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Top 100 Netflix Documentaries to Watch Right Now (#10 to #6)

Top 100 Netflix Documentaries to Watch Right Now (#10 to #6)

Taylor Holmes
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Top 10. We made it. The American Experiment. The Dinosaurs. The Only Girl in the Orchestra. An Oscar winner, a Spielberg production, and America’s 250th birthday doc. These are the elite. Which one of the top ten are your absolute favorite? I’ll reveal mine in my next and final post… but my favorite of this particuar list is The American Experiment. I really loved that series… and seeing as though we just celebrated the 250th anniversary, I’m all about it.

Netflix Documentary #10 — Sunday Best

2024 | Film | Directed by Sacha Jenkins

100% from critics and 97% from audiences. A deeply moving exploration of Black gospel music and its cultural significance. Jenkins finds the intersection of faith, community, and artistry that makes gospel music one of America’s greatest cultural exports. The performances are electric, and the personal stories behind the music will stay with you.

Netflix Documentary #9 — Tell Them You Love Me

2024 | Film | Directed by Nick August-Perna

100% on RT. This doc tackles one of the most ethically complex stories on the entire list — a relationship between a college professor and a man with severe disabilities. Questions of consent, autonomy, love, and exploitation collide in ways that will challenge everything you think you know. There are no easy answers here, which is exactly what makes it great.

Netflix Documentary #8 — The American Experiment

2026 | Series | Directed by Brian Knappenberger

100% from critics (6 reviews — brand new). Netflix’s massive five-part docuseries marking America’s 250th anniversary, executive produced by Tom Hanks. Martin Sheen voices George Washington. It covers the Revolution through the Constitution and asks: can a people govern themselves? It’s sweeping, cinematic, and urgently relevant. If you’re watching one thing this July 4th weekend, make it this.

Netflix Documentary #7 — The Dinosaurs

2026 | Series | Directed by BBC Studios / Spielberg

100% from critics. Steven Spielberg produced. The Our Planet team directed. David Attenborough narrates. If that lineup doesn’t sell you, I don’t know what will. This is the definitive dinosaur documentary — bringing extinct creatures to life with cutting-edge technology. It’s the nature documentary you wished existed when you were eight years old, and it’s even better as an adult.

Netflix Documentary #6 — The Only Girl in the Orchestra

2023 | Film | Directed by Molly O’Brien

100% on RT and an Academy Award winner for Best Documentary Short. Orin O’Brien became the first female musician hired full-time by the New York Philharmonic in 1966 — under Leonard Bernstein himself. This short doc captures her retirement after 55 years and her quiet, extraordinary legacy. It’s brief but magnificent. Bernstein called her a ‘miracle,’ and after watching this, you’ll agree.

The Complete Top 100 Netflix Documentary Countdown

Top 10, people. The summit of the summit. But we’re saving the very best for last. See you at the grand finale.