Every month, Netflix<\/a> adds more high-quality movies that make it harder to find the time to do anything else.<\/p>\n I often struggle to decide which great film or underrated flick I should put in my queue to watch when I have free time.<\/p>\n You shouldn\u2019t have the same problem, which is why I made this list of my top three new Netflix movies you should stream in August 2026.<\/p>\n From a pitch-black satire about social media obsession starring Aubrey Plaza <\/strong><\/a>and Elizabeth Olsen<\/strong> to a 2024 horror film featuring Sydney Sweeney<\/strong>, these films are all underseen, underrated and deserve a wider, more appreciative audience than they\u2019ve received in the past.\n<\/p>\n Abe Applebaum (Adam Brody<\/strong><\/a>) used to be a kid detective famous for solving minor crimes around his neighborhood. He\u2019s all grown up now, but he\u2019s still haunted by the one case he never solved \u2013 the disappearance of his friend, Gracie. When high school student Caroline (Heated Rivalry<\/em><\/a>\u2018s Sophie N\u00e9lisse<\/strong>) asks him to find her missing boyfriend Patrick (Lian McLean-Smits<\/strong>), Abe agrees to take the case, partly due to Caroline\u2019s insistence but mostly so he can redeem himself for never finding Gracie.<\/p>\n The Kid Detective<\/em> starts with a promising premise \u00a0\u2014 <\/span> what if Encyclopedia Brown grew up into a has-been slacker? \u00a0\u2014 <\/span> and spins an intriguing mystery that gets progressively stranger and darker. Patrick\u2019s disappearance reminds Abe of Gracie\u2019s, which causes him to doubt his detective skills and his place in the world. If he\u2019s not \u201cthe kid detective,\u201d then who is he? Brody has been getting his flowers lately for his great work in Netflix\u2019s hit series, Nobody Wants This<\/em><\/a>, but he gives his best performance to date as a man who never quite grew up. I won\u2019t spoil The Kid Detective<\/em>\u2019s ending, except to confess that it left me wrecked. It will probably do the same to you.<\/p>\n The Kid Detective<\/em> is now streaming on Netflix.<\/a><\/p>\n Sister Cecilia (Sydney Sweeney<\/strong><\/a>) is a novice nun who just joined an Italian convent that treats dying clergy members. Because she\u2019s new to the ways of the catholic order, she brushes off some weird things she sees, like strange symbols on some of the nuns\u2019 bodies and disturbing nightmares of hooded figures surrounding her. But Cecilia can\u2019t ignore a shocking development that occurs during her stay \u00a0\u2014 <\/span>she becomes pregant, even though she\u2019s a virgin. Something is amiss at this nunnery, and Cecilia is determined to find out before time runs out and she gives birth to something she\u2019s not entirely sure is even human.<\/p>\n Immaculate<\/em> is a clever twist on the devil baby trope \u00a0\u2014 <\/span> just when you think you know where it\u2019s going, its plot takes a turn in another direction. That\u2019s a good thing, as one of the film\u2019s best assets is its unpredictability; it could\u2019ve been a cheap imitation of Rosemary\u2019s Baby<\/em>, but instead, its own weird thing. The movie\u2019s other secret weapon is Sweeney, who showcases another side to her she\u2019s never shown before. She\u2019s completely believable as an innocent nun, and her transformation into a final girl battling to save herself is Immaculate<\/em>\u2019s chief pleasure.<\/p>\n Immaculate<\/em> starts streaming on August 13.<\/a><\/p>\n You have successfully subscribed.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n Ingrid (Aubrey Plaza<\/strong><\/a>) isn\u2019t the most stable person \u2013 her personal life is in the gutter, her mother just died, and her only means of escape is through social media. When she discovers Taylor (Elizabeth Olsen<\/strong><\/a>) online, she sees the popular influencer as her way out of her humdrum life and into Taylor\u2019s picture-perfect, highly curated Venice Beach world. Ingrid quickly moves cross-country and tries to get close to Taylor by pretending to be everything she is: cultured, stylish and always cool. Ingrid\u2019s lie works \u2013 Taylor likes her enough to invite her into her inner circle \u2013 but how long can Ingrid keep up the illusion without her growing desperation to be loved exposing her charade?<\/p>\n Ingrid Goes West<\/em> has the bones of a stalker thriller \u2013 think Single White Female<\/em> for the Instagram age \u2013 but it\u2019s less interested in cheap thrills and more focused on how people like Ingrid use social media as a way to avoid their problems. Taylor isn\u2019t exempt from this criticism either; she advertises a life that doesn\u2019t exist, and which Ingrid craves. Plaza and Olsen deliver performances that toe the line between satire and melodrama. Both of their characters are seriously disturbed, but only one of them knows it.<\/p>\n Ingrid Goes West<\/em> is now streaming on Netflix.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\u2018The Kid Detective\u2019 (2020)<\/h2>\n
\n Adam Brody in The Kid Detective.<\/span> Stage 6 Films \/ Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u2018Immaculate\u2019 (2024)<\/h2>\n
![\"Immaculate](\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Immaculate-Proves-Sydney-Sweeney-Was-Born-to-Be-a-Scream-Queen-371.jpg?w=1000&quality=86&strip=all\")
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\n Sydney Sweeney.<\/span> Courtesy of Neon<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/themes\/us-weekly\/assets\/img\/newsletter-bg-narrow.jpg\")
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<\/p>\nThank You!<\/h3>\n
\u2018Ingrid Goes West\u2019 (2017)<\/h2>\n
![\"Aubrey](\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/ingrid-goes-west-2017.jpg?w=1000&quality=86&strip=all\")
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\n Aubrey Plaza in Ingrid Goes West.<\/span> NEON \/ courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n