The 31st annual Critics Choice Awards take over the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, Calif., on Sunday night to honor the top films and TV shows of the past year.
The ceremony, hosted by Chelsea Handler and airing live on E! and USA at 7 p.m., will help kick off another busy awards season, with the clock starting to wind down for fans who haven’t yet watched all the titles that made a splash in 2025.
But since seeing everything in one weekend is an impossible task, we’ve narrowed it down to just the hit TV shows you actually have time to binge-watch all the way through before Sunday’s awards. In a special edition of our weekend streaming guide, here are five Critics Choice nominees to watch.
Leading the TV field with six nominations, Netflix’s British limited series “Adolescence” was one of 2025’s most talked about streaming programs, with Globe TV critic Chris Vognar crowning it the year’s top show. “Adolescence,” which won eight Emmys last year, including outstanding limited or anthology series, is in good position take the best limited series award this weekend. And luckily for viewers who want to binge watch it, there are only four episodes. Available on Netflix
Another Netflix program tailor-made for a swift weekend binge, the historical drama “Death by Lightning” is nominated in four categories, including best limited series, with stars Michael Shannon, Nick Offerman, and Betty Gilpin also nominated. As Vognar noted in his review, “Death by Lightning” pulls off being “both deadly serious and weirdly irreverent” in just “a mere four episodes, a minor miracle in these days of the bloated 10-hour ‘limited’ series.” Available on Netflix
After a pretty good night at the Emmys last year, where it picked up 13 trophies, including outstanding comedy series, Seth Rogen’s Hollywood satire “The Studio” is poised to keep the party going at the Critics Choice Awards, where it’s up for best comedy series. While there are 10 episodes in season 1, they each clock in at around a half hour long, making the show a manageable binge watch. Available on Apple TV
A star-studded, dark comedy set in the world of the elite, Netflix’s limited series “Sirens” earned two Critics Choice nominations, with star and Longmeadow native Meghann Fahy up for best actress in a limited series or movie made for television. Julianne Moore, meanwhile, snagged a best supporting actress nomination. At just five episodes, watching the show start to finish this weekend is definitely doable. Available on Netflix
While not quite as charming as “The Office,” the newspaper-themed spinoff series “The Paper” did earn a nomination, with franchise veteran Oscar Nuñez nominated for best supporting actor in a comedy series. Like “The Studio,” “The Paper” has 10 episodes, running roughly 30 minutes each, in its first season. Available on Peacock
Matt Juul can be reached at [email protected].
