Your weekend binge list: 10 best new shows and movies to stream on Netflix, Hulu and more (Oct. 17-19)

The Diplomat; A Big Bold Beautiful Journey; Loot
(Image credit: Netflix; Sony Pictures Releasing; Apple TV)

From political intrigue to true crime chills to a touch of romance, this weekend’s new movies and shows on Netflix, Hulu and other streaming services have something for every mood.

Political intrigue returns in the third season of "The Diplomat," which stages a mini-"West Wing" reunion with the addition of Bradley Whitford. Meanwhile, "Murdaugh: Death in the Family" and "Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy" carry out dramatic tellings of real-life cases that still shock and fascinate. For something a little more uplifting, the docuseries "Mr. Scorsese" spotlights the iconic director of "Goodfellas," "The Departed" and "Taxi Driver."

On the movie side, "A Big Bold Beautiful Journey" arrives on premium video-on-demand with a sweeping romantic fantasy that bends time and memory. Here are our top picks for new TV shows and movies to watch this weekend.

New TV shows

‘The Diplomat’ season 3 (Netflix)

The Diplomat: Season 3 | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube The Diplomat: Season 3 | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube
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The political pressure cooker is at full boil when season 3 picks up. POTUS is dead, VP Grace Penn (Allison Janney) is suddenly commander in chief, and her husband, Todd (new cast member Bradley Whitford), is smirking his way into First Gentleman duties.

Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) is discovering that power comes with fine print, while husband Hal (Rufus Sewell) gleefully plays strategist to her next big leap. But with ghosts from the past, shifting alliances and rocky marriages, the new administration might not last the week.

All 8 episodes streaming now on Netflix

‘Murdaugh: Death in the Family’ (Hulu)

Murdaugh: Death in the Family | Official Trailer | Hulu - YouTube Murdaugh: Death in the Family | Official Trailer | Hulu - YouTube
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Inspired by the hit "Murdaugh Murders" podcast, this limited series spins the real-life Southern Gothic scandal into a slick, slow-burn thriller. Jason Clarke and Patricia Arquette star as Alex and Maggie Murdaugh, the seemingly untouchable power couple at the center of South Carolina’s most infamous legal dynasty. Then, son Paul (Johnny Berchtold) is implicated in a deadly boating accident that cracks their perfect facade.

Enter journalist Mandy Matney (Brittany Snow), whose relentless pursuit of the truth unearths a tangle of corruption, deceit, and blood ties gone bad. The result: a haunting portrait of privilege eating itself alive.

Episodes 1-3 streaming now on Hulu

‘Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy’ (Peacock)

Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy | Official Trailer | Peacock Original - YouTube Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy | Official Trailer | Peacock Original - YouTube
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This limited series explores one of America’s most notorious true crimes. Michael Chernus stars as John Wayne Gacy, the outwardly charming neighbor whose sinister double life hides behind the clown makeup.

"Dr. Death" creator Patrick Macmanus paints a gripping, unsettling portrait of the victims, the relentless investigators and the families left shattered, while exposing the societal blind spots that allowed evil to lurk in plain sight.

All 8 episodes streaming now on Peacock

‘Loot’ season 3 (Apple TV Plus)

Loot — Season 3 Official Trailer | Apple TV - YouTube Loot — Season 3 Official Trailer | Apple TV - YouTube
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Maya Rudolph returns to roast the absurdities of billionaire life in the third season of her sharp comedy. Last we saw Molly Wells, she’d laid her heart on the line for Arthur (Nat Faxon), only to be shot down mid-kiss before jetting off to anywhere-but-here.

Now, she and Nicholas (Joel Kim Booster) are marooned on a deserted island, and let’s just say survival is not Molly's strong suit. Back in civilization, the Wells Foundation crew keeps the chaos at bay, while cameos from D’Arcy Carden, Kesha and Henry Winkler promise even more havoc and hilarity.

Episodes 1-2 streaming now on Apple TV Plus

‘Mr. Scorsese’ (Apple TV Plus)

Mr. Scorsese — Official Trailer | Apple TV - YouTube Mr. Scorsese — Official Trailer | Apple TV - YouTube
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"Mr. Scorsese" isn’t just a documentary; it’s an unprecedented gab session with the maestro himself, part film school, part therapy, part nostalgia trip. Rebecca Miller’s five-part docuseries digs into Scorsese’s personal stories while surrounding him with a star-studded chorus: De Niro, DiCaprio, Spielberg, Schoonmaker, even Mick Jagger.

The result is a portrait that’s warm, witty, and (of course) self-mythologizing. Sure, it leans reverent, but when the man basically is American cinema, who’s going to argue? Leave the cynicism, bring a cannoli and settle in for a master class.

All 5 episodes streaming now on Apple TV Plus

‘Splinter Cell: Deathwatch’ (Netflix)

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Deathwatch | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Deathwatch | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube
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From "John Wick" creator Derek Kolstad comes this animated series adaptation of the hit video game franchise, following the legendary Fourth Echelon operative (voiced by Liev Schreiber) as he’s pulled out of retirement into a tangle of old rivals, new conspiracies and high-stakes stealth missions. Sam Fisher may be older, but he's just as harp and legal as ever.

Faithful to the games yet packed with fresh twists, the series invites both longtime fans and newcomers to step into Fisher’s shadowy, pulse-pounding world without missing a beat.

All 8 episodes streaming now on Netflix

‘Solar Opposites’ season 6 (Hulu)

Solar Opposites Official Trailer | Season 6 | Hulu - YouTube Solar Opposites Official Trailer | Season 6 | Hulu - YouTube
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It's time to say farewell to Earth’s quirkiest aliens. "Solar Opposites" returns for its final season, finding the Shlorpians flat broke and their diamond-making machine completely fried. Korvo, Terry, Jesse, Yumyulack and the ever-evolving Pupa must navigate life on a shoestring, sans their usual high-end toys.

Meanwhile, the tiny citizens of The Wall face their most shocking, high-stakes showdown yet. Packed with absurd schemes, sci-fi chaos, fart jokes, and pop-culture gags, this send-off also digs surprisingly deep into questions of family, identity and what it really means to belong.

All 10 episodes streaming now on Hulu

New movies

‘A Big Bold Beautiful Journey’ (PVOD)

A BIG BOLD BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY – Official Trailer (HD) - YouTube A BIG BOLD BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY – Official Trailer (HD) - YouTube
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Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell make an undeniably magnetic pair in this romantic fantasy that wants to whisk you away on a whimsical road trip through love, memory and regret. The film follows two wedding guests who find themselves transported — literally — through doors into their pasts.

Along the way, they revisit childhood dreams, lost loves and pivotal moments that shaped who they are, and are forced to confront what broke them and what still might make them whole.

Streaming now with purchase on Amazon or Apple TV

‘The Twits’ (Netflix)

The Twits | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube The Twits | Official Trailer | Netflix - YouTube
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Roald Dahl gets a modern, delightfully disgusting makeover. Director Phil Johnston (“Zootopia,” “Wreck-It Ralph”) turns the author’s 1980 tale of the world’s meanest married couple into a gleefully gross adventure.

Margo Martindale and Johnny Vegas are pitch-perfect as Mr. and Mrs. Twit, who run Twitlandia, the most revolting amusement park ever conceived, and somehow worm their way into local power. It’s up to two whip-smart orphans and a family of magical animals to outsmart them.

Streaming now on Netflix

‘Our Fault’ (Prime Video)

Culpa Nuestra (Our Fault) - Official Trailer | Prime Video - YouTube Culpa Nuestra (Our Fault) - Official Trailer | Prime Video - YouTube
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Prime Video wraps up its steamy “Culpables” trilogy with “Our Fault” (“Culpa Nuestra”), the long-awaited finale to Nick and Noah’s love story. Four years after their breakup, the exes cross paths at a sun-soaked Ibiza wedding, and naturally, the chemistry’s still there, along with plenty of baggage.

What follows is a swirl of lust, resentment, and designer bling, all set to an EDM pulse. It’s unapologetically soapy and impossibly pretty, the kind of guilty pleasure you half-roll your eyes at while secretly loving every second.

Streaming now on Prime Video

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Kelly Woo
Managing editor, streaming

Kelly is the managing editor of streaming for Tom’s Guide, so basically, she watches TV for a living. Previously, she was a freelance entertainment writer for Yahoo, Vulture, TV Guide and other outlets. When she’s not watching TV and movies for work, she’s watching them for fun, seeing live music, writing songs, knitting and gardening.

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