Best TV Shows and Movies For When You're Stuck At Home

Watch when: You’re looking for comforting chuckles to enjoy with your drinks of choice.

Go on a binge:

• The Office (2005-2013). You might not be in the office much these days, but this hilarious all-too-real sitcom will remind you why you don’t miss it all that much. Once you’ve finished the American version, plow through the British version (2001-2003) that inspired the American series.

Make it a movie night:

• Coming to America (1988). A young Eddie Murphy stars as the pampered Prince Akeem who comes to America to seek a bride. The reboot of this classic is hitting cinemas, so get a jumpstart and stick on the original.

Watch when: You’re worried about stuff. Hey, no matter how stressed you are about life right now, at least you’re not dealing with a bloodthirsty poltergeist or something. It’s all relative, right?

Go on a binge:

• American Horror Story (2011-). An addictive anthology series covering just about every horror trope imaginable.

Make it a movie night:

• Midsommar (2019). A beautifully surreal nightmare that takes place on a cult commune in rural Sweden.

Watch when: You’ve had enough of this world for today. You want an otherworldly experience to get away from it all.

Go on a binge:

• Russian Doll (2019-). A smart, dystopian comedy series starring Natasha Lyonne, with a Groundhog Day-style time loop.

Make it a movie night:

• The Truman Show (1998). This classic features Jim Carrey as Truman, a man who has unknowingly lived his entire life as the star of a 24/7 reality show on a picture-perfect set with paid actors.

Watch when: You actually need a little sugarcoating.

Go on a binge:

• Great British Baking Show (2010-). This series is so much more than just an amateur baking competition. The calm camaraderie of the contestants and the lush green surroundings are like a massage for the mind. Besides, who doesn’t like cake?

Make it a movie night:

• A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (2019). Tom Hanks plays Mr. Rogers, bringing everyone’s beloved childhood TV show back to life. This movie will restore your faith in the world.

Watch when: You’re looking for caustic wit that lampoons the absurdities of daily life. If we can’t laugh, we’ll cry, right?

Go on a binge:

• Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000-). The latest series from Seinfeld creator Larry David is a cringeworthy but binge-worthy sitcom. Prepare to start hating the lead character—that’s the whole point!

Make it a movie night:

• Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979). The highly controversial parody of Abrahamic religion has stood the test of time, and is probably more relevant than ever.
• Bonus: Look Who’s Back (2015). Unconscious since 1945, Hitler wakes up in the 21st century and is perplexed that nobody is taking him seriously.

Watch when: Your brain is fried. All you want to do is to laugh at something ridiculous.

Go on a binge:

• It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia (2005-). The premise: a gang of dysfunctional, egocentric friends who love to revel in one another’s misery somehow manage to run a dive bar. Danny DeVito makes this long-running sitcom the classic that it is.

Make it a movie night:

• Stepbrothers (2008). Manchildren Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly take immaturity to new heights when their parents marry, and they suddenly become stepbrothers.

Watch when: You want something that will keep you on the edge of your seat, guaranteed.

Go on a binge:

• Stranger Things (2016-). Set in the 1980s, this hit series kicks off when a young boy disappears in a small town in Indiana.

Make it a movie night:

• Moon (2009). A lonely astronaut on a solo three-year space mission is the premise of this ominous film.

Watch when: You want to get deeply involved in “drama” that is not your own— for once.

Go on a binge:

• Breaking Bad (2008-2013). If you haven’t watched this powerful series about a high school chemistry teacher who turns to making meth to pay for his cancer treatment, this is the time. Once you’ve finished, go for the encore with Better Call Saul (2015-), the currently-running prequel series.

Make it a movie night:

• The Irishman (2019). Martin Scorsese brings all the big names back in this epic gangster drama starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci.

Mood: You want to be taken away to a simpler time and place for a spell.

Go on a binge:

• Outlander (2014-2019). A 1940s buttoned-up British nurse suddenly finds herself in 1740s Scotland and soon catches feelings for a kilted warrior.

Make it a movie night:

• Elizabeth (1998). This Oscar-winning movie stars Cate Blanchett as Elizabeth I, the free-spirited Queen who is forced to sacrifice her happiness for her safety in 1550s England.

Watch when: You want something that hits maybe a little too close to home.

Go on a binge:

• Black Mirror (2011-). An anthology series set slightly in the future that perfectly captures our unease with how technology is infiltrating and taking over our lives.

Make it a movie night:

• 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016). Finding yourself trapped in an underground bunker with an unhinged doomsday prepper somehow doesn’t feel so inconceivable these days. John Goodman really shines as the star of this suspenseful genre-mashup.