January is here, and that means it's a new year and there are a ton of new movies on Prime Video. Dozens of films have been added to the Amazon streaming service since the month started, and you might be struggling to find out where to start watching first.
Well, I have some good news for you. I've scoured the full list of everything new on Prime Video in January 2026 and found a few movies that are a cut above the rest. All seven movies below are rated 85% fresh or higher by critics on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. That doesn't mean they're perfect, but it does mean there's a good chance you'll come away satisfied after watching these films. I've also seen most of these myself, so I can personally vouch for at least a few of them.
Malcolm has been with Tom's Guide since 2022, watching all the latest shows and movies so you never have to watch the bad ones.
'Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol' (2011)
The Mission: Impossible films are known for their stunts. And while the first three films in the franchise definitely have death-defying feats, "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" takes things up a whole other level. In fact, Tom Cruise takes things up several levels when he scales the massive Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai as secret agent Ethan Hunt at one point during this movie.
If you're unfamiliar with the Mission: Impossible movies and are intimidated by starting with the fourth in an eight-part franchise, don't worry. There's a plot, there's backstory and world-building, but those things aren't really important. Especially since this movie is almost a soft reset for the series, scaling back the drama surrounding Hunt's personal life and upping the high-octane stunts. All you need to know going in is that Ethan's Impossible Missions Force (IMF) has been shut down after being publicly implicated in a bombing of the Kremlin. Now, Ethan and his team must clear their name without their government resources or backup.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
Stream "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" on Prime Video now
'About a Boy' (2002)
"About a Boy" stars Hugh Grant as Will. He has no responsibilities thanks to a steady flow of royalties from a Christmas song and an aversion to any sort of commitment. After a fling with a single mother, he even joins the Single Parents Alone Together (SPAT) to try to find another fling without strings.
But what he finds instead is Marcus (Nicholas Hoult). And what Marcus finds is that Will is pretending to have a child to sleep with women in SPAT. So Marcus blackmails Will into dating Marcus' mother, Fiona (Toni Collette), in the hopes it will get her out of her depression. It's an incredibly messy premise, but it manages to keep things light-hearted, funny and moving.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
Stream "About a Boy" on Prime Video now
'Straight Outta Compton' (2015)
Music biopics are hit or miss for me. I loved "Walk the Line," but couldn't stand "A Complete Unknown," and they were even from the same director. But thankfully, this biopic about the iconic gangsta rap group N.W.A. is a certified hit.
"Straight Outta Compton" follows the group from before it starts, tracking the lives of Easy-E (Jason Mitchell), Ice Cube (O'Shea Jackson Jr.) and Dr. Dre (Corey Hawkins) in Compton as they try to break into the rap scene. Things finally click when the three of them join with Arabian Prince (who is shockingly left out of the movie), DJ Yella (Neil Brown Jr.) and MC Ren (Aldis Hodge) to form N.W.A. on the back of Easy-E's solo hit "Boys-n-the-Hood." Things take off into the stratosphere once they sign with Jerry Heller (Paul Giamatti) and release their debut album "Straight Outta Compton."
This movie falls into some of the same traps all biopics do. It leaves out plenty, though a lot of what it includes is accurate. But the performances at the core of this film are incredible, particularly Jackson playing his own father and Mitchell's breakout performance as Easy-E. It's entertaining, it's engaging, and the screenplay was good enough to be nominated for an Oscar. What more could you ask for?
Rotten Tomatoes: 89%
Stream "Straight Outta Compton" on Prime Video now
'Loving' (2016)
![LOVING - Official Trailer [HD] - In Theaters November 4 - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/33g-ZHBQdNU/maxresdefault.jpg)
"Loving" is a power romance drama starring a transformed Joel Edgerton as Richard Loving, a white construction worker in Virginia. He falls in love with Mildred (Ruth Negga), a local Black woman, and they start a relationship. But when they get married, they're arrested under Virginia's anti-miscegenation laws, which prohibit interracial marriage.
They're banned from living together in Virginia for 25 years under these laws, so they move to D.C. to stay with a friend. But one day, Mildred has had enough and reaches out to U.S.Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, who refers them to the American Civil Liberties Union, where Bernie Cohen (Nick Kroll) takes up their case. That case ultimately makes its the Supreme Court with the potential to overturn anti-miscegenation laws not just in Virginia, but the entire nation.
Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Stream "Loving" on Prime Video now
‘The Breakfast Club’ (1985)
Look, I know that I probably don't need to tell you about "The Breakfast Club." This John Hughes coming-of-age movie is a beloved classic that you've probably already seen more than once. But it's undeniably one of the best newly added movies on Prime Video this month, so in case you haven't seen it, or need a refresher, here's the quick synopsis.
"The Breakfast Club" stars Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald and Ally Sheedy as five high school teens forced to spend a Saturday in detention. They're not friends, and they're supposed to spend the time in silence. Their lone assignment? Write a thousand-word essay describing "who you think you are."
Instead of writing that essay, these students ultimately bond over music, marijuana and discovering that they're not so different from each other, despite their stereotypes. In the end, they do write that essay, but they also build a bond that's likely going to last beyond one Saturday.
Rotten Tomatoes: 87%
Stream "The Breakfast Club" on Prime Video now
'Tully' (2018)
![TULLY - Official Trailer [HD] - In Theaters May 4 - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/e5D3O4yCmCg/maxresdefault.jpg)
"Tully" stars Charlize Theron as Marlo, a mother of two, soon to be three. She and her husband, Drew (Ron Livingston), are already overwhelmed raising their daughter, Sarah (Lia Frankland), and son, Jonah (Asher Miles Fallica), who has an undiagnosed behavioral disorder that requires extra care to manage. Her brother, Craig (Mark Duplass), tries to suggest getting a night nanny so she can at least sleep, even offering to foot the bill. But Marlo refuses.
Once baby Mia is born, though, Marlo caves and calls the number for the night nanny. Thus, Tully (Mackenzie Davis) enters their lives, and things start to take a turn for the better, with Marlo and Tully even becoming close. What follows is a quirky, witty comedy-drama that parents will probably find something to relate to while watching, but it is definitely not just for those with kids.
Rotten Tomatoes: 87%
Stream "Tully" on Prime Video now
'21 Jump Street'
![21 JUMP STREET [2012] - Official Trailer - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/Oj55KinxZx4/maxresdefault.jpg)
When this movie was announced in 2008, nobody thought we needed to reboot the 1980s series "21 Jump Street." But when it finally came out in 2012, I was glad they did, because this movie is funny.
Described by star Jonah Hill as an "R-rated, insane, Bad Boys-meets-John Hughes-type movie" (which is accurate), "21 Jump Street" stars Hill as Morton Schmidt, a socially awkward police rookie who gets unexpectedly paired with his high school bully, Greg Jenko (Channing Tatum). After a work mishap, they get assigned to the revived 21 Jump Street undercover cop program because they look youthful (even though they're clearly too old). Led by Captain Dickson (Ice Cube), they're tasked with going undercover at Sagan High School to find the supplier of a popular synthetic drug. Unsurprisingly, hilarity ensues.
Rotten Tomatoes: 85%
Stream "21 Jump Street" on Prime Video now
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