Despicable Me 4, Trap and More

“Despicable Me 4” is crashing Halloween with an Oct. 31 streaming premiere date on Peacock after the animated sequel grossed a mighty $954 million at the worldwide box office over the summer. Steve Carell is back as the voice of Gru, the world’s favorite supervillain-turned-hero who must protect his family and his newborn (Gru Jr.) when a new nemesis wreaks havoc on the world. The voice cast includes Kristen Wiig, Pierre Coffin, Joey King, Miranda Cosgrove, Stephen Colbert, Sofía Vergara, Dana Gaier and Will Ferrell.

Ti West and Mia Goth’s “Maxxxine” arrives on Max this month after grossing $15 million at the domestic box office and $22 million worldwide over the summer. The film marks the final chapter in the duo’s horror trilogy that included “X” and “Pearl.” “Maxxxine” is set in 1980s Hollywood as the adult film star Maxine Minx tries to make it big as an actress. Her career ambitions are complicated by the arrival of a mysterious killer who stalks the starlets of Hollywood. The movie also stars Elizabeth Debicki, Moses Sumney, Michelle Monaghan, Bobby Cannavale, Halsey, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito and Kevin Bacon.

M. Night Shyamalan’s thriller “Trap” makes its streaming debut on Max this month after grossing $42 million at the domestic box office and $82 million worldwide this summer. Josh Hartnett stars as a serial killer who takes his daughter to the concert of a pop star (played by the director’s own daughter Seleka Shyamalan) only to discover the event is a trap and the arena is full of police officers and FBI agents just waiting to catch him. The movie became one of the more polarizing studio releases of the summer. Ariel Donoghue, Hayley Mills and Allison Pill round out the cast.

Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” technically debuted on streaming at the end of September, but it’s still bound to be the biggest offering on Disney+ during its first full month of availability this October considering it pulled in 30.5 million views in its first five days of availability. The sequel made box office history over the summer by grossing $1.6 billion worldwide to become not only Pixar’s highest-grossing movie ever but also the biggest animated film of all time. Expect huge streaming numbers all month long. The plot centers on the battle of emotions inside the brain of a now-teenage Riley, where Joy (Amy Poehler) and the emotions from the first movie have to confront new ones stimulated by puberty and teenage angst.

“Oddity,” one of the most acclaimed horror films of the year, is now available to stream on Shudder just in time for the Halloween movie season. Variety called the film an “effectively frightening and unexpectedly droll haunted-house horror” in its review earlier this year.

The synopsis from Shudder reads: “When Dani is brutally murdered at the remote country house that she and her husband Ted are renovating, everyone suspects a patient from the local mental health institution, where Ted is a doctor. However, soon after the tragic killing, the suspect is found dead. A year later, Dani’s blind twin sister Darcy, a self-proclaimed psychic and collector of cursed items, pays an unexpected visit to Ted and his new girlfriend, Yana. Convinced that there was more to her sister’s murder than people know, Darcy has brought with her the most dangerous items from her cursed collection to help her exact revenge.”

Warner Bros.’ long-delayed adaptation of Stephen King’s “Salem’s Lot” debuts exclusively on Max this month. Directed by “Annabelle” writer Gary Dauberman, the film stars Lewis Pullman as a successful writer who moves back to his hometown of Jerusalem’s Lot to write his next novel. His arrival coincides with the resurrection of an ancient vampire using his human familiar Richard Straker (Pilou Asbæk) to turn the citizens of the town into the undead. As more and more locals are transformed into vampires, the writer and his human allies are trapped in a fight for their lives. The film co-stars Makenzie Leigh, Bill Camp and Alfre Woodard.

From producer M. Night Shyamalan and writer-directors Celine Held and Logan George comes “Caddo Lake,” another original horror offering debuting exclusively on Max this month. Dylan O’Brien leads the ensemble cast. The official synopsis from Max reads: “When an 8-year-old girl mysteriously vanishes, a series of past deaths and disappearances start to link together, forever altering a broken family’s history.” The supporting cast includes Eliza Scanlen, Diana Hopper, Caroline Falk, Sam Hennings, Eric Lange and Lauren Ambrose. The film is one of two Shyamalan-backed films debuting on Max in October; the other being his summer directorial effort “Trap.”

The Spanish dystopian thriller “The Platform” is getting a sequel this month courtesy of Netflix. Filmmaker Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia returns with a new cast, including Hovik Keuchkerian and Milena Smit, for a second go-around in the “Vertical Self-Management Center” prison center, where two occupants reside on each floor of a massive prison where a free-floating platform delivers them food on a daily schedule. The first movie is one of the most popular Spanish films in Netflix history with 82.8 million views, so expectations are sky high for the sequel.

Netflix is surely hoping “It’s What’s Inside” becomes a huge horror hit this month considering the streamer put down $17 million to pick up the film at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Written and directed by Greg Jardin, “It’s What’s Inside” centers on a group of friends who gather for a pre-wedding party that descends into an existential nightmare when they start playing a mysterious body-swapping game that awakens long-hidden secrets, desires and grudges. The cast includes Brittany O’Grady, James Morosini, Gavin Leatherwood, Nina Bloomgarden, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Reina Hardesty, Devon Terrell and David Thompson.

Netflix reignited interest in convicted murderers Erik and Lyle Menendez thanks to Ryan Murphy’s “Monsters” series, but now the brothers are getting their own say with the streamer’s documentary “The Menendez Brothers.”

The official synopsis for “The Menendez Brothers” from Netflix reads: “In 1996, Lyle and Erik Menendez were convicted for the murders of their parents in what became one of the most famous criminal cases of the late 20th century. For the first time in 30 years, and in their own words, both brothers revisit the trial that shocked the nation. Through extensive audio interviews with Lyle and Erik, lawyers involved in the trial, journalists who covered it, jurors, family and other informed observers, acclaimed Argentinian director Alejandro Hartmann offers new insight and a fresh perspective on a case that people only think they know.”

October may be a month for streaming horror, but that’s not stopping Netflix from delivering a new romantic comedy that’s sure to bring in big views thanks to the pairing of Laura Dern and Liam Hemsworth. From writer and director Susannah Grant, “Lonley Planet” stars Dern as a writer seeking inspiration for her new book while attending a writer’s retreat in Morocco. It’s there she meets a young man (Hemsworth) and begins a life-altering love affair. “The dynamic between the younger man and the older, established writer intrigued me because it’s not just about romance — it’s about finding someone who truly sees and understands you, which is something deeply human and relatable,” Dern has said about the film.

Anna Kendrick makes her directorial debut with Netflix’s well-reviewed thriller “Woman of the Hour,” which is based on a true story and is sure to get true crime obsessives hooked this month. Kendrick stars as a contestant on “The Dating Game” in 1978, who picks Rodney Alcala as her potential date. Alcala, who died in prison in 2021, turned out to be a serial killer of at least eight victims but possibly over a hundred more. The “Dating Game” contestant, Cheryl Bradshaw, never went on the date with Alcala, who had already been convicted of being a sex offender. Daniel Zovatto plays the killer, who posed as a photographer in Los Angeles to take pictures of his victims. Tony Hale and Nicolette Robinson also star in the film.

“Kung Fu Panda 4” made its streaming debut on Peacock earlier this year after grossing $549 million at the worldwide box office, and now it’s coming to Netflix this month and will surely be a huge hit for the streamer. Jack Black once again voices the title character Po, who is forced to find and train a new successor in order to defeat an evil sorceress who seeks to steal the kung-fu abilities of all the masters in China. The film’s voice cast also includes Awkwafina, Bryan Cranston, James Hong, Ian McShane, Ke Huy Quan, Dustin Hoffman and Viola Davis.

From producer Sam Raimi comes “Don’t Move,” a Netflix original thriller that could be one of the streamer’s late October surprises. The official synopsis reads: “A grieving woman hoping to find solace deep in an isolated forest encounters a stranger who injects her with a paralytic agent. As the agent gradually takes over her body, she must run, hide, and fight for her life before her entire nervous system shuts down.” The film stars Kelsey Asbille, Finn Wittrock, Moray Treadwell and Daniel Francis.

R.J. Cutler has earned acclaim in recent years for his documentaries on music stars Elton John (“Elton John: Never Too Late”) and Billie Eilish (“Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry”), and now he turns his camera towards pop culture icon Martha Stewart for the new Netflix documentary “Martha.” The film features intimate interviews with Stewart herself as she opens up her personal archives to share never-before-seen photos, letters, and diary entries from her career.

“I started reading about Martha and the more I did, the more it became clear to me that she was a complex person filled with so many conflicts and contradictions,” Cutler told Netflix. “And the more I learned about her, the more excited I became about the possibility of digging deeper into her story.”

“Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band” follows the band’s 2023-2024 world tour, featuring footage from band rehearsals and backstage moments, conversations with Springsteen as he develops the setlist and archival clips of the E Street Band. The project is intended to complement Springsteen’s existing body of autobiographical works, which includes the memoir “Born to Run,” the live performance (and documentary) “Springsteen on Broadway,” and the films “Western Stars” and “Letter to You.” The documentary is directed by Thom Zimny, the longtime Springsteen collaborator behind “Western Stars” and “Springsteen on Broadway.”

“The Last of the Sea Women” is a documentary about the haenyeo divers of South Korea’s Jeju Island that’s streaming exclusively on Apple TV+ this month. The synopsis reads: “Today, with most haenyeo now in their 60s, 70s and 80s, their traditions and way of life are in imminent danger. But these fierce, funny, hardworking women refuse to give an inch, aided by a younger generation’s fight to revive their ancestral lifestyle through social media. Peering into what drives haenyeo young and old, this moving documentary zeroes in on their tight-knit friendships, savvy independence and infectious sense of empowerment, unfolding into an uplifting tale of women taking on world powers to protect their beloved ocean and inspiring a new generation.”

Sean Wang’s “Didi” was one of the biggest breakouts of the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, where it won the U.S. dramatic audience award, and grossed $4.8 million for Focus Features at the summer box office. The film follows a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy in the throes of an awkward adolescence in 2008, as he enjoys the last month of summer before high school begins. He experiences the pangs of first love, becomes friends with some skaters, fights with his older sister and gets a hard-earned understanding of his mom. From Variety’s review: “Wang does a nice job of balancing his naturally comedic sensibility with serious insights into how he triangulated his own identity as a teenager. Still relatively original in the overcrowded teen-movie genre, ‘Dìdi’ proves an effective calling card.”

Kit Harington transforms into a werewolf in Alexander J. Farrell’s mystery-horror thriller “The Beast Within,” which follows a family as they confront a dark and supernatural ancestral secret. From Variety’s review: “Documentarian Alexander J. Farrell’s narrative debut is an atmospheric tale of a family’s hereditary supernatural curse…it is a handsomely crafted, modestly scaled affair that benefits from being shot largely around the historic Harewood Woods and Castle in West Yorkshire.” The film’s supporting cast includes Ashleigh Cummings, James Cosmo and Martina McClements.

“Scandal” favorite Tony Goldwyn directs the heartwarming father-son drama “Ezra,” starring Bobby Cannavale as a father to an autistic son who decides to take a life-changing road trip across the country with him. Robert De Niro stars as the kid’s grandfather. From Variety’s review:  “The underlying integrity of ‘Ezra,’ what makes it an honest film despite some formula devices, is that its message about how to help children with special needs is that there’s no magic way. Beyond celebrating them for who they are and showing them who you are.”

“¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor!,” the documentary about “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone reopening the iconic suburban Denver Mexican restaurant Casa Bonita, is coming to Paramount+ this month. The documentary tracks the story of the “Disneyland of Mexican restaurants,” which includes a waterfall, cliff divers, puppets and haunted caves. The restaurant appeared in a 2003 episode of “South Park,” and the documentary follows Parker and Stone’s efforts to preserve a crumbling piece of their childhood. Along the way, the pair run into numerous issues and question the viability of the project.

“Palm Springs” breakout director Max Barbakow puts a new twist on “Twins” with Prime Video’s original comedy “Brothers,” starring Peter Dinklage and Josh Brolin. Brolin is a reformed criminal whose attempt at keeping his life straight is derailed when his twin brother (Dinklage) forces him to embark on a cross-country road trip to settle one last score. Per Prime Video: “Dodging bullets, the law, and an overbearing mother along the way, they must heal their severed family bond before they end up killing each other.” The supporting cast includes Taylour Paige, M. Emmet Walsh, Jennifer Landon, Brendan Fraser and Glenn Close.