What To Watch
Celebrate (and Save) Our Planet with These 14 Environmental Movies and Shows
From star-studded thrillers to eye-opening docs.
By Lydia Wang
April 22, 2026
14 Best Movies and Shows About the Environment and Sustainability on Netflix - Netflix Tudum
You don’t have to wait until Earth Day comes around to celebrate our planet. As our changing climate brings new challenges — and calls for new solutions — there has never been a better moment to learn how we can protect endangered species, natural ecosystems, and even ourselves.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a fan of nature documentaries, a lover of critically acclaimed films, or a parent looking for a family-friendly movie night idea: sustainability transcends genre, and there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
To kick off your viewing, here’s a sampler of the best comedies, documentaries, and thrillers available to stream now that center around the environment.
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The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
Born to a family of farmers, Malawian agricultural engineer William Kamkwamba (Maxwell Simba) made headlines in 2001 when he built a functioning windmill out of old bicycle parts and scraps. (At the time, he was just 14 years old.) Based on Kamkwamba’s memoir of the same name, this drama tells the amazing true story of how he built a wind turbine and saved his small farming village from famine. The film is directed by Chiwetel Ejiofor, who also portrays Kamkwamba’s father.
Don't Look Up
Directed by Adam McKay, this movie is both a star-studded dramedy and a call to action — and it also features what’s possibly the most romantic song ever written about climate doom. Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Mark Rylance, and more star in this dark comedy about a meteor racing toward Earth and a world of civilians and leaders alike who couldn’t care less. The meteor, in our case, is the ongoing threat of a changing climate.
Down to Earth with Zac Efron
Earth to everyone vowing to go greener this year! Let Zac Efron be your guide and muse. The actor and wellness expert — along with his co-host, author and superfood guru Darin Olien — takes viewers on a journey around the world to showcase sustainable living practices, renewable energy sources, wildlife refuges, and more. Each of the first season’s eight episodes focuses on a different country, while the second season zooms in on various regions of Australia.
David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet
In this comprehensive history of planet Earth, award-winning BBC broadcaster Sir David Attenborough tells the story of his own life through the natural wonders he’s seen, and warns of what could become of our planet if we don’t take measures to protect it. Most importantly, though, he explores a way forward. Follow this watch with more Attenborough offerings like Life in Color with David Attenborough, Secret World of Sound with David Attenborough, and Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet.
A Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough
Veteran naturalist Attenborough revisits a lifetime of encounters with one extraordinary gorilla family in Rwanda’s Virunga Mountains, from meeting baby Pablo in the 1970s to watching his descendants navigate shifting leadership and family bonds today. Equal parts intimate family saga and conservation success story, it’s a quiet, moving watch that highlights just how much we share with other species — and how empathy for their lives can deepen our care for their future.
Okja
Meet Mija (Ahn Seo-hyun), a young girl who must risk everything to prevent a powerful company from abducting her best friend — a gentle, genetically modified “super pig” named Okja. Mija and Okja find themselves caught in the crossfire between animal activism, corporate greed, and scientific ethics. Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal, Steven Yeun, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, and Paul Dano also star in the drama directed by Bong Joon Ho (Yellow Door: ’90s Lo-fi Film Club).
Our Planet
This remarkable two-season series showcases animals in their home regions and explains the human impact on the living world. Narrated once again by Sir David Attenborough, it’s part of a collaboration between Netflix, Silverback Films, and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Queue up the equally extraordinary nature documentaries Our Universe (with narrator Morgan Freeman), Our Living World (narrated by Cate Blanchett), and Our Oceans and Our Great National Parks — the latter two of which are narrated by President Barack Obama.
The Plastic Detox
Plastic products are embedded in nearly every facet of modern life, from food packaging and kitchen tools to clothing fibers, cosmetics, and children’s toys. A growing body of research has linked plastics — and especially the chemicals used to make them — to myriad health concerns ranging from infertility to cancer. This eye-opening documentary follows six couples who embark on a plastic detox within their homes, examining how realistic shifts away from plastic can protect both our health and the planet.
Remarkably Bright Creatures
This whimsical and quietly profound adaptation of Shelby Van Pelt’s novel stars Sally Field as Tova, a grieving widow who works at a local aquarium. She forms unlikely bonds with a giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus (voiced by Alfred Molina) and a wayward young man named Cameron (Lewis Pullman), who is new in town. Together, they uncover a mystery that leads them to a life-changing discovery and restores their sense of wonder. The movie invites us to reimagine how we care for the ocean, the life it holds, and even each other.
Swapped
Head deep inside the animal kingdom, where a tiny woodland creature named Ollie (voiced by Michael B. Jordan) and a regal bird named Ivy (voiced by Juno Temple) must swap bodies (and perspectives) to save their lush and magical wilderness. The two sworn enemies are forced to walk in each other’s feathers and fur as they embark on a wild journey together. The animated family adventure is a big-hearted story about empathy, teamwork, and protecting the world we share.
This Is a Gardening Show
Zach Galifianakis (Between Two Ferns: The Movie) has been a hobbyist gardener for 25 years, but by his own admission, he’s no horticulture expert. He hosts this series with a refreshing sense of curiosity and whimsy, collecting tips from agriculturalists while connecting with people and the earth. The comedian visits apple orchards to learn about genetic cloning, tomato farms to study varietals, forests to explore foraging, cornfields to understand evolution, and more. Come for the tricks from the greenest of thumbs; stay for the chats with the cutest kid gardeners.
Thrash
It’s just a little bit of weather, right? When a Category 5 hurricane decimates a coastal town, its residents are cut off from any rescue attempts and therefore left to grapple with the aftermath of devastation and chaos themselves. As if that weren’t enough, the storm surge is packed with ruthless and ravenous sharks. The survival flick — starring Phoebe Dynevor, Djimon Hounsou, and Whitney Peak — is both a crowd-pleasing thriller and a cautionary tale about what happens when supercharged storms, infrastructure failures, and displaced wildlife collide.
Train Dreams
Joel Edgerton stars as Robert Grainier, a logger and railroad worker who occupies the forests of the Pacific Northwest at the turn of the 20th century. Based on Denis Johnson’s beloved 2011 novella, the film also features Felicity Jones and William H. Macy. Nominated for four Academy Awards, the acclaimed drama not only depicts a historic moment of immense and rapid change in America but also celebrates the beauty of nature, as well as the extraordinary lives of even the most ordinary people.
Virunga
When war broke out in the Congo in 2012, a group of park rangers at the country’s Virunga National Park risked their lives to protect the world’s last mountain gorillas. This Oscar–nominated documentary tells their story, alongside an investigation of a British oil company that allegedly posed its own threat to the endangered species. Pair this watch with Virunga: Gorillas in Peril, a short that goes behind the scenes with director Orlando von Einsiedel and the team who made the feature film.
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