Looking for the best Netflix documentaries? We've got you covered.
Netflix's library of shows and movies is always growing. The streamer might be home to be plenty of big-ticket originals, movies and TV shows, but it also has a wide range of documentaries and factual content for when you're in a mood to learn something new.
As you'd expect from one of the best streaming services around, there's something to suit practically every taste. With feature films, docuseries, plenty of true crime content, and reality shows that skirt the line between scripted drama and documentary on a boatload of topics, there really is something for everyone. We've included our picks for the best Netflix documentaries you should be streaming right now below.
The best Netflix documentaries to stream right now
13th
Ava DuVernay, the first Black woman to have a feature film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, created the gripping and poignant documentary 13th.
Named for the 13th Amendment in the United States Constitution that abolished slavery and put an end to involuntary servitude except as a punishment for conviction of a crime, DuVernay explores how this exception has perpetuated a history of racial injustice in the United States through things like (but not limited to) lynchings, disenfranchisement, Jim Crow laws, the prison industrial complex, the school to prison pipeline, and the war on drugs.
Since its release, the film was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special.
Beckham
This one's not just for sports fans. In Beckham, world-famous athlete David Beckham candidly reflects on his storied soccer career anad gives us unprecedented access to his personal and private life.
Across four episodes, Beckham chronicles his successful career as a professional footballer and finds time to explore his relationship with his wife, Victoria (otherwise known as Posh Spice) and fits in some more unorthodox revelations about his hobbies along the way; I bet you didn't know Beckham was a keen beekeeper!
My Octopus Teacher
My Octopus Teacher took the Oscar for Best Documentary in 2021, and it’s easy to see why.
This heartwarming Netflix original follows the adventures of filmmaker Craig Foster who forged a very unusual relationship with a young octopus whilst free-diving in a kelp forest in False Bay ( close to Cape Town, South Africa).
Craig followed the octopus around for close to a year, playing with her and watching to see how the fish survived in its environment. Through his observations, Craig reconnects with his passion for film-making, all the while documenting his friendship with the octopus and the breathtaking sights beneath the waves in stunning detail with the help of Blue Planet II cinematographer, Roger Horrocks.
Casting JonBenet
JonBenet Ramsey’s unsolved murder is perhaps one of the greatest sources for conspiracy theories and armchair detective work of the last 50 years.
In Kitty Green’s Casting JonBenet, the story of what happened on that fateful Christmas night is told not as an objective presentation of true crime facts, but rather through the retelling of personal thoughts belonging to actors in Boulder, Colorado, where the Ramsey murder took place.
Actors auditioning for members of the Ramsey family bring their own beliefs of guilt or innocence to their performances and their unscripted thoughts on what happened as well as how the event impacted their lives all form arguably the most compelling film discussing JonBenet Ramsey.
Disclosure: Trans Lives on Screen
Let’s just cut right to the chase--transgender representation in film and television is problematic at best.
As stated in the documentary Disclosure and cited from a GLAAD study, 80 percent of Americans don't actually know a transgender person, meaning many people develop their thoughts and opinions on trans people based on what they see in media.
Serving somewhat as “Trans Representation 101,” Disclosure presents a historical look at Hollywood's portrayal of transgender people and how these portrayals have a real-life impact on the treatment and lives of the transgender community.
Our Planet
Netflix's Our Planet was the first nature documentary that the streamer ever made, and they enlisted top-tier filmmakers to bring it to life.
Our Planet was produced by Silverback Films, the same team behind a number of equally excellent nature docuseries for the BBC (Planet Earth, Frozen Planet, and The Blue Planet). Narrated by Sir David Attenborough, Our Planet's first season explores some of Planet Earth's most important habitats and celebrates the flora and fauna that they support.
The series is notable amongst other nature docs for putting greater emphasis on humankind's impact on the natural world. The series then returned for Our Planet II, a new four-part series all about animal migration patterns in 2023. Viewers should also consider checking out Life On Our Planet, a new series checking out the struggle to survive that life on Earth has faced for billions of years.
Formula 1: Drive to Survive
Formula 1: Drive to Survive is a fascinating opportunity to go behind the scenes in one of the world's greatest racing competitions each and every year.
Starting with the 2018 Championship, each series gives viewers a sneak peek at the inner workings of one year in the racing calendar. The 2022 season was the first to feature Max Verstappen, who had previously criticized the series for fabricating or exaggerating things that went on during the World Championships.
Along the way, you'll not only get to know top racing drivers but also the teams working flat out to try and bring home the win each year. Drive to Survive is so good it also found its way onto our list of the best car TV shows.
The Last Dance
Now an Emmy award-winning docuseries, The Last Dance centers around the career of perhaps the greatest basketball player of all time, Michael Jordan, and his final season with the Chicago Bulls.
The series paints Jordan in a pretty favorable light (his company Jump 23 helped produce) but the remarkable gallery of talking heads commenting and showcased throughout the series is unprecedented.
Featuring unaired footage from the truly unforgettable 1997-98 basketball season, The Last Dance takes you back in time and evokes all of the good feelings of basketball’s greatest dynasty.
Making a Murderer
Every so often, something is made that manages to break all social and cultural barriers and find an almost universal appeal to audiences.
True crime absolutely dominates the documentary and podcasting worlds, but the powder keg of murder, corruption and captivating characters gave Netflix one of its most explosive hits. The story of Steven Avery and Brendan Dassey regarding the murder of Teresa Halbach is one that is littered with complications and confusion, and audiences everywhere couldn’t look away.
The response was so great, that Brendan Dassey’s case was reopened and a new investigation was launched regarding his allegedly coerced confessions. A second series serving as an update was released a few years later, but fans are still speculating about what really happened even to this day.
ReMastered
For those missing old episodes of VH1’s Behind the Music, this is the docuseries for you. The ReMastered Collection seeks to explore the unusual careers of some of the music industry’s most legendary artists, without ever skimping on the imperfect lives of these superstars.
Each episode focuses mainly on one of music’s most sensationalized tales, highlighting the truth behind stories like Johnny Cash’s visit to meet President Nixon, the martyrdom of Victor Jara in Chile, and the murder of Jam Master Jay. This eight-part series is a must-watch for music fans everywhere.
Shirkers
Singapore’s first road movie was made in 1992 by Sandi Tan and her American mentor, Georges, but due to Georges stealing all of the footage, the film was never seen. Until now.
The 16 mm film was recovered two decades later, and its discovery inspired Tan to immediately dive into a personal quest to track down Georges and figure out what the hell happened after all these years.
Shirkers the narrative feature was never made, but Shirkers the documentary is an inspiring story about D.I.Y. filmmaking, following your passions, and the love of movies.
The Staircase
The court case of novelist Michael Peterson is just as bizarre as the circumstances surrounding the death of his wife, Kathleen Peterson.
If you ask Michael, Kathleen died after falling down the stairs, but medical examiners believe Kathleen’s injuries were more closely connected to abuse. Throughout the trial, a number of wild-as-hell conspiracy theories came out of the woodwork to explain Kathleen’s death, including the suspicion that she was attacked... by an owl.
The Staircase was a crime made popular by its mentioning on popular podcasts like ‘My Favorite Murder,’ but the Netflix release of this French-produced series (which included three new episodes) cemented it as a bonafide pop culture phenomenon, and eventually led to the HBO and Annapurna TV true-crime miniseries, also called The Staircase.
The Social Dilemma
Maybe it’s because we were all trapped at home and existing on our screens 24/7 at one point, but Netflix had another cultural takeover on its hands with The Social Dilemma when it was released.
Sure, we all know that social media is bad for us, but The Social Dilemma breaks down just how our dependency on social media has completely warped our perspectives on reality and wrecked the way society functions.
The documentary sprinkles dramatizations throughout which serve as both warning bells and unexpected relief from the increasing understanding that we’re being technologically manipulated, coded, and data mined by nefarious forces.
What Happened, Miss Simone?
What Happened, Miss Simone proves that the only person truly capable of explaining the life story of Nina Simone... is Nina herself.
Unlike most documentaries that favor other people talking on behalf of the subject, What Happened, Miss Simone? is dominated by archival footage, taped interviews, and Simone’s own music serving as a parallel narrator to offer a look into the life of one of music’s greatest leading ladies. Not only was she a gifted performer, but Nina Simone was also a civil rights activist and loving mother.
What Happened, Miss Simone? is one of Netflix’s most acclaimed documentaries. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2015, received six Primetime Emmy Award nominations (winning Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special), and won a Peabody Award.
High Score
Released in 2020, High Score is a docu-series that traces the early history of video gaming, one of the world’s most lucrative forms of entertainment.
Through interviews with some of the creative geniuses behind gaming classics like Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, and Sonic the Hedgehog, High Score explores just how the likes of Nintendo, Sega, and Namco took over the globe and transformed their mascots into some of the most recognizable pop culture icons around.
Narrated by the voice of Mario himself, Charles Martinet, High Score is a great insight into the world of gaming and covers the essential points from the early parts of gaming culture and history.
Wham!
Chris Smith's Wham! documentary movie marked the 40th anniversary of the hit band's 1983 debut album, Fantastic. Largely, the doc charts the journey of the pop duo comprised of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley from forming a friendship at school to becoming megastars.
Within four years, the teenage best friends had formed the duo and conquered the world; the set out as the band Wham! in 1982 and swiftly enjoyed huge success before playing their final gig at London's Wembley Stadium in 1986.
Offering 'unprecedented access' to both stars' personal archives, Wham! makes extensive use of interview footage and some never-before-seen clips of the pair to explore the two best friends' time in the spotlight.
Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado
A hero hailing from Puerto Rico and a cultural phenomenon in the Latine community, astrologer/actor/dancer/writer/television personality Walter Mercado was undoubtedly one of the most fascinating people on the planet.
For decades, Mercado hosted an astrological prediction show on Spanish-speaking cable channels, that was less Miss Cleo and more Liberace. Mercado flaunted elaborate costumes and capes that would rival Elton John, and despite his flamboyant expression, was beloved the world over.
The documentary is a celebration of Mercado’s life and impact on the Latine community, but also the complicated history of an icon.
Lewis Capaldi: How I'm Feeling Now
Scottish singer-songwriter Lewis Capaldi takes us behind the scenes during the production of his sophomore album in this frank and moving feature-length documentary.
Lewis Capaldi: How I'm Feeling Now joins the star after achieving huge success with the launch of his first album. Capaldi is determined to outdo his first project, though How I'm Feeling Now shows what the singer was dealing with during the production of his sophomore album.
How I'm Feeling Now packs in plenty of the singer's trademark sense of humor, but is also a frank exploration of both the highs and lows Lewis Capaldi felt whilst confronting his insecurities, and was jokingly described by the singer himself as 'the most emotional film about an overweight guy since The Whale'.
