Best Movies on Netflix Right Now (February 2026): Top 25 Films to Watch Tonight

Netflix’s film library in February 2026 represents one of the most diverse and genuinely high-quality streaming catalogs the platform has ever assembled. Between its own critically acclaimed original productions and an expanded licensing deal with several major studios, subscribers have access to everything from multi-Academy Award winning dramas and adrenaline-pumping action blockbusters to quietly perfect independent comedies and international cinema masterclasses. The challenge is no longer whether there is something great to watch — it is knowing where to look.

This curated guide presents 25 of the best movies currently streaming on Netflix, organized by genre and mood to help you quickly find the right film for your viewing session. Whether you have two hours to lose yourself in an epic drama or 90 minutes for a crowd-pleasing comedy, this list has you covered with films that earned their spots based on critical quality, audience reception, and rewatchability.

Best Drama Films on Netflix Right Now

Netflix’s drama catalog is its strongest category, anchored by a combination of prestigious original productions and acclaimed theatrical releases. These films reward patient, attentive viewing with emotional depth and performances that linger long after the credits roll.

1. The Brutalist (2025)

Directed by Brady Corbet and starring Adrien Brody in a career-defining performance, The Brutalist is one of the most ambitious films of the decade. Running three and a half hours with an intermission, it traces the life of a Hungarian Jewish architect and Holocaust survivor who emigrates to postwar America and builds a complex, painful relationship with a wealthy industrialist patron. Shot in wide-screen VistaVision with a sweeping, thematically dense screenplay, this film is challenging, rewarding, and unforgettable. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor.

2. Emilia Pérez (2025)

Jacques Audiard’s extraordinary genre-defying Mexican crime musical follows a ruthless cartel boss who hires a lawyer to help her secretly transition and disappear from her criminal life. What sounds like an impossible premise becomes a genuinely moving exploration of identity, regret, and transformation, anchored by extraordinary performances from Zoe Saldaña and Karla Sofía Gascón. Winner of multiple Cannes awards and a landmark in world cinema.

3. Conclave (2025)

Edward Berger’s taut, intelligent thriller set within the Vatican during the secret election of a new Pope features Ralph Fiennes in a masterful performance as a conflicted cardinal navigating political intrigue, hidden secrets, and genuine moral crisis. Conclave functions equally well as an edge-of-your-seat thriller and a meditative exploration of faith and institutional power.

4. Nickel Boys (2025)

RaMell Ross’s adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel uses an unconventional first-person POV approach to tell the story of two Black teenagers imprisoned in a brutal Florida reform school in the 1960s. The innovative cinematography transforms the story into something more poetic and experiential than conventional narrative filmmaking.

Best Action and Thriller Films on Netflix

Netflix has built one of the strongest libraries of high-production-value action cinema in streaming, combining original productions with premium licensed blockbusters that reward big-screen treatment at home.

5. Carry-On (2024)

A tense airport-set thriller starring Taron Egerton as a young TSA agent blackmailed into allowing a mysterious package through security on Christmas Eve. With genuinely inventive set-pieces, strong performances, and one of the most effective slow-burn escalations in recent action cinema, this Netflix original became one of the platform’s most-watched films of 2024.

6. Hit Man (2024)

Richard Linklater’s sun-drenched Texas thriller stars Glen Powell as a philosophy professor who moonlights as a fake hitman for police sting operations — until he falls for one of his targets. Part neo-noir, part screwball comedy, Hit Man is immensely entertaining and showcases Powell’s full leading-man charisma.

7. Rebel Ridge (2024)

Jeremy Saulnier’s lean, intensely crafted thriller follows a former marine passing through a small Southern town who witnesses systemic corruption that puts him in mortal danger. Aaron Pierre’s performance is a revelation — one of the best action films of 2024 on any platform.

8. Bird Box Barcelona (2023)

The Spanish-language sequel to the original Bird Box expands the story to war-torn Barcelona, introducing new characters navigating the terrifying world of creatures that drive anyone who sees them to suicide. More ambitious and emotionally complex than the original.

Best Comedy Films Currently Streaming

Netflix’s comedy catalog includes several genuine modern classics alongside crowd-pleasing originals designed for the platform’s global audience.

9. Knives Out (2019)

Rian Johnson’s dazzling whodunit ensemble comedy has returned to Netflix and remains as enjoyably sharp as ever. Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc is one of the decade’s great screen creations, the ensemble cast is loaded with indelible performances, and the plot’s structural boldness still surprises on first watch.

10. Ricky Stanicky (2024)

Three childhood friends who have maintained a fictional alibi friend for decades are forced to hire an out-of-work actor (John Cena in a brilliantly committed comedic performance) to play the role in person. Directed by Peter Farrelly and built around a genuine laugh-per-minute rate, this is Netflix’s funniest original comedy in years.

11. Irish Wish (2024)

Lindsay Lohan’s Netflix romantic comedy delivers charming performances and Irish scenery in a story about a woman who wishes to be the bride at her best friend’s wedding — and gets her wish in ways she did not anticipate. Unpretentious, warm, and exactly what a streaming comfort watch should be.

Best International Films on Netflix

Netflix’s international content library represents some of the most creatively ambitious filmmaking in the world. These titles deserve far wider attention than their English-language competition typically receives.

12. Society of the Snow (2024)

J.A. Bayona’s Spanish-language account of the 1972 Andes plane crash and survival story is one of the most viscerally powerful films on any streaming platform. Shot in the actual Andes mountains with extraordinary technical precision, it surpasses the earlier Hollywood treatment in both realism and emotional impact. Academy Award nominee for Best International Feature Film.

13. All Quiet on the Western Front (2022)

This German-language adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque’s classic anti-war novel swept the international Oscars. The film’s depiction of WWI trench warfare is technically overwhelming — immersive, horrifying, and deeply humanizing in its portrayal of young soldiers destroyed by industrial-scale slaughter. One of the most important war films ever made.

14. Perfect Days (2023)

Wim Wenders’ Japanese film about a Tokyo public toilet cleaner who finds profound contentment in his meticulously organized daily routine is a masterpiece of quiet observation and philosophical depth. Koji Yakusho’s performance won Best Actor at Cannes and represents the kind of subtle, character-driven filmmaking that mainstream cinema rarely attempts.

Best Horror Films on Netflix Right Now

15. The Substance (2025)

Coralie Fargeat’s body horror provocation stars Demi Moore as an aging fitness TV presenter who uses a black market drug to create a younger version of herself — with catastrophic consequences. Visually audacious, satirically vicious, and genuinely disturbing, The Substance is the most discussed horror film of 2025.

16. Barbarian (2022)

For viewers who missed it initially, Barbarian remains one of the most genuinely unsettling and narratively inventive horror films of the decade. Best experienced with minimal prior knowledge — its reputation as one of modern horror’s finest achievements is entirely deserved.

17. Hereditary (2018)

Ari Aster’s debut feature remains one of the most genuinely terrifying horror films of the past decade, using grief and family dysfunction as the foundation for escalating supernatural dread. Toni Collette’s performance deserved awards recognition it never received. Not for the faint-hearted but essential for serious horror viewers.

Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Films

18. Spaceman (2024)

Adam Sandler in one of his most serious dramatic performances as an astronaut alone at the edge of the solar system, visited by a mysterious creature that helps him confront the collapse of his marriage. Quiet, melancholy, and genuinely moving — the anti-blockbuster sci-fi that deserves a much larger audience.

19. Atlas (2024)

Jennifer Lopez stars as a data analyst who must trust an AI to survive on an alien planet while hunting a dangerous android. The ideal film for viewers who want uncomplicated, spectacular entertainment with impressive visual effects and Lopez’s committed physical performance.

20. Okja (2017)

Bong Joon-ho’s adventure film about a South Korean girl determined to save her giant super-pig from a multinational corporation is one of the most emotionally effective and tonally adventurous films on Netflix. Funny, heartbreaking, and politically incisive — essential viewing for fans of Parasite who have not explored Bong’s broader filmography.

Best Documentaries on Netflix

21. American Symphony (2023)

Matthew Heineman’s intimate documentary follows musician Jon Batiste preparing for a Carnegie Hall performance while simultaneously supporting his wife through a recurrence of leukemia. A profound and deeply moving portrait of creativity, love, and mortality.

22. Arnold (2023)

This three-part documentary series covering Arnold Schwarzenegger’s extraordinary life — bodybuilding, Hollywood, and politics — works as a unified long-form film with unusual candor including segments addressing his personal failings. One of the most honest celebrity documentaries produced for any platform.

Hidden Gems and Final Picks

23. The Mother (2023)

Jennifer Lopez’s action thriller about a lethal assassin protecting the daughter she gave up for adoption delivers well-choreographed action sequences and committed performances in a highly watchable genre exercise perfect for an undemanding action evening.

24. Thelma (2024)

June Squibb delivers a career-capping performance as a 93-year-old woman who sets out on a Mission Impossible-style adventure to recover money stolen from her by a phone scammer. Sweet, funny, and unexpectedly action-packed — a genuine delight for viewers of any age.

25. Leave the World Behind (2023)

Sam Esmail’s apocalyptic thriller — two families sheltering together in a remote house as an unknown catastrophe unfolds — is Netflix’s most ambitious original thriller in recent years. Deliberately unsettling, visually sophisticated, and anchored by strong performances from Julia Roberts, Mahershala Ali, and Ethan Hawke. Divisive in its refusal of easy resolution but deeply rewarding for viewers who engage with it on its own terms.

Tips for Finding More Great Films on Netflix

Beyond this curated list, several strategies help you discover hidden gems. The Browse by Language filter is one of Netflix’s most underutilized features — filtering by French, Korean, Spanish, or Japanese cinema reveals a rich seam of excellent films the algorithmic home screen rarely surfaces. Third-party sites like JustWatch and Letterboxd are often more effective discovery tools than Netflix’s own recommendation algorithm. The Critics’ Picks rows, when visible in the Browse menu, surface quality over commercial appeal. Most importantly: commit to giving unfamiliar films a genuine 15-minute opportunity before passing judgment. The best films on this list reward patience and presence in ways that algorithmically optimized content rarely does.

Conclusion

Netflix’s February 2026 film library offers something genuinely excellent for every kind of viewer. Use this guide as a starting point, trust your instincts about which premises most excite you, and give slightly challenging or unfamiliar films a real opportunity before passing judgment. The best films on this list — The Brutalist, Emilia Pérez, Society of the Snow, The Substance — require commitment that pays back many times over in the quality of the experience they provide.