The five best movies to watch on Netflix on a Sunday
Did this week feel longer than the others for reasons you still cannot pinpoint? Well, the good news is that the weekend is just around the corner, and so is our weekly recommendation of what to watch next on Netflix.
Following the weeklong celebration of romance recommendations in the wake of Valentine’s Day, Sunday demands a palette cleanser, with movies meant to disrupt the Cupid theorem.
For now, put those rom-coms on the back burner and buckle up for a movie marathon that has adventure reserved at every new curb. Plus, considering Monday isn’t far, Sunday shouldn’t feel like a waste.
So, in case you’re still having second thoughts about leaving your bed, here are the five best movies to watch on Netflix on a Sunday to get you all pumped up.
The five best movies to binge on Netflix on a Sunday
How to Train Your Dragon (Dean DeBlois, 2025)
Serving as the live-action remake of the iconic 2010 animated film, How to Train Your Dragon, recently landed on Netflix, and you need to save some room for the Dean DeBlois directorial this Sunday. Consider this a one-way ticket to your childhood and forget about everything else. The fantasy adventure film follows Hiccup, a Norse teenager from the island of Berk, where dragon fights are an everyday occurrence.
Although Hiccup’s father is chief of the clan, the boy himself stands as a misfit due to his progressive views and eccentric sense of humour. As Hiccup is enrolled to a dragon-fighting school, he’s determined to show the world that he’s, after all, a true Viking. But when he forms an unlikely friendship with an injured dragon – the very species that stands as a threat to the human race – he names him Toothless, unknowingly summoning a turning point for his community’s future.
The Black Phone (Scott Derrickson, 2021)
For many, the Valentine’s week has been no less than a horror show. So, this Sunday, make things real with the recently added horror mystery movie on Netflix, The Black Phone, starring Ethan Hawke. Based on Joe Hill’s 2014 short story, the 2021 movie is the first title from the Black Phone franchise, which follows Finney, a teenager residing in a quiet Colorado suburb, kidnapped by a notorious serial child killer known locally as the Grabber.
As Finney finds himself trapped in a basement with nothing but a mattress on the floor and a black rotary phone on the wall, he doesn’t think much of it until he picks it up and dials it. It turns out that this is no ordinary phone; it’s a network connecting him to the ghosts of the Grabber’s dead victims. While Finney learns more about the Grabber’s checkered history, The Black Phone unravels a parallel supernatural plot involving his sister Gwen, who has inherited her mother’s clairvoyant powers.
The Bourne Identity (Doug Liman, 2002)
Since we’re doing away with all things mushy this Sunday, how about an action blast from the past? Based on Robert Ludlum’s 1980 novel, The Bourne Identity is a 2002 action thriller, which serves as the first instalment of the Bourne franchise. The high-octane punch-fest follows Jason Bourne, a man saved by Italian fishermen with multiple bullet wounds in his back, suffering from amnesia with no memory of his identity, past, or occupation.
Eventually adopting the name of Jason Bourne from a US passport, The Bourne Identity follows the protagonist as he unknowingly attracts the attention of the CIA, specifically Operation Treadstone head Alexander Conklin. While the film may start slowly, the manhunt for Jason by the CIA culminates in a high-stakes confrontation and chase, unravelling the connection with his true identity and the CIA’s actual mission.
Copshop (Joe Carnahan, 2021)
If The Bourne Identity leaves you craving for more action than you started with, Copshop is currently streaming and trending on Netflix. Directed by Joe Carnahan, the cop thriller follows a wily con artist, Teddy Murretto, on the run from multiple killers, who finds the most unusual way to avoid getting caught by notorious hitman Bob Viddick: punching a rookie officer and ending up in a holding cell.
But little does he know that great minds actually think alike, as Viddick fakes a drunk driving charge to get access to the station. The situation rapidly boils down into a violent showdown, with a second hitman arriving to finish the job Viddick started. In essence, Copshop captures intense, high-octane confined action, perfect for those on the lookout for an edge-of-your-seat movie to define their Sunday entertainment.
Joe’s College Road Trip (Tyler Perry, 2026)
While the Sunday watchlist has been looking intense so far, Netflix has something light-hearted to end the marathon: Joe’s College Road Trip. Serving as a Madea franchise spin-off, the road comedy movie marks the first in the series to focus on her brother, Joe, and his grandson, BJ. The movie opens with Brian celebrating his son, BJ’s, graduation, which soon turns sour as Brian wants BJ to attend an HBCU, while the latter has already made up his mind on something else.
Hit with a sudden realisation that he has probably failed to help BJ understand his own history and culture, Brian unwillingly sends him on a college road trip with his grandfather, relying on a lie. Joe’s College Road Trip follows the duo on their chaotic road trip, making way for wholesome confrontations, comic moments, and an emotional rollercoaster.