New on Netflix July 29 - Aug 2: 8 new movies, shows and docs picked by our expert

Lhakpa Sherpa in Netflix's documentary Mountain Queen.
(Image credit: Netflix)

While most people around the world are going to be busy this week watching the 2024 Olympic Games, if you're not into your sport then you'll be glad to know that there's lots worth watching on Netflix as well.

For this week's Netflix round-up, I looked at all of the new shows, movies and documentaries coming to the streamer between Saturday, July 27 and Friday, August 2, and compiled them into a curated list of the best new additions.

So on this list we've got true crime series, American sit-coms, international documentaries, animated movies and two directors' cuts of previous Netflix films that'll give you countless hours of content to watch.

So let's find you something to watch on Netflix this week...

Unsolved Mysteries volume 4

  • Paranormal and 'true' crime docuseries returns on Wednesday, July 31

A still from Unsolved Mysteries volume 4 on Netflix.

(Image credit: Netflix)

The long-running Unsolved Mysteries show was revived by Netflix a few years back, and now we're onto the fourth batch of episodes.

Each episode of Unsolved Mysteries looks at a different... well, ostensibly-unexplained case from real life, and they run the gamut from true crime to paranormal creatures and UFOs. 

Seas- sorry, volume 4 looks at cases like Jack the Ripper, the Mothman and black market organ trades. There are five episodes and each will hit Netflix on the same day: Wednesday, July 31.

Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa

  • Mountaineering documentary movie lands on Wednesday, July 31

Lhakpa Sherpa in Netflix documentary movie Mountain Queen.

(Image credit: Netflix)

One of Netflix's best recent documentary lands on the service this week, and if you're going to watch anything this week it should be this.

Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa is about a woman called Lhakpa Sherpa, who works at a Whole Foods in Connecticut and looks after her two daughters. 

However this unassuming mother also holds the world record for the most ascents of Everest of a woman, and through the film she makes her tenth ascent as we learn what brought her from the slopes of the world's biggest mountain to a quiet US state.

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

  • British schoolyard murder mystery lands on Thursday, August 1

Cara (Asha Banks), Pip (Emma Myers), Lauren (Yali Topol Margalith), Zach (Raiko Gohara), Connor (Jude Morgan-Collie) walk along the street together in A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

(Image credit: BBC/Moonage Pictures/Joss Barratt)

After releasing on iPlayer in the UK a month ago, A Good Girl's Guide to Murder is coming out on Netflix in the US this week.

This show tells the story about a schoolgirl who begins to investigate a five-year-old murder, after she thinks that the person arrested for it is actually innocent. She teams up with some other classmates in order to look into the case.

There are six episodes of A Good Girl's Guide to Murder and they all hit Netflix at the same time.

Unstable season 2

  • Returning sit-com lands on Netflix on Thursday, August 1

Rob Lowe and John Owen Lowe in Netflix's Unstable season 2.

(Image credit: Netflix)

Rob Lowe's sit-com TV show, starring the American actor as well as his real-life son John Owen Lowe, returns for a second season this week.

Unstable is about a eccentric and successful entrepreneur who hires his son at his company so they can both cope after the death of his wife. In Unstable season 2, the father decides to set a series of challenges for his son to test whether the boy is a good heir for his biotech company.

All eight episodes of Unstable season 2 will join the firs  season on the streaming service from Thursday, August 1.

Mon Laferte, te amo

  • Music documentary movie comes out on Thursday, August 1

Mon Laferte in Netflix's documentary Mon Laferte, te amo.

(Image credit: Netflix)

The Latin American music artist Mon Laferte gets a new documentary from Netflix this week.

Mon Laferte, te amo follows Laferte during an important transitionary period in her life, becoming a mother, as she looks at her past and works on a world tour to perform her music.

Rebel Moon: Director's Cuts

  • Two sci-fi movies get longer cuts on Friday, August 2

Kora holding a flag aloft in Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire

(Image credit: Netflix)

Zack Snyder's Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire and Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver came out in late 2023 and early 2024 respectively, together forming a two-part epic sci-fi story, but it doesn't end there.

These two movies are both getting longer directors' cuts which will give you more time with the characters, more time to appreciate the action and story and, apparently, more gore and a higher rating too.

Given that the two Rebel Moon movies were maligned by critics and fans, perhaps these two director's cuts will make them more enjoyable to watch. 

Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie

  • Kids' SpongeBob movie arrives on Friday, August 2

Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie

(Image credit: Netflix)

There's a new SpongeBob SquarePants movie coming to Netflix this week, which combines animation and live-action.

Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie follows the cartoon's titular characters as they're abducted from the ocean and taken to Texas. There, they need to stop a villain from taking over a small town, before returning to the ocean.

Tom Bedford
Streaming and Ecommerce Writer

Tom is the streaming and ecommerce writer at What to Watch, covering streaming services in the US and UK. His goal is to help you navigate the busy and confusing online video market, to help you find the TV, movies and sports that you're looking for without having to spend too much money.