what to watch on peacock now

Peacock was a little late to the streaming wars and is still living in the shadow of Netflix and others, but it still has claim to some of the universe's biggest shows, like The Office and Yellowstone. But beyond those two megahits, what else should you watch? Our list of the best shows to stream on Peacock right now digs up some hidden gems, whether they be classics you saw on other networks or Peacock originals that just need some eyeballs.

The most recent additions to our list include Vigil, a thrilling British export that's set on a nuclear submarine and possibly involves murder, and the goofball comedy MacGruber, a parody of action heroes from Will Forte that's based on the cult film of the same name.

Golden: The Journey of USA's Elite Gymnasts

A sport like women's gymnastics rarely sees the spotlight outside the Olympics, which means most of us can't even begin to imagine or comprehend the hours upon hours of work that go into becoming an elite level gymnast in the United States. Golden changes that. The six-episode docuseries, which first aired in the lead-up to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, follows five hopefuls — Laurie Hernandez (a member of the gold medal-winning 2016 team), Suni Lee, Morgan Hurd, MyKayla Skinner, and Konnor McClain — over five months as they vie for one of the four spots on Team USA. Knowing how it all played out and who eventually made the team takes nothing away from the Peacock series, which is an eye-opening look at a grueling training process and the many ways young women push their bodies to the limits for a chance at gold.

We Are Lady Parts

It's probably safe to say you've never seen the likes of We Are Lady Parts before. The acclaimed British comedy (airing as a Peacock Original in the States) navigates cultural differences and new friendships when an all-female Muslim punk band — the titular Lady Parts — recruits a new lead guitarist (Anjana Vasan) into its ranks. In between the band's catchy originals and cover songs is a sharply funny show that excels by poking fun at and subverting stereotypes in order to build a more complete picture of what it means to be a modern Muslim woman.

Parks and Recreation

When it comes to heartwarming comedies about small towns and the people who call those towns home, Michael Schur simply does not miss. He co-created Parks and Recreation with Greg Daniels (The Office), and although the Amy Poehler-led series about the employees of the Pawnee Parks Department had some growing pains in its first season, it smartly reinvented itself in Season 2, becoming a shining example of how hard work, competence, and human kindness can lead to a better and happier existence. There's no place quite like Pawnee (and maybe that's a good thing given the out of control raccoon population), but there's also no place we'd rather visit more.

Yellowstone

One of TV's most popular dramas, Yellowstone is a neo-Western by way of Dynasty (we swear that's a compliment). The series follows the ins and outs of the wealthy Dutton family, the owners of the largest contiguous ranch in the country and one of the few families that could possibly give the Roys of Succession a run for their money in terms of infighting and complicated family dynamics. The series, co-created by Taylor Sheridan and John Linson, features a major power struggle as outside forces — land developers, rival ranchers, and more — attempt to encroach on the Dutton family's land. It's a thrilling, dramatic watch and a wonderful showcase for both the wide-open vistas of the American West and star Kevin Costner's ability to mumble through each and every one of his lines.

Girls5eva

Musical comedies don't always connect with viewers, but Meredith Scardino's Girls5eva — a Peacock Original about a '90s girl group that reunites after 20 years for another shot at success — has something those other shows did not: executive producers Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, and Jeff Richmond (who also composed the music for the series). A brilliant and smart series with shades of MTV's iconic boy band-themed movie-turned-series 2gether, Girls5eva stars Sara Bareilles, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Busy Philipps, and Paula Pell. It's the type of show that is so good it gets stuck in your head and you can't get it out no matter how hard you try.

Michael Phelps: Medals, Memories, & More

This Peacock-produced documentary series is a must-see for fans of sports and/or the Olympics. Across three episodes, swimmer Michael Phelps — the most decorated Olympian of all time with a record 28 medals — takes viewers through each of his five trips to the Olympics (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016), beginning when he was just 15 and the youngest male to make the U.S. swim team in nearly 70 years. As he walks viewers through each of his finals races at the Olympics — including what is now considered to be the greatest relay in Olympics history — he reveals insight not just into how he swam each event, but also his frame of mind at the time. It's an unfiltered look at greatness directly from one of the best athletes who will ever live.

Murder, She Wrote

Look, anyone can solve a murder these days, but only Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) can solve murders as an amateur detective and have a thriving career as a mystery writer. (OK, some other television characters might have done this too, but we know who the best one is.) Murder, She Wrote is a TV classic, running for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 and earning its leading lady a record 12 consecutive Emmy nominations for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama. While she might not be as popular these days, Jessica Fletcher never goes out of style, much like how Cabot Cove, Maine, the small town in which she lives, never runs out of dead bodies.

Battlestar Galactica

Ronald D. Moore and David Eick's reimagining of the 1970s series Battlestar Galactica is the cream of the crop when it comes to complex space operas of the 21st century. The series, which debuted as a miniseries in 2004 and captured the fear and paranoia of a post-9/11 existence, follows the last human survivors of a nuclear attack carried out by the Cylons, man-made creations that evolved from machines into sentient beings that are now nearly identical to humans. As the survivors — some military but mostly civilian — seek a new home far from the worlds they once knew, they battle enemies who look just like them, forcing those within the series and the viewers at home to have powerful and much-needed conversations about what it means to be human.

The Office

The workplace comedy that raised the bar so high it basically broke the ceiling, NBC's The Office needs no blurb that extolls its many virtues. But we'll do it anyway. Set in the bustling metropolis of Scranton, Pennsylvania, the mockumentary series from Greg Daniels is an adaptation of the U.K. comedy of the same name and digs into the mundanity of corporate America by following the everyday lives of the employees of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, under the tutelage of World's Best Boss Michael Scott (Steve Carell). While the earlier seasons are better than the latter ones, the show features one of the best comedic ensembles in recent memory, remains one of the funniest shows to come out of the 2000s, and has left a legacy that will live on after we've all crumbled to dust.

Abbott Elementary

This brand-new ABC comedy is one of the best new broadcast shows of the season, and Hulu is its streaming home. It's a mockumentary in the vein of The Office or Parks and Recreation about an underfunded public elementary school in Philadelphia, where the teachers try to provide for their students as best they can without getting burnt out by the lack of resources, respect, administrative support, and difficulty of the job itself. The main character is Janine Teagues (series creator Quinta Brunson), an idealistic second-grade teacher in her second year on the job. Every episode, she tries to go above and beyond the call of duty, with alternately triumphant or humbling results. The show has a sweet-and-salty sense of humor and a cast of characters who feel like people who could actually exist in real life. We've all relied on commiseration with competent coworkers to help us endure bad bosses like Ava Coleman, the preening and vindictive principal hilariously played by Janelle James.

Letterkenny

Canada's well known for its feel-good comedies like Schitt's Creek and Kim's Convenience, in which characters grow and learn lessons about life through their experiences with each other. Letterkenny is not that. The cult comedy about a small Canadian town full of hicks, tweakers, hockey players, burly natives, and not much else is mostly conversations about genitalia, drinking, fighting, and whatever else goes on inside the minds of these Canucks, but don't let the subject matter fool you. Letterkenny is one of the smartest shows around, with rapid-fire dialogue and wordplay that's essentially Shakespeare on speedballs. You'll be quoting this show nonstop to your friends after one episode.

Creamerie

This quirky comedy series from New Zealand takes place in a near-future where a virus has wiped out all of the world's men, except one. But the show isn't about him. It's about the three women who take him in, Alex (Ally Xue), Jamie (J.J. Fong), and Pip (Perlina Lau), who are all dealing with the strange world they're living in in different ways. It's a very funny, six-episode hidden gem that people who wished Y: The Last Man was funny should check out.

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