Top 10 most streamed TV shows this week: True crime and sci-fi reign supreme

Looking for something new to watch this weekend but don’t know where to start? Perhaps you’ll be inspired by what everyone else is watching.

We’ve used streaming aggregator Reelgood, which pulls viewing figures from streaming services in the U.S. and UK, to break down the top 10 most popular shows of the past week. From all the hot new true crime shows to intriguing sci-fi series, this list might inspire you to start watching something new. However, just because everyone’s watching it doesn’t mean it’s automatically top-tier television. We’ve added excerpts from our own reviews where appropriate to help give you an idea of what we thought.

Here are the top 10 most-streamed TV shows of the week, starting with a voyage into the final frontier…

1. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

“To explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before!”
Credit: Marni Grossman/Paramount+

Strap in, we’re heading back to the final frontier. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is the latest Star Trek spin-off, only this one takes place in the decade before the original series. Climb aboard the USS Enterprise alongside Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), Spock (Ethan Peck), and more as they travel to the titular “strange new worlds” found throughout the galaxy.

How to watch: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is now streaming on Paramount+, with new episodes every Thursday.

2. The Lincoln Lawyer

Look, it’s the lawyer in his Lincoln!
Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

Netflix’s adaptation of Michael Connelly’s The Lincoln Lawyer shot to the top of the streaming service’s “Most Watched” list upon its release. The legal thriller stars Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller, a Los Angeles lawyer who takes cases from the back of his Lincoln Town Car.

How to watch: The Lincoln Lawyer is now streaming on Netflix.

3. Candy

Her name may be Candy, but she’s not sweet.
Credit: Hulu

One of many true crime shows on this list, Hulu’s Candy follows a real-life murder case. Jessica Biel plays Candy Montgomery, who was accused of murdering her friend Betty Gore (Melanie Lynskey) by striking her with an axe 41 times.

How to watch: Candy is now streaming on Hulu.

4. The Staircase

Colin Firth and Toni Collette take on true crime in “The Staircase.”
Credit: HBO Max

The Staircase continues the true crime trend on this list. This one revisits the already well-documented murder of Kathleen Peterson (Toni Collette) at the hands of her husband, novelist Michael Peterson (Colin Firth). Depicting scenes of family life with the Petersons before Kathleen’s death to the trial and its aftermath, The Staircase‘s buzzy subject matter and starry cast launched it up the most-watched list.

What we thought: To call The Staircase a “true crime classic” is to accurately describe the total dehumanization process that every single real-life person connected to this awful death underwent during their decades in the public eye. But the HBO Max dramatization feels like the final stage of this tragedy-exploitation machine. It not only reduces Kathleen, Michael, and their kids (one of whom is played by Game of Thrones‘ Sophie Turner) into literal fictional characters for our entertainment consumption, but even adds colorful new personalities like real-life prosecutor Freda Black (portrayed by the inimitable Parker Posey). — Jess Joho, Culture Reporter

How to watch: The Staircase is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes every Thursday.

5. Outer Range

Josh Brolin and Imogen Poots in “Outer Range.”
Credit: Richard Foreman / Amazon Studios

A sci-fi Western starring Josh Brolin, Outer Range remains one of the most popular new shows of the week. Brolin plays Royal Abbott, a rancher who discovers a strange black hole on his land. What’s the deal with the hole? Who’s mysterious drifter Autumn (Imogen Poots)? And what happened to Rebecca, Royal’s missing daughter-in-law? The answers to all these questions are one binge away: All eight episodes of Outer Range are streaming on Prime.

How to watch: Outer Range is now streaming on Prime Video.

6. Hacks

Deborah and Ava, my beloved(s).
Credit: Karen Ballard / HBO Max

The killer duo of Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) and Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder) is back in Season 2 of HBO Max’s Hacks. This season takes the two comedians on the road for Deborah’s new tour, where she’s struggling with more personal material. On top of the tour, Ava is worried about a very inflammatory e-mail that she sent at the end of Season 1, which could blow up her whole relationship with Deborah.

What we thought: Deborah’s failure to gain momentum on her tour means the first few episodes may move a bit more slowly than you’d expect. But don’t doubt for a minute that Hacks has lost its magic. The jokes still land, and Deborah and Ava’s interactions are consistently golden… I’ll gladly hitch a ride with Deborah and Ava wherever they’re going next. — Belen Edwards, Entertainment Reporter

How to watch: Hacks is now streaming on HBO Max, with new episodes every Thursday.

7. Better Call Saul

One last ride for Saul Goodman.
Credit: Greg Lewis / AMC / Sony Pictures Television

If you missed Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk), you’re clearly not alone. The Breaking Bad prequel, now in its sixth and final season, remains one of the most-watched shows of the week. Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, and Jonathan Banks remain excellent, as do the rest of the cast. Plus, Breaking Bad stars Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul are confirmed to appear this season, so it feels like the gang’s really getting back together.

What we thought: For several key players, the stakes have never been higher. Reputations, relationships, and lives are on the line, and mounting tension in the first two episodes alone exposes seldom-seen sides of characters we thought we had all figured out. —Nicole Gallucci, Senior Editor

How to Watch: Better Call Saul is now streaming on Netflix and on AMC+.

8. The Essex Serpent

Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston are on the lookout for a serpent.
Credit: Apple TV+

Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston unite in Apple TV+’s The Essex Serpent, based on the novel by Sarah Perry. Widow Cora (Danes) moves to Essex to investigate sightings of a mysterious sea serpent. There, she bonds with Reverend Will Ransome (Hiddleston) on her way to uncover the truth of the beast. An atmospheric Gothic romance with a strong cast, it’s no surprise The Essex Serpent is one of the most watched TV shows of the week.

How to watch: The Essex Serpent is now streaming on Apple TV+, with new episodes weekly.

9. Under the Banner of Heaven

Andrew Garfield is on the case.
Credit: Michelle Faye/FX

Another true crime miniseries — this one based on the nonfiction book by Jon Krakauer — Under the Banner of Heaven stars Andrew Garfield in his first foray into prestige TV. Garfield plays Jeb Pyre, a detective investigating the murder of a mother (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and her baby that may have involved the Mormon Church.

How to watch: Under the Banner of Heaven is now streaming on Hulu, with new episodes every Thursday.

10. The Wilds

Looks like things got pretty wild(s).
Credit: Amazon Studio

Season 1 of The Wilds saw eight teenage girls stranded alone on a desert island. Little did they know they were part of a social experiment. The newly released Season 2 delves deeper into that experiment, and into some of the bigger revelations from the end of Season 1. No spoilers, but nothing is as it seems.

How to watch: The Wilds is now streaming on Prime Video.