Netflix Top 10 Movies and Shows: New and Popular Today, July 21

On Thursday, July 21, Virgin River Season 4, which just dropped yesterday, storms Netflix's Top 10 Most Popular TV Shows, taking the lead and knocking Stranger Things down to No. 2. (In the spirit of Netflix's most popular soap opera, feel free to picture Virgin River dramatically pushing Stranger Things down an elevator shaft or something of that nature.) Resident Evil is not a great show, but it does benefit from a massively popular pedigree, which means that it's no surprise to see it sitting at No. 3. Over on the Top 10 Most Popular Movies list, Sing 2 has been out on Netflix for over a month, and yet it keeps rising back up to the No. 1 spot. Dakota Johnson's Jane Austen adaptation Persuasion falls two spots today, coming in at No. 3.

But the fact that people watch something doesn't always mean it's good. We've combined the movies list and the TV shows list into a single article to help you get a complete view of what's popular on Netflix at the moment. We've also added a guide to what's new on Netflix today so you can find out what will be on the Top 10 list tomorrow. Plus, we have recommendations for the best movies on Netflix and the best TV shows on Netflix.

And if you're looking for what's new, today's new release on Netflix is the fifth season of the animated series Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous. 

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Based on Netflix's Top 10 Movies and TV Shows lists and new releases for Thursday, July 21

Top 10 Movies

1. Sing 2

For fans of: Singing animals, famous voices, popular music | Is it good?: For kids, sure

If I know anything about the kids' movies of today, it's that they all seem to be built around covers of popular songs. That trend continues in Sing 2, an animated jukebox musical about a bunch of singing animals — voiced by incredibly famous people like Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Scarlett Johansson, and Pharrell Williams — who have to convince a rock star (voiced by Bono) to join their musical extravaganza. (Yesterday's rank: 3)

2. The Sea Beast

For fans of: Sea creatures, accidental father figures | Is it good?: It is!

Most Netflix original kids movies are just re-dubs of second-tier CGI films from foreign studios, but The Sea Beast, from Moana and Big Hero 6 director Chris Williams, looks like a legitimate contender for best family film of the year. A young girl stows away on her idol's ship to help him hunt gigantic sea creatures, leading to seafaring adventure and action. It's getting great reviews, and features three TV Guide favorites as voice actors: The Boys' Karl Urban, Legion's Dan Stevens, and Chernobyl's Jared Harris. (Yesterday's rank: 2)

3. Persuasion

For fans of: The Fleabag-ification of Jane Austen | Is it good?: Unfortunately not

Dakota Johnson stars as Anne Elliot in this adaptation of Jane Austen's final novel, in which she reconnects with the man to whom she was once betrothed years after calling off their engagement. You really want this to be better, but it mangles most of Austen's nuanced storytelling. (Yesterday's rank: 1)

4. CHIPS

For fans of: Buddy cops | Is it good?: Absolutely not

Dax Shepard directs, writes, and stars in this movie adaptation of the classic TV series, which follows two cops who join the California Highway Patrol and form, wait for it, an unlikely partnership to investigate a heist. (Yesterday's rank: 4)

5. 12 Strong

For fans of: The U.S. military | Is it good?: If you like U.S. military propaganda

Based on a true story and set in the aftermath of 9/11, a U.S. Special Forces unit learns to fight on horseback while on a mission in Afghanistan. (Yesterday's rank: 5)

6. Pan

For fans of: Hugh Jackman, refusing to grow up | Is it good?: Nope

This film dares to ask, "What if Peter Pan and Captain Hook were friends?" I don't know if anyone really cared about the answer to that, but here Pan is anyway, following Peter (Levi Miller) and Hook's (Garrett Hedlund) fight against Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman). The most notable detail of this movie is the backlash it got for the misguided decision to cast Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily. (Yesterday's rank: 6)

7. Girl in the Picture

For fans of: The Netflix true crime machine | Is it good?: It's a wild story

This documentary opens up new questions about the case of a young mother who was killed in 1990 and the subsequent kidnapping of her toddler son by the man thought to be his father. (Yesterday's rank: 7)

8. The Man From Toronto

For fans of: Throwback buddy comedy dynamics | Is it good?: It's pretty dumb

Kevin Hart and Woody Harrelson form an unlikely friendship when Hart's bumbling character, Teddy, gets mistaken for Harrelson's notorious assassin, known only as the Man From Toronto. (Yesterday's rank: 8)

9. Mean Girls

For fans of: Modern classics, Regina George | Is it good?: It's so fetch

Despite years of being over-quoted online, this 2000s comedy about a girl (Lindsay Lohan) who infiltrates her high school's most popular clique, only to find herself becoming what she hates, still rules. (Yesterday's rank: 9)

10. The Dark Knight Rises

For fans of: Christian Bale's Batman | Is it good?: It's not as good as The Dark Knight, but it's a worthy trilogy-ender     

Set eight years after The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan's final Batman movie finds Batman (Christian Bale) being forced out of hiding when Bane (Tom Hardy) starts threatening Gotham. (Yesterday's rank: n/a)

Top 10 TV Shows

1. Virgin River

For fans of: Hallmark movies | Is it good?: It's definitely popular

Netflix's soapiest romance drama returns for a new season. The Season 3 finale was packed with cliffhangers, including Jack (Martin Henderson) proposing to Mel (Alexandra Breckenridge), who revealed to him that she's pregnant and unsure if he or her late husband is the father. He's probably still going to be the father even if he's not biologically the father, though, right? That would be very uncool if he was like "OK, bye!" (Yesterday's rank: n/a) 

2. Stranger Things

For fans of: Stranger Things | Is it good?: It's so fun 

Now that the kids are older, Season 4 of Netflix's '80s-style sci-fi megahit embraces full-on horror in a way it hasn't done before (the biggest influence on this season is A Nightmare on Elm Street). It also goes supersized with the episode runtimes, which leads to some bloat. It's not the best season of the show, but it's still one of the most entertaining shows on TV. (Yesterday's rank: 1) 

3. Resident Evil

For fans of: Saying "maybe this time it'll be good" and being disappointed | Is it good?: Not even Lance Reddick can save it

Resident Evil is a beloved video game franchise that has been adapted for movies and TV numerous times but never well. This is Netflix's second Resident Evil series (the first one, an anime called Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness, came out last year). Maybe it's time to let it die, because this show doesn't do much to justify its existence. (Yesterday's rank: 2)

4. All American: Homecoming

For fans of: All American | Is it good?: Yes

This spin-off of All American follows Simone Hicks (Geffri Maya) as she embarks on life at an HBCU. It's everything you love about All American, but at college now. (Yesterday's rank: 3)

5. Alone

For fans of: Not dying, man vs. squirrel | Is it good?: Yeah, it's great for survival enthusiasts

History Channel's reality competition, in which competitors are dropped in the wilderness and must survive with just their wits and a few tools, is a favorite among the tough set. Season 8 just arrived on Netflix. (Yesterday's rank: 4)

6. Alba

For fans of: Unbelievable | Is it good?: It's certainly upsetting

This Spanish drama series begins with a woman waking up on a beach, having been sexually assaulted by her boyfriend's friends the night before. She must fight to get justice when people don't believe her, and one of her assailants comes from a rich family about to close a business deal and will do anything to keep her quiet. [Trailer] (Yesterday's rank: 5)

7. The Umbrella Academy

For fans of: Young people with superpowers, Gerard Way | Is it good?: It's a good time

Season 2 of The Umbrella Academy left off on a major cliffhanger when the gang time-traveled from the '60s back to an alternate version of 2019 in which Hargreeves (Colm Feore) had trained seven different superpowered babies into becoming the Sparrow Academy. In Season 3, the series is picking up right where it left off, and the Umbrellas will have to deal with the apocalyptic event potentially caused by their timeline jumping. (Yesterday's rank: 7)

8. D.B. Cooper: Where Are You? 

For fans of: True crime mysteries | Is it good?: It's pretty interesting

This slick docuseries reopens the mystery of D.B. Cooper, the never identified, never found airplane hijacker whose story has captured America's imagination for the past 50 years. Online sleuths have come closer than anyone has before to cracking the case, and this doc explores how they're doing it. (Yesterday's rank: 6)

9. Married at First Sight

For fans of: Crazy people, weddings | Is it good?: It's actually pretty great

This reality series throws together two total strangers who agree to get married on the same day they meet for the first time. The show keeps up with them in the aftermath as they actually get to know each other, and after a few weeks, they decide whether or not to stay together. Much like other shows of this nature, it's impossible to look away from once you start watching. (Yesterday's rank: 9)

10. Kung Fu Panda: The Dragon Knight

For fans of: Animated adventure, Jack Black | Is it good?: Sure! 

Jack Black returns as the voice of Po for this new series based on the movie franchise (previously Black had only lent his voice to the movies and didn't participate in shows). Po, faced with losing his title of Dragon Master, teams up with a British knight called Wandering Blade (Rita Ora) to save China from some obnoxious weasels. It's strictly for kids. (Yesterday's rank: 8)

New on Netflix Today

• Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous Season 5: Animated kids' show set in the Jurassic World universe. [Trailer]

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