A fun bit of historic TV trivia is that the original NBC peacock logo was first implemented in 1956 to highlight the network’s new color programming. Even though the logo has gone through numerous iterations since then, the network has stuck with the colorful bird, in one form or another, for going on six decades now. It’s fitting, then, that Peacock is known most for its TV programming, highlighted by shows like The Office, Parks and Rec, and the self-mocking (and hilarious) 30 Rock. If you are on Peacock for the shows, however, don’t overlook that the platform is also home to a number of great movies spanning cinema history, including everything from great comedy to excellent sports movies.
Peacock streaming offers both free (registered) and paid accounts. As a result, some Peacock movies are available without a paid subscription, and others only for subscribers. This roundup culls titles from both groups. To be sure you can access all of these classics, you’ll have to fork over the $5-a-month service cost. Happy streaming and keep reading to find the best movies on Peacock right now.
Asteroid City (2023)
105m
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Stars
Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks
Directed by
Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson is not to everyone’s taste, but he’s one of the most visually distinct and idiosyncratic working on a massive scale today, and Asteroid City is one of his best movies. The film follows a group of people who are stranded in the desert after they have an unexpected encounter with extraterrestrial life. As these people interact and fall in love, they also deal with heartache and grief, and part of the movie’s brilliance is the icy way they have to work through deeply felt emotional. It’s at times a deeply moving movie, even as Asteroid City is a firm reminder that Anderson is a comedian first and foremost.
Bernie (2012)
99m
Genre
Comedy, Crime, Drama
Stars
Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine, Matthew McConaughey
Directed by
Richard Linklater
Bernie was a bit of a zag for director Richard Linklater, as it involves way more murder than the rest of his filmography. Jack Black stars as Bernie Tiede in this true story. Everybody loves Bernie, the man who charms all the little old ladies in his Carthage, Texas, hometown, even as he endures constant abuse from his crabby benefactor Marjorie Nugent (Shirley MacLaine). A man can only take so much, though, and before too long, Bernie loosens his pent-up rage against the woman, sending shockwaves through the small town. What carries the film is its chorus of real-life town residents who give the plot an undeniable local color through a series of talking-head interviews interspersed between the action.
The Farm (2019)
80m
Genre
Horror
Stars
Nora Yessayan, Alec Gaylord, Ken Volok
Directed by
Hans Stjernswärd
Ever wonder what it’s like to be the livestock on a farm? Well, the horror flick The Farm offers an answer. And it’s pretty horrific. After taking a wrong turn on the highway, a young couple decides to stop at a roadside diner for food and relaxation. Their fun trip soon becomes a fight for survival when masked kidnappers imprison them on a farm where humans are the main course. The movie is filled with shocking and disturbing scenes, but if you’re in the mood for pure, unadulterated horror, The Farm is here to deliver.
Short Term 12 (2013)
96m
Genre
Drama
Stars
Brie Larson, John Gallagher Jr., Kaitlyn Dever
Directed by
Destin Daniel Cretton
A movie featuring an array of future stars before any of them were stars, Short Term 12 is also a delicate story about living with trauma. The movie stars Brie Larson as a counselor at a short-term care facility for teenagers from troubled homes, and much of the movie focuses on the way she interacts with the teens she works with, and deals with her own traumatic past. Surrounded by a supporting cast that includes Rami Malek, Lakeith Stanfield and Kaitlyn Dever among others, Short Term 12 is an intimate, small-scale movie that never loses touch with its characters’ humanity.
Burning (2018)
148m
Genre
Mystery, Drama, Thriller
Stars
Yoo Ah-in, Steven Yeun, Jun Jong-seo
Directed by
Lee Chang-dong
A Korean drama from 2018 that earns every bit of its 150-minute runtime, Burning tells the story of a young man who becomes transfixed by the disappearance of a woman he’s recently formed a bond with. As he becomes increasingly convinced that something terrible happened to her, we get an examination of both this young man and the way the world around him seems to blur and change. Featuring a riveting supporting performance from Steven Yeun as a wealthy and mysterious possible criminal, Burning is riveting in ways that most movies only aspire to be.
Night of the Living Dead (1968)
96m
Genre
Horror
Stars
Judith O'Dea, Duane Jones, Marilyn Eastman
Directed by
George A. Romero
The movie that launched an entire genre, Night of the Living Dead tells the story of five strangers who come together at a farmhouse in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. Their struggle to survive may feel small and quaint by modern standards, but the human drama that plays out between them remains as compelling as any in a modern zombie flick. The movie’s chilling ending, which is a stark reminder of the racism that has been a part of America for decades, and still exists today, also makes it feel like the kind of small, independent drama that might hit theaters today.
The Act of Killing (2012)
159m
Genre
Documentary
Stars
Anwar Congo, Herman Koto, Syamsul Arifin
Directed by
Joshua Oppenheimer, Christine Cynn
A documentary that tells the story of the men who committed mass atrocities in Indonesia, The Act of Killing is a complex, moving portrait of what it means to commit mass murder and be celebrated for your heroism. The movie uncovers a story most people likely don’t know, but more than that, it’s an examination of how removed some men can be from their own humanity, and the way we create enemies in order to justify awful acts. The Act of Killing is a must-see for any film fan, and iit’s one of the great works of documentary filmmaking of the 21st century.
What movies are leaving Peacock in September?
Leaving September 2
- Crank
- Crank 2 High Voltage
Leaving September 4
- Inside
Leaving September 6
- Redeeming Love
Leaving September 9
- Black Boys
- Curious George: A Royal Monkey
Leaving September 14
- The Public
Leaving September 15
- My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
Leaving September 16
- The House
Leaving September 18
- A Thousand and One
Leaving September 30
- Along Came Polly
- Bad Teacher
- Ben is Back
- The Best Man Holiday
- The Best Man
- Bowfinger
- Casper
- The Change-Up
- Colombiana
- Cold Case Files – Varied
- Conan the Barbarian
- Dazed and Confused
- Definitely, Maybe
- Duplicity
- Easy A
- Enough
- The Expendables 2
- The Expendables 3
- The Expendables
- Francesca Quinn, PI
- The Fault in Our Stars
- Friday Night Lights
- Furious 7
- Hello, It’s Me
- I Spy
- It’s Complicated
- Jerry Maguire
- Larry Crowne
- Love at First Bark
- Love, For Real
- Love Happens
- Love Under the StarsMachete
- The Matrix Reloaded
- The Matrix Revolutions
- The Matrix
- Morning Show Mysteries: Murder Ever After
- My Big Fat Greek Wedding
- National Lampoon’s Animal House
- Nutty Professor II: The Klumps
- The Nutty Professor
- The Other Guys
- Perfect Harmony
- R.I.P.D.
- Riddles with Deceit: A Martha’s Vineyard Mystery
- Rise and Shine, Benedict Stone
- The Road to El Dorado
- Rome in Love
- Ruby Herring Mysteries: Silent Witness
- Rudy
- Safe House
- Sailing Into Love
- Salt
- Santa Claus is Comn’ to Town
- Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
- Self/Less
- Shrek Forever After
- Smokey and The Bandit
- Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
- Tower Heights
- United 93
- Wanderlust
What movies are coming to Peacock in September?
- 3:10 to Yuma
- The 4th Quarter: Legacy
- Amityville II: The Possession
- Amityville 3-D
- The Amityville Harvest
- The Amityville Moon
- Amityville: The Awakening
- Amityville Uprising
- The Bad Guys
- Bad Teacher
- Ben Is Back
- Billy Madison
- The Birds
- The Bone Collector
- Bride of Chucky
- Bruce Almighty
- Bulletproof
- Candyman
- Casper
- Casper: A Spirited Beginning
- Casper’s Scare School
- Chicken Run
- Child’s Play 2
- Child’s Play 3
- The Christmas Train
- Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant
- Conan the Barbarian
- Cult of Chucky
- Curse of Chucky
- Cut, Color, Murder
- Dawn of the Dead
- The Dead Don’t Die
- Dead Silence
- Desperado
- Despicable Me 3
- A Dog Named Christmas
- Dracula
- Duplicity
- Easy A
- Enchanted Christmas
- Erin Brockovich
- The Expendables
- The Expendables 2
- The Expendables 3
- Fallen Angel
- The Fault in Our Stars
- Frenzy
- The Frighteners
- The Funhouse
- Friday Night Lights
- Get Out
- Ghostbusters
- Ghostbusters II
- The Grudge 2
- The Grudge 3
- Halloween II
- Halloween III: Season of the Witch
- Halloween
- Happy Death Day 2U
- Happy Gilmore
- Hollow Man
- Hollow Man 2
- Hypnotic
- I Spy
- Insidious: Chapter 3
- John Wick
- John Wick: Chapter 2
- John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum
- Just One Kiss
- Karen Kingsbury’s The Bridge
- Karen Kingsbury’s The Bridge Part 2
- Land of the Dead
- Larry Crowne
- The Last Exorcism
- Leatherheads
- The Legend of Zorro
- Life,
- Love Happens
- Love in the Sun
- Machete
- Madagascar
- Marnie
- The Mask of Zorro
- The Matrix
- The Matrix Reloaded
- The Matrix Revolutions
- The Matrix Resurrections
- Mercy
- A Midnight Kiss
- Monster High: 13 Wishes
- Monster High: Freaky Fusion
- Monster High: Boo York, Boo York
- Monster High: Haunted
- Ms. Matched
- The Mummy
- The Mummy Returns
- Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
- The Mummy
- Murder, She Baked: A Deadly Recipe
- Murder, She Baked: A Peach Cobbler Mystery
- My Big Fat Greek Wedding
- Notting Hill
- November Christmas
- The Other Guys
- Patient Zero
- Penguins of Madagascar
- The People Under the Stairs
- Pitch Perfect 2
- Playing Cupid
- The Possession
- Prince of Darkness
- Psycho 1960
- Psycho II
- Psycho III
- Psycho 1998
- Pumpkin Pie Wars
- The Purge: Anarchy
- Rally Road Racers
- Remember Sunday
- Rudy
- The Rundown
- Saboteur
- Salt
- Saw
- Saw 2
- Saw 3
- Saw 4
- Saw 5
- Saw 6
- Saw: The Final Chapter
- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
- The Scorpion King
- A Season for Miracles
- The Serpent and the Rainbow
- Seed of Chucky
- Shadow of a Doubt
- Shocker
- Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Higher Ground
- Silver Bells
- The Skeleton Key
- Slither
- Smokey and the Bandit
- South Beach Love
- Stranded in Paradise
- Taking a Shot at Love
- Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight
- Tales from the Crypt: Bordello of Blood
- Tales From the Hood
- Tales From the Hood 2
- The Tale of Despereaux
- Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
- Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation
- They Live
- The Thing
- The Thing
- Thirst
- To Catch a Spy
- An Uncommon Grace
- United 93
- Us
- Videodrome
- The Visit
- Village of the Damned
- What to Expect When You’re Expecting
- The Wolfman
September 3
- Love In the Great Smoky Mountains: A National Park Romance, 2023 (Hallmark)
September 8
- Boxed In 2
September 15
- Bride of Frankenstein
- It Came from Outer Space
- The Creature Walks Among Us
- Curse of the Werewolf
- Dr. Cyclops
- Dracula’s Daughter
- The Evil of Frankenstein
- Fast & Furious 6
- Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw
- Fast X
- The Fate of the Furious
- Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman
- Frankenstein
- The Invisible Man Returns
- The Invisible Man’s Revenge
- The Invisible Woman
- The Mummy’s Curse
- The Mummy’s Ghost
- The Mummy’s Hand
- The Mummy’s Tomb
- My Son
- Night Monster
- Phantom of the Opera
- Phantom of the Opera
- The Raven
- Son of Frankenstein
- The Strange Case of Doctor RX
- Werewolf of London
September 17
- Notes of Autumn, 2023 (Hallmark)
- Sing
September 19
- The Lego Batman Movie
September 25
- The Protégé
September 30
- Girls Trip
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