Nocturne to The One About Matthew Perry: the seven best shows to stream this week

Stephen Graham gives good serial killer. Even in isolation, in the bowels of a prison psychiatric ward, he’s the unnervingly calm yet relentlessly beating heart of this creepy, claustrophobic thriller. Somehow, Jurek Walter (Graham) is still making waves outside the facility: when a kidnapped child returns, seemingly from the dead (his sister is still missing), the cops are certain Walter must be involved. However, his alibi could hardly be more solid. Soon, Jonah Lynn (Liev Schreiber), the cop who put him away, is back on the case, sending his FBI agent surrogate daughter Saga (Zazie Beetz) into the prison, undercover, as an inmate. It seems risky and, sure enough, it is.
Apple TV, from Friday 30 October

The Guest List

Filmed as a “vertical drama” (it’s short and the visual format is designed for smartphone viewing), this five-part series was made in partnership with a global beauty brand. But for all the presentational quirks, the premise is very traditional: four London women, in microcosm, over the course of an evening preparing for a night out. Along the way, they navigate everything from unreasonable bosses to a phone-snatching via laughter, gossip and friendship. It won’t win any Baftas but it passes muster as an innovative advertising campaign.
Channel 4, out now

Minimum Wage

This fun mockumentary about a shambolic pizzeria run by incompetent teenagers made its name as a series of five-minute YouTube shorts. Netflix has expanded the format to 12 minutes an episode but Minimum Wage’s lo-fi charm remains intact. However, now the stakes are higher: the owner of the business, who was largely absent from the web series, has turned up and told the gang that unless they start turning a profit, the building will be sold to developers. Cue hapless promotions, health and safety crises and general slacker chaos.
Netflix, from Monday 26 October

The One About Matthew Perry

“God, you can do anything you want to me; just please make me famous.” Matthew Perry recalls thinking this as a struggling actor, but concedes that he hadn’t reckoned on what else might be in store. This three-parter is revealing and frequently very sweet – the excitement of Perry’s initial rise was clearly a caffeinated rush akin to a double espresso from Central Perk. But as the intimate interviews with friends and family members suggest, Perry was always troubled in ways that fuelled both comedy and tragedy. The series doesn’t shy away from the latter but much of it feels like a celebration of his talent, too.
Netflix, from Tuesday 27 October

Dexter: Resurrection

As we rejoin Dexter Morgan, he’s not living his best life. He’s in New York, gloomily driving a taxi. He has dispatched the Midnight Mangler and the Yonkers Slayer (the writers aren’t really trying with these names any more) but the New York Ripper remains elusive. On the bright side, his son Harrison has joined the NYPD so Dexter has a little inside help. Michael C Hall remains a compelling lead but this resurrection feels like a case of diminishing returns – both Dexter’s modus operandi and the show’s tangled moral code is now too familiar to feel essential.
Paramount+, from Friday 30 October

Beat Luke Littler Live

The cream of the world’s darts players have struggled to beat Warrington wonderkid Luke Littler in recent times. So what chance do a bunch of amateurs have? The process won’t be quite as random and informal as the publicity suggests: after a series of open heats in Manchester and London, 20 contenders have been selected to play a single live leg of darts against the world champion – and the shorter the game, the more chance there is of unexpected outcomes. If anyone manages the seemingly impossible, there’s a share of £501k to be won. Game on!
Netflix, from Friday 30 October

American Horror Story: 13 Finale

As the climax arrives, the Coven and Mr Nas (AKA Satan) are on a collision course after spending much of the season apart. It’s overdue: this run of the horror anthology has felt disjointed, and Ben’s triskaidekaphobia (fear of the number 13) plus the desire for conceptual neatness prompted by the season number have caused a certain sluggishness. Still, the endgame should be worth the wait: as the devil approaches the century on Earth that will grant him control of humanity, heaven and hell, only his son Ben or daughter Constance can stop him.
Disney+, from Friday 30 October