5 series and movies coming to Netflix, Disney+ and more in February

After a slight decline in January, the streaming services are back in full force with the expected release of a wide variety of offers in February.

From millionaire pets to villainous corporate executives, there’s a little something for everyone to enjoy. Weird and wild, gruesome and heartfelt, here are some highlights from new movies and TV shows premiering soon.

“Gunther’s Millions”

A rich weirdo who leaves all his money to a pet is a popular urban legend (Jimmy Buffett even wrote a song about it!). It also happens to be a (sort of) true story. This Netflix docu-series follows Gunther VI, a dog whose owner, a wealthy German countess, left hundreds of millions of dollars upon her death. The dog now lives in celebrity mansions and feasts on gold-flake steak. His empire is overseen by Maurizio Mian, a bizarre man from a rich pharmaceutical family who has spent three decades managing this fortune.

The show immediately gives off “Tiger King” vibes as it explores Mian’s life as champion of his legendary mascot, a role that involves disturbing cult-like behavior when it comes to the people employed in Gunther’s name. It’s a strange story far creepier than the whimsical idea behind the premise.

See that: Documentaries. Available to stream on Netflix from Wednesday 1 February.

“Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur”

One of Marvel’s most unlikely superhero teams is getting its own six-part animated series. Lunella Lafayette (Diamond White), aka Moon Girl, is a teenage genius living on New York’s Lower East Side when she accidentally brings a giant dinosaur through a portal. Devil Dinosaur starts off understandably confused and annoyed, but the two form a partnership to take out supervillains in an underserved neighborhood.

The series is produced by Marvel Cinematic Universe mainstay Laurence Fishburne (“Ant-Man and the Wasp”), who was a fan of the original Devil Dinosaur comics growing up. Notably, all six episodes are written and directed by LGBTQ women of color in an effort to better portray the diversity of New York City. Exactly how the show ties into the complicated history of the MCU is unknown, especially after two years of production delays due to COVID. Regardless, Disney continues to mine the deep cuts of Marvel comics to tell some very original stories. Notable guest stars include Oakland native Daveed Diggs (“Hamilton”) as villain Rat King and astronaut Mae Jemison in an undisclosed role.

See that: Animated series. Available to stream on Disney+ starting February 15.

“Hello tomorrow!”

Space travel is considered by many to be the next frontier for humanity, but the reality will probably be more capitalist than utopian. In “Hello Tomorrow!” The moon is just another place for people to sell timeshares. Developed by Amit Bhalla and Lucas Jansen (“Bloodline”), the show is a retro-futuristic look at how the moon will be bought and sold by the same people who share parts of Earth today.

Billy Crudup (“Alien: Covenant”) stars as Jack Billings, a salesman who almost delusionally believes that the timeshare business will be the next step for humans to conquer the stars. It’s “Glengarry Glen Ross” by way of Ray Bradbury, and the images that have been released show a dazzling look at the future as envisioned by the past. Dewshane Williams (“The Umbrella Academy”) and Hank Azaria (“Brockmire”) also star.

See that: Comedy series. Premieres on February 17 with three episodes on Apple TV+. New episodes are released weekly until April 7.

“Bruises”

Based on a critically acclaimed and award-winning short film by Miles Warren, “Bruiser” is the first narrative feature to be picked up by Disney’s new Onyx collective of color filmmakers. Trevante Rhodes (“Bird Box”) plays Porter, a mysterious and charismatic drifter who lives on a houseboat and takes a teenage boy (Jalyn Hall) under his wing. However, there is a tense history between Porter and the boy’s father (Shamier Anderson) connected to an old suicide in the neighborhood.

The film delves deep into the meaning of masculinity, especially the toxic version of it, as Hall’s Darious learns what it means to be a man from two very different figures in his life.

See that: Drama. Available to stream on Hulu starting February 24.

‘The Consultant’

There are plenty of shows about bad bosses, but few of them are literal monsters. That changes with “The Consultant”, based on the horror novel by Bentley Little. Christoph Waltz (“No Time to Die”) stars as Mr. Patoff, a fussy man brought in to improve a company’s efficiency. What starts as basic improvement soon turns into a sadistic game he plays against the employees, whose future he holds in his hands.

Waltz, long known for playing legendary villains, really leans into the corporate setting, coming across as a cross between a cult leader and an actual demon. Nat Wolff (“Death Note”), Brittany O’Grady (“The White Lotus”) and Aimee Carrero (“She-Ra and the Princesses of Power”) also appear.

See that: Drama series. Available to stream on Prime Video starting February 24.