Top 100 Netflix Documentaries to Watch Right Now (#30 to #26)

99% on Rotten Tomatoes. We’re in the top 30, and these docs are nearly flawless according to critics. Apollo 11 is here. So is Will & Harper. Strap in.

Netflix Documentary #30 — Apollo 11

2019 | Film | Directed by Todd Douglas Miller

99% from critics with 130 reviews. No narration. No talking heads. Just restored archival footage and audio from the actual Apollo 11 mission, and it is BREATHTAKING. You will feel like you are sitting in Mission Control in 1969. The 70mm footage that was discovered and restored for this film is so crisp it looks like it was shot yesterday. This is how you make a documentary about something everyone knows the ending to and still keep them on the edge of their seat.

Netflix Documentary #29 — Dick Johnson Is Dead

2020 | Film | Directed by Kirsten Johnson

99% from critics with 101 reviews. A filmmaker stages elaborate death scenarios for her elderly father — who has dementia — as a way of confronting his mortality. It sounds morbid. It’s actually one of the most loving, creative, and life-affirming films I’ve ever seen. The dad is a delight, the concept is genius, and the emotional payoff is enormous. Totally unique in the best way.

Netflix Documentary #28 — Knock Down the House

2019 | Film | Directed by Rachel Lears

99% from critics but only 11% from audiences — the WIDEST gap on this entire list. This doc follows four women challenging establishment politicians in the 2018 primaries, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Whether you love or hate AOC politically, the underdog campaign story is compelling filmmaking. That audience score tells you more about political polarization than about the documentary’s quality.

Netflix Documentary #27 — The Perfect Neighbor

2025 | Film | Directed by Geeta Gandbhir

99% from critics. A neighbor-from-hell story that escalates into genuine horror. Think you know your neighbors? This doc will make you install security cameras. The slow burn of escalating menace is perfectly paced, and the real footage is chilling. If you liked Worst Neighbor Ever (also on this list), this is the prestige version.

Netflix Documentary #26 — Will & Harper

2024 | Film | Directed by Josh Greenbaum

99% from critics with 90 reviews. Will Ferrell takes a cross-country road trip with his longtime friend and former SNL writer Harper Steele, who recently came out as a transgender woman. It’s funny, tender, occasionally scary (some of the encounters in middle America are tense), and deeply human. Ferrell strips away the comedy persona and shows up as a genuine, supportive friend. Beautiful.

The Complete Top 100 Netflix Documentary Countdown

99%. Nearly perfect across the board. We’re in the top 30 now and I genuinely couldn’t rank these any differently. Every one is essential.

featured