If there’s ever a time to stay home with Netflix instead of braving the heat in theaters, it’s this summer.
Thanks to some carefully curated films, Netflix has a handful of blockbuster movies from other studios that still hold up favorably compared to what’s playing this summer.
To kick off a new seasonal tradition, the Watch With Us team has selected the five must-watch Netflix movies that are perfect to stream this summer.
Our picks include a wildly underrated fantasy film, the return of an old favorite, a terrific heist flick, a Ghostbusters sequel and the start of an unexpected franchise.
‘Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves’ (2023)
It’s unfortunate that Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves didn’t do better at the box office, because this is a great fantasy action comedy that deserves a sequel. Chris Pine stars as a former hero turned thief, Edgin Darvis, who escapes prison alongside his platonic partner, Holga (Michelle Rodriguez), to reunite with his daughter, Kira (Chloe Coleman). To their dismay, Edgin and Holga learn their old ally, Forge Fitzwilliam (Hugh Grant), has lied about the reason for their imprisonment and made Kira distrust them.
After discovering that Forge has aligned himself with dark forces, Edgin and Holga hatch a plan to rob him blind and break Kira away from his influence. A semi-competent sorcerer, Simon Aumar (Justice Smith), and his shapeshifter ex-girlfriend, Doric (Sophia Lillis), join their cause, but the odds are stacked against them.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is streaming on Netflix.
‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ (2024)
It shouldn’t surprise you that Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) remains untamed nearly four decades after his previous appearance. The “Ghost with the most” is still plotting his escape from the afterlife in Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and Astrid Deetz (Jenna Ortega) has inadvertently given him another chance to romantically pursue her mother, Lydia Deetz (Winona Ryder).
There’s been a lot of tension between the Deetz women over Astrid’s refusal to believe in her mother’s supernatural perceptions. Astrid learns the truth the hard way when she’s railroaded into the afterlife. To save her daughter, Lydia has to give Beetlejuice the wedding he’s wanted since 1988. However, Beetlejuice’s ex-wife, Delores LaFerv (Monica Bellucci), may kill the unhappy couple long before they say “I do.”
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is streaming on Netflix.
‘Ocean’s Eleven’ (2001)
Steven Soderbergh‘s remake of Ocean’s Eleven has an incredible cast and an impeccable comedic touch. George Clooney stars as Danny Ocean, a newly released convict who has a grand plan for his old friend, Robert “Rusty” Ryan (Brad Pitt). He wants to rob three Las Vegas casinos simultaneously on one of the biggest nights of the year.
Together, they recruit Linus Caldwell (Matt Damon), Frank Catton (Bernie Mac) and other professional thieves and con men for the heist of the century. However, Danny hasn’t been entirely honest about why he’s targeting the casino’s owner, Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia), who not so coincidentally, happens to be dating Danny’s ex-wife, Tess (Julia Roberts). You have until June 30 to catch this film and its sequels before they leave Netflix.
Ocean’s Eleven is streaming on Netflix.
‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ (2024)
The most recent Ghostbusters movie reunites two incarnations of the team as Callie Spengler (Carrie Coon) moves her children, Phoebe (Mckenna Grace) and Trevor (Finn Wolfhard), to New York City with her partner, Gary Grooberson (Paul Rudd). Unfortunately, things aren’t going smoothly in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, and Phoebe finds herself forced from the team due to NYC’s strict child labor laws.
As Phoebe struggles to find a place for herself, she befriends a ghost named Melody (Emily Alyn Lind). But there’s more than friendship at stake in this relationship, as a deadly ghost manipulates events to unleash the ultimate winter storm on New York. This is more than the modern team can handle alone, so Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd), Winston Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson), Peter Venkman (Bill Murray) and even Janie Melnitz (Annie Potts) are suiting up at least one more time.
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is streaming on Netflix.
‘Now You See Me’ (2013)
It’s time to meet the Four Horsemen of magic: J. Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson), Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher) and Jack Wilder (Dave Franco). Before the events of Now You See Me, they were just a bunch of street magicians. Now, they’re Las Vegas headliners who can pull off incredible illusions. At the beginning of this film, they rob a bank located on a different continent while in full view of their paying crowd, and there’s nothing the FBI can do about it.
FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) rolls the dice by approaching Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), a former magician, to explain the Four Horsemen’s tricks. Bradley correctly guesses that the bank robbery was just the opening act in the group’s larger plan. Whether they can outwit a veteran who’s been exposing magicians for decades remains to be seen.
Now You See Me is streaming on Netflix.
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