Illustration by What’s on Netflix – Pictures courtesy of Netflix
Over the years, Netflix has built a huge library of documentaries and docu-series. In fact, that library is now over 700 titles strong, and there’s more to come in the Fall of 2023. Here’s a preview of all the announced documentaries still set to release in 2023.
Want to see what new scripted movies Netflix has in store for the remaining months of 2023? You can find our regularly updated Fall 2023 movie preview guide.
Please note: This list was compiled using available information and all titles subject to change. Netflix has not officially released its own list of unscripted documentaries for Fall 2023 – we will update if they do.
Dated Documentaries Coming in Fall 2023
Heart of Invictus
Coming to Netflix: August 30th
Picture: Netflix
Coming to Netflix from the Archewell Productions output deal is the new documentary sports series looking into the Invictus Games, which is a special event put on for ex-veterans who often have wounds from the battlefield.
The new five-episode series seeks to tell the stories of these athletes from the early days of training through to the big day.
Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones
Coming to Netflix: August 30th
Picture: Netflix
This new four-part documentary series is a travel show at heart, with host Dan Buettner navigating the world in pursuit of ways to live longer and perhaps even happier.
Visiting places like Japan, Italy, and Greece, you’ll tag along with Buettner’s investigation into the diet, behavior, and lifestyles of those living the longest, most vibrant lives.
Predators
Coming to Netflix: September 6th
Picture: Netflix / Sky Nature
Narrated by Tom Hardy, this nature documentary series looks at some of the world’s most well-known and formidable predators.
Please note that this documentary is only expected on Netflix regions outside the United Kingdom.
Scout’s Honor: The Secret Files of the Boy Scouts of America
Coming to Netflix: September 6th
Pictures: Netflix
From the director of The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez and the executive producer of the award-winning The White Helmets, this investigative documentary looks into whistleblowers, survivors, and former employees of the Boy Scouts of America and the attempts to cover up systematic child sexual abuse.
Spy Ops (Season 1)
Coming to Netflix: September 8th
Picture: Netflix
Over the course of multiple episodes, you’ll get to hear the inside story behind some of the world’s most secretive organizations such as MI6 from the UK and the CIA. You’ll hear how they’ve operated throughout history and how they operate today.
Wrestlers
Coming to Netflix: September 13th
Picture: Netflix
From BBC Studios and the director behind Netflix’s Last Chance U and Cheer comes a new sports documentary following the Ohio Valley Wrestling gym based out of Louisville, Kentucky. The gym has trained some of the all-time wrestling greats, including John Cena and Dave Bautista.
Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons (Season 7)
Coming to Netflix: September 15th
Picture: Netflix
Now one of Netflix’s longest-running documentary series of all time, Raphael Rowe is back to explore new prisons. Locations in season 7 include Finland, the Czech Republic, Indonesia, and the Solomon Islands.
The Saint of Second Chances
Coming to Netflix: September 19th
Picture: Netflix
From Morgan Neville and Jeff Malmberg, this new documentary that Netflix picked up for release over the summer will feature the narration of Jeff Daniels and stars Charlie Day as the subject of the doc Mike Veeck.
Mike Veeck, the son of legendary Major League Baseball owner Bill Veeck, managed to blow up his father’s career and then spent the next few decades learning the value of a second chance.
Who Killed Jill Dando?
Coming to Netflix: September 26th
Picture: Netflix
Produced in the United Kingdom, this documentary looks into a national tragedy that occurred in the late 1990s when a TV presenter was murdered.
Encounters
Coming to Netflix: September 27th
Picture: Netflix
Produced by Amblin Television, this documentary series looks to the stars and the growing collection of evidence of UFO sightings from across the globe.
It is a four-part series that will house interviews with top scientists, military officials, and those who have experienced contact with extraterrestrial life.
The Dads
Coming to Netflix: October 1st
Picture: Luchina Fisher
Having completed the rounds at various film festivals, Netflix acquired Luchina Fisher’s docu-short in June 2023.
The LGBTQ documentary has the following synopsis:
“On a fishing trip with Matthew Shepard’s father, five disparate dads discuss their love, hopes and fears for their trans kids in this short documentary.”
The Devil on Trial
Coming to Netflix: October 17th
Photo by Bettmann Archive/Getty Images
This new documentary feature seeks to retell the strangest cases in US history. Arne C. Johnson of Brookfield, CT, arrived at Danbury Superior Court to face justice for his crime of the stabbing to death of Alano Bono, with his attorney arguing that he did it on behalf of the devil.
Christopher Holt directs.
Life on Our Planet (Season 1)
Coming to Netflix: October 25th
Picture: Netflix
This new eight-part limited series takes a look into the history of the planet Earth. It details some of the species that have gone extinct over the years and how we evolved.
Amblin Television produces with Steven Spielberg serving as executive producer. Morgan Freeman provides the narration and uses groundbreaking technology from Industrial Light & Magic to bring the old animals to life.
Sly
Coming to Netflix: November TBD
Picture: Netflix
Netflix has two documentaries in 2023 looking into two of the biggest action stars in Hollywood history. It began with the mini-series Arnold earlier in the year, and next to be profiled will be Sylvester Stallone.
Per Netflix, “the retrospective documentary offers an intimate look at the Oscar-nominated actor-writer-director-producer, paralleling his inspirational underdog story with the indelible characters he has brought to life.”
The documentary will make its world premiere first at the Toronto Film Festival.
Undated Netflix Original Documentaries Confirmed for Fall 2023
Beckham / David Beckham
Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images
Some huge soccer football stars have been profiled on Netflix over the years, with Neymar being perhaps the biggest. Next up is the legendary England player who found success in the States in his later year in the sport.
Set to be a multi-part series, the series will look into the star’s roots from growing up in East London and how he progressed through his career.
Big Vape: The Rise and Fall of Juul
From Amblin Television, this documentary series tells the story of the controversial e-cigarette company that began as a small tech startup to disrupt the billion-dollar tobacco industry. It soon came under intense scrutiny.
R.J. Cutler directs the mini-series.
FIFA World Cup: The Greatest Show on Earth
Photo by Richard Sellers/Getty Images
Originally scheduled for release over the Summer, it looks like Netflix’s first major documentary with FIFA in partnership has been delayed to later in the year.
The series, produced by Fulwell 73, gives a behind-the-scenes look at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022 with access to all 32 teams.
Robbie Williams
Photo by Rocco Spaziani/Archivio Spaziani/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images
Following Netflix’s documentaries on British pop groups and artists such as Lewis Capaldi and WHAM! in 2023, Netflix will be diving into Take That and solo-singer star Robbie Williams.
Joe Pearlman (the director of the aforementioned Capaldi doc) for this new series looking into the singer’s 30-plus years in the limelight.
Stamped from the Beginning
Multiple projects were at one point being developed using the works of Dr. Ibram X. Kendi. One of the first to emerge will be Stamped From The Beginning, which is due to premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September.
The new feature-film documentary, directed by Roger Ross Williams, uses testimony from leading scholars and animation to explore “the history of anti-Black racist ideas.”
Untitled US Women’s Soccer Docu-series
Picture: Netflix
Directed by Rebecca Gitlitz, this multi-episode documentary follows the US Women’s National Team’s recent World Cup journey.
World War II: From the Frontlines
Pictures: Getty Images
John Boyega will narrate this new six-part World War II series that comes from British outfit 72 Films.
The series, featuring rare WW2 footage, is described as” a moving and innovative series which plunges the viewer directly onto the frontlines of WW2.”
International Documentaries Coming in Fall 2023
- Rosa Peral’s Tapes – September 8th – Spanish true-crime documentary of a woman who was convicted after murdering her parter aided by an ex-lover.
- Ice Cold: Murder, Coffee and Jessica Wongso – September TBD – Indonesian documentary looking into the trial of Jessica Wongso.
- Vasco Rossi: Living It – September TBD – Italian doc covering rock star Vasco Rossi and his successful career over the decades.
We’ll keep this post updated throughout the coming months as and when we learn of more upcoming documentaries. Let us know if we’ve missed any in the comments down below.
