Best Movies to Stream this Weekend on Paramount+, Including ‘Nightcrawler’

If you’re planning a cozy movie weekend, Paramount+ has a fresh drop spanning thrillers, biopics, sci-fi, and animation. The lineup mixes newer releases with modern favorites and well-loved crowd-pleasers, so you can pick by mood without running out of options. Everything below is pulled from the latest arrivals and grouped with the most recent titles first.

Each pick includes a quick brief on what it’s about, plus the essential who-made-it details—directors, writers, and the cast that brings it to life. Skim, choose, and hit play.

‘Shadow Land’ (2024)

James Bamford directs this political thriller written by Steven Paul. Jon Voight stars as Robert Wainwright, a former U.S. president haunted by violent visions that feel more like warnings than dreams, with Marton Csokas as Dr. Magnus and Rhona Mitra as Elena Voss. Philip Winchester appears as Agent Hale alongside a supporting ensemble that populates the story’s corridors of power.

The plot ties Wainwright’s nightmares to an active conspiracy, drawing him back into a world of clandestine meetings and compromised loyalties. Production leans on Bamford’s action background to stage tight set-pieces, while the screenplay intercuts flashbacks and present-day maneuvers as the investigation closes in on the source of the threat.

‘I See You’ (2019)

Directed by Adam Randall and written by Devon Graye, this psychological chiller centers on a missing-child case that collides with a family in crisis. Helen Hunt plays Jackie Harper, Jon Tenney plays Greg Harper, the lead detective on the case, and Judah Lewis appears as their son. Owen Teague features as Alec, with Libe Barer as Mindy, in story threads that intersect with the investigation.

The narrative shifts perspective as strange incidents escalate inside the Harpers’ home, blending domestic drama with procedural elements tied to the abduction. The film uses timeline pivots and parallel viewpoints to reframe earlier scenes, with location work and practical staging anchoring the twists to the town’s lakeside setting.

‘Breaking In’ (2018)

James McTeigue directs from a screenplay by Ryan Engle. Gabrielle Union leads as Shaun Russell, a mother forced to outwit a crew of intruders after they trap her children inside her late father’s fortified house. Billy Burke, Richard Cabral (as Duncan), Ajiona Alexus, Levi Meaden, Mark Furze, and Seth Carr (as Glover Russell) round out the principal cast.

The premise flips the typical home-invasion setup, with Shaun operating largely from outside while using the property’s security features against the criminals. Production emphasizes the location’s layout and surveillance systems to structure the cat-and-mouse beats, keeping motivations and objectives clear as the night unfolds.

‘Nightcrawler’ (2014)

Written and directed by Dan Gilroy, this neo-noir follows Lou Bloom, a freelance crime videographer navigating Los Angeles’s overnight news market. Jake Gyllenhaal headlines alongside Rene Russo, Riz Ahmed, and Bill Paxton, with Robert Elswit’s cinematography shaping the film’s after-hours look.

The script tracks how Bloom learns scanner rhythms, station needs, and negotiation tactics to sell footage. The production focuses on process—driving, listening, framing, and haggling—using real locations, lean crew work, and a precise editorial rhythm to depict the commerce around late-night incidents.

‘Grown Ups 2’ (2013)

Dennis Dugan directs this ensemble comedy from a screenplay by Adam Sandler, Fred Wolf, and Tim Herlihy. Adam Sandler returns with Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, Salma Hayek, and Maya Rudolph, continuing the story of longtime friends raising families in the same town.

Set over a chaotic day and night, the movie strings together small-town set pieces—school events, parties, and run-ins—with new and returning characters. Production centers on group chemistry, staging multi-character scenes and physical gags while the script moves the ensemble through escalating mishaps.

‘Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster’ (2010)

Brian Levant directs this live-action ‘Scooby-Doo’ entry, with Daniel and Steven Altiere credited for the teleplay. Robbie Amell, Hayley Kiyoko, Kate Melton, and Nick Palatas play Fred, Velma, Daphne, and Shaggy, with Frank Welker voicing Scooby-Doo and supporting roles that include Beverly Sanders.

The story relocates Mystery Inc. to a lakeside resort for summer jobs, where a local legend sparks an investigation that mixes practical gags with creature effects. Production blends location work and CG touches to support the familiar unmask-the-villain structure, giving each member of the team a defined role in the case.

‘30 Days of Night’ (2007)

David Slade directs this adaptation of the graphic novel by Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith, with the screenplay by Niles, Stuart Beattie, and Brian Nelson. Josh Hartnett and Melissa George lead as Eben and Stella Oleson, while Danny Huston heads the feral vampire pack as Marlow.

The setup uses an Alaskan town’s month-long polar night to remove the sunrise safety valve, structuring raids, hideouts, and searches across snowbound streets. Production design favors stark contrasts and practical stunt work, with makeup and costuming defining the vampires’ predatory look and movement.

‘Beowulf’ (2007)

Robert Zemeckis directs this performance-capture fantasy based on the Old English epic, with a screenplay by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary. Ray Winstone, Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins, Robin Wright, Brendan Gleeson, and John Malkovich supply principal performances through motion-capture and voice work.

The plot condenses Beowulf’s major trials—Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and the dragon—while adding connective motivations between episodes. The production uses then-cutting-edge capture and digital cinematography to stage large-scale battles, period seascapes, and hall interiors with stylized, photoreal textures.

‘The Prince & Me’ (2004)

Directed by Martha Coolidge from a script by Katherine Fugate, John K. McCarthy, and Mark Amin, this romantic comedy pairs Julia Stiles and Luke Mably. Stiles plays Paige, a Wisconsin pre-med student; Mably plays Edvard, a European crown prince studying incognito in the U.S., with Miranda Richardson and James Fox as his royal parents.

The story follows Paige and Edvard through campus routines, family expectations, and the public pressures of royal duty. Production balances Midwestern college locations with palace interiors abroad, using costuming and protocol details to contrast the worlds Paige must navigate as she weighs medicine, independence, and life overseas.

‘Finding Neverland’ (2004)

Marc Forster directs this drama inspired by Allan Knee’s play ‘The Man Who Was Peter Pan’, with a screenplay by David Magee. Johnny Depp stars as J. M. Barrie, Kate Winslet as Sylvia Llewelyn Davies, and Dustin Hoffman as producer Charles Frohman, alongside Julie Christie and Freddie Highmore.

Set in early-20th-century London, the film traces Barrie’s friendship with the Llewelyn Davies family and the development of ‘Peter Pan’ from idea to stage. Production draws on period design and theater staging to show how real relationships influenced Barrie’s work, interweaving scenes of writing, rehearsal, and performance with the family’s milestones.

Got another title you think belongs on this list? Share your picks in the comments and tell everyone what you’re pressing play on this weekend.