What to Stream: Emma Thompson, ‘The Night Agent’ and Hilary Duff
By The Associated Press
The Emma Thompson-led thriller “Dead of Winter” and Hilary Duff’s first full-length album in 11 years are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you.
Also among the streaming offerings worth your time this week, as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: A new season of “The Night Agent” lands on Netflix, Dove Cameron and Avan Jogia star in the new series “56 Days” for Prime Video and Harris Dickinson’s brilliant directorial debut, “Urchin,” lands on Hulu.
New movies to stream from Feb. 16-22
— Harris Dickinson might be best known for his acting in films like “Babygirl,” but last year he proved himself to be a filmmaker to watch as well. His brilliant directorial debut, “Urchin,” streaming on Hulu on Tuesday, follows in the social realist tradition of Ken Loach in chronicling the ups and downs of an unhoused addict (Frank Dillane) in London.
— HBO Max has the Emma Thompson-led thriller “Dead of Winter” arriving on Friday, Feb. 20. Thompson plays a grieving loner who gets lost near a Minnesota lake during a blizzard and stumbles on a cabin where a young woman is being held by an armed couple.
— And if Emerald Fennell’s “Wuthering Heights” leaves you wanting more (or moor) Cathy and Heathcliff, there are plenty of other versions streaming on various platforms. There is of course William Wyler’s lush but much condensed 1939 film, with Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon (on HBO Max and Criterion Channel). The 1992 version (free on Kanopy) starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliette Binoche is one of the most faithful to Brontë’s text for actually including the second generation of Lintons and Earnshaws. Andrea Arnold’s underseen film, released in 2011, (free on Tubi), notably features a multiracial actor, James Howson, as Heathcliff, opposite Kaya Scodelario’s Catherine. There’s also the British television miniseries from 2009 with Charlotte Riley and Tom Hardy that’s available on BritBox.
New music to stream from Feb. 16-22
— The millennial queen hath returned. Hilary Duff will release her first full-length since 2015’s “Breathe In. Breathe Out.” on Friday, Feb. 20. Titled “luck… or something,” the album is a 11-track collection of nostalgic pop, the ideal listening experience for those still devastated by the tabled, adult “Lizzie McGuire” reboot. Of course, this time around, Duff has won out, and the themes are, as one song title puts it, “Mature.”
— It is not too late to hop aboard the Megan Moroney train, but the rest of us are pulling out of the station — and following her to greener pastures. The country singer-songwriter emerged as a fully-realized talent with the release of her platinum-selling single “Tennessee Orange” a few years back; her 2024 sophomore album “Am I Okay?” only strengthened her charms. Now she’s preparing to release “Cloud 9,” out Friday, Feb. 20, to win over even more hearts. There’s a reason “6 Months Later” has been inescapable on country music. Isn’t it time you found out why?
— AP Music Writer Maria Sherman
New series to stream from Feb. 16-22
— Dove Cameron and Avan Jogia star in a new series “56 Days” for Prime Video as Ciara and Oliver who meet by chance at a grocery store and embark on a whirlwind, passionate romance. Fifty-six days later, homicide detectives find a decomposed body in a bathtub which could be Ciara or Oliver leaving the question, who killed who? It’s based on a best-seller by Catherine Ryan Howard. Cameron and Jogia, who started out on Disney and Nickelodeon respectively, show they’re not kids anymore in this sexy thriller. It premieres Wednesday.
— A new season of Netflix’s “The Night Agent” arrives Thursday. It stars Gabriel Basso as Peter Sutherland, a secret operative working in counter-intelligence for the FBI. In Season 3, he’s on a mission to find a treasury secretary who has fled to Istanbul after committing murder, that leads to the discovery of a dark money network. Information may be power, but it can also be deadly and Peter’s in trouble.
— Jennifer Garner’s “The Last Thing He Told Me” returns Friday, Feb. 20 on Apple TV. It’s based on novels by Laura Dave. Garner plays Hannah Hall, a new wife and stepmom whose world is rocked in Season 1 when her new husband, Owen, (played by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) disappears, leaving a note to protect his teen daughter, Bailee (played by Angourie Rice). Season 2 picks up five years later when (spoiler alert but it’s in the trailer) Owen shows back up. Now, the three are in danger. Garner, who mastered fight scenes for her breakout role in the TV show “Alias” and as Marvel assassin Elektra, gets to show her kicks and punches.
New video games to play from Feb. 16-22
— Stealth games like Thief, Dishonored and Splinter Cell have seen better days, but at least one developer — France’s Cyanide — is trying to carry the genre forward. In Styx: Blades of Greed, you are a goblin who isn’t particularly well-equipped to fight toe-to-toe against orcs and other bullies. But if you take the sneaky approach you can fill your pockets with quartz, the most valuable and volatile substance in this fantasy world. Magic powers like invisibility and mind control make it a little easier to avoid brawling, but if things get out of hand you can whip out a glider and fly away. The heist begins Thursday on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S and PC.