What to stream this week: 'Stranger Things' documentary on Netflix; Revisiting Titanic

The Duffer Brothers (Matt and Ross) created a pop culture King Kong with the release of "Stranger Things" in the summer of 2016 on Netflix.

I get the appeal given that I happen to enjoy television shows with a supernaturalish bent to them such as "The X-Files" and, well, "Supernatural," two long-running series that aired on the Fox Network and The CW respectively. "Stranger Things" never hooked me.

Perhaps, it's time to go on a binging spree to catch up before Season 5, the show's last, debuts later this year.

The Duffers haven't been sitting idly by since the fourth season ended in the summer of 2022

The upcoming fifth season is reportedly its last, but before then, the Duffers and Kathryn Trefry, took residents of Hawkins, Ind. on a new prequel adventure in a stage production on London's West End that Netflix detailed in a recently released documentary "Behind the Curtain: Stranger Things The First Shadow."

The play explores the origin story of Henry Creel/Vecna in the show, but it doesn't delve too deeply into those plot details. "Behind the Curtain" means exactly that as viewers and theater junkies are treated to that as the documentary explores not only the angst of the creative process from Trefry's creator's side, but that of the cast, as well as a group of young actors is put through the ringer in an effort to mine a well-known piece of pop culture gold for something new. To say they feel some modicum of pressure isn't an understatement.

Equally interesting: seeing all the technical work that goes on behind the scenes. There's no way to explore the "Stranger Things" universe without the usage of a lot of tech.

Obviously this documentary, which is a breezy watch, is meant to goose interest for that final season. From this standpoint, it worked. I'll have time to catch up.

April brings showers and a slew of Titanic nostalgia

"Titanic: The Digital Resurrection"

Streaming on Disney and Hulu

Where were you on April 14, 1912? The obvious answer: most of us weren't even born.

For many, however, that date remains engrained in the mind because one of the most – if not the most – well-known maritime tragedies happened with the sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic due to a collision with an iceberg.

Every April, James Cameron's epic take on the tragedy seems to play endlessly and any number of documentaries show up. This month, there are a couple. Well, one and a quarter.

The first: "Titanic: The Digital Resurrection" represents the more fascinating of the two. With the aid of a stunning digital replication, crafted from more than 716,000 high-resolution images of what remains of the wreck beneath the icy Atlantic, Parker Stephenson, an expert on the wreck along with metallurgist Jennifer Hooper and master mariner Capt. Chris Hearn, piece together clues to tell a compelling narrative. That debunks some theories and proffers others. It's a breezy, 90-minute watch and well worth the time.

On the opposite end, "Expedition Files" on the Discovery Channel, opens its second season premiere with a segment on a conspiracy theory that popped up recently regarding a fire on the ship that contributed to its tragic fate. It's 10-12 minutes of time that poses an interesting question.

ICYMI: 'G20,' A Viola Davis-led actioner on Prime Video

Normally, an actress with the pedigree of Oscar-winner Viola Davis wouldn't be caught dead in a direct-to-streaming effort such as "G20," but it must've sounded fun for her to traipse around in a dinner gown attempting to be presidential as possible as some crypto-bros attempt to crash the global economy, inflate the value of their holdings and send the rest of us to purgatory in the name of avenging past slights.

Is it a good flick? Nope. But Davis is Davis and she's reached a lofty perch in her career – the material my be suspect, but her performance is never bad. But I have to confess: after "The Woman King," there was no need for one of the best actresses working today brandish her action credentials.

The Top 10 original streaming programs for week endiing March 23

We have a new No. 1 as "Reacher" is upended, but still has an impressive minute tally and Netflix dominates with four series in the Top 10.

• "Adolescence" (Netflix) 1.4 billion minutes

• "The Residence" (Netflix) 1.355 billion

• "Reacher" (Prime Video) 1.097 billion

• "Severance" (Apple TV+) 876 million

• "1923" (Paramount+) 809 million

• "Temptation Island" 652 million

• "The Wheel of Time" 538 million

• "The Pitt" (Max) 466 million

• "Invincible" (Prime Video) 445 million

• "Running Point" (Netflix) 373 million

This story has been updated.

George M. Thomas covers a myriad of things including sports and pop culture, but mostly sports, he thinks, for the Beacon Journal.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: 'Stranger Things,' Titanic documentaries this week's streaming picks