You Need to Watch These 3 Popular Netflix Movies Now (August 4-8)

Netflix‘s endless parade of action movies is one of the things that the streamer does best. However, it wouldn’t be the No. 1 streamer if action were the only thing it was good at.

This week, the Netflix original romance film My Oxford Year is heating up the movie charts as if it were a blockbuster theatrical release.

That’s why it’s on top of Watch With Us‘ picks for the three popular Netflix movies you need to watch now.

Our remaining selections include a relatively recent action comedy as well as a heist film that’s found new life on Netflix two decades after its release.

‘My Oxford Year’ (2025)

Actress turned author Julia Whelan‘s debut novel, My Oxford Year, is the latest romantic drama to debut on Netflix. You may want to keep some tissues nearby, because this one is a tearjerker. Sofia Carson leads the cast as Anna De La Vega, an American college student who is living out her dream by spending a year at Oxford studying literature.

Jamie Davenport (Corey Mylchreest) is one of the first men that Anna meets in England, and he sweeps her off her feet. But when she wants to get more serious, Jamie keeps her at arm’s length and won’t tell her the reason why. There’s something real and heartfelt between them, and it may not be enough to ensure that either Jamie or Anna gets the happy ending they wanted.

My Oxford Year is streaming on Netflix.

‘Freelance’ (2023)

Freelance dives into its action comedy story almost immediately, yet it intentionally downplays any romantic tension between John Cena and Alison Brie‘s characters. The story follows Mason Pettits (Cena), a former Army Special Forces soldier whose final mission to assassinate a South American dictator, President Juan Venegas (Juan Pablo Raba), ended with the deaths of his team and a serious injury for Mason himself.

Years later, Mason is married and stuck in a dead-end job when he’s hired to escort a disgraced journalist, Claire Wellington (Brie), for an interview with President Venegas. During a subsequent coup attempt, Mason finds himself compelled to protect both Claire and Venegas, despite his deep-seated dislike for the latter.

Freelance is streaming on Netflix.

‘After the Sunset’ (2004)

After the Sunset may have flopped in theaters two decades ago, but it’s a hit on Netflix. That’s not too surprising given the cast includes Pierce Brosnan, Woody Harrelson, Salma Hayek and Don Cheadle. For one of his first post-James Bond roles, Brosnan played jewel thief Max Burdett, with Hayek as his partner-in-crime, Lola Cirillo.

After outwitting FBI agent Stan Lloyd (Harrelson) during their last heist, Max and Lola head to the Bahamas, only to be confronted by Stan. The couple goes out of their way to befriend Stan and find some common ground with him. Meanwhile, a local crime lord, Henri Mooré (Cheadle), wants Max to steal a rare diamond, and he’s having trouble saying “no” despite Lola’s wish to remain retired.

After the Sunset is streaming on Netflix.