The White Lotus, Barbarian and Other Movies & TV Shows on HBO Max This Weekend – CBR – Comic Book Resources

The White Lotus returns as HBO Max keeps its horror library stocked. Here are the movies and TV shows to watch this pre-Halloween weekend.
The end of October is rolling around, and Halloween is quickly approaching for all those who celebrate the spooky season. Halloween may be on a Monday this year, but that doesn't mean Saturday or Sunday can't be an honorary Halloween with all the horror movies and television show episodes streaming on HBO Max. But this weekend isn't just about Halloween — most excitedly, The White Lotus is back for a second season, and this time in Italy with a new set of characters. Plus, the announcement of Industry being renewed for a third season calls for a rewatch. Here are CBR's recommendations for what movies and shows to stream on HBO Max this weekend.
After winning big at the 2022 Primetime Emmy Awards, The White Lotus has quite a first season to follow. No one thought it could beat the strange dynamics of the families and newlyweds vacationing in Hawaii, but Jennifer Coolidge and Aubrey Plaza are the stars of this season, so Season 2 is living up to the challenge. Critics have already called this season utterly immaculate, with the writing still being as delicious as ever and the characters just as awful as they were last season. If an HBO show doesn't have truly awful characters that the viewers can't help but root for, then is it really an HBO show?
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Whereas last season took place in the White Lotus hotel in Hawaii, this season takes place in a Sicily resort. Coolidge returns as the radiant Tanya, who's brought along Haley Lu Richardson as Portia, a young woman working for her. The other standout cast member includes Aubrey Plaza as Harper, a woman on vacation with her husband and his friends, and she's already been described as the star of this season to look out for. And while The White Lotus Season 2 takes place in an entirely different continent, there's still one key similarity that doesn't get old: the opening of a dead body and the beginning of a murder mystery. Hopefully, this season can stay as addicting as the first and make it even harder to guess who the dead body is.
Doctor Who is returning with a different face in 2023, so fans have to say goodbye to Jodie Whittaker as the Thirteenth Doctor. HBO Max is currently streaming the 13th season to catch up on before Season 14 airs, and the hype of David Tennant returning as well only gives more reason to rewatch. What's more, Season 13 opens with a Halloween episode that can help get viewers in the mood before putting on a costume and celebrating.
During Whittaker's final season as the Thirteenth Doctor, she and her companions Yasmin Khan and Dan Lewis navigate the universe-ending anomaly called the "Flux," which uncovers more secrets about the Doctor's past. But it's not a Doctor Who season without incorporating enemies from the Doctor's past into the mix. Ultimately, the season proved to be the biggest and most mind-boggling yet — even the Doctor spends most of her time searching for answers about her past.
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Industry is one of those shows that is immensely popular within a specific niche but has yet to be discovered by mainstream media as one of the best series to stream right now. The perfect way to describe the series is it's a blend of the business-savvy and cutthroat nature of Succession and the sex and drugs of Euphoria. The show starts off a little rocky by throwing financial business lingo at the audience constantly, making Grey's Anatomy medical terminology look like an easy how-to guide for surgery. However, the show finds its footing in the second season, which is why it was recently renewed for a third by HBO.
Industry follows a young group of graduates who are competing for permanent positions at Pierpoint & Co., a prestigious investment bank in London. What makes the competition so fierce and intriguing is that everyone is so unlikeable that it's hard to root for anyone. Everyone is out to get each other in the worst way possible, and there are no heroes in this show. Every character has a goal of climbing the corporate ladder and, being as young as they are, will commit terrible and unforgivable mistakes to get there.
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Barbarian is a twisted nightmare that just gets tenser and stranger as the movie goes on. The film opens with Tess, the protagonist, in a blossoming relationship with Keith, who double-books the Airbnb she's staying at. While the attraction is definitely there, the red flags are all too real, and it soon delves into a horrifying situation. The movie has even been called a better version of Passengers for not romanticizing the situation between Tess and Keith and letting the romance die when the horror arrives. Barbarian takes a disturbing turn not soon after it starts, but it's the horror movie to watch this Halloween if viewers want an original and ambitious film to remember.
The Purge is considered a modern-day horror movie that will one day be considered a classic. The first film released in 2013 sparked an entire franchise that includes multiple sequels, a prequel and a television series. In the first film, a wealthy family (led by Ethan Hawke and Lena Headey) must wait out the Purge, an annual night where all crime is temporarily legal. But after their security system fails them, they must learn how to survive the night on their own, with murderers who are hunting them down. It's not one of the best horror movies to arrive on the scene in the last decade, but it's certainly memorable and asks many "what if" questions.
Katie is a writer and film & television enthusiast based out of Tennessee. After graduating with a degree in Creative Writing and Film Studies, she has been itching to bring her love for writing and film together by writing freelance. You can often find her binging her favorite TV shows and attempting to start new ones (but failing at that sometimes) and ranting about films on Letterboxd. Follow her on Twitter at @katiexdoll
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