In August 2025, several documentary films and series will be released on Netflix, including a new film from the team behind The Tinder Swindler.
Netflix documentaries have been going steady so far in 2025. Some highlights include The Twister: Caught in the Storm and Gone Girls: The Long Island Killer. As we look to August, true crime continues to take the forefront, but there are also a couple of unique entries, such as a music-based documentary-visual film.
Christopher – A Beautiful Real Life
Coming to Netflix: August 2025 (Release date TBA)
Danish Pop icon Christopher made his acting debut in the 2023 film A Beautiful Life, in which he also composed the soundtrack. His real life echoes the role he has in the film.
Subsequently, this documentary follows Christopher as he chases his dreams and finds himself on the brink of pop stardom. However, the birth of his second child changes his priorities. Is following his dream worth the cost of losing precious time with his family?
Katrina: Come Hell and High Water
Coming to Netflix: August 2025 (Release date TBA)
Directors: Geeta Gandbhir (101), Samantha Knowles (102), Spike Lee (103)
Producer: Sam Pollard
Executive Producer: Spike Lee
Created by showrunner and producer Alisa Payne, this documentary series explores the devastating effects and aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which struck the city of New Orleans in 2005. The hurricane saw hundreds lose their lives, as well as billions of dollars in damages across the city.
Throughout this 3-part documentary, the people of New Orleans recollect the day of the hurricane, an event that changed their lives forever. Heavy and emotional, this documentary is bound to be a real tear-jerker.
Stolen: Heist of the Century
Coming to Netflix: August 8
Director/Writer: Mark Lewis
From RAW (the team behind American Nightmare and The Tinder Swindler) comes Stolen: Heist of the Century. The documentary covers the story behind what’s become known as the world’s greatest diamond heist. The story begins back in 2003, taking place in Antwerp, where detectives from Antwerp’s ‘Diamond Squad’ where called in to investigate the disappearance of an incredibly valuable diamonds — stolen from a near-impenetrable vault in the dead of night. The value of the robbery? An estimated half a billion dollars.
Interestingly, this is the second diamond heist documentary to hit Netflix in 2025. The first was Guy Ritchie’s The Diamond Heist, released in April.
Songs From the Hole
Coming to Netflix: August 13
Director: Contessa Gayles
Netflix has licensed 2023 documentary film Songs from the Hole; the film will land on the streamer on August 13. A documentary-visual album, the project initially released at SXSW, where it won the Audience Award in the Visions category.
The film tells the story of James Jacob, who was sentenced to a double-life term while only 15 years old. Moreover, just a few days later, his brother was tragically killed. While marketed as a documentary, it’s so much more than that. It’s a musical autobiography, telling its story through a series of intimate and personal music videos.
The Echoes of Survivors: Inside Korea’s Tragedies
Coming to Netflix: August 15
In 2023, Netflix released In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal, which told stories of four Korean religions leaders and their nasty thirst for power. Now, from the same director, Jo Seong-hyeon, comes The Echoes of Survivors: Inside Korea’s Tragedies.
The upcoming documentary series details some of the most harrowing stories of Korea’s history, covered from firsthand accounts of survivors and rare archival footage.
Fit for TV: The Reality of the Biggest Loser
Coming to Netflix: August 15
Director: Skye Borgman
A three-part documentary, this series documents the history of former reality series ‘The Biggest Loser,’ which was a hugely successful competition reality show that aired in the US from 2004-2016. The series would take contestants and challenge them to lose as much weight as possible, with the winner taking home a huge $250,000 cash prize.
This series features interviews with former contestants, trainers, producers, and health professionals. It explores the good, the bad, and the complicated.
The Truth About Jussie Smollett?
Coming to Netflix: August 22
Director: Gagan Rehill
Picture: Netflix
From the producers of Don’t F**k with Cats and The Tinder Swindler, comes ‘The Truth About Jussie Smollett?’. The film explores the story behind the Jussie Smollett.
It all began in January 2019, when actor Jussie Smollett claimed that he was a victim of a racial and homophobic attack in Chicago. However, further police reports concluded that Smollett had paid two people to stage the crime.
This sparked an enormous investigation, in which Smollett was indicted, and the charges were later dropped, only to be reopened again in 2020. The investigation has several twists and turns. This documentary film explores the case in never-before-seen detail, featuring interviews with police, lawyers, journalists, investigators.
According to one report, the docu-series is Smollett’s best chance of redemption based on what the actor said to a small crowd, saying, “It’ll make sense when y’all watch it. They found the actual footage of the people that jumped me, and it just corroborates every single thing that I’ve said for the last almost seven years.”
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish
Coming to Netflix: August 29
Director: Skye Borgman
Netflix describes Unknown Number as a shocking and twisty documentary. This docufilm covers a harrowing case of cyberbullying, in which a teenage girl and her boyfriend find themselves being contacted by an anonymous phone number. After getting relentlessly harassed by an unknown number, the authorities eventually get involved… and the case spirals out of control.
Unknown Number is a true story. The film is helmed by acclaimed true crime director Skye Borgman (Girl in the Picture, Abducted in Plain Sight).
Which August 2025 documentary are you most excited about? Tell us in the comments down below!