Christmas classics, new releases and more are coming to Paramount+ in December for your holiday season viewing. With Jack Frost nipping at your nose outside, you can stay in where it’s nice and warm to watch these seven new films on Paramount+.
“Batman Returns”
Following up 1989’s “Batman” with something like “Batman Returns” takes a lot of guts. In this Christmas-set sequel, Tim Burton dials up the weird and the fear, looping in a far stranger story and a far scarier villain.
Danny DeVito’s portrayal of The Penguin is a bold and highly memorable swing. The radical adaptation brings the classic Batman villain closer to his namesake, making Oswald Cobblepot an abandoned orphan who, after being raised by penguins, begins to resemble one himself. The transformative makeup led by Ve Neill unleashes one of DeVito’s most memorable and enjoyable performances. Just as memorable is Michelle Pfeiffer’s Catwoman — simply put, one of the strongest “villain” turns in superhero cinema. These two, alongside Burton and Michael Keaton, create a delightful alchemy that makes “Batman Returns” one of the strangest and most enjoyable superhero films to this day.
“Beverly Hills Cop”
“Beverly Hills Cop” features a tour de force turn from Eddie Murphy in one of his finest comedies. Murphy’s comic persona has never been fully replicated, a strange alchemy of mania, bite and warmth. His is a screen presence that you simply cannot turn away from, elevating Martin Brest and Daniel Petrie Jr.’s already solid film into an all-timer.
“Fargo”
It’s been seven years since the Coen Brothers last teamed up for a film. Films like “Fargo” explain why that wait feels so long. This darkly comic caper is one of the finest entries in a masterpiece-filled filmography. To date, “Fargo” feels like the purest distillation of the Coen Brothers’ interests, tone and ability — a film about someone purely good running up against a bumbling swarm of in-over-their-heads losers. It’s a perfect film, one just as exciting and rewarding on rewatches as it is on the first viewing.
“Miracle on 34th Street” (1947)
If you’re looking for something specifically to watch for the holidays, 1947’s “Miracle on 34th Street” stands out as a perfect candidate. Written and directed by George Seaton, based on a story by Valentine Davies, this Christmas classic follows a man who, after being hired by a local Macy’s to play Santa Claus, argues that he is indeed the true Saint Nick. A Best Picture nominee, “Miracle on 34th Street” also picked up Oscars for its story and screenplay, as well as Edmund Gwenn’s supporting role as Kris Kringle.
“Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning”
The long-awaited finale (for now) of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise was met with a relatively lukewarm reception in theaters, far from the critical heights of previously esteemed entries. There are certainly elements worth picking apart in Tom Cruise’s eighth installment, but it also features several sequences that meet the high bar set by the previous films. A nail-biting submarine set piece and a magical biplane fight — both almost entirely dialogue-free — stand up among the most stunning moments you could see at a theater in 2025.
“Predators” (2025)
One of the buzziest titles to come out of the Sundance Film Festival in 2025, David Osit’s documentary “Predators” goes deep into the history and legacy of the reality TV series “To Catch a Predator.” In this doc, Osit explores what made the show into a sensation and the consequences and effects on culture that the series wrought.
“‘Predators,’ the new documentary about the TV news program ‘To Catch a Predator,’ comes across as painfully, almost uncomfortably conflicted in the view of its subject,” Brian Lowry wrote for TheWrap. “Yet those NBC specials that unmasked would-be sex offenders feel especially relevant now, seen through the filter of QAnon and the Jeffrey Epstein case, while highlighting the unsettling nature of what we have come to embrace as ‘entertainment.’”
“Something’s Gotta Give”
Nancy Meyers’ “Something’s Gotta Give” is a delightful and cozy romantic comedy featuring exceptional chemistry between Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton. The film follows Nicholson’s Harry Sanborn, a 63-year-old eternal bachelor and womanizer. When Harry has a heart attack at the beach house of his latest fling, Marin (played by the much-younger Amanda Peet), he is resigned to bed rest at the getaway — staying there with Marin’s mother, Erica (Keaton). The evolving relationship between Nicholson and Keaton is a delight to watch, as is Keanu Reeves’ supporting performance as a young doctor fighting for Erica’s affection.
