October's going by in a flash, and Halloween is just around the corner. To celebrate, the best streaming services are serving up plenty of treats to watch this weekend, including Disney's latest live-action remake nobody asked for, "Moana," on Disney+, where I suspect most people were waiting for it to land to watch it.
For another family friendly option to watch this weekend, Peacock just got "Finding Emily," a delightful dose of nostalgia for anyone who grew up in the golden age of rom-coms. Over on HBO Max, you can check out Olivia Wilde's best film to date, "The Invite," for a more sharply written romantic comedy. Meanwhile, Ethan Hawke and Russell Crowe's gritty historical drama thriller "The Weight" just hit paid video-on-demand platforms, and Netflix's latest documentary, "Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story" is my must-watch movie of the weekend about one of the most talented (and unhinged) comedians of our generation.
So without further ado, let's dive into the best new movies to watch this weekend.
'Moana' (Disney+)
I've made peace with the fact that Disney's raking in far too much money to ever stop making these live-action remakes of animated classics. But this thinly veiled cash grab stunk the worst of them all, given that the original "Moana" came out only a decade ago. Audiences seemed to agree too, given that it flopped in theaters. If you were waiting for it to hit Disney+, you're in luck!
This live-action remake of 2016's animated hit "Moana" has the same story, same songs and even some of the same stars as the original, but like most of these live-action ventures, it falls far short of the same charm. Set on the fictional Polynesian island of Motunui, it stars Catherine Laga'aia as Moana, the wide-eyed, wayfaring daughter of the village chief. After tragedy strikes her home, she sets out to find Maui to break an ancient curse and restore the heart of the goddess Te Fiti.
Watch "Moana" on Disney+ now
'The Invite' (HBO Max)
I've been a huge fan Olivia Wilde's movies since the phenomenal coming-of-age comedy "Booksmart," so when I saw her third directorial effort (and easily her best yet) landed on HBO Max this week, I knew I was do for a re-watch. Rashida Jones and Will McCormack’s screenplay is sharp and refreshingly honest despite working from a pretty firmly established blueprint. It reminded me of a smarter and hornier take on "The Break Up."
"The Invite" is a remake of the 2020 Spanish comedy "The People Upstairs," which proved popular enough to inspire adaptations in several countries, including Russia, South Korea and Italy. Seth Rogen and Wilde star as Joe and Angela, a married couple at each other's throats when their upstairs neighbors (Edward Norton and Penélope Cruz) come over for dinner. The evening takes some unexpected (but notably not unwelcome) turns, coaxing their most intimate desires to the surface where it becomes impossible to ignore the cracks in their relationship any longer.
Watch "The Invite" on HBO Max now
‘The Weight’ (PVOD)
It's been one hell of a year for movies, so for Ethan Hawke and Russell Crowe's historical drama thriller "The Weight" to rank among the best reviewed movies of 2026 (it's sitting at a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes) is no small feat. Hawke stars as Samuel Murphy, a widower living during the Great Depression who gets thrown into jail on a false charge. Desperate to shorten his sentence before his daughter, Penny (Avy Berry), gets sent off to foster care, Murphy strikes a dangerous bargain with the prison warden, Clancy (Russell Crowe).
To earn his freedom, he leads a handpicked crew of prisoners 100 miles through unforgiving wilderness to smuggle gold bars out of a remote mine. But as the stakes rise, his prison sentence becomes the last of his worries. It's a stripped-down tale of desperation elevated by Hawke's magnetic performance, who plays against type as a desperate man with nothing left to lose
Buy or rent "The Weight" on Amazon or Apple now
'Finding Emily' (Peacock)
If you're looking for a '90s-style rom-com to disappear into this weekend, look no further than "Finding Emily" on Peacock. Director Alicia MacDonald has said she wanted to recapture the magic of the era that brought us "10 Things I Hate About You," "You’ve Got Mail," and "My Best Friend’s Wedding," and she absolutely delivers. Emily (Angourie Rice) and Owen (Spike Fearn) are both immediately charming, their opposites-attract chemistry worth rooting for.
Emily's so determined to outthink her own feelings that she’s writing a graduate-level dissertation on the psychology of love and why it’s a relic of a bygone era. Naturally, putting this theory to the test is hapless musician Owen, who falls head over heels for her. This is a romcom of course, so they're destined to get together, but it's fun to watch how their relationship unfolds, even when you can predict most of the beats. Each grows beyond what they thought possible as they learn to embrace whatever life throws at them.
Watch "Finding Emily" on Peacock now
'Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story' (Netflix)
Stephen Colbert says Maria Bamford is his favorite comedian, and I've got to admit, the man has good taste. Bamford has had a direct line to my funny bone since her very first comedy special, and she somehow became even cooler when she started speaking out about her struggles with mental illness. For nearly four years, directors Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley followed her day-to-day life, resulting in Netflix's new achingly honest documentary, "Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story."
It traces her life from her early years growing up gifted and strange in Minnesota to her time performing character-filled stand-up, coming up with new material during psychiatric ward visits, and making a career out of a career out of being so deeply in touch with her mind and self that her jokes might traumatize your average neurotypical viewer if they weren't so damn funny.
Watch "Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story" on Netflix now