Welcome to Mandatory Streamers, our column covering the best new streaming content coming your way every week! For the week of December 14, CBS All Access’ limited series adaptation of Stephen King’s masterful The Stand is here, which will close out with a new coda written by the author himself. Check out the best shows debuting and returning online this week as well as the latest renewal announcements below, and be sure to visit our mother site Mandatory by clicking here!
CBS All Access
The Stand, Limited Series Premiere: Featuring an all-star cast, the nine-episode series adaptation of Stephen King’s novel from writers Josh Boone (The Fault in Our Stars, The New Mutants) and Ben Cavell (SEAL Team), reveals that this is the way the world ends: with a nanosecond of computer error in a Defense Department laboratory and a million casual contacts that form the links in a chain letter of death. And here is the bleak new world of the day after, a world stripped of its institutions and emptied of 99 percent of its people. A world in which a handful of panicky survivors choose sides — or are chosen. A world in which good rides on the frail shoulders of the 108-year-old Mother Abigail (Whoopi Goldberg) — and the worst nightmares of evil are embodied in a man with a lethal smile and unspeakable powers: Randall Flagg (Alexander Skarsgård), the dark man. The premiere episode is now streaming with new episodes arriving every Thursday!
Amazon Prime Video
The Expanse, Season 5 Premiere: Season 5 picks up as multitudes of humans leave the solar system in search of new homes and vast fortunes on the earth-like worlds beyond the alien Ring, and a heavy price for centuries of exploitation of the Belt finally comes due and a reckoning is at hand. For the crew of the Rocinante and the leaders of the Inner Planets and the Belt, the past and present converge, bringing forth personal challenges that have wide-reaching repercussions throughout the Solar System. Amos returns to Earth to confront his past and the legacy of the life he fought to leave behind. Naomi reaches out to her estranged son in a desperate bid to save him from his father’s toxic influence. Bobbie and Alex confront the collapse of Mars as they chase a shadowy cabal with ties to terrorists and criminals. Holden wrestles with the consequences of his own past with the Protomolecule, the aliens who built it, and the mystery of what killed them. Drummer, with a new crew, fights to escape who and what she used to be. And Avasarala, refusing to be relegated to the sidelines, fights to prevent a terrorist attack unrivaled in history. The first three episodes of the season are streaming now, with new episodes debuting on Wednesdays!
Netflix
The Ripper, Limited Series Premiere: For five years, between 1975 to 1980, the Yorkshire Ripper murders cast a dark shadow over the lives of women in the North of England. 13 women were dead and the police seemed incapable of catching the killer. No one felt safe – and every man was a suspect. The true-crime documentary series is now streaming!
Disney+
On Pointe, Series Premiere: The documentary series from executive producers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard captures a season in New York City’s world-renowned School of American Ballet (SAB). Featuring unprecedented access to one of the top youth ballet institutions in the world, the series follows the lives of the students ages 8 to 18 pursuing their dreams to become ballet dancers. While older students from all over the country rigorously train for professional careers, younger students from New York City are put through their paces as they rehearse and perform in New York City Ballet’s holiday classic “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker” onstage at Lincoln Center. The six-part docuseries is streaming now!
Shudder
A Creepshow Holiday Special, Premiere: In the holiday-themed, hour-long episode, “Shapeshifters Anonymous,” fearing he is a murderer, an anxious man searches for answers for his “unique condition” from an unusual support group. Starring Anna Camp (Pitch Perfect) and Adam Pally (The Mindy Project), the special is written and directed by Creepshow showrunner Greg Nicotero, based on a short story by J.A. Konrath (Last Call). The special is now streaming!
Sundance Now
Total Control, North America Series Premiere: When Alex Irving (Deborah Mailman), a charismatic and contradictory Indigenous woman, is thrust into the national limelight after a horrific domestic violence event, Australia’s embattled Prime Minister Rachel Anderson (Rachel Griffiths), sees a publicity goldmine for her party. In a bold power play, she handpicks Alex for the Senate. But Alex wants to be more than just a political stunt: she wants to make a difference. So, when the Prime Minister’s cynical calculations betray her, Alex sets out for revenge that will send the political establishment into meltdown. The first episode is now streaming with new episodes debuting every Thursday!
Renewals
A.P. Bio, Season 4: Peacock has officially renewed Glenn Howerton’s comedy series A.P. Bio for an eight-episode fourth season, which is expected to premiere sometime in 2021! The first three seasons are available to stream now.
Servant, Season 3: One month ahead of the psychological horror’s return, M. Night Shyamalan revealed that Apple TV+ has officially renewed Servant for a third season, bringing it closer to the executive producer’s goal of 40 episodes! The second season will debut on Friday, January 15.
Industry, Season 2: HBO has renewed its new London-set drama series Industry for a second season! All of the episodes for Season 1 are available to stream now on HBO Max, with episodes also releasing weekly on the HBO channel until the season finale on December 21.
Feel Good, Season 2: Netflix has renewed its British romance dramedy series Feel Good for a second and final season! The first season premiered in March and is available to stream now.
