Summertime is all about traveling, but you don’t need to leave your home if you want to see some strange and wonderful new places.
That’s because streamers like Hulu and Apple TV are dropping some seriously escapist shows this weekend that will allow you to live all kinds of fantasies.
AMC lets you live your rock god fantasy with The Vampire Lestat, while Hulu’s new workplace comedy Not Suitable for Work channels your desire to be young and in love in crime-free Manhattan.
Watch With Us also recommends streaming Cape Fear, Apple TV’s excellent new adaptation of the classic 1962 and 1991 movies starring Gregory Peck and Robert De Niro.
‘Cape Fear’ Season 1 – Apple TV
Continuing the trend of adapting famous two-hour movies into eight to ten-episode limited series, Cape Fear stars Amy Adams and Patrick Wilson as Anna and Tom Bowden, a longtime married couple who seemingly have everything anyone could want out of life: successful careers as powerhouse attorneys, two healthy children and a nice home with a swimming pool. That’s what recently released criminal Max Cady (Javier Bardem) wants to destroy as he seeks revenge for spending most of his adult life behind bars. He believes Anna, who was his defense lawyer at his murder trial, colluded with Tom, who was the prosecuting attorney on his case, to lock him up. Now it’s Anna and Tom’s turn to stand trial, with Max as the judge, jury and likely executioner.
Unlike pointless TV remakes like Prime Video’s Dead Ringers, this Cape Fear feels necessary. Creator and executive producer Nick Antosca changes just enough to separate it from the 1962 and 1991 versions, and the starry cast delivers compelling performances that make you sympathize with their flawed characters – even Bardem’s shady Cady. It’s rare for a nearly 10-hour thriller to work, but Cape Fear accomplishes what its title suggests – it will scare the hell out of you.
The first two episodes of Cape Fear are streaming now.
‘The Vampire Lestat’ Season 1 – AMC
After AMC’s reimagining of Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire produced two binge-worthy seasons of gleefully decadent television, you’d be rightfully skeptical that the network could top what it’s already done. Well, skepticism be damned – AMC has done it again with The Vampire Lestat, which is both an entirely new show and the third season of Interview with the Vampire. Whether you’re a fan or a newbie, you’ll love this series’ campy vibe and pulpy appeal.
Sam Reid returns as Lestate de Lioncourt, the former lover of Louis de Pointe du Lac (Jacob Anderson) who emerges from hibernation to become a glam rock star. He doesn’t hide his vampire identity; in fact, he uses it to enhance his image as a sexy music icon who gets his fans’ blood pumping – sometimes, literally. But the vampire world loves its secret, and several members prefer to get rid of Lestat for good to maintain their shadowy status quo.
The Vampire Lestat starts streaming on June 7.
‘The 79th Annual Tony Awards’ – Paramount+
It’s June, which means it’s just the right time to honor the best Broadway had to offer late last year and early this year. And the Great White Way produced some truly memorable shows this season, with revivals like Death of a Salesman starring Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf and The Rocky Horror Show starring Luke Evans leading the pack.
There were some striking original debuts, too, like Giant with John Lithgow and The Lost Boys, a musical based on the cult 1987 movie. This year’s Tony ceremonies will be hosted by the pop singer Pink, who will open the show with an original song-and-dance number penned by the Dear Evan Hansen songwriters.
The 79th Annual Tony Awards will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+.
‘You’re Killing Me’ – Acorn TV
Lipstick Jungle fans, rejoice! Brooke Shields is back with a new TV series, only this time, she’s solving murders instead of juggling her friends’ messy love lives in the Big Apple. In the new Acorn TV series You’re Killing Me, Shields stars as Allie Chandler, a once-successful novelist who is looking for her next bestseller. When an old friend is murdered, Allie decamps to the victim’s hometown to help out podcaster Andi Walker (Amalia Williamson) solve the crime — and maybe write a new hit novel that will revive her stagnant career.
You’re Killing Me looks and feels like if Gilmore Girls had been a crime show. (Amy Sherman-Palladino, call me!) Yes, it has plenty of murder, but it’s innocuous enough, with nary a severed body part in sight. There’s some romance, too, with Alice playfully flirting with local detective, Jack Kerrigan (Tom Cavanaugh). Shields makes this all work, though; at age [REDACTED], she’s more luminous than ever.
You’re Killing Me is now streaming.
‘Not Suitable for Work’ Season 1 — Hulu
Hulu sure does love Gen Z. After last summer’s minor hit Adults, the streamer is now launching another sitcom about appropriately diverse friends working, living and loving in New York City. This one’s called Not Suitable for Work, and while we’ve seen many of its characters and storylines before, it has a freshness and lightness to it that makes it watchable, if not all that memorable.
Not Suitable for Work focuses on best friends AJ (Ella Hunt) and Abby (Avantika), who live in the same building as Josh (Jack Martin), Kel (Nicholas Duvernay) and Davis (Will Angus). AJ and David work together, but the rest work in vastly different occupations like medicine and fashion. All of them have one thing in common: they suck at love. They have each other to lean on, though, and, in Davis’ case with AJ, to crush on. Do I detect a Ross and Rachel romance in the future? Let’s hope Not Suitable for Work is a big enough hit so the writers can develop their potentially intriguing will-they-or-won’t-they love affair.
Not Suitable for Work is streaming on Hulu.
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