Netflix Party: The 10 Best Movies To Watch With Friends

While everyone is mostly sequestered to their homes practicing social distancing during the COVID-19 coronvirus pandemic, people are finding new ways to connect and watch movies together. Though movie theaters across the country have closed their doors, there’s an option for people staying at home to watch movies together and all that’s required is a Netflix subscription and a Google Chrome browser. We speak of course about the “Netflix Party” plugin which allows for synced up Netflix viewing parties around the world, complete with a chat box! Got a group assembled to watch and no idea what TO watch? We’ve got ten suggestions.

We should note that this plugin is not officially from Netflix and does require each participant to have their own Netflix login. To get started, visit the Netflix Party website and install the plugin (again, a Google Chrome exclusive plugin), simple as that! From there, go to Netflix via Chrome and pick what you want to start watching and play the video, then click the “NP” plugin button on the address bar and then “Start Party” to generate a URL for your viewing mates. Then distribute the URL to them which will bring them to Netflix where they should then click the “NP” button again to join the party.

In the parties, users will be able to fully customize the event with user icons, nicknames, emojis, GIFs, and a chat box to talk about the program. The plugin will maintain the fidelity of the video quality and stay synced up across all party members, even allowing for simultaneous pausing and un-pausing.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

This animated movie is the definition of a crowd-pleaser, delivering some of the most unique animation of the past decade and one of the most pure comic book experiences ever committed to a movie. It also has the fantastic message about how everyone can be a hero, while also giving us Nicolas Cage’s best work as a superhero to date.

Snowpiercer

Film fans that learned about South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho thanks to last year’s Academy Award winning Parasite have a lot to look forward to with the rest of the director’s filmography. Though many of the films made in his native country are out of print, one of his few English language movies has been available on Netflix for years now and features the stacked ensemble of Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, John Hurt, Ed Harris, and Parasite’s Song Kang-ho.

Hot Rod

A box office disappointment when it was released, this comedy from The Lonely Island pre-dates Popstar and MacGruber while retaining the same style of hilarious absurdity. It would be difficult to imagine a movie with a cast of this caliber failing at the box office with Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, Bill Hader, Danny McBride, and Isla Fisher all starring, plus a hilarious turn by none other than Ian McShane.

Black Mirror: Bandersnatch

Netflix’s interactive Black Mirror movie is perhaps the BEST thing to use Netflix Party for as it offers viewers multiple different paths and endings depending on what they want to see happen, ranging from the meta and hilarious to the grim and dark. There’s over 5 hours of content to be watched here and the film will loop back around to allow further exploration. Let your friends scream and shout in the chat box about which option to choose throughout.

Always Be My Maybe

The rom-com co-written and starring Ali Wong and Randall Park bucks convention at every turn and offers the kind of moments made for audience reaction ranging from its hilarious high-school recreations to the arrival and scene chewing by Keanu Reeves. Oh yeah, Keanu Reeves, and also he’s playing himself.

Green Room

Jeremy Saulnier’s 2016 horror thriller offers the perfect siege-and-chase storytelling that will keep your mind off the horrors of the real world. The late Anton Yelchin stars, leading an cast of young character actors including Imogen Poots, Alia Shawkat, Joe Cole, and Callum Turner, plus Patrick Stewart takes a sinister turn as its Neo-Nazi antagonist. Plus it’s a lean and mean 90 minutes long.

The Mask of Zorro

Martin Campbell’s 1998 reboot of the classic Mexican hero has gained new life in recent years as the nostalgia for the Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones grows and everyone realizes that it holds up like a charm. These two have crazy chemistry as well and Campbell’s skill at showcasing practical action set pieces is clear as ever eight years before he helmed Casino Royale.

Paranormal Activity

Though the found-footage horror craze is mostly over but the film that jumpstarted the subgenre’s revolution in the 2010s is still very much worth a watch. Plus with everyone confined to their homes, try not to get creeped out by an in-home haunting movie. Maybe you have nerves of steel, or maybe you have a demon in your attic like they do in this franchise.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before Double Feature

Netflix’s rom-com has all the necessary charms to keep romance fans glued to their screen and to make a believer of non-fans alike. Plus the film’s sequel, To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You, is also available, so you can make a double feature out of it together and prep for the third movie,  To All the Boys: Always and Forever, Lara Jean, which will arrive later on the streaming service.

Candyman

Though the Jordan Peele-produced film will likely be delayed due to the coronavirus, you can still get a headstart on the new film by revisiting director Bernard Rose’s original film from 1992. Be his victim.