Stream On This Week: The Sheep Detectives May Make You Cry, and Mel Brooks Will Definitely Make You Laugh

Welcome to the latest issue of Stream On, the weekly newsletter from Consequence that answers the eternally confounding question: What films and TV shows should you be watching? (Subscribe here!) We’re looking at all the new and recent releases from Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Prime Video, Paramount+, Peacock, HBO Max, and more for ideas — not to mention a Blast From the Past and a streaming recommendation from this week’s special guest: Spider-Noir composers Kris Bowers and Michael Dean Parsons!

This Week’s Picks

The Sheep Detectives (Film)

Directed by: Kyle Balda
Cast: Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, Molly Gordon, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Chris O’Dowd, Regina Hall, Patrick Stewart, Bella Ramsey, Brett Goldstein, Hong Chau, Emma Thompson
Streaming on: Prime Video

Legitimately one of the best movies of the year so far, The Sheep Detectives gets a lot more dark and existential than you’d anticipate. Yes, it’s a film about a herd of sheep, led by the sharp-witted Lily (voiced by Julia Louis-Dreyfus), who try to solve the murder of their beloved shepherd George (Hugh Jackman). But it’s also a movie about coming to terms with mortality, and the importance of memory, and whoof, so much more. Good thing it’s also very funny!

It all makes a lot more sense when you learn that the adaptation was written by Craig Mazin, whose other projects include HBO’s Chernobyl and the TV adaptation of The Last of Us. Sheep Detectives is so charming, definitely a must-see. (Even if it might lead to some intense conversations about death with the kids.)

The Bear Season 5 (TV)

Created by: Christopher Storer
Cast: Jeremy Allen White, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, Abby Elliott, Matty Matheson
Streaming on: Hulu

So my review of the final season of The Bear focused on the first seven episodes, because FX didn’t send the finale out in advance. However, those seven episodes represent a real return to form for the series — everything you want the show to be, delivering incredible highs and lows over the course of one tense night of service. Without any spoilers, I’m also pleased to say that the actual series finale is definitely a little overlong, but it was a satisfying and heartfelt conclusion that did the early seasons of the show proud. And dear god, does composer Christian Lundberg’s score (produced by Hans Zimmer) rip. As someone who really loved the early seasosn, I’m very happy this one went out strong.

A Woman of Substance (TV)

Created by: Katherine Jakeways, Roanne Bardsley
Cast: Brenda Blethyn, Jessica Reynolds, Emmett J. Scanlan, Lydia Leonard
Streaming on: Britbox

The fine folks at Telly Visions have been calling this British drama Rivals meets Downton Abbey, which is a way better description than anything else I can come up with. The series stars Brenda Blethyn as Emma Harte, a successful 1970s businesswoman who comes from humble roots — humble roots we see depicted in flashbacks, with Jessica Reynolds playing the younger Emma, working as a maid for a rich British family in the early 1900s. There’s twists, sex, and scandal the way only British TV can pull off, and the contrast between time periods is a powerful reminder of how much change the 20th century witnessed.

Voicemails for Isabelle (Film)

Directed by: Leah McKendrick
Cast: Zoey Deutch, Nick Robinson, Harry Shum Jr., Lukas Gage, Nick Offerman
Streaming on: Netflix

I’ve been trying to be more discriminating about Netflix original rom-coms, because although they tend to feature outstanding supporting casts and the occasional moments of charm, they often fall into the category of “forgettable” at best. That being said, I did really enjoy this latest effort, which is a little weepier than most thanks to the premise, but featured some exceptionally funny moments and confirmed Zoey Deutch as the reigning queen of streaming rom-coms. Plus, Nick Robinson reveals that he has the most important quality needed for a romantic lead — the dude knows how to gaze.

The plot machinations that lead a young real estate agent in Texas to become infatuated with a chef living in San Francisco are a bit too convoluted to explain in the space of a blurb, but I had a good time with Voicemails for Isabelle. At least, I’m now obsessed with the concept of dessert nachos, and I must also issue a Nick Offerman thirst trap alert.

Blast From the Past

The home screens of streaming services are always packed with the latest new releases, but we don’t spend enough time appreciating how much good library content is streaming across all of these platforms. Each week, Stream On will spotlight one less-than-new favorite (must pre-date the founding of Consequence, so 15 years or older) that deserves attention from modern-day eyes.

The Producers (Film)

Directed by: Mel Brooks
Cast: Gene Wilder, Zero Mostel, Estelle Winwood
Streaming on: Kanopy, Tubi

A true titan of comedy turns 100 years old on June 28th, 2026 ::knocks on wood::, which is why Consequence has spent this week celebrating the legendary Mel Brooks, who began his remarkable film career with this ruthlessly funny look at Broadway.

The Producers wasn’t an instant success upon release — Brooks’ beloved Anne Bancroft had to literally slap some sense into him, when he bemoaned the mixed reviews from critics. However, it went on to win Brooks the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay —over 2001: A Space Odyssey! — and of course gave birth to the record-setting musical adaptation. (Not to mention a really funny season of Curb Your Enthusiasm.) And in the story’s original form, the whipsmart dialogue and fantastic performances from Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder remain iconic. Happy early birthday, Mel.

A Special Guest Recommends!

Liz isn’t the only person in the world capable of suggesting stuff for people to watch… So each week, Stream On will now feature picks from a special guest! Said special guest could be literally anyone from the world of entertainment — actors, writers, directors, musicians, or anyone else Liz thinks might be watching something interesting.

This Week: Kris Bowers and Michael Dean Parsons!

Who Are They? Kris Bowers and Michael Dean Parsons are both well-established, acclaimed composers: Kris’ previous credits include Bridgerton, The Wild Robot, and The Color Purple, while Michael worked on the scores for Pain Hustlers, Stan Lee, and the ILM-focused documentary series Light & Magic. Together, the pair made beautiful music for the Prime Video series Spider-Noir, matching Nic Cage’s manic energy as well as the show’s hard-boiled vibes.

What Do They Recommend? You’ve probably heard of Kris and Michael’s pick before, but their thoughtful explanation for why they picked it makes this one of my favorite guest recommendations to date:

Chinatown (Peacock, Kanopy) really needs no introduction as one of the all-time noir greats, and for us the score by Jerry Goldsmith is a big part of why it holds together the way it does. It creates this unconventional but very thematic musical world that feels inseparable from the mystery and drama of the picture.

Before composing the score, Goldsmith limited himself to an instrumental palette of four pianos, four harps, percussion, strings, and solo trumpet. It’s such an unusual setup, but it became so signature that it’s hard to imagine the film sounding any other way now. When we were working on Spider-Noir, that idea was really helpful.

We obviously wanted to pay tribute to the sounds and gestures of our favorite noir scores, but the story behind Chinatown felt like permission to reach for unexpected sounds, as long as they felt honest to the world and the characters. In our case, that meant theremins, electric guitars, and city street percussion, all accompanying a classic large orchestral sound. In many of the action scenes we also leaned into an ensemble of very percussive-sounding pianos – our own small way of honoring Goldsmith’s iconic score!

Huge thanks to Kris and Michael! Be sure to check out Spider-Noir on Prime Video now, if you haven’t already.

One Last One Before Bed

Finally, let’s spotlight a movie or TV show that’s not only great, but won’t take up too much of your time: Think of this section as the answer to the question “What’s something I can watch before hitting the hay, that won’t keep me up too late?” The only rule is that it has to be less than 95 minutes if it’s a movie, or less than 30 minutes an episode if it’s a TV show. Otherwise, sky’s the limit!

Among Us (TV)

Created by: Owen Dennis
Cast: Yvette Nicole Brown, Kimiko Glenn, Liv Hewson, Ashley Johnson, Wayne Knight, Phil LaMarr, Randall Park, Dan Stevens, Debra Wilson, Elijah Wood
Streaming on: Paramount+

Paramount stealthily released this animated series a few Fridays ago, for reasons I’m not totally sure of, and because it was dropped oh so stealthily, I forgot to actually check it out until this week, when my friend Steve reached out to sing its praises. Among Us is an adaptation of the video game that kept us all vaguely entertained during the pandemic (one of my favorite bits of Glass Onion was Angela Lansbury, Natasha Lyonne, and Stephen Sondheim playing it with Benoit Blanc), and the short-form series (12-13 minute episodes!) is filled with cute touches straight from the game. The show also features some sharp if morbid jokes and solid voice performances, with the standouts including Dan Stevens, Debra Wilson, Randall Park, and Elijah Wood. Thanks for the reminder, Steve!

We’ll be back next week with more picks — in the meantime, stay safe out there, or better yet stay inside, where it’s definitely safe, and there’s so much film and TV to watch. Be sure to subscribe to the newsletter!