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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →For a sweeping wildlife series, start with Planet Earth or Blue Planet II; for a more intimate story, try My Octopus Teacher, Kedi, or Honeyland. These 11 picks range from conventional natural-history films to visual essays and human-centered documentaries about life in the wild. The services listed below come from WIRED’s April 22, 2025 guide and are leads to check—not guarantees of current availability in your region.
How to choose a nature documentary
These films and series do not all take the same approach to nature. Choose by subject, scale, tone, and storytelling style: a multi-episode habitat survey feels very different from an archival biography or a quiet, personal encounter with one animal.
![National Geographic: Best of Nature Collection [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61dhyWJ0eCL._SL160_.jpg)
![The BBC High-Definition Natural History Collection 2 (Life / Nature's Most Amazing Events / South Pacific / Yellowstone) [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/512THAv2pQL._SL160_.jpg)
![Extreme Nature Collection [4K Ultra HD] [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51QW8bVRLjL._SL160_.jpg)
![The Superman Motion Picture Anthology, 1978-2006 [Blu-ray]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51xhFuhY7CL._SL160_.jpg)
- For broad wildlife spectacle: Planet Earth or Blue Planet II.
- For a personal, place-specific story: My Octopus Teacher, Kedi, or Honeyland.
- For people and the natural world: Grizzly Man, Jane, or Fire of Love.
- For image-led films rather than conventional wildlife narration: Koyaanisqatsi or Baraka.
11 nature documentaries to watch
1. Koyaanisqatsi (1982)
Godfrey Reggio’s largely wordless film cuts between natural landscapes and accelerated images of modern human systems. Philip Glass’s score carries the film, making this a boundary-pushing choice about humanity and the environment rather than a standard wildlife documentary. WIRED’s 2025 guide listed Tubi and Pluto TV, as well as rental options.
2. Baraka (1992)
Ron Fricke’s dialogue-free journey uses time-lapse and slow motion to move among human cultures, sacred places, landscapes, and animals. It pairs well with Koyaanisqatsi if you want a film built around images and music instead of an explanatory narrator. WIRED listed Tubi, Plex, and Amazon.
#1 Best Overall
3. March of the Penguins (2005)
This accessible wildlife story follows emperor penguins through a breeding season near France’s Dumont d’Urville base in Adélie Land. The version discussed by WIRED is narrated by Morgan Freeman. Its romantic framing of penguin pairing is not an accurate account of penguin relationships, so take the film’s human-like storytelling as a narrative device rather than scientific explanation. WIRED listed digital rental options.
4. Grizzly Man (2005)
Werner Herzog builds this unsettling, human-centered film from footage recorded by Timothy Treadwell among Alaskan grizzlies, alongside Herzog’s narration. It is less a conventional account of bear behavior than an examination of one person’s relationship with wilderness and the risks of interpreting wild animals through human attachment. WIRED listed Tubi, Pluto TV, Plex, and Amazon.
Rank #2
5. Planet Earth I–III (2006–2023)
For an expansive, episodic survey of habitats and wildlife, the three Planet Earth series offer room to explore at a broader scale than a feature film. Sir David Attenborough is associated with the series’ narration, while the productions showcase varied filming technologies. WIRED singled out the “Cities” episode of Planet Earth II, which looks at wildlife in urban environments. Its 2025 guide listed Max, Hulu, Discovery+, and rental choices.
6. Kedi (2016)
Ceyda Torun’s 80-minute film stays close to Istanbul’s street cats and the people who care for them. The short runtime and neighborhood-scale focus make it a gentler, more intimate alternative to epic landscape and wildlife films. WIRED listed rental options.
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7. Jane (2017)
Brett Morgen combines archival 16-mm footage filmed by Hugo van Lawick with contemporary interviews with Jane Goodall. The film focuses on Goodall’s early chimpanzee research at Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park, making it a strong choice for viewers interested in science, biography, and archival storytelling. WIRED listed Disney+, Hulu, and rentals.
8. Blue Planet II (2017)
This BBC series explores marine life, from deep-sea organisms to familiar ocean wildlife. It suits viewers who want a multi-episode underwater survey rather than a single-species story. WIRED listed Max, Hulu, Discovery+, and rentals.
9. Honeyland (2019)
Filmed over three years and drawn from more than 400 hours of footage, Honeyland follows beekeeper Hatidže Muratova in North Macedonia as a neighboring family arrives. Its focus on livelihood, shared resources, and ecosystem balance gives the film a character-driven perspective on how people live alongside nature. WIRED listed Tubi and rental destinations.
10. My Octopus Teacher (2020)
Craig Foster’s year of daily free dives in a South African kelp forest leads to an unusually personal encounter with a wild octopus. The result is reflective and intimate, not a broad survey of the species. WIRED listed Netflix, and Netflix’s own guide also describes Foster’s year of diving and his relationship with the octopus: Netflix’s nature documentary guide.
Best Value
11. Fire of Love (2022)
Sara Dosa’s archival-footage documentary tells the story of French volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft, with narration by Miranda July. The blend of scientific curiosity, striking volcanic imagery, and personal biography makes it a distinctive geologic entry on a list otherwise weighted toward wildlife. WIRED listed Disney+, Hulu, and rentals. The film includes Maurice Krafft’s metaphor that a volcano “gets the shivers” before an eruption; it is a poetic line, not a technical explanation of volcanic activity.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where to watch these films and series
The services below are those WIRED named in its April 22, 2025 guide. Availability can change with licensing and differs by country, so check the title in your own service account before planning a watch.
| Title | Watch or rental destinations listed by WIRED (April 22, 2025) |
|---|---|
| Koyaanisqatsi | Tubi, Pluto TV, and rental outlets |
| Baraka | Tubi, Plex, Amazon |
| March of the Penguins | Digital rental options |
| Grizzly Man | Tubi, Pluto TV, Plex, Amazon |
| Planet Earth I–III | Max, Hulu, Discovery+, and rental choices |
| Kedi | Rental options |
| Jane | Disney+, Hulu, and rentals |
| Blue Planet II | Max, Hulu, Discovery+, and rentals |
| Honeyland | Tubi and rental destinations |
| My Octopus Teacher | Netflix |
| Fire of Love | Disney+, Hulu, and rentals |
For current platform context, see Disney+’s National Geographic guide and Netflix’s nature documentary guide. These guides describe nature programming on their respective services; they do not establish that every title in this list is available there. Hulu’s documentary guide is at Hulu, but it does not confirm the individual Hulu listings in WIRED’s guide.
Why availability needs a regional check
Streaming rights shift, and a service listing is not a worldwide or permanent promise. The destinations above preserve the choices named in WIRED’s dated guide, not a live catalogue check. Search the title directly in the relevant app or service for your country; if it is not included with a subscription, check the listed rental destinations.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
