooks, René Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, Cirroc Lofton, Colm Meaney, Armin Shimerman, Alexander Siddig, Nana Visitor, Michael Dorn, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, Nichelle Nichols, George Takei, Walter Koenig Streaming on: Paramount+This pick is a synthesis of two events in the ether: Sept. 8th marks the 60th anniversary of Star Trek, and this week, Consequence republished our big ol’ list of the best TV theme songs ever, which features the theme from Deep Space Nine as our sole Star Trek pick. I can’t remember exactly why we decided to limit ourselves to just one Star Trek show for the original list, but I do remember that DS9 barely beat out Next Generation for the honor (composer Brian Tyler basically pushed it over the edge).Okay, I may have also had something to do with that choice, as DS9 is my favorite Trek series to date, with “Trials and Tribble-ations” amongst my favorite installments. Created to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the franchise, the episode sends Captain Sisko and his crew back in time to meet Kirk, Spock, and a whole bunch of adorable creatures Jason Isaacs once called “merkins.” The 90s-era VFX used to blend the two eras holds up great, and it’s a hilarious and charming love letter to Trek as a whole. Happy birthday, Star Trek. Live long, etc.A Special Guest Recommends!Liz isn’t the only person in the world capable of suggesting stuff for people to watch… So each week, Stream On will now feature picks from a special guest! Said special guest could be literally anyone from the world of entertainment — actors, writers, directors, musicians, or anyone else Liz thinks might be watching something interesting.This Week: Jessica Brown Findlay!Jessica Brown Findlay, photo by Pip Bourdillon, and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (NBC)Who Are They? Jessica Brown Findlay first broke out big as Lady Sybil, the feisty youngest daughter of Lord Grantham on Downton Abbey, and has shown an interest in darker and stranger material ever since, picking up other great roles on shows like Black Mirror, Harlots, and the animated Castlevania series. (She was also one of the best things about Peacock’s very weird adaptation of Brave New World.) This year, she made her debut on the third season of Apple TV’s Silo — no spoilers for the show here, but according to the biggest Silo expert I know (hi Mom!), the show’s about to get real interesting in its fourth and final season, which Jessica will be a big part of. She’s also in the upcoming Peaky Blinders prequel series! Exciting stuff!What Do They Recommend? Jessica’s got two very different picks, but both I find delightful:Studio 60 on Sunset Strip (VOD only via Apple TV and Prime Video) is an Aaron Sorkin series that I love and always go back to. I watch it once a year and it’s so brilliant. Another series I have been loving, and I’ve saved the last episode because I don’t want it to end, is My Brilliant Career (Netflix). It is shot so beautifully and Philippa Northeast is an incredible actor. She’s so expressive and free; I think she’s amazing. I’ve really loved it.Thank you to Jessica for these picks! (I adore the fact that she loves Studio 60.) The Season 3 finale of Silo is streaming now!Another Special Guest Recommends!Twist! That’s right, we have a bonus round of special guests this week! Never fear: The One Last One Before Bed section will return, but in the meantime…This Week: Haley Bennett and Jack Whitehall!Virginia Woolf’s Night and Day (Quiver) and Clue (Paramount)Who Are They? Haley Bennett is an actress featured in movies including The Magnificent Seven, The Equalizer, Cyrano, and Till, and also made her TV debut in the recent Apple TV series The Last Frontier. (That’ll be important in a moment.) Jack Whitehall has enjoyed a rich career as an actor, stand-up, and British TV personality, with projects including Good Omens, Jungle Cruise, and The Afterparty. Together, they star in Virginia Woolf’s Night and Day, a unique period piece based on the titular author’s 1919 novel about love and relationships.During a brief junket interview, Haley said that director Tina Gharavi had mentioned John Hughes as a reference point for the movie. “Virginia Woolf and John Hughes are quite the mashup, but I loved that because suddenly you understand the film in a different context,” she said. “It’s a period piece, but emotionally it has the immediacy of a coming-of-age movie.”That played into something Jack observed about Gharavi’s directing style. “I think Tina’s approach was always to make sure that it had a modern feel and give it an energy and a looseness that allowed us actors to play with it and not feel like we were stuck too rigidly to the text, which was quite a refreshing approach to doing something like this. I’ve done other period dramas and adaptations before, and you’ve got a script supervisor breathing down your neck after every take. That certainly wasn’t the case with with this.”What Do They Recommend? When asked for their recommendations, Jack immediately went with The Last Frontier (Apple TV): “Jason Clarke, Dominic Cooper… and I forget who else is in it.” (Haley laughed.) “It felt like a premium streaming take on the sort of 90s action thrillers that I am obsessed with. It was thrilling.”Haley reciprocated by confirming that “I’ve got Jack Whitehall on my queue. Just anything that pops up with Jack in it.” She then added that for a recent movie night, with a mix of ages in the room from seven to 50, her family watched the 1985 classic Clue (Paramount+), starring the late great Tim Curry. “Absolute crowd pleaser for all ages. Everyone just loved it and went to bed feeling really happy.” She also suggested The Rocky Horror Picture Show (VOD only), to keep the Tim Curry party going.Jack concurred with Clue and also added a thumbs up for The Christophers (Hulu, as mentioned above), “with Ian McKellen and my friend James Corden. That’s very good.” And Haley concluded with Mussolini: Son of the Century (Mubi), a “great biopic about the rise of fascism.” Though she did add a disclaimer: She is partners with Mussolini director Joe Wright, “so I am somewhat biased there. But I think it was one of the best shows of 2025, and not a lot of people have have had the chance or opportunity to see it.”Thank you so much to Jack and Haley! (And for everyone who’s read to the end of this super-sized issue!) Virginia Woolf’s Night and Day is in theaters now.We’ll be back next week with more picks — in the meantime, stay safe out there, or better yet stay inside, where it’s definitely safe, and there’s so much film and TV to watch. Be sure to subscribe to the newsletter!