The 25 greatest documentaries on Disney+

You may not instantly consider Disney+ as a go-to for documentaries, however there’s greater than you suppose there are.

Whether or not you are itching for a behind-the-scenes have a look at Obi-Wan Kenobi and Marvel’s massive motion scenes otherwise you’d prefer to study the place we’re at with local weather change, the streaming platform has a slew of robust documentaries on supply. Remember there’s an entire Nationwide Geographic channel alongside the stash of Disney classics and the Marvel menu, in addition to ESPN’s 30 for 30 documentary sequence.

Listed below are the very best documentaries on Disney+, each movies and sequence, that will provide you with a better have a look at the leisure we inhale, the superheroes we fly with, and the planet we’re consistently begging world leaders to save lots of.

Earlier than we begin, you might discover we have not noted Taylor Swift’s Folklore: The Lengthy Pond Studio Classes and Billie Eilish’s Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles. They’re extra live performance movies than documentaries, however they’re each superbly shot and properly value watching.

1. Hearth of Love

Katia and Maurice Krafft had been intrepid volcanologists, pushed by their scientific mission. They sacrificed every little thing to pursue their love of lava, finding out volcanoes and filming their astonishing energy everywhere in the world. Sadly, their story involves a predictable finish — they had been killed in an eruption in 1991. 

Director Sara Dosa’s elegant documentary delves into the lives of those fearless explorers, making equal house for his or her groundbreaking analysis and their private intricacies. We get to know them, their quirks, their personalities, their relationship, all whereas witnessing the awe-inspiring footage they had been in a position to seize. A winner of quite a few awards, Hearth of Love is a mesmerizing, uplifting meditation on the wonders of our world and the folks pushed to review them. You’ll be drawn in by the spectacular pictures of molten lava, however moved by the humanity of those two brave pioneers. —Kristina Grosspietsch, Contributing Author

watch: Hearth of Love is now streaming on Disney+.

2. Free Solo

A really staggering feat in entrance of and behind the digital camera, Free Solo will deprive you of your fingernails — it is that nervous-making. This Oscar-winning documentary is a surprising portrait of free soloist climber Alex Honnold, who’s coaching and getting ready to climb the three,000-feet-high El Capitan in Yosemite Nationwide Park, “probably the most spectacular wall on Earth,” with no rope. His painstakingly deliberate journey is boldly captured by co-directors (and spouses) Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, together with a crew {of professional} climbers and filmmakers.

You may observe Honnold as he plans each transfer earlier than heading up the wall of El Cap with out that all-important rope. “There’s no margin for error,” big-wall free climbing legend Tommy Caldwell says within the doc of his pal’s job. “Think about an Olympic gold medal-level athletic achievement that, if you do not get that golden medal, you are gonna die. That is just about what free soloing El Cap is like. You need to do it completely.” —Shannon Connellan, UK Editor

watch: Free Solo is now streaming on Disney+.

3. Get Again

John and Paul really seem to be pals in “Get Again.”
Credit score: Linda McCartney / Apple Corps

Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson was allowed entry to 50 hours of “misplaced” footage from the 1970 Beatles’ documentary by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, Let It Be. Jackson painstakingly went by way of each body to assemble a brand new, vivid portrait of the legendary band’s ultimate recording periods; the result’s this gorgeous, three-part sequence.

As Mashable’s Adam Rosenberg writes in his evaluation, “Jackson noticed one thing within the vaulted studio footage that painted a unique image of the Let It Be periods than anybody exterior The Beatles group had ever recognized.” — S.C.

watch: Get Again is streaming on Disney+.

4. Summer time of Soul

Sylvester “Sly” Stone performing on the Harlem Cultural Pageant in 1969, unearthed in Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s documentary, “Summer time of Soul”
Credit score: Searchlight Footage

An unbelievable directorial debut from Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, Summer time of Soul chronicles the 1969 Harlem Cultural Pageant, a pivotal second in Black music, historical past, and tradition. Over the course of six weeks, legendary musicians like Stevie Surprise, Nina Simone, Sly and the Household Stone, and Mahalia Jackson carried out stay in what’s now Marcus Garvey Park. Questlove crafted this gorgeous, Oscar-winning documentary from hours of archival footage that had been tucked away in a basement.

As Mashable’s Adam Rosenberg writes, “It is a tragedy, and sadly a product of deep-seated racism within the U.S., that this lovely expression of affection and tradition was fully hidden from public view for half a century. That sense of one thing misplaced is expressed implicitly many times all all through Summer time of Soul.” —S.C.

watch: Summer time of Soul is now streaming on Disney+.

5. Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi’s Return

We do not have a foul feeling about this.
Credit score: Disney

If you wish to see Hayden Christensen’s first day on set for Obi-Wan Kenobi, again in his Jedi robes as Anakin Skywalker after 17 years, you must watch the Disney+ documentary Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi’s Return.

A behind-the-scenes have a look at the Star Wars sequence, the 60-minute movie directed by David Gelb takes you thru the making of Obi-Wan Kenobi with director Deborah Chow and stars Ewan McGregor, Hayden Christensen, Moses Ingram, Indira Varma, Kumail Nanjiani, Rupert Buddy, Joel Edgerton, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Bonnie Piesse, and extra.* —S.C.

watch: Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi’s Return is now streaming on Disney+.

6. Empire of Desires: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy

Your mates
Credit score: Sundown Boulevard / Corbis by way of Getty Photographs

A protracted(ish) time in the past, within the galaxy you at present reside in, the Star Wars trilogy modified every little thing — and Empire of Desires takes you behind the scenes of all of it. This 2004 documentary does not cowl the newer movies, focusing as a substitute on how the unique trilogy modified the best way motion pictures had been made. Sure, it is a little bit tacky in its manufacturing — that is an early ’00s doc — and it is the official Lucasfilm story, so take it with a grain of salt and anticipate excessive reverence. However this implies loads of entry to footage from the set, display checks, early scripts, Ralph McQuarrie’s idea artwork, storyboards, and actually superior movies of robotic droid testing, to not point out interviews with the massive weapons: George Lucas, Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, and extra.

Like Mashable’s Chris Taylor in his e book (however not as in-depth), the documentary spends time exploring Star Wars as a cultural phenomenon, in addition to the monumental wave of merchandise that got here with the movie’s reputation. Plus, you get to see the unique trailer, that includes no matter footage the crew had thrown collectively once they had been nonetheless engaged on the film.—S.C.

watch: Empire of Desires: The Story of the Star Wars Trilogy is streaming on Disney+.

7. The Rescue

The rescue that captured the world’s consideration.
Credit score: Nationwide Geographic

In 2018, a rescue mission captured the eye of the world when 12 boys and their soccer coach had been trapped deep inside a flooded collapse northern Thailand. Monsoon rains had minimize off the group, who had been stranded at midnight two kilometres into the cave — a labyrinth of tunnels fully full of water. In opposition to all odds, an extremely high-risk, sophisticated rescue effort was fashioned, and The Rescue, from Free Solo administrators Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, tracks all of it.

It is a claustrophobic, annoying look ahead to probably the most half, and for everybody glued to the information when it was occurring, it’s going to convey again all these feelings of anticipation, stress, and at last, aid. The second when British divers Richard Stanton and John Volanthen first discover all 13 within the cave is astounding and deeply transferring. However it’s only the start of a deadly mission. — S.C.

watch: The Rescue is now streaming on Disney+.

8. Massive Shot

Probably the most memorable installments of ESPN’s 30 for 30 sequence of documentary movies, Massive Shot tells the unbelievable story of the time a con man, John Spano, grifted his manner into shopping for the NY Islanders. That includes the one interview Spano has ever given on the topic, Massive Shot is a implausible movie, stuffed with ’90s nostalgia, massive Lengthy Island personalities, and a $165 million con that consequently overshadowed the NHL franchise for years. Whether or not you care about hockey or not is immaterial to your enjoyment of this very good movie. You needn’t like sports activities to be thrilled by the story of a brazen conman who virtually received away with an inconceivable rating! — Okay.G.

watch: Massive Shot is now streaming on Disney+.

9. Howard

Howard Ashman
Credit score: Disney

For those who grew up singing loudly within the automobile to “A part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid, “Be Our Visitor” from Magnificence and the Beast, or “Instantly Seymour” from Little Store of Horrors, you will have lyricist Howard Ashman to thank. Ashman is the main target of Disney documentary Howard, which explores his youth, his career-defining work with Disney whereas battling AIDS, and his dying on the age of 40.

As Brooke Bajgrowicz writes for Mashable, “Whether or not you are Disney-obsessed or not, you may get so much out of Howard. If this movie acknowledges something, it is that story — even within the context of a documentary — is what is going to preserve the viewers engaged. And what higher story is there to inform than one a few man who used songs to inform among the best tales?” — S.C.

watch: Howard is now streaming on Disney+.

10. Assembled

Go behind the scenes of Marvel Studios’ “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.”
Credit score: Jasin Boland / Marvel Studios

Just like the ol’ particular options part of a DVD, Assembled provides you a glance behind the scenes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Part 4 releases. The sequence covers the making of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, WandaVision, Loki, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, What If…? , and Black Widow. You can see how these ’60s Bewitched-style scenes in WandaVision had been filmed with a stay viewers (and you’ll see the units and costumes in full color), and watch Kathryn Hahn doing a full-on evil chuckle take. You may watch Simu Liu in all these hectic motion sequences in Shang-Chi. Loki-wise, you’ll be able to see Tom Hiddleston’s early audition tapes for Thor and watch him making a speech for the crew in entrance of a large tesseract cake. — S.C.

watch: Assembled is now streaming on Disney+.

11. Behind the Masks

If you understand nothing about Marvel Comics, need a fast overview in an hour, and do not thoughts a little bit of brand-led reverence, Behind the Masks is for you. Directed by Michael Jacobs, it’s most likely extra of a documentary for newcomers to the Marvel universe, however there’s sufficient compelling dialogue, nostalgic interviews, and powerful visuals to maintain hardcore followers engaged — you may be revisiting an enormous quantity of Marvel comedian frames, a few of that are animated. If you do not have the time or inclination to do what Douglas Wolk did and skim each Marvel Comedian ever (he is on this movie!), this is perhaps simply what it is advisable to navigate the MCU. — S.C.

watch: Behind the Masks is now streaming on Disney+.

12. Jane

Credit score: Nationwide Geographic Inventive / Hugo van Lawick

Assembled from over 100 hours of footage that had by no means been seen earlier than, Jane is the quintessential portrait of Dr. Jane Goodall. Thought misplaced till its rediscovery in 2014, the beforehand unseen footage was filmed by legendary wildlife photographer Hugo van Lawick within the ’60s, when he was on project to doc Goodall’s work finding out chimpanzees in Gombe, Tanzania.

Written and directed by Brett Morgen, based mostly on Goodall’s personal writings, with a whimsical orchestral rating from composer Philip Glass, Jane provides you a really shut perception into Goodall’s analysis, her relationship with van Lawick (there’s a particularly candy alternate of proposal by way of telegram), the outcomes of human interference with animal habitats, and her determination to lift consciousness of chimpanzees disappearing throughout the continent of Africa.— S.C.

watch: Jane is streaming on Disney+.

13. Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian

That is the best way (it was made).
Credit score: Disney

This one is made for individuals who actually love them some Star Wars: a 10-part docuseries concerning the making of The Mandalorian sequence. Going behind the scenes of Seasons 1 and a pair of, Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian examines every little thing from the particular and visible results to the writing, appearing, and directing. You may get little tidbits of trivia, like how Star Wars legend Dave Filoni virtually did not get his first job at Lucasfilm, and that actor Carl Weathers’s character Greef Karga was meant to die in Season 1. — S.C.

watch: Disney Gallery: The Mandalorian is now streaming on Disney+.

14. Paris to Pittsburgh

Get domestically empowered to take motion on local weather change.
Credit score: RadicalMedia / Nationwide Geographic

Directed by award-winning filmmakers Sidney Beaumont and Michael Bonfiglio, Paris to Pittsburgh is concerning the aftermath of the Trump administration’s determination to withdraw from the Paris Settlement in 2017. (One of many government actions Biden took on his first day in workplace was to rejoin the Paris Settlement, again in Jan. 2021.) Residents hit the streets, which drove a nationwide motion in cities round America that pledged to uphold the Paris targets and decide to utilizing one hundred pc renewable power.

Narrated by The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel‘s Rachel Brosnahan, the documentary consults local weather scientists, geologists, politicians, and native pioneers to know extra about what was (and nonetheless is) at stake domestically and what we will do to struggle again.* —S.C.

The place to look at: Paris to Pittsburgh is now streaming on Disney+.

15. One Unusual Rock + Welcome to Earth

Will Smith, vulcanologist Jeff Johnson, and explorer Erik Weihenmayer descend right into a volcano to put in sensors.
Credit score: Nationwide Geographic for Disney+ / Kyle Christy

Will Smith teamed up with director Darren Aronofsky for 2 gorgeous documentary sequence that urge you to not take Earth as a right. The sooner of the 2, One Unusual Rock, is a 10-parter that examines the gorgeous weirdness of our planet, as Aronofsky pulls collectively some actually lovely footage of Earthly landscapes that look fairly alien, or like one thing you’ve got seen in a sci-fi movie.

Welcome to Earth sees Smith becoming a member of up with explorers all over the world to discover a new appreciation for a way the world connects and strikes from a sensory perspective. In each sequence, the Hollywood-ness of all of it cannot be denied, however the bold cinematography, swift tempo, and Smith’s seemingly real want to know a brand new perspective make these each actually participating sequence about our planet. — S.C.

watch: One Unusual Rock and Welcome to Earth are actually streaming on Disney+.

16. Earlier than the Flood

Leonardo DiCaprio has made a number of documentary movies about local weather change. That is one in every of them.
Credit score: RatPac Documentary Movies

For those who’re not into local weather change documentaries helmed by celebrities, this one may not be for you. Nonetheless, even in case you’re not a fan of the Hollywood actor, Earlier than the Flood presenter, and U.N. Messenger of Peace Leonardo DiCaprio, his use of star energy and sizable finances to attract consideration to the local weather disaster on this documentary is undeniably impactful, encouraging folks to confess what they don’t know and make the choice to get educated.

Launched in 2016 at the side of the Paris Settlement, Earlier than the Flood covers lots of the identical areas as Al Gore’s movies, functioning as a powerful primer on local weather change, the injury we’ve carried out, and what’s more likely to occur if we fail to behave. Although it is years previous now, the arguments are frustratingly the identical at present. — S.C.

watch: Earlier than the Flood is streaming on Disney+.

17. Chimpanzee

Oscar is a criminally cute toddler chimpanzee dwelling along with his household unit within the rainforests of the Ivory Coast. Whereas climbing throughout his affected person mom, he begins to be taught the talents and instruments essential to thrive within the distant panorama. However when tragedy strikes and Oscar finds himself on his personal, he’ll need assistance from different grownup chimps to outlive. However will they? Chimpanzee is a deeply transferring and finally triumphant story that hits extra of an emotional blow than you’d anticipate from a nature doc. Put together to fall hopelessly in love with the curious little Oscar. 

Written and directed by Planet Earth veterans Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield, Chimpanzee is a standout within the Disneynature assortment. — Okay.G.

watch: Chimpanzee is now streaming on Disney+.

18. Elephant

An enormous journey forward, narrated by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
Credit score: Disneynature

This candy movie follows a herd of elephants, specializing in 40-year-old Shani and her son Jomo, as they make the eight-month, thousand-mile journey from the Okavango Delta throughout the Kalahari Desert to the Zambezi river. Extraordinarily jovially narrated by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, the documentary has loads of lovely footage of those wondrous creatures, woven collectively by administrators Vanessa Berlowitz and Mark Linfield. The rating makes it really feel tremendous Disney, and all that footage is simply made for a day curled up with the entire household watching the herd roll round within the mud whereas Meghan pronounces, “It is tiiiiiime for a pool occasion!” —S.C.

watch: Elephant is now streaming on Disney+.

19. Changing into Cousteau

Jacques Cousteau wears his iconic crimson diving cap aboard his ship Calypso, circa Nineteen Seventies.
Credit score: The Cousteau Society

A deep dive by definition, Changing into Cousteau explores the depths of the legendary oceanic explorer and filmmaker. Director Liz Garbus delves into the lifetime of Jacques Cousteau, whose documentation of ocean creatures with newly tailored tools modified the sport. And in case you’ve seen Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic, you are gotten a style of his signature aesthetic.

Garbus was granted entry to 550 hours of archival materials — together with over 100 hours of audio journal entries and interviews from collaborators and crew members — to create this documentary, and she or he brings to life his innovation and dedication to environmentalism, alongside his household life and creation of The Cousteau Society. —S.C.

watch: Changing into Cousteau is now streaming on Disney+.

20. Secrets and techniques of the Whales

An orca utilizing a novel looking method: taking stingrays off the underside of the seabed
Credit score: Nationwide Geographic for Disney+ / Kina Scollay).

After I inform you the cinematography of the Nationwide Geographic sequence Secrets and techniques of the Whales is gorgeous, it is an understatement 10,000 leagues deep. Filmed over three years, this four-part documentary explores whale tradition by way of orcas, humpbacks, belugas, narwhals, and sperm whales, together with how every household speaks a novel language, and the way whales expertise love, pleasure, and grief. Narrated by Sigourney Weaver, that is the type of documentary you must watch in case you’re carried out with folks for a bit however need to discover some type of human reference to these unbelievable underwater animals. —S.C.

watch: Secrets and techniques of the Whales is now streaming on Disney+.

21. The Flagmakers

Clocking in at a good 35 minutes, The Flagmakers is a brief doc that packs a poetic punch. Probably the most profitable American flag producers within the nation, an organization referred to as Eder Flag, employs principally refugees and immigrants. In a big warehouse in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, folks from all backgrounds come collectively to make the celebs and stripes, an everlasting American image. The movie seems at this miniature melting pot from all angles, exploring the workers’ relationships with one another, with their pasts, and with america. A beautiful, complicated, and rewarding watch. — Okay.G.

watch: The Flagmakers is now streaming on Disney+.

22. Expedition Amelia

In 1937, simply earlier than she was scheduled to complete her groundbreaking journey across the globe, Amelia Earhart’s aircraft disappeared within the Pacific and not using a hint. In 2019, Robert Ballard, the famend explorer who found the Titanic, set sail to a distant Pacific atoll in an try to resolve this enduring thriller. 

Narrated by Allison Janney, Expedition Amelia is a touching, informative, and enthralling story concerning the aviator who captured the hearts and minds of a nation, and the person decided to find what occurred to her. A becoming, fascinating tribute to the brave lady who has impressed adventurers and trailblazers for near a century. — Okay.G.

watch: Expedition Amelia is now streaming on Disney+.

23. Hostile Planet

Disney+ is residence to a very limitless catalog of Nationwide Geographic nature docs. If you wish to see probably the most excessive animals the world has to supply, look no additional than Hostile Planet, a docuseries fittingly narrated by Bear Grylls concerning the resilient creatures who make their lives within the harshest environments on the planet. With attractive cinematography, jaw-dropping nature info, a suspenseful soundtrack, you may end up on the sting of your seat from this thrilling present that completely panders to thrill seekers and drama-lovers. So, clearly, we’re on board! — Okay.G.

watch: Hostile Planet is now streaming on Disney+.

24. Apollo: Missions to the Moon

For the house fan who does not know a lot concerning the Apollo missions previous Tom Hanks in Apollo 13, look no additional than this NatGeo particular. Masking Apollo 1 by way of Apollo 17, this doc is a spectacular run-down of the huge paradigm shift that was the Apollo missions and the race to land people on the moon. Due to archival footage, you may get to expertise the elation of watching these ships soar into the celebs for the primary time, to witness the ability of this inconceivable dream coming true. A implausible look ahead to all lovers of science, house, and human ingenuity. — Okay.G.

watch: Apollo: Missions to the Moon is now streaming on Disney+.

25. Science Honest

The Worldwide Science and Engineering Honest brings in over 1,500 college students from 70+ international locations; Science Honest follows simply 9 of those good and curious youngsters. From Anjali from Kentucky, who’s looking for a greater strategy to detect arsenic in water, to Myllena and Gabriel from Brazil, teenagers making an attempt to cease the unfold of Zika of their communities, you may be impressed by and invested in these science truthful hopefuls. Science Honest is an absolute crowd-pleaser from Cristina Costantini, Darren Foster, and Jeffrey Plunkett. In a compact 90 minutes, you may chuckle and cry alongside these teenagers as they work towards their goals. And also you simply would possibly end up pondering a sudden profession swap to a STEM subject when it is over. — Okay.G.

watch: Science Honest is now streaming on Disney+.

*Asterisks point out the writeup is tailored from one other article.

UPDATE: Aug. 10, 2023, 3:07 p.m. EDT This submit has been up to date to mirror the present catalog on Disney+.