2023 was a great year for the film industry, but especially for streaming platforms. Some major projects were directly linked to services like Netflix or Prime Video, with exclusive premieres in their catalogs, such as Saltburn or Maestro, which did not go through cinema screens.
Despite many big titles not having the chance to find a home on a television giant, like Oppenheimer (which will arrive at Peacock at some point in 2024), most of the successful productions this year are already available for streaming from the comfort of your home.
Many of these are potential contenders for next year’s Academy Awards, such as Barbie, which will be competing in various categories and possibly in some of the most important ones (including the soundtrack and maybe even Best Picture). Here, check out which ones they are and where to watch them…
What are some of the best films of the year and where can you watch them?
The Holdovers – Available on Peacock.
A curmudgeonly instructor at a New England prep school is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually, he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker — and with the school’s head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam.
Barbie – Available on Max.
Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans.
May December – Available on Netflix.
Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple buckles under pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film about their past.
Maestro – Available on Netflix.
A towering and fearless love story chronicling the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein. A love letter to life and art, Maestro at its core is an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse – Available on Netflix.
After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters the Spider Society, a team of Spider-People charged with protecting the Multiverse’s very existence. But when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders and must set out on his own to save those he loves most.
Fair Play – Available on Netflix.
An unexpected promotion at a cutthroat hedge fund pushes a young couple’s relationship to the brink, threatening to unravel not only their recent engagement but their lives.
Rustin – Available on Netflix.
Activist Bayard Rustin faces racism and homophobia as he helps change the course of Civil Rights history by orchestrating the 1963 March on Washington.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie – Available on Netflix and Peacock.
While working underground to fix a water main, Brooklyn plumbers—and brothers—Mario and Luigi are transported down a mysterious pipe and wander into a magical new world. But when the brothers are separated, Mario embarks on an epic quest to find Luigi.
The Killer – Available on Netflix.
After a fateful near-miss, an assassin battles his employers, and himself, on an international manhunt he insists isn’t personal.
Saltburn – Available on Prime Video.
Struggling to find his place at Oxford University, student Oliver Quick finds himself drawn into the world of the charming and aristocratic Felix Catton, who invites him to Saltburn, his eccentric family’s sprawling estate, for a summer never to be forgotten.
Cassandro – Available on Prime Video.
The true story of Saúl Armendáriz, a gay amateur wrestler from El Paso that rises to international stardom after he creates the character Cassandro, the “Liberace of Lucha Libre.” In the process, he upends not just the macho wrestling world but also his own life.
The Little Mermaid – Available on Disney+.
The youngest of King Triton’s daughters, and the most defiant, Ariel longs to find out more about the world beyond the sea, and while visiting the surface, falls for the dashing Prince Eric. With mermaids forbidden to interact with humans, Ariel makes a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, which gives her a chance to experience life on land, but ultimately places her life – and her father’s crown – in jeopardy.
Asteroid City – Available on Peacock and Prime Video.
In an American desert town circa 1955, the itinerary of a Junior Stargazer/Space Cadet convention is spectacularly disrupted by world-changing events.
Creed III – Available on Prime Video.
After dominating the boxing world, Adonis Creed has thrived in his career and family life. When a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy, Damian Anderson, resurfaces after serving a long sentence in prison, he is eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. The face-off between former friends is more than just a fight. To settle the score, Adonis must put his future on the line to battle Damian — a fighter with nothing to lose.
Beau Is Afraid – Available on Paramount With Showtime+.
A paranoid man embarks on an epic odyssey to get home to his mother.
Evil Dead Rise – Available on Max and Prime Video.
A reunion between two estranged sisters gets cut short by the rise of flesh-possessing demons, thrusting them into a primal battle for survival as they face the most nightmarish version of family imaginable.
Master Gardener – Available on Hulu.
Narvel Roth is a meticulous horticulturist who is devoted to tending the grounds of a beautiful estate and pandering to his employer, the wealthy dowager Mrs. Haverhill. When she demands that he take on her wayward and troubled niece, it unlocks dark secrets from a buried violent past.
Air – Available on Prime Video.
Discover the game-changing partnership between a then undiscovered Michael Jordan and Nike’s fledgling basketball division which revolutionized the world of sports and culture with the Air Jordan brand.
The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar – Available on Netflix.
A rich man learns about a guru who can see without using his eyes. He sets out to master the skill in order to cheat at gambling.
Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant – Available on Prime Video.
During the war in Afghanistan, a local interpreter risks his own life to carry an injured sergeant across miles of grueling terrain.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – Available on Disney+.
Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him to defend the universe along with protecting one of their own. A mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.
Infinity Pool – Available on Hulu.
While staying at an isolated island resort, James and Em are enjoying a perfect vacation of pristine beaches, exceptional staff, and soaking up the sun. But guided by the seductive and mysterious Gabi, they venture outside the resort grounds and find themselves in a culture filled with violence, hedonism, and untold horror. A tragic accident leaves them facing a zero tolerance policy for crime: either you’ll be executed, or, if you’re rich enough to afford it, you can watch yourself die instead.
Cocaine Bear – Available on Prime Video.
Inspired by a true story, an oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists and teens converge in a Georgia forest where a 500-pound black bear goes on a murderous rampage after unintentionally ingesting cocaine.
Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Theives – Available on Paramount+ and Prime Video.
A charming thief and a band of unlikely adventurers undertake an epic heist to retrieve a lost relic, but things go dangerously awry when they run afoul of the wrong people.
Bottoms – Available on Fubo.
Unpopular best friends PJ and Josie start a high school self-defense club to meet girls and lose their virginity. They soon find themselves in over their heads when the most popular students start beating each other up in the name of self-defense.
Elemental – Available on Disney+.
In a city where fire, water, land and air residents live together, a fiery young woman and a go-with-the-flow guy will discover something elemental: how much they have in common.