October 23, 2025

What to stream: 'The Diplomat,' 'Mr. Scorsese' and 'Us'

Pair the five-part Apple TV+ documentary on Martin Scorsese with one of his movies.

By Kristin Hunt
PhillyVoice Staff

Provided image/Liam Daniel/Netflix

Kate (Keri Russell) and Hal (Rufus Sewell) navigate international affairs in the new season of 'The Diplomat,' streaming on Netflix as of Oct. 16.

While the Delco crime drama of the season is over, fall TV is providing plenty of ways to fill the "Task"-sized hole in your heart.

Stay in the gangster world with "Mr. Scorsese," the five-part Apple TV+ series on the man behind "Goodfellas," "Casino," "The Departed" and other bloody classics. Or slip into the stately rooms where people debate whether to drop a bomb with "The Diplomat" on Netflix. There's also still time to get in another Halloween movie — and the creepy duplicates in "Us" are sure to haunt your dreams (complimentary).

Here's where to find them all:

MORE: Netflix series on '90s mobster violence in Philly casts the conflict as a generational divide

'The Diplomat'

Netflix's political thriller returned for its third season last week, plunging viewers into an unexpected presidential ascension. Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) — the U.S. ambassador to England who generally hates hairbrushes, skirts and schmoozing — is at the center of the fracas. But the twisty show doesn't place her where you'd expect.

"The Diplomat" is briskly paced and rarely boring, even when it's dealing with complicated, made-up geopolitical problems. "West Wing" fans will enjoy the mini-reunion of Allison Janney and Bradley Whitford playing a high-powered married couple.

'Mr. Scorsese'

Ever wonder how a guy goes from the seminary to the set of "Goodfellas"? You'll find out in "Mr. Scorsese," the five-part documentary of Martin Scorsese that recently hit Apple TV+.

The series takes viewers through the director's early life in the tenements of Manhattan, where Italian American communities (and the Mafia) congregated, and onto his Oscar-winning filmography. Scorsese, who's appeared in bit parts in his own movies, is an open and engaging subject just as eager to discuss thorny issues like machismo and onscreen violence as he is his colorful family members (i.e. his bootlegging uncle "The Bug"). Childhood friends, peers and frequent collaborators — yes, Bobby De Niro and Leo sat for interviews — give insight into his artistry and personality.

'Taxi Driver' or 'Hugo'

After spending five hours with Marty, check out one of his movies. His '70s classic "Taxi Driver," newly added to Netflix, remains an uncomfortable and unforgettable portrait of male loneliness and radicalization. "Hugo," a children's adventure about a boy living in a Parisian train station, might seem like an aberration for the famously profane filmmaker. But the family flick captures Scorsese's wild love of movies, thanks to a plot involving silent film pioneer Georges Méliès. Catch it on Paramount+

'Us'

In "The Shining," a pair of dead-eyed sisters gave twins a bad rep. "Us" only piles onto their long-standing PR problem.

Jordan Peele's 2019 follow-up to "Get Out" joins the Wilson family on their beach vacation. They're startled when unexpected visitors arrive at their door — and each of them are demented doppelgängers of the Wilsons. These "tethered" clones have materialized to kill their counterparts, and their rampage is taking over the country.

Lupita Nyong'o is the haunting standout of the movie as mom Adelaide and her raspy-voiced, wide-eyed duplicate. Stream the horror film on Prime.