The Ultimate Guide to What to Watch on Netflix, Hulu, Prime Video, HBO Max, and More in October 2026

Don’t get spooked by how much good TV is coming out in October. The only scary thing is how packed your viewing schedule is about to be: New shows premiering this month include Netflix’s Florence Pugh-starring East of Eden adaptation; HBO’s star-studded British legal drama War; and the latest TV series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, VisionQuest. Returning champions include the second season of TV Guide favorite The Lowdown and the fourth season of Keri Russell’s The Diplomat. But if you’re really just looking for something festive to enjoy, Mike Flanagan’s adaptation of Stephen King’s Carrie is hitting Prime Video, and the Friday the 13th prequel series Crystal Lake comes to Peacock, both just in time for Halloween.

Our guide to the best TV and streaming movies in October is divided into three sections: the best shows to watch this month, the best shows to watch by streaming service, and a calendar of TV highlights. Whatever you’re looking for, you’ll find it below.

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The best shows to watch in October 

East of Eden (Oct. 1, Netflix)

Adapting East of Eden is a family business. More than seven decades after her grandfather Elia Kazan directed the 1955 film, Zoe Kazan is putting her stamp on Steinbeck’s epic novel, wrangling the multigenerational saga into a seven-episode limited series. Inspired by the biblical tale of Cain and Abel, the story tracks two families, the Trasks and the Hamiltons, across the decades in California’s Salinas Valley. Christoper Abbott, Mike Faist, Tracy Letts, Martha Plimpton, and Ciarán Hinds are among the show’s stars, but Florence Pugh is at the center of it all as the scheming Cathy Ames, who marries into the Trask family. Is she an antihero or something more sinister? – Kelly Connolly [Trailer]

War (Oct. 1, HBO)

Who doesn’t want to watch beautiful people involve themselves in an acrimonious legal battle? The very Succession -esque War, HBO’s latest drama, is about just that. Lupin creator George Kay is behind this series, which follows the scandalous and high-profile divorce between a tech entrepreneur (played by Dominic West) and his actress wife (played by Sienna Miller), as well as the rival British law firms who are representing them. The series has already been renewed for a second season, which will star Marisa Tomei and Kelly Macdonald. – Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

Tip Toe (Oct. 2, Starz)

How lucky are we all that there are two Alan Cumming -led TV shows being released this fall? Here, Cumming co-stars alongside David Morrissey in this limited series about a pair of neighbors — Cumming’s Leo, the owner of a gay bar; and Morrissey’s Clive, an electrician with two teenage sons — who allow the pressures of an increasingly homophobic world to turn them into bitter enemies. Created by Russell T Davies, Tip Toe got great reviews when it premiered in the U.K. earlier this year. – Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Carrie (Oct. 7, Prime Video)

Maybe every generation gets the Carrie it deserves. Stephen King‘s debut horror novel has already been adapted multiple times for the big screen, most memorably in Brian De Palma’s 1976 film, and once for the stage, but as long as there are high school bullies, there will probably be new takes on Carrie. The latest — and the first to turn the story into a TV series — comes from frequent Stephen King adapter Mike Flanagan, who brings the story into the present, with social media playing a key role in Carrie’s torment. Summer H. Howell stars as the titular teen, who’s been isolated from the world by her parents and stuck at home with her abusive religious mother (Samantha Sloyan). When Carrie is put in public school after her father’s unexpected death, her dormant telekinetic powers start to awaken. – Kelly Connolly [Trailer]

Below (Oct. 8, Netflix)

This limited series probably doesn’t want the pressure of Widow’s Bay comparisons, but it’s kind of unavoidable given that it’s set on a remote island with spooky things stirring underneath the surface of the water… and it’s kind of funny. But Below is a different beast, following a fisherman (Josh Hartnett) and a marine biologist (Mackenzie Davis) taking on a sea creature that’s terrorizing their Newfoundland community, and dealing with heaps of family drama and government pressure to relocate the island’s citizens to a more connected part of the world. Its unique setting and unsettling mystery make it one of the most tantalizing options of the fall. And it has Stranger Things‘ Charlie Heaton putting on one thick Newfoundland accent. – Tim Surette [Trailer]

Cupertino (Oct. 8, CBS)

A new show from Robert and Michelle King is always worth celebrating. The creators of The Good Wife and Evil are back on CBS with another tale of good and evil: a David vs. Goliath legal drama set in Silicon Valley. Cupertino stars Evil‘s Mike Colter as lawyer Michael Price, who’s cheated out of his stock options when he’s fired from the tech startup he co-founded. He teams up with Olivia Siffre (Rachel Keller), another recently fired lawyer with her own reasons to want revenge, to start a scrappy new firm dedicated to representing the victims of the tech elite. Ella Stiller, Nik Dodani, Busy Philipps, and Renée Elise Goldsberry also star. – Kelly Connolly [Trailer]

The Lowdown Season 2 (Oct. 14, FX/Hulu)

The Lowdown was easily one of the best TV shows of 2025 in its first season, which automatically makes the upcoming second season appointment viewing. Reprising his lead role in Sterlin Harjo‘s Tulsa-set noir is Ethan Hawke, whose “truthstorian” Lee Raybon finds himself bumbling through a brand new investigation as he helps a public defender (played by Betty Gilpin) search for her client, who has recently gone missing from the state penitentiary. In addition to Gilpin, Tommy Lee Jones also joins the ensemble as Lee’s estranged grifter father. Sign us up. – Allison Picurro [Season 1 trailer]

VisionQuest (Oct. 14, Disney+)

More than five years after WandaVision premiered, and two years after Agatha All Along, Disney+ is wrapping up the trilogy with this series following Paul Bettany‘s Vision. VisionQuest, which is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase Six, tells the story of the android, who’s been in hiding. But Vision must step out of the shadows when a bounty is placed on his head. As he goes on the run with a boy named Thomas Shepherd (Ruaridh Mollica), Vision begins to learn the secrets behind his programming. VisionQuest also stars James Spader as Ultron, Todd Stashwick as Paladin, and T’Nia Miller as Jocasta. – Kat Moon [Trailer] 

Crystal Lake (Oct. 15, Peacock)

It was only a matter of time before we got the Mrs. Voorhees prequel. Just in time for Halloween is Crystal Lake, the latest addition to the Friday the 13th franchise, which stars Linda Cardellini as Pamela, mother of the future hockey mask-wearing killer Jason, who (seemingly fatally) drowned before the events of the 1980 slasher that started it all. As the grief-stricken Pamela struggles to move on after her son’s supposed death, the quiet town of Crystal Lake is rocked as dead bodies suddenly begin turning up all over the place. – Allison Picurro [Trailer]

The Diplomat Season 4 (Oct. 15, Netflix)

Keri Russell‘s political drama has quietly become one of the most compelling series on television, mixing high-stakes diplomacy on the world stage with even higher-stakes marriage problems behind closed doors. Russell stars as Kate Wyler, a U.S. ambassador, as she defuses potentially world-changing conflicts with the U.K., while her husband Hal (Rufus Sewell), who also works for the government, has career ambitions of his own that conflict with Kate’s. West Wing alums Allison Janney (who just won an Emmy for her performance in Season 3) and Bradley Whitford return this season as series regulars, playing the president of the United States and the first husband. – Tim Surette [Trailer]

Nocturne (Oct. 30, Apple TV)

Don’t sleep on Nocturne, Apple TV+’s new crime drama based on the novels Lazarus and The Sandman by Lars Kepler. The series takes place in a small town in Western Pennsylvania, where a serial killer, Jurek Walter — played by Adolescence‘s Stephen Graham — is on a rampage. Liev Schreiber plays homicide detective Jonah Lynn, who must put a stop to Jurek’s crimes. Joining Graham and Schreiber in the cast are Zazie Beetz, Bill Camp, Rory Culkin, Chrissy Metz, Poorna Jagannathan, and Gary Carr. – Kat Moon [Trailer]

What’s on Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Prime Video, and more in October

Netflix’s best new shows and movies in October

While other streamers tout horror movies in October’s run-up to Halloween, Netflix would rather fill the month with some promising new seasons of shows of all genres. Yes, the new series we’re looking forward to most — the limited series Below — has some horror elements to it, but it’s not your typical pre-trick-or-treating fare. In Below, a fisherman (Josh Hartnett) living in an isolated Newfoundland town fights to save his family from a beast from the depths of the ocean, which may or may not be related to the mysterious death of his father decades earlier. The other big release in October is Season 4 of the political drama The Diplomat, with more tension between the U.S. and U.K. brewing and only Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) able to stop it. The month kicks off with a new adaptation of John Steinbeck’s epic East of Eden, with Florence Pugh playing the notorious Cathy Ames, and the rest of October includes new seasons of the French heist series Lupin, the romantic comedy Nobody Wants This, and the critically acclaimed anime Cyberpunk: Edgerunners. On the movies side, Ben Affleck directs and stars in Animals, and Chris Evans goes toe to toe with Anya Taylor-Joy in Sacrifice. Here’s our list of the best shows and movies on Netflix in October, plus everything coming to and leaving Netflix in October.

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HBO Max’s best new shows and movies in October

HBO’s lineup for October may not be stacked with plenty of highlights, but its big new release is a mighty one. The legal drama War premieres at the top of the month and stars Dominic West (The Wire) and Sienna Miller (Anatomy of a Scandal) as a tech mogul and famous actress, respectively, in the middle of a bitter divorce. The series, which is being likened to Succession, follows the two ruthless law firms going at each other as they do whatever it takes to win the case. Also coming to HBO in October are Kate Berlant‘s stand-up special Kate Berlant: Parmesan and the A24 films The Death of Robin Hood and The Invite. Here’s our list of the best shows and movies on HBO Max in October, plus everything coming to HBO Max in October.

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Hulu’s best new shows and movies in October

Like your local supermarket’s seasonal aisle in early August (too early!), Hulu loves to go all out for Halloween. The streamer is packing its library with some fantastic horror movies, including Barbarian, Midsommar, Hereditary, and The Substance, as well as new-to-streaming scary films like Soulm8te and Hokum. Pay particular attention to Neon’s Hokum, a real terrifying treat that came out earlier this year. On the TV side of things, Ethan Hawke’s The Lowdown, one of the most acclaimed series of 2025, returns for Season 2 with new cast additions Betty Gilpin and Tommy Lee Jones. And the new comedy Phony, starring Connie Britton as a woman may not be who she says she is, and The Mob, a reality show in the vein of The Traitors, also hit Hulu in October. Here’s our list of the best shows and movies on Hulu in October, plus everything coming to Hulu in October.

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Amazon Prime Video’s best new shows and movies in October

Whether you enjoy traveling the world to find everlasting love or you enjoy traveling the world on a bloodthirsty quest for violent vengeance, and nothing in between, Prime Video has something for you. For the former, there’s the original film The Love of Your Life, which stars Margaret Qualley as a woman who enters a whirlwind romance and must find herself again when it suddenly ends. And for the latter, the long-awaited second season of The Terminal List follows James Reece (Chris Pratt) as he crisscrosses the globe guns a-blazin’ and uncovers a vast conspiracy. Elsewhere, there are a pair of foreign zombie options in I Would Rather Die and Apocalypse Z: New World, along with the French-Italian heist movie Masterplan and the reality competition series The Table and Last One Laughing: Halloween. Here’s our list of the best shows and movies on Amazon Prime Video in October, plus everything coming to Amazon Prime Video in October. 

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Peacock’s new shows and movies in October

Peacock is keeping things appropriately eerie this October. The highlight of the streamer’s pre-Halloween lineup is Crystal Lake, a new Friday the 13th prequel series starring Linda Cardellini as a young Pamela Voorhees, whose refusal to accept that an accident at Camp Crystal Lake killed her son eventually sends her down a dark path. The full first season premieres Oct. 15. In the meantime, the original Friday the 13th trilogy hits Peacock at the start of the month. And if you’re looking to spend Halloween season with strange, unintelligible beings, you can check out Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day on Oct. 9 and Minions & Monsters on Oct. 28. Here’s our list of everything coming to Peacock in October.

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Paramount+’s new shows and movies in October

Paramount+ is getting in touch with its roots (remember CBS All Access?) this October. It’s the start of the fall TV season on CBS, which means it’s also the start of the fall TV season on Paramount+. Marshals, NCIS, Elsbeth, and more return early in the month, but it’s also worth keeping your eye on a pair of new shows: the vampire comedy Eternally Yours, from Ghosts creators Joe Wiseman and Joe Port, and the Silicon Valley-set legal drama Cupertino, from The Good Wife and Evil creators Robert and Michelle King. A new CBS workplace drama from Robert and Michelle King is what fall is all about. Aside from the CBS lineup, Paramount+’s October offerings also include the new animated series Avatar: Seven Havens, the fourth season of Tulsa King, and the second season of Dexter: Resurrection, which is the best thing to happen to the Dexter franchise since Dexter. Here’s our list of everything coming to Paramount+ in October.

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October TV calendar highlights

Oct. 1
 Coven Academy (Season 1, Freeform)
East of Eden (Limited Series, Netflix)
War (Season 1, HBO)

Oct. 2
Kill Jackie (Limited Series, AMC+)
Tip Toe (Limited Series, Starz)

Oct. 3
Get Jiro (Season 1, Adult Swim)

Oct. 6
NCIS: New York (Season 1, CBS)

Oct. 7
Carrie (Season 1, Prime Video)
Jamie Foxx: Take Care of Yourself (Comedy Special, Hulu)
Small Prophets (Season 1, Apple TV)
Who Is Martin Mull? (Documentary, Netflix)

Oct. 8
Below (Limited Series, Netflix)
Cupertino (Season 1, CBS)
Elsbeth (Season 4, CBS)

Oct. 9
Animals (Film, Netflix)
Avatar: Seven Havens (Season 1, Paramount+)
Matchbox The Movie (Film, Apple TV)

Oct. 13
Ludwig (Season 2, BritBox)
Tyson (Limited Series, Netflix)

Oct. 14
The Lowdown (Season 2, FX/Hulu)
VisionQuest (Limited Series, Disney+)

Oct. 15
Crystal Lake (Season 1, Peacock)
The Diplomat (Season 4, Netflix)
Hollywood Arts (Season 1, Netflix)

Oct. 16
Kate Berlant: Parmesan (Comedy Special, HBO)
Masterplan (Film, Prime Video)
Norm: The Tale of Norm Macdonald (Documentary, Netflix)
Sacrifice (Film, Netflix)
Tenzing (Film, Apple TV)
Tulsa King (Season 4, Paramount+)

Oct. 20
The Golden Life (Season 1, E!)
Phony (Season 1, Hulu)

Oct. 21
The New Stanford Prison Experiment (Season 1, Netflix)
The Terminal List (Season 2, Prime Video)

Oct. 22
Nobody Wants This (Season 3, Netflix)

Oct. 23
Lupin (Season 4, Netflix)
Newlyweds (Season 1, NBC)
Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story (Documentary, Netflix)
Yaga (Season 1, AMC+)

Oct. 26
The Mob (Season 1, Hulu)

Oct. 27
The One About Matthew Perry (Docuseries, Netflix)

Oct. 30
Dexter: Resurrection (Season 2, Paramount+)
Nocturne (Season 1, Apple TV)
SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of (Documentary, Netflix)