Top 5 New Shows Coming to Streaming In December (Netflix, Disney, HBO, Apple)

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man – Buy Me a Coffee!

December is a big month for the streaming industry as the top services such as Netflix, HBO Max, Peacock, Paramount Plus, Amazon, and Disney Plus are bringing out the top shows to impress the viewers. The TV Answer Man has evaluated the new shows and movies coming to streaming this month and chosen what we believe are the top five new releases. And here they are:

FI The Movie – Apple TV
Release Date: December 12
Talk about synergy. Apple TV, which recently captured the exclusive TV rights to F1 races starting in 2026, will release its F1 movie starring Brad Pitt (pictured above) on December 12. The film stars Pitt as a retired driver who returns to rescue a failing F1 team. I haven’t seen it yet but the reviews were strong and Apple TV plans to stream it in 4K and with Dolby Atmos sound so it should look and sound fantastic.

Stranger Things – Season 5 (4 Final Episodes) – Netflix
Release Date: December 25, three episodes; series finale on December 31.
The second installment of the fifth and final season of the upside down world of those crazy kids debuts on Christmas Day with three new episodes. (The first four episodes of S5 premiered on November 26 with four episodes.) The series finale will then be released on Netflix (and select movie theaters) on December 31. If you’re not familiar with Stranger Things by now, the show, which stars Winona Ryder, David Harbour and Millie Bobby Brown, follows a mysterious young girl (Brown) who opens a pathway between Earth and a hostile (very hostile) alternate dimension called the Upside Down. The series depicts a band of teenagers who assist the clueless adults in restoring order in our world. (Seasons one through four, the first part of season five, are now available on Netflix.)

Jay Kelly – Netflix Original Film
Release Date: December 5
George Clooney stars in this Noah Baumbach-directed comedy/drama about a famous actor who reflects on his life’s choices after a mentor unexpectedly dies. Adam Sandler plays his manager who accompanies him on his soul-searching journey through Europe. Jay Kelly may sound like a bit too much Hollywood navel-gazing but the early reviews say the Clooney-Sandler chemistry sparks magic on screen, resulting in a poignant and often funny depiction of the fragility and futility of all lives.

Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour/Final Show – Premiere – Disney Plus
Release Date: December 12
Oh my, how the Disney+ sub numbers will jump in December. The streamer will premiere (exclusively) the final concert in Taylor Swift’s massively successful Eras tour. Filmed in Vancouver, the Disney+ show will include the complete concert, including a set from Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department album. And we’re not done, Swifties. Disney+ will also premiere a six-part docuseries on the tour with the first two episodes running on December 12.

Spinal Tap II: The End Continues (2025) & This Is Spinal Tap (1984) – HBO Max
Release Date: December 12
Get ready to turn your speakers up to 11 because HBO Max on December 12 will double-down on the greatest living (and fictitious) band ever, Spinal Tap. The new installment, Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, features the merry lads (Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, Michael McKean) as they are forced to perform one last show due to an overlooked contract clause from 40 years before. And on the same day, HBO Max will add the original Rob Reiner-directed mockumentary from 1984, This Is Spinal Tap.

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