This Week In Documentary
Theatrical & Streaming Releases - New & Recommended - February 13-19, 2026
Valentine’s Day is this weekend, and while it might not be the occasion to gift a documentary, I do recommend watching one as part of your date with your significant other(s) on Saturday. Depending on where you live, there might even be some in theaters that aren’t political dealbreakers for you. Otherwise, there’s plenty to watch at home that will give you something to talk about. If you want to avoid heavy discussion, though, you can stick with one of the essential documentaries about love, maybe the specific title we think is the best to watch on Valentine’s Day. Or, if you’re hoping to get in the mood, check our list of documentaries about sex and sexuality.
Now, without further ado (there’s a whole lot to get to), below are this week’s documentary highlights, followed by daily listings for all known releases and broadcasts, along with a brief look at what’s coming soon for doc fans. Please consider becoming a paid subscriber to receive more in-depth highlights and reviews in the future, plus full access to special posts like our best of and most anticipated lists, and to give me more time to watch more (if not everything) available. If you have a doc in need of coverage or a mention, you can reach me at christopherbartoncampbell (at) gmail.
Nonfics Pick Of The Week: Heaven (1987)
Following the death of Diane Keaton last October, her feature directorial debut garnered some due acknowledgment. The film, Heaven, was released in 1987 and received a good amount of press for a work of its kind. But it was mostly forgotten afterward. Outside of it being made by one of the greatest actresses of her generation, the film may have been a difficult sell (the curiosity, at least, contributed to its respectable $78 million box office gross). I think it’s hilarious, a quirky collage of ideas of what the afterlife will be like. And a sly revelation of how media informs such ideas.
Continue reading our review of Diane Keaton’s Heaven.
The recently remastered version of Heaven will be released on Blu-ray via Lightyear Entertainment on Tuesday, February 17.
Other Documentary Highlights
2000 Meters To Andriivka (2025)
Despite being snubbed by the Oscars, the film that topped our list of the best documentaries of 2025 continues to shine this awards season. Last week, 2000 Meters to Andriivka helmer Mstyslav Chernov won the DGA Award for Best Documentary Film and the WGA West’s Paul Selvin Award, which is “given to a member whose script best embodies the spirit of the constitutional and civil rights and liberties that are indispensable to the survival of free writers everywhere.” Other nonfiction DGA winners include Mr. Scorsese (available to stream on Apple TV) for Best Documentary Series and the “Austria” episode of Season 2 of Conan O’Brien Must Go (streaming on HBO Max) in the Reality/Quiz and Game category.
2000 Meters to Andriivka is available to stream for free via PBS’s Frontline.
Being Gordon Ramsay (2026)
If all you know of Gordon Ramsay is his screaming and swearing on the TV shows Hell’s Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares, you’re about to see a different side of him in this six-part docuseries. Being Gordon Ramsay portrays the famous chef in his home life, where his personality and temper are much more subdued, and follows the development of his ambitious 22 Bishopsgate project in London. Plenty of documentaries have looked at the start of new restaurants, but given how rich and successful Ramsay is, this series might lack the level of drama expected of this subject.
Being Gordon Ramsay begins streaming exclusively in full on Netflix on Wednesday, February 18, 2026.
The Blue Angels (2024)
If you missed The Blue Angels in theaters two years ago and haven’t properly appreciated its Critics Choice-nominated cinematography on the small screen via Prime Video, the documentary is back on large-format screens this weekend to kick off AMC’s IMAX Documentary Showcase, which runs through April with a different title re-releasing each Friday. This feature follows U.S. Navy pilots as they train for the titular flight demonstration squadron, with much of the footage shot from their perspective in the cockpit.
The Blue Angels will be re-released on IMAX screens exclusively in AMC theaters on Friday, February 13.
Every Body (2023)
Given the common binary biology claims in opposition to transgender identity and chosen pronouns, the facts about intersex births and other naturally occurring variations need to be more widely known and understood. Every Body, a feature by Oscar-nominated director Julie Cohen (RBG), spotlights three intersex individuals who share their truth and experiences. Because of the regularity of nonbinary chromosomal and physical exceptions (1-2 in every 100 people born in America), the film’s participants can’t represent the full spectrum, but between their stories and the broader info provided by the documentary, viewers ought to come away with a greater comprehension of the reality and issues counter to what’s too often argued.
Every Body begins streaming on Peacock on Wednesday, February 18, 2026. The film is also available to rent or purchase digitally from the usual PVOD platforms.
The Imposter (2012)
One of this week’s wide theatrical releases is Crime 101, a fictional crime drama directed by Bart Layton. This is only his second feature in 14 years, since the release of his incredible documentary The Imposter, about a 23-year-old European man who passed himself off as a missing teen in Texas (it’s one of the best true-crime documentaries of all time). Layton’s last directorial effort, American Animals, at least had some nonfiction film elements. Still, I wish he’d get back to helming a true documentary (he has at least been an executive producer on some, including The Tinder Swindler and The Deepest Breath). After all, he made the implication to me in 2012 that he prefers nonfiction.
The Imposter is currently available to stream on Prime Video, Kanopy, Pluto TV, Shout! TV, Tubi, Cineverse, and The Roku Channel.
Man On The Run (2025)
I say it at least once or twice a year: do we still need more documentaries involving The Beatles? Well, Man on the Run is about one of The Beatles, but it’s about him after The Beatles. I guess that makes it fit with John & Yoko: One to One (another of the best documentaries of 2025). Directed by Morgan Neville (Piece by Piece), the film follows Paul McCartney’s decade-plus musical journey following the breakup of the Fab Four as he went solo and then formed the band Wings. It’s one of two must-see music docs coming out at the end of this month, and I hope to write more about it later for its full release on Prime Video. But if you can see it on the big screen before then, do so.
Man on the Run will play in theaters on Thursday, February 19, and again on Sunday, February 22, ahead of its Prime Video release on February 27.
Murder In Glitterball City (2026)
The latest documentary from Party Monster directors and RuPaul’s Drag Race co-creators Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato is a true-crime two-parter called Murder in Glitterball City. The case at its center involves a pair of ex-lovers who each claimed the other had killed the man whose body was found in their former home. I’ll admit that I had trouble getting into this and only watched one part, as its storytelling isn’t as focused and straightforward as most documentaries of its kind (though it reminded me of another HBO true-crime doc from last year called The Mortician that didn’t do anything for me either). If anything, it’s made its setting of Louisville, Kentucky, more enticing as a tourism destination for fans of haunted and haunting places in America.
Murder in Glitterball City premieres on HBO and HBO Max on Thursday, February 19.
Neighbors (2026)
I rarely highlight something I really dislike, but Neighbors is a big enough title that I feel a need to acknowledge it. The six-part series is executive produced by Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein, who made one of my favorite non-docs of last year (Marty Supreme). They were also among the producers behind such recent docuseries treats as Telemarketers and Ren Faire. This one is incomparable to those in craft and engagement. Each episode shows us a pair of feuding neighbors, none of them likable characters, and their conflicts are poorly defined and never quite examined. It’s simply a showcase of hatred and often a display of political and legal ignorance. The fact that it’s coming out when The Perfect Neighbor is thriving makes it even worse.
Neighbors premieres its first episode on HBO Max on Friday, February 13, 2026, with new installments releasing weekly through March 20, 2026.
Oscar-Nominated Classics
TCM’s annual 31 Days of Oscar programming begins this Friday, and there’s a brief documentary showcase on Thursday called “Oscar Goes For the Facts.” The five features included span more than 60 years and a handful of genres, with the concert film Festival!, the Civil Rights history Freedom on My Mind being the only two non-winners in the bunch. The others are The Secret Land, about a U.S. military expedition in Antarctica, The Times of Harvey Milk, about the assassination of the titular gay politician, and Inside Job, about the 2008 financial crisis.
Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model (2026)
A growing trend in documentaries is to look back at the problems with reality television of the early 2000s. Last fall, we saw Fit for TV: The Reality of The Biggest Loser, and now the same streaming service has a similar three-part docuseries about America’s Next Top Model. And that same competition reality series is the subject of part of an upcoming E! anthology called Dirty Rotten Scandals. This one, Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, revisits a variety of cringeworthy decisions made by the ANTM producers and host, and features several former contestants telling all. The series isn’t too deep, but it also doesn’t play much into nostalgia or sensationalism. I recommend it for anyone interested in serious but light nonfiction media history.
Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model begins streaming exclusively on Netflix on Monday, February 16.
The Rose: Come Back To Me (2025)
Given that documentaries starring K-pop groups are constantly box office hits, The Rose: Come Back to Me doesn’t even need to be good. Fortunately, it is. Credit director Eugene Yi, best known for his 2022 feature debut, Free Chol Soo Lee. This is only his sophomore feature, and I hope it’ll be successful enough that his next documentary doesn’t take so long. While it’s likely to only draw fans of The Rose to theaters, if you find yourself watching it there or someway else in the future, you won’t be sorry.
The Rose: Come Back to Me opens in theaters on Saturday, February 14.
Documentary Release Calendar 2/13/26 - 2/19/26
Friday, February 13, 2026
An American Pastoral (2024) - A political documentary about the future of public schools in a rural Pennsylvania community. (VOD)
The BMF Documentary: Blowing Money Fast Season 2, Episode 5 - The latest installment of a docuseries about Black Mafia Family. (Starz)
Jesy Nelson: Life After Little Mix (2026) - A six-part docuseries following singer Jesy Nelson in her life as a new mother. (Prime Video)
Monsterquest Season 5, Episode 6: “Domestic Disturbance” - The latest episode of a docuseries about strange creatures spotted around the world. (History)
Neighbors Episode 1: “Shoreline Defender” - The first installment of a six-part docuseries executive-produced by Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein about outrageous conflicts between neighbors. (HBO Max)
The Sky Trembles and the Earth Is Afraid and the Two Eyes Are Not Brothers (2015) - A hybrid film about a filmmaker in Morocco who begins to live an adaptation of Paul Bowles’s A Distant Episode. (OVID)
What Means Something (2016) - A medium-length documentary about the British painter Rose Wylie. (OVID)
The White House Episodes 3 & 4: “Stuck in the Middle” & “Scandals and Lies” - The latest installments of a docudrama series about scandals in the U.S. presidential residency. These episodes involve Thomas Jefferson. (Fox Nation)
Saturday, February 14, 2026
Buried in the Backyard Season 6, Episode 9: “Tattooed in Stone” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries about the odd locations where murder victims were found. This episode involves a body identified by a tattoo. (Oxygen True Crime)
Cavalcade of Dance (1943) - An Oscar-nominated short film in which two ballroom dancers perform recent dance fads. (TCM)
The Curious Case of… Season 2, Episode 6: “The Principal Who Hypnotized His School” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries involving mind-bending and jaw-dropping cases. (Investigation Discovery)
Eric Church: Evangeline vs. The Machine Comes Alive (2026) - A concert film starring the titular country star. (In IMAX Theaters - 2/14 only)
Iyanla: The Inside Fix Season 1, Episode 5: “Family Over Dysfunction” - The latest installment of a nonfiction series that revisits Iyanla Vanzant’s show Fix My Life. (OWN)
Kingdom Season 1, Episode 4: “Flint and the Crocodile” - The fourth installment of a nature series narrated by Sir David Attenborough following rival families of leopards, hyenas, wild dogs, and lions. (AMC+ and BBC America)
Maxxed Out Season 1, Episode 6 - The latest episode of a docuseries focused on people currently having financial troubles. (OWN)
The Rose: Come Back to Me (2026) - A documentary feature about the titular South Korean indie band. (In Theaters)
Sunday, February 15, 2026
The Apocalypse of St. John (2024) - A documentary about the Book of Revelation and the visions revealed to the Apostle John. (In Theaters — Three Day Fathom Release)
Love, Ted Bundy (2026) - A documentary about the titular serial killer through his correspondence with his cousin. (Oxygen)
Monday, February 16, 2026
120 Hours Behind Bars Season 1, Episode 5 - The latest installment of a nonfiction series that looks at America’s toughest jails. (Discovery)
Fatal Attraction: I’d Kill to Be You Season 1, Episode 4: “Chaos in a Classroom” - The latest installment of a true-crime series about cases involving jealousy. (TV One)
Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model (2026) - A three-part docuseries about the competition reality show America’s Next Top Model. (Netflix)
Soul in Cinema: Filming Shaft on Location (1971) - A short documentary on the making of Shaft. (TCM)
Tuesday, February 17, 2026
Beam Me Up, Sulu (2025) - A documentary feature about a lost student fan film starring Star Trek’s George Takei. (VOD)
Black and Jewish America: An Interwoven History Episode 3: “The Grand Alliance” - The third installment of a four-part docuseries on the complex relationship between Black Americans and Jewish Americans. (PBS)
The Darkest Web (2026) - A documentary about undercover investigators tracking and catching pedophiles on the Dark Web. (BBC.com, BBC Select, and the BBC World Service YouTube channel)
Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates Jr. Season 12, Episode 7: “Family Harmonies” - The latest installment of a docuseries presenting celebrities with their ancestral history. Musicians Lizzo and Flea are the participants in this episode. (PBS)
Heaven (1987) - A documentary feature directed by Diane Keaton about the afterlife. Read our review of Heaven. *NONFICS PICK* (Blu-ray)
I Am Living Proof (2025) - A feature documentary following three people whose lives unexpectedly intersect when a traveling preacher comes to their town. (DVD)
Inquiring Nuns (1968) - A medium-length documentary following two nuns in Chicago as they ask people questions. Read our review of Inquiring Nuns. *NONFICS PICK*(OVID)
Killer Confessions: Case Files of a Texas Ranger Season 1, Episode 6: “A Monsters Game Plan” - The latest installment of a true-crime docuseries involving confessions, starring a retired Texas Ranger. (Investigation Discovery)
Wednesday, February 18, 2026
Alaska State Troopers Season 9, Episode 7: “Cold Truth and Consequences” - The latest installment of a docuseries about state troopers in Alaska. (A&E)
Being Gordon Ramsay (2026) - A docuseries about the titular chef and TV personality. (Netflix)
Chase Atlantic: Lost in Heaven (2026) - A concert film starring the Australian group Chase Atlantic. (In Theaters)
The Coach Vick Experience Episode 3: “The Money Game” - The third installment of a docuseries following Michael Vick as he coaches the Norfolk State football team. (BET)
Every Body (2023) - A documentary by Julie Cohen (RBG) about three intersex individuals. *NONFICS PICK* (Peacock)
Expedition X Season 11, Episode 7: “Nightmare Island” - The latest installment of a paranormal investigation series. (Discovery)
It Happened to Us (1972) - A short documentary about women who had illegal abortions. (OVID)
Nature: Parenthood Episode 3: “Oceans” - The third installment of a four-part docuseries narrated by Sir David Attenborough that showcases animal parents around the world. (PBS)
Wild Boys: Strangers in Town (2026) - A two-part documentary about teenage brothers who claimed to have been raised in the wild. (Paramount+)
Thursday, February 19, 2026
Festival! (1967) - An Oscar-nominated concert film showcasing performances from the Newport Jazz Festivals of 1963-1966, including Joan Baez, Johnny Cash, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, and Peter, Paul, and Mary. Find our review of Festival! in the highlights section of this newsletter. *NONFICS PICK* (TCM)
Freedom on My Mind (1994) - An Oscar-nominated feature documentary about the Mississippi voter registration drive of 1961-1964. *NONFICS PICK* (TCM)
Inside Job (2010) - An Oscar-winning documentary about the 2008 financial crisis. *NONFICS PICK* (Max)
Jammin’ the Blues (1944) - An Oscar-nominated short documentary presenting a jazz jam session. (TCM)
Man on the Run (2025) - A documentary feature by Morgan Neville (Piece by Piece) about Paul McCartney post-Beatles as he formed the band Wings. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters — 2/19 & 2/22 Only)
Murder in Glitterball City (2026) - A two-part true-crime documentary directed by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato (Party Monster) about a 2010 murder case in Louisville. (HBO Max)
The Secret Land (1948) - An Oscar-winning documentary feature following the U.S. military’s exploration and mapping of Antarctica. (TCM)
Smart as a Fox (1946) - A short nature film following the life of a fox cub. (TCM)
The Times of Harvey Milk (1984) - An Oscar-winning documentary about the titular gay politician assassinated by his colleague. *NONFICS PICK* (TCM)
True Crime Story: It Couldn’t Happen Here Season 3, Episode 1: “Corsicana, Texas” - The return of a true-crime series focused on murders in small towns. (Sundance TV)
Sneak Peek At What’s Coming Soon
2/20 - EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert - A concert film directed by Baz Luhrmann starring Elvis. (In IMAX Theaters)
2/23 - Threshold - A documentary feature about Olympic gold medalist cross-country skier Jessie Diggins. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (Peacock)
2/27 - Man on the Run - A documentary feature by Morgan Neville (Piece by Piece) about Paul McCartney post-Beatles as he formed the band Wings. (Prime Video)
3/1 - Disaster: The Chernobyl Meltdown - A four-part docuseries commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster. Watch the new trailer for the series below. (CNN)
3/4 - Dirty Rotten Scandals: The Dr. Phil Show - The first installment in a trilogy of investigative documentaries about scandals involving TV shows. (E!)
3/6 - André Is An Idiot - A documentary feature following a man after his cancer diagnosis. Read our review of André Is An Idiot. *NONFICS PICK* (In Theaters)
3/8 - Ghost Elephants - A documentary by Werner Herzog that follows conservationist and explorer Steve Boyes on his quest to find the mythical ghost elephants of Angola. Watch the new trailer for the film below. (Disney+ and Hulu)
3/16 - Iron Family - A documentary about a playwright with Down syndrome. (VOD)
3/24 - White with Fear - A WGA Award-nominated documentary about the political weaponization of racism and fear among conservatives. (PBS)
4/4 - Made for March - A four-part docuseries following the Kansas Jayhawks and Michigan Wolverines in the current college basketball season. (Paramount+)
4/10 - Steal This Story, Please! - A documentary about Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman. (In Theaters)
5/8 - Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour - A concert film directed by James Cameron and Billie Eilish and starring Billie Eilish, presented in 3D. Read more in our 2026 documentary preview. (In Theaters)