What to Watch This Week
The 5 movies, TV shows, and events everyone will be talking about, for the week of November 5 to November 11.
The MCU. Star Trek. Bridgerton. We love a franchise and world with beloved characters and familiar settings that we can return to again and again. And this week is big for sinking back into stories we obsess over. There’s Godzilla Minus Zero, the 39th (!!) Godzilla movie and sequel to 2023 hit Godzilla Minus One, and the third season of Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, an expansion of J. R. R. Tolkien’s magical Middle Earth. And while British spy thriller Black Doves hasn’t broached franchise territory yet, its long-awaited second season thrusts fans back into its intense world of political conspiracies and cutthroat espionage.
For the week of November 5 to November 11, here are the five movies, TV shows, and events that will have everyone talking.
Godzilla Minus Zero
When to watch: November 6
Where to watch: In theaters
There have been a lot of Godzilla movies — 39 since the Japanese original came out in 1954, to be exact. Our relationship with the kaiju films has ebbed and flowed stateside, but in 2023, Japanese epic Godzilla Minus One pulled off something that hasn’t happened in a long time: made a new entry in the franchise feel like absolutely essential viewing. That flick (which is set in a postwar Japan and follows a former kamikaze pilot with PTSD after a previous Godzilla encounter) was lauded internationally for how it made the most of a lower budget while centering a more grounded, human story, and became the first Godzilla film to be nominated at the Oscars (it went on to win the Best Visual Effects category, also the first Japanese film to do so).
So, of course, they’ve made a direct sequel, with writer/director Takashi Yamazaki returning for Godzilla Minus Zero. The film is set two years after Godzilla Minus One in a Japan that has just barely recovered when a new giant lizard monster, Ghidorah, emerges and causes immediate chaos and destruction. The humans at the heart of Minus One are also pivotal here, especially pilot Kōichi Shikishima (Ryûnosuke Kamiki), who takes the battle against Ghidorah to the sky as humanity must team up with Godzilla to defeat the dragon-like creature.
The hype for Godzilla Minus Zero is strong (Rotten Tomatoes readers voted it as the most anticipated movie of the month) and it has big shoes to fill. Based on early reviews, there’s every reason to believe that the film has a lot to love about it, balancing grounded human stories that resonate with spectacle worthy of the big screen — everything a kaiju movie should be.
See what critics are saying in First Reviews and buy tickets on Fandango.
Black Doves Season 2
When to watch: November 5
Where to watch: Netflix
When Black Doves premiered in late 2024, it was something of a surprise. There didn’t seem to be a ton of buildup around its announcement, nor were there much expectations. It was a British spy thriller set at Christmastime and starred Keira Knightley, Ben Whishaw, and Happy Valley’s Sarah Lancashire, which was kind of all most of us needed to know before hitting play on a six-episode series during a quiet time of year. But the show — following the wife of a high-level UK politician whose secret identity as a “Black Dove” spy is at risk of exposure — quickly revealed itself to be clever romp, filled with great performances, thrilling action sequences, and a distinctive tone.
That means the expectations for Black Doves Season 2 are now set, and they are high. Helen (Knightley) has managed to maintain the charade in her marriage, and now her husband (Andrew Buchan) is about to become prime minister. But suddenly, her handler Reed (Lancashire) is facing a power struggle, while her assassin bestie Sam (Whishaw) has discovered that Black Dove agents are being targeted. Now, they — alongside new cast members like One Day star Ambika Mod — are being propelled further into a web of secrets, conspiracies, and danger as they search for the truth.
Black Doves took off in its first season because it’s kind of the perfect binge watch. It’s not a huge time commitment and keeps audiences engaged with sharp writing and ultra-fast pace. Shocking things keep happening, so, of course, you’re going to keep watching and talking about what’s unfolding, all while having a fun time because of how well made the show is. Here’s to more of all this in Season 2.
Wild Horse Nine
When to watch: November 6
Where to watch: In theaters
There’s also a spy thriller coming to the big screens this week. Wild Horse Nine is the latest black comedy from acclaimed filmmaker Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin, In Bruges), which follows CIA partners Chris (John Malkovich) and Lee (Sam Rockwell), who must confront their pasts and global tensions in the early ’70s while on a job on Easter Island. Complicating matters is Chris’ ailing health, prompting him to ask existential questions about the things he’s done as a spy, which could very well derail their mission. Parker Posey, Steve Buscemi, and Tom Waits also star.
McDonagh is known for his witty dialogue, dark humor, and thoughtful examinations of meaningful (and often off-kilter) male friendships and reliably delivers a quality of work that is both crowd-pleasing and worthy of critical acclaim. Fresh off of the film festival circuit, Wild Horse Nine is already drumming up Oscar buzz, in particular for Malkovich, with some critics going so far as to say it’s his best performance in years. (As a whole, the movie is also Certified Fresh with a 94% on the Tomatometer.) McDonagh is an awards season regular, so it’s always a good idea to check out his projects before they’re in the headlines for months on end — but that’s not the only reason Wild Horse Nine is worth a watch. There’s also McDonagh’s trademark sense of humor, acting that leaves an impression, and achingly tender moments that catch you off guard.
Buy tickets on Fandango.
Possible Love
When to watch: November 6
Where to watch: Netflix
Netflix has been bringing Korean content to mainstream, global audiences for a decade now, usually in the form of glossy melodramas (Crash Landing on You), prestige TV hits (Squid Game), or buzzy reality series (Culinary Class Wars). The streamer has also been making Korean-language films, but it feels less common to see them break through to English-speaking audiences as K-dramas. Possible Love might just change that.
Directed by Lee Chang-dong, a leading South Korean filmmaker known for meditative dramas like Burning and Secret Sunshine, Possible Love tracks the interconnected stories of two married couples. On one side, there’s the affluent Sang-woo (Zo In-sung) and Ye-ji (Cho Yeo-jeong), who is a documentary filmmaker; on the other is Mi-ok (Jeon Do-yeon) and her husband Ho-seok (Sul Kyung-gu), who are participating in Ye-ji’s new doc about laid-off workers. Over the course of filming, the lives of the two families become messily intertwined as the feelings and desires they’ve all been hiding slowly start to bubble to the surface.
Winner of the Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize at the 2026 Venice International Film Festival (second to the coveted Golden Lion), Possible Love has been selected as South Korea’s Academy Awards entry, and, judging by the critical reception — it currently holds a 100% on the Tomatometer — it has an excellent shot at a nomination. Like Parasite before it, the drama depicts class in searing fashion, but in a quieter, more intimate package that’s more of a slow burn. This is a film that confronts real-world, universal issues head on, but it’s totally character-driven, which means the audience must confront them in their own way too. It’s not afraid to be complex, messy, and raw, which is exactly why it will stay with viewers even after the credits roll.
The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 3
When to watch: November 11. New episodes drop weekly on Wednesdays.
Where to watch: Prime Video
Any diehard J. R. R. Tolkien fan loves spending time in Middle Earth, so it’s very welcome news that the two-year long wait for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 3 is finally over. Picking up five years after the events of Season 2, after Sauron (Charlie Vickers) defeats Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) in a battle for the nine rings for men, this new set of episodes finds the villain still struggling to forge the One Ring — which also means he’s more insecure and volatile than ever. Meanwhile, Galadriel’s long-lost husband, Celeborn (Jamie Campbell Bower) re-emerges, and the War of the Elves wages on and toward, approaching the land that eventually becomes Rivendell, and elves, dwarves, humans, and wizards must unite in the fight against evil.
Despite the enduring popularity of Lord of the Rings, The Rings of Power has struggled to capture the attention of more casual fans. Thanks to the time jump, the series showrunners are looking at Season 3 almost as a reset, a jumping- in point for people who may not have seen every episode. If there’s an opportunity for the fantasy series to take off — in the middle of high-stakes action as the plot approaches more recognizable grounds — this is it.
