Recently, I ordered a meat thermometer and a tire pressure gauge from Amazon (they were recommended together, which I thought was kind of interesting), and I chose to get a slower shipment than the usual two-day Prime shipping because Amazon was offering a $1 credit to use on certain digital orders. I used it to rent Pacific Rim on Prime Video for a dollar cheaper. A good movie, and a good deal! Full disclosure, TV Guide may earn money to support our work if you buy a product through one of our affiliate links, but Amazon didn’t pay me to promote Amazon Day shipping. I’m just sharing my story of getting a dollar back with you so you remember to look for that option next time you’re ordering something you don’t need right away and maybe don’t need at all, like a meat thermometer or a tire pressure gauge.
You won’t need to use your $1 credit on any of the recommended titles below, because they’re included in your Amazon Prime Video subscription. Amazon Originals in October include Truth Seekers, Nick Frost and Simon Pegg‘s new horror comedy series; the second annual Savage X Fenty Show, where Rihanna previews the new season of her lingerie line; and Welcome to the Blumhouse, a collection of four horror movies from the hit-making studio. It’s a horror-heavy month. It’s October, after all. Great outside titles include Season 4 of Mr. Robot, Shudder’s horror doc Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror, and endlessly rewatchable Scorsese flick The Departed. Plus, there’s a surprise Borat sequel coming at some point this month.
Our picks for the best shows and movies to watch on Amazon Prime Video in October are below, but here is the complete list of what’s new on Amazon Prime in October. You can also check out our picks for what to watch this month on Netflix and Hulu, as well as a list of everything coming to all major streaming services in October. If you’re looking for even more recommendations, click over to our Watch This Now! page.
The Best Shows and Movies on Amazon This Month
30 Days of Night
Available Oct. 1
This is one of my favorite underrated horror movies. It’s about an Arctic Circle town in Alaska that gets overrun with vampires during polar night. Josh Hartnett plays the sheriff who’s trying to save what’s left of his community, while a terrifying Danny Huston plays the leader of the vampires. It’s really tense and scary and visually interesting, thanks to director David Slade, who has — since this came out in 2007 — become one of TV’s most in-demand directors, with credits like the American Gods pilot (Season 1 was really good!) and Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. [Watch 30 Days of Night on Amazon]
The Departed
Available Oct. 1
This Boston crime classic won Marty his Best Picture Oscar even though it’s, at best, his eighth-best movie. Matt Damon is a gangster infiltrating the police department, and Leonardo DiCaprio is a cop infiltrating the mob. A hilarious dumb guy I went to high school with didn’t realize they were different guys. He watched the whole movie thinking they were the same guy. I loved that dude. I hope he hasn’t died in a boating accident or something. Raging Bull is also coming on Oct. 1. [Watch The Departed on Amazon]
Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror
Available Oct. 1
This great documentary originally premiered on horror-centric streaming service Shudder last year, and it’s available on Prime Video this month as part of the streaming service’s deal where you can sample offerings from channels you can add on to your basic Prime package, like Shudder. The doc traces the history of Black people in horror films, from when they were played by white people in blackface to now. It features interviews with Jordan Peele, Ernest Dickerson, Paula Jai Parker, and others. [Watch Horror Noire on Amazon]
Savage X Fenty Show. Vol. 2
Available Oct. 2
Rihanna and her Savage X Fenty lingerie line return for a second special that’s part fashion show, part concert, and part QVC, as you can shop for the items you see. It features a pretty impressive guest list, including Travis Scott, Rosalia, Bad Bunny, Lizzo, Cara Delevingne, Miguel, Bella Hadid, Normani, Willow Smith, and many more. [Watch Savage X Fenty on Amazon]
Welcome to the Blumhouse
Available Oct. 6 and Oct. 13
This is a collection of four horror movies from Blumhouse, an indie studio with a really impressive track record of low-risk, high-reward horror movies like Paranormal Activity, The Purge, Get Out, and Invisible Man. Welcome to the Blumhouse includes The Lie, which is written and directed by Veena Sud and stars Mireille Enos, Peter Sarsgaard and Joey King (Oct. 6); Black Box, starring Phylicia Rashad (Oct. 6); Evil Eye, produced by Priyanka Chopra and starring Sarita Choudhury and Sunita Mani (Oct. 13); and Nocturne, starring Euphoria‘s Sydney Sweeney. Just going by Blumhouse’s reputation, we’d bet at least one of these is great.
Mr. Robot
Season 4 available Oct. 6
Mr. Robot ended its run late last year as one of the most underrated shows on TV. After a shaky second season that’s actually a lot better than you remember, Mr. Robot rebounded in its third and especially its fourth seasons, wrapping up its story about brilliant but disturbed hacker Elliot Alderson (Rami Malek) and his plot to upend the global financial order with shocking twists, emotional resonance, and incredible style, courtesy of creator Sam Esmail, who directed every episode of the last three seasons. With the complete series now easily available to stream, I really can’t recommend this psychological thriller enough if you like art that asks a lot of you as a viewer but gives you back even more in return. [Watch Mr. Robot on Amazon]
Truth Seekers
Season 1 available Oct. 30
For a lot of people, all I need to say is “Simon Pegg and Nick Frost are teaming for another horror comedy, but this time it’s a TV show,” and they’ll be in. Two-thirds of the duo behind Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World’s End (minus director Edgar Wright) is enough to make this a must-watch for fans of their previous work. But if you need to know what it’s about before you watch, it’s an eight-part series about a group of British paranormal investigators with an online video channel whose supernatural encounters are growing more frequent and intense, to the point where they start to suspect there’s something even bigger than run-of-the-mill hauntings going on. [Watch Truth Seekers on Amazon]
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Coming in late October
Sacha Baron Cohen, the world’s greatest prankster, somehow revived his Borat character this summer and surreptitiously made a sequel to his Oscar-nominated 2006 movie. While the pandemic rages, the fake Kazakh journalist satirizes. It will be really interesting to see how Sacha Baron Cohen and his team pulled this off, in a lot of different ways. How did they keep production under wraps so well? How did they revive Borat, a very recognizable character, and still manage to do pranks? How will audiences react to this politically incorrect, intentionally offensive character in 2020? When is this movie even coming out? All we can say for certain is that it will be out before Nov. 3, because Borat is going to be the deciding factor in swaying undecided voters.
Want to know what else is coming to Amazon? Here’s everything new on Amazon Prime Video in October.