March 15 marks a busy week of new releases on Netflix. There’s a new dramedy series starring Idris Elba, another true crime docuseries, new episodes of Arrested Development and Queer Eye, and a Ben Affleck-led action movie. With so much to watch, and so little time, we’ve put together a rundown of this weekend’s best new Netflix Originals to help you choose.
Last week’s big releases included Ricky Gervais’ bittersweet comedy series After Life, the inspiring true story Walk. Ride. Rodeo., and a journey of self discovery in the Alfre Woodard-starring film Juanita. Still to come on Netflix in March are new seasons of The OA, On My Block, and Santa Clarita Diet, as well as the tale of the Texas Rangers who hunted down Bonnie and Clyde in The Highwaymen.
In the meantime, however, here are the new releases you can check out right now - whether you’re looking for a daring heist, a real life mystery, or a fabulous makeover.
Triple Frontier
Turn Up Charlie
Luther star Idris Elba (also known as Heimdall, the one-time guardian of Asgard’s Bifrost Bridge in the Thor movies) puts a fictional spin on his real-life career as a DJ in Netflix Original series Turn Up Charlie. Elba plays Charlie, a man who loves music but is having a hard time making a living from it. One day his wealthy friend, who just so happens to be married to a star DJ, offers Charlie a job as a “manny” for their troublesome daughter. Though baby-sitting isn’t his thing, Charlie takes the job in order to pay the bills and perhaps even find a unique path to advancing his career.
Arrested Development Season 5, Part Two
In what may well be the end of the series, Arrested Development returns to Netflix for the second half of season 5, which resolves the mysterious disappearance of Lucille 2 in a shocking way. The quirky sitcom was canceled after its initial three-season run on Fox, but then picked up by Netflix and brought back for a fourth season in 2013. Several years passed before the Bluth family returned for the first half of season 5 in 2018, and now the final eight episodes are available to watch.
Queer Eye Season 3
The Fab Five return in season 3 of Netflix’s Queer Eye reboot, to help a new group of people get themselves out of their ruts and discover their inner confidence. In season 3, Jonathan, Tan, Bobby, Karamo, and Antoni help a shy gamer who spends all his time in front of his computer, a young black lesbian who was disowned by her family after coming out, and a widower who is trying to build a new life for himself and his sons after losing his wife to cancer. Tears will be shed, wardrobes will be revitalized, and Tan will teach you the delicate art of the French tuck.
The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann
Twelve years ago, a British three year-old called Madeleine McCann disappeared from her bed in a holiday apartment in Portugal, where her family was staying. The incident caused a media frenzy as police both in the UK and Portugal searching for the missing toddler, with coverage often crossing the lines of journalistic ethics. To this day no one knows what happened to poor Madeleine (except for the person who took her, of course), but Netflix Original docuseries The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann recaps the fraught story of how she vanished, and the drama and controversy that followed.
