my winter 2024-25 watch & read list
films, tv, and books for this upcoming winter
winter starts tomorrow, saturday, december 21! i’m really looking forward to it; i’m an aquarius so my season is incoming. so let’s get into my watch & reads list! ✬
please note: this post gets cut off on email, so read it in your browser or app!
films, new & coming this winter
including the same disclaimer as the fall watchlist: i’ll be linking the films in lieu of writing their descriptions. for many films, i prefer going into them blind or knowing as little as possible beyond their auspices (director/writer/stars/studio)!
i’ll only be including new movies rather than rewatches as i started my weekly watchlist series a few weeks ago! here we go:
paddington in peru (2024)
director: dougal wilson, screenplay by: mark burton, jon foster, james lamont // starring: ben whishaw, hugh bonneville, emily mortimer, julie walters, jim broadbent, olivia colman, antonio banderas, carla tous
release date: february 14, 2025
i was so bummed when studio canal announced they were shifting the release date in the us from january 17 :/ it would’ve been just in time for my birthday! alas, i still can’t wait to see our favorite lil bear venturing back home to his aunt lucy!
a complete unknown (2024)
director: james mangold, screenplay by: james mangold & jay cocks // starring: timothée chalamet, edward norton, elle fanning, monica barbaro, boyd holbrook, scoot mcnairy
release date: december 25, 2024
critics are saying this is one of timothée’s best performances, that it may win him his oscar. regardless, i can’t wait to see how i feel about it!
plus…my boyfriend and i can’t stop saying (in the same cadence as timmy in the trailer): “how does it FEEL?!”
parthenope (2024)
director & screenplay by: paolo sorrentino // starring: celeste dalla porta, stefania sandrelli, gary oldman, luisa ranieri, dario aita
release date: february 7, 2025
parthenope is a release from cannes film festival last year. from what i’ve read, critics were very split in their reactions at the festival. the colors of the film look rich and buttery warm, i think i’ll just want to feel engrossed in that energy for 2 hour 17 minute runtime.
acquired by a24, here’s the trailer.
companion (2025)
director & screenplay by: drew hancock // starring: sophie thatcher, jack quaid, lukas gage, megan suri, harvey guillén, rupert friend
release date: january 31, 2025
guess what?! i can’t tell if i’m going to be too scared to see companion! i don’t know yet! the cast and first look caught my attention, though. i know that the producers also made barbarian (2022) which i skipped because i was….you guessed it! too scared! we’ll see when the time comes.
one of them days (2025)
director: lawrence lamont, screenplay by: syreeta singleton // starring: keke palmer, sza, janelle james, lil rel howery
release date: january 17, 2025
i adore syreeta singleton (a writer on insecure and the showrunner of rap sh!t) and this is her debut feature screenplay! i also love keke + sza, so i think it’ll be fun to watch their on-screen dynamic. i’m really looking forward to this early-in-the-year release!
honorable mention: opus coming out at sundance 2025! directed and written by mark anthony green and starring ayo edebiri, john malkovich, murray bartlett, and more. i’m excited for this one, but i have a feeling we won’t see it released wider until later in the year!!
tv shows, new & coming this winter
severance, season 2
created & showrun by: dan erickson // starring: adam scott, zach cherry, britt lower, john turturro, tramell tillman, christopher walken, patricia arquette
i adored season one — especially with the wild cliffhanger in their season finale. they’ve made us wait quite a bit, but i’m looking forward to seeing how they expand upon the world from season one!
season starts: friday, january 17
where to watch: apple tv+
the traitors, season 3
reality, game show
some of the players this season: bob the drag queen, dorinda medley, tom sandoval, nikki garcia, britney haynes, chrishell stause, jeremy collins, gabby windey, wells adams, the list goes on!
the emmy award winning (!!!!!) series is BACK, baby!! the trailer for the season just dropped earlier this week and it looks like it will be a messy, fantastic season of tv. this season has a few reality tv favorites of mine, including bob the drag queen, britney haynes, and wells adams. i can’t wait for my friend’s watch party on premiere day!
season starts: thursday, january 9
where to watch: peacock
the white lotus, season 3
created & showrun by: mike white // starring: leslie bibb, carrie coon, natasha rothwell, walton goggins, jason isaacs, michelle nonaghan, parker posey, tayme thapthimthong, aimee lou wood, lalisa manoba (lisa)
if you haven’t watched the first two seasons of the white lotus yet, where have you been?! the white lotus is an anthology satire series that follows the guests and employees of the titular white lotus resort chain. in season three, we’ll follow the resort in thailand! lush settings and mysterious vibes. here we go!
season starts: sunday, february 16, 2025
where to watch: max
created & showrun by: liz feldman // starring: linda cardellini, o-t fagbenle, abbi jacobson, lisa kudrow, denis leary, poppy liu, teyonah parris, ray romano, luke wilson
this is technically released before the winter season began. and yet, it’s on this list! i’ve been excited for no good deed since liz feldman’s dead to me ended in the fall of 2022. the cast is wonderful and i can’t wait to see the twists and turns the murder mystery takes!
season starts: thursday, december 12, 2024
where to watch: netflix
yellowjackets, season 3
created by: ashley lyle & bart nickerson, showrun by: ashley lyle, bart nickerson, jonathan lisco // starring: ella purnell, sophie thatcher, melanie lynskey, juliette lewis, christina ricci, sophia nélisse, and more
sooooo…this is actually going on this list and i haven’t seen any of it! friends + my younger sister absolutely love it, i’ve stayed away because i’ve been worried i’m too skittish for it. but i think it’s time to bite the bullet. i think the watch will be worth any of the fear!
season starts: friday, february 14, 2025
where to watch: paramount+
here’s my to be read (tbr) list for the new books coming out this winter that piqued my interest! 🌟
books, new & coming this winter!
the three lives of cate kay by kate fagan
release date: january 7, 2025
when i read that this was “the seven husbands of evelyn hugo meets first lie wins” i immediately said i’m in!
crush, a novel by ada calhoun
release date: february 25, 2025
i love a good romance novel…and is there anything more fun than having a crush?
sunrise on the reaping by suzanne collins
release date: march 18, 2025
suzanne collins THANK YOU FOR COMING BACK with another the hunger games prequel! this book is the story of haymitch abernathy, the victor of the 50th hunger games and the only winner from district 12 before katniss and peeta in the first novel of the series (due to the erasure of lucy gray baird’s victory in the first game.)
the dream hotel by laila lalami
release date: march 4, 2025
i came across the dream hotel and read that it takes place in a near future where dreams are surveilled. i was so taken by that idea, it reminded me of high school favorite 1984 by george orwell.
black in blues: how a color tells the story of my people by imani perry
release date: january 28, 2025
i’ve been doing my own research into color theory, specifically the ways colors portray meaning in film and television history. when i came across imani perry’s upcoming black in blues, i knew this would be a good piece to add to my current exploration. about blueness + blackness. already so impressed by imani perry and i can’t wait to read.
rather than a winter playlist, i’m leaving you with the album (more specifically, ep) i’ll have on repeat this winter:
i wish you a restful winter season!
x, your pal al ❄️
OMG YES YELLOWJACKETS FINALLY! so dramatically looking forward to the haymitch novel from collins! a good list!