Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief HBO found major success in 2015 with Going Clear when it snagged seven Primetime Emmy noms and won three. The jaw-dropping films shows the inner workings of Scientology, a belief system with A-List Hollywood followers like Tom Cruise, John Travolta, and Elisabeth Moss. Oscar winner Alex Gibney directs and writes the unbelievable doc. Watch Now HBO
Beware The Slenderman FYI: The best time to watch Beware The Slenderman is not when youre alone at night. The fictional creature was manufactured on-yup, you guessed it-the internet in 2009. Seven years later, HBO made a documentary about the mythical being and the shockingly true story of two teenagers who stabbed their friend to prove the Slenderman was real. Watch Now HBO
Atomic Homefront HBO has always been on the cutting edge of investigative documentaries, and Atomic Homefront is a perfect example. Director Rebecca Camissa looks at the consequences of the U.S. government depositing hazardous waste wherever it wants. While filmed in St. Louis, the doc touches on the universality of the radioactive poisoning crisis that plagues many communities across the country. Watch Now HBO
Baltimore Rising In 2015, Freddie Gray, a 25-year-old Black man in Baltimore, was put in the back of a metal police van without a seatbelt and driven around. He died of a severe spinal injury a week later, per The Washington Post , though it's unclear exactly how Gray was hurt. Nonetheless, medical experts for both the prosecution and defense "compared his injury to those sustained when someone dives into too-shallow water." Baltimore Rising was released two years later as activists, police officers, community leaders, and gang affiliates all struggled to hold the city together in the wake of Grays death. Watch Now HBO
May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers Music documentaries allow fans to get inside the minds of their favorite performers. May It Last is one of the best, as it follows the Avett Brothers, an American folk rock band. It shows the advantages and downfalls of working so closely with your sibling, especially in a field where you have to bare your emotions-in front of thousands. Watch Now HBO
The Newspaperman: The Life And Times Of Ben Bradlee The same year The Post starring Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep was released, HBO came out with a documentary about Ben Bradlee, the iconic editor of The Washington Post who published the Pentagon Papers and broke news about Watergate. The documentary follows his life during those years, showing what it was like to be on the front lines of the press. Watch Now HBO
Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind Comedy icon Robin Williams is missed by many, but HBO preserved a piece of him in Come Inside My Mind. The movie legend committed suicide in 2014, but instead of grieving the loss of such an artist, the documentary celebrates him. Comprised of mostly archival footage, the film allows Robins legacy to live on in his performances. Watch Now HBO
Whats My Name? Muhammad Ali In this two-part documentary, director Antoine Fuqua masterfully strings together only archival footage of the famous boxer Muhammad Ali. The film doesn't just focus on his wins inside the ring, but also highlights his candid nature and activism outside it. Its a well-crafted experience for everyone, not just sport lovers. Watch Now HBO
Wig Legendary drag queen Lady Bunny started Wigstock, a drag performance to celebrate the end of summer in 1984. It became an annual tradition until 2001, but Lady Bunny brought the New York City drag queen festival back in 2019 to showcase a new generation of performers. Wig captures all the timeless glamor, juxtaposing the origins of the event with the new age of queens. Watch Now HBO
Wont You Be My Neighbor? Okay, real talk: Wont You Be My Neighbor? definitely should have been nominated for an Oscar. The 2018 film exploring the life of Mr. Fred Rogers is the highest-grossing documentary of all time, with more than $22 million in box office revenue. If youre way behind in your documentary watching, this should be at the top of your list. Watch Now HBO
Capturing The Friedmans When the father of an unsuspecting middle-class family was arrested for possessing child pornography, the family started to record conversations in the household. Those home videos are shown in Capturing The Friedmans, which follows the trial of Arnold and later Jesse Friedman on the grounds of molestation and sexual abuse. The 2003 film was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards-and for good reason. Watch Now HBO
David Bowie: The Last Five Years In 2013, Francis Whatley directed David Bowie: Five Years, which explored the musicians prolific years in the 70s and 80s. Four years later, after David Bowies unexpected death, Francis produced a documentary focusing on his final three projects in the last five years of his life. Make sure you have tissues at the ready because this one is bound to make you cry. Watch Now HBO
Mommy Dead And Dearest If you want to hear a wild, jaw-dropping true story, Mommy Dead and Dearest is just that. Dee Dee Blanchard was murdered at the hands of her daughter Gypsy Rose Blanchard and her daughters boyfriend Nick Godejohn -but thats not even the beginning of the events. Youre never going to guess the motive. (Unless, of course, you've watched The Act , the Hulu show partially based on this documentary.) Watch Now HBO
Ice On Fire Ice On Fire is a documentary about climate change. But, instead of only showing the effects of the environmental crisis, the film puts forth a solution that could reverse its most devastating consequences. Plus, its narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio , who is an environmental activist through and through. (That just makes him so much hotter.) Watch Now HBO
The Paradise Lost Trilogy Paradise Lost: The Child Murders At Robin Hood Hills was released in 1996. The documentary follows the trials of three teenagers who were charged with the murder of three boys in Arkansas as part of a Satanic ritual. Directors Joe Berlinger (who, btw, also directed the docuseries The Ted Bundy Tapes and Bundy biopic Extremely Wicked ) and Bruce Sinofsky made follow-up docs in 2000 and 2011, allowing you to dive deeper into this twisted tale. Watch Now HBO
Tickled Once upon a time, pop culture journalist David Farrier came across a tickling competition online. With his curiosity piqued, he reached out to the media group that sponsored and filmed those events. He was met with homophobic comments, which only made him want to uncover what was happening even more. In the film, his search for the truth leads him down a disturbing road, proving that you never know where a story might take you. Watch Now HBO
4 Little Girls Spike Lee directed this timeless and important 1997 documentary about the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in 1963 Birmingham, Alabama. The Ku Klux Klan-organized tragedy resulted in the death of four young girls. As always, Spike finds a way to make the events that unfold relevant to any time and provoke thought about race. Watch Now HBO
At The Heart Of Gold: Inside The USA Gymnastics Scandal Erin Lee Carr , who also directed I Love You, Now Die and Mommy Dead and Dearest , dives into the facts of the Olympic gymnastics scandal that uncovered the abuse inflicted at the hands of doctor Larry Nassar to figure out who knew what and when. Even more importantly, the film gives a new voice to the survivors, allowing them to share their emotional stories. Watch Now HBO
Boy Interrupted When Dana and Hart Perrys son took his own life, the filmmaker couple decided to take home movies and make a documentary. The footage is supplemented with interviews from family members, doctors, and teachers. The 2009 film is a gut-wrenching portrayal of a grieving family. Watch Now HBO
The Case Against 8 Before same-sex marriage was legalized in 2015, California passed a law allowing those courtships to be recognized by the state. But, when the amendment to the states constitution didnt pass, lawyers David Boies and Ted Olson and their four plaintiffs appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. The film gives an in-depth look at the legal proceedings that paved the way for national change. Watch Now HBO
Life According To Sam Sam is a 17-year-old living with progeria, a condition that makes peoples bodies age fast. Most people with the condition dont live past 13. Luckily for Sam, however, he and his parents have found a drug that could treat progeria. More importantly, the documentary shows the beauty of using the life you have-no matter how long it lasts-to be an amazing person. Watch Now HBO
Manhunt: The Story Of The Hunt For Bin Laden In the '90s, a group of female CIA analysts found Osama bin Laden. As you might expect, the women were frustrated because they werent being listened to (ugh). The first half of the film focuses on that frustration, while the second half explores the hunt for bin Laden post 9/11. Watch Now HBO
Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence In The House Of God This 2001 documentary investigates the case of a Milwaukee priest who abused more than 200 deaf children, resulting in the first protest against clerical abuse. The film also discusses the political climate in which the crime happened. Watch Now HBO
Wishful Drinking Everyone wishes they could see the late Carrie Fisher in a movie one more time. Instead, all thats left are her old performances, including a taped version of her one-woman show, "Wishful Drinking." Its not a conventional documentary, but that's only fitting considering Carrie wasn't a conventional person (not by a long shot). In the show, Carrie opens up about her life and growing up in Hollywood as the child of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher. Turn this one on whenever you just want a little piece of Carrie back. Watch Now HBO