MW Here's what's worth streaming in July 2025 on Netflix, Hulu, Max, Disney+ and more

By Mike Murphy

Netflix's 'Happy Gilmore 2,' Hulu's 'It's Always Sunny,' Paramount's 'Strange New Worlds' and Max's streaming debut of 'Sinners' are the highlights in a slow month

The streaming landscape is cooling off just as summer's heating up.

July is a pretty slow month for new releases, with a few notable exceptions, such as Netflix's Adam Sandler sequel "Happy Gilmore 2," a new season of Apple's "Foundation" and Max's streaming premiere of the box-office hit "Sinners."

That's not great news for those looking for something to binge-watch while lounging next to the air conditioner, but it is good for cost-conscious consumers who can cut back on their streaming without FOMO.

All it takes is a bit of strategic churning - that is, adding and dropping services month to month - and it's possible to watch the best of the best while keeping your monthly streaming budget under $50. Keep in mind that a billing cycle starts when you sign up, not necessarily at the beginning of the month. It's always worth watching out for deals and money-saving bundles, too.

Each month, this column offers tips on how to maximize your streaming and your budget - rating the major services as "play," "pause" or "stop," similar to investment analysts' traditional ratings of buy, hold and sell - and picks the best shows to help you make your monthly decisions.

Here's a look at what's coming to the various streaming services in July 2025, and what's really worth the monthly subscription fee:

Netflix ($7.99 a month for standard with ads, $17.99 standard with no ads, $24.99 premium with no ads)

After nearly three decades, Adam Sandler is reprising perhaps his most iconic role as a wannabe hockey player-turned-golf sensation in the sequel movie "Happy Gilmore 2" (July 25). This time around, the tantrum-throwing manchild is hitting the links to pay for his daughter's pricey ballet school. Much of the original cast returns, including Christopher McDonald as the villainous Shooter McGavin, though sadly Morris the alligator recently died of old age. Count on the sequel being just as stupid as the original, although that's probably a selling point, actually, and will not in any way dissuade fans from watching it.

Netflix (NFLX) also has the action-movie sequel "The Old Guard 2" (July 2), starring Charlize Theron as an immortal warrior; Season 3 of the excellent sports docuseries "Tour de France: Unchained" (July 2); and Season 2 of the fantasy series "The Sandman," which is ending on the heels of troubling sexual-abuse allegations against co-creator Neil Gaiman. The season will be split into two parts, dropping July 3 and July 24, with a special bonus episode July 31.

"Girls" creator Lena Dunham is back, as co-creator of the semi-autobiographical rom-com series "Too Much" (July 10), about a heartbroken New York woman ("Hacks" scene-stealer Megan Stalter) who moves to London and unexpectedly falls in love. There's also the shark-photography reality series "All the Sharks" (July 4); Season 2 of the NFL docuseries "Quarterback" (July 8), following Joe Burrow, Kirk Cousins and Jared Goff during the 2024 season; the music reality show "Building the Band" (July 9); the National Parks-set mystery series "Untamed" (July 17), starring Eric Bana; and a live women's boxing event from Madison Square Garden, as Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano square off again (July 11).

And of course there's the third and final season of "Squid Game," the massively popular but increasingly bleak South Korean thriller, which dropped at the end of June. It's no secret that Seasons 2 and 3 were cash grabs by creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, who didn't make much from the first season despite the show's global success. Good for him, but the latest installment is underwhelming and unnecessary. This is a series that should have ended as a one-season masterpiece.

Netflix is also adding a ton of popular older shows, including all seasons of "Mom" and "Portlandia" (both July 1), Season 2 of Showtime's "Yellowjackets" (July 1), all seasons of "Mr. Robot" (July 3), Amazon's "Sneaky Pete" (July 10) and Showtime's "House of Lies" (July 23). And for its 50th anniversary, the classic thriller movie "Jaws" is surfacing July 15.

Meanwhile, Netflix is saying farewell to shows like "Loudermilk" (leaving July 1), "Insecure" (July 3), "This Is Us" (July 8) and "Wynonna Earp" (July 26).

Binge-worthy: The British crime drama "Dept. Q" dropped in May, and it's a highly entertaining watch. While breaking little new ground - it's a familiar Nordic noir setup, with a grumpy but genius cop (Matthew Goode) dealing with a dark past - it plays its tropes to perfection, and its supporting cast shines, especially Alexej Manvelov and Leah Byrne as Goode's island-of-misfit-cops colleagues.

Play, pause or stop? Play. You know you're going to end up watching "Happy Gilmore 2," it's OK to admit it. But there's a good selection besides that; in particular, if you gave up on "Mr. Robot" at any point, it's worth a catch-up binge, it ended on a high note way back in 2019. "Somebody Feed Phil," "Sirens" and "North of North" are also worthy of a summer binge.

Hulu ($9.99 a month with ads, or $18.99 with no ads)

It's a good month for comedies on Hulu, headlined by the 17th (!) season of FX's "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" (July 9), which will include the second part of an "Abbott Elementary" crossover (spoiler: the Abbott teachers get to swear). There's also Season 2 of the brilliantly caustic British comedy "Such Brave Girls" (July 7), about the dysfunctional lives of a single mom and her two daughters, and Hulu is also adding all six seasons of the beloved sitcom "Community" and all seasons of the '90s sitcom "Mad About You" (July 24), along with its one-season 2019 revival (July 31).

Hulu also has "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives" reunion show (July 1); Season 10 of ABC's "Bachelor in Paradise" (July 8); the Spanish-language heist series "Suspicious Minds" (July 10); the British crime drama "Dope Girls" (July 29), about women who set up a nightclub in post-WWI London; and the true-crime docuseries "Mr. & Mrs. Murder" (July 30), about a husband's mysterious disappearance.

The fashion competition "Project Runway" (July 31) returns for its 21st season, with Heidi Klum, who left the show in 2018 along with Tim Gunn, returning as host. New episodes will air weekly, shortly after airing on cable's Freeform.

You can also catch up with all episodes of the inconsistent yet frequently moving restaurant dramedy "The Bear," which dropped its fourth season at the end of June (and just got renewed for a fifth). While better than Season 3, the series hasn't returned to the heights of its first two seasons, even though it can still turn out a sublime episode here and there.

Play, pause or stop? Play. Unless you binged it all in its first weekend, take time to watch "The Bear." "Always Sunny" is consistently great, and "Such Brave Girls" is a hilariously dark hidden gem. There's also a deep library, including recent releases like "Adults," "Paradise," "Deli Boys," "Shoresy" and "Dying for Sex."

Paramount+ ($7.99 a month with ads, $12.99 a month Premium with no ads)

Dexter never dies. The original thriller series about a Miami serial killer who only kills murderers ran for eight seasons and ended in 2013. Then we had the sequel series "Dexter: New Blood" in 2021, and the prequel "Dexter: Original Sin" last December. Now we get a revival, "Dexter: Resurrection" (July 11), with Michael C. Hall back as the title character who's relocated to New York City; David Zayas reprising his role as a homicide detective who's Dexter's onetime friend, now foil; and Jack Alcott as Dexter's now-grown son, Harrison. But the original "Dexter" suffered a severe drop in quality in its final seasons, and its spinoffs have been middling at best. It's best to keep expectations for "Resurrections" low, as the plot will no doubt be well-trodden territory (there's only so much this story can mine), But at least there should be an interesting cast, including Peter Dinklage, Uma Thurman, Krysten Ritter, Neil Patrick Harris and Eric Stonestreet.

The prequel series "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" (July 17), the best of the recent crop of "Star Trek" spinoffs, is back for its third season. Anson Mount returns as USS Enterprise Captain Christopher Pike, alongside Lt. James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley), Spock (Ethan Peck) and another familiar character joining the cast: engineer Scotty (Martin Quinn). It's a fun show, in many ways a throwback to the original series, with crisp, mission-of-the-week storylines. The end is also near: It was recently announced that the series will end with Season 5, probably coming in 2027.

Paramount $(PARA)$ also has a new season of "Big Brother" (July 10), the live-action Dora the Explorer movie "Dora and the Search for Sol Dorado" (July 2), weekly episodes of "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" (season finale July 18); and the long-running ensemble drama "The Chi"; and a slate of live sports that includes the WNBA, MLS soccer, golf, and U.S.-Fiji women's rugby (July 19), a friendly tune-up before the Women's Rugby World Cup in August (also on Paramount+).

Name change: Not to be outdone by Max/HBO Max, Paramount's top tier has rebranded from "Paramount+ with Showtime" to "Paramount+ Premium." The name is the only thing changing: the price stays the same, and Premium will get all the Showtime shows.

Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. "Strange New Worlds" is very good, and "Dexter: Resurrection" could, in a best-case scenario, be breezy summer fun. If you're looking for more, try the spy drama "The Agency," the London crime drama "MobLand," the survival thriller "Yellowjackets" and the late-night comedy gameshow "After Midnight," which recently ended its two-year run offering a rare and welcome showcase that let comedians be weird.

Apple TV+ ($9.99 a month)

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July 03, 2025 21:02 ET (01:02 GMT)

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