Popular Documentary TV Shows on Google Play Movies

Pole to Pole with Will Smith

2026

Pole to Pole with Will Smith

2026
5.9
Inspired by his late mentor, Will Smith spends 100 days facing extreme challenges, venturing from pole to pole with scientists, explorers and experts.
MythBusters

2003

MythBusters

2003
7.8
MythBusters is a science entertainment television program created and produced by Australia's Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The show's hosts, special effects experts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, use elements of the scientific method to test the validity of rumors, myths, movie scenes, adages, Internet videos, and news stories.
NOVA

1974

NOVA

1974
7
PBS' premier science series helps viewers of all ages explore the science behind the headlines. Along the way, NOVA demystifies science and technology, and highlights the people involved in scientific pursuits.
Ancient Aliens

2010

Ancient Aliens

2010
7
Did intelligent beings from outer space visit Earth thousands of years ago? From the age of the dinosaurs to ancient Egypt, from early cave drawings to continued mass sightings in the US, each episode gives historic depth to the questions, speculations, provocative controversies, first-hand accounts and grounded theories surrounding this age old debate.
Brave Son of India: Maharana Pratap

2013

Brave Son of India: Maharana Pratap

2013
6.2
Bharat Ka Veer Putra – Maharana Pratap is an Indian television series produced by Abhimanyu Singh of Contiloe Entertainment, based on the life of 16th century Rajput ruler of Mewar, Maharana Pratap Singh. The series premiered on Sony TV on May 27, 2013. The series is introduced by Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan.
The Curse of Oak Island

2014

The Curse of Oak Island

2014
7.3
Follow brothers Marty and Rick Lagina through their effort to find the speculated - and as of yet undiscovered - buried treasure believed to have been concealed through extraordinary means on Oak Island.
Modern Marvels

1993

Modern Marvels

1993
8
HISTORY’s longest-running series moves to H2. Modern Marvels celebrates the ingenuity, invention and imagination found in the world around us. From commonplace items like ink and coffee to architectural masterpieces and engineering disasters, the hit series goes beyond the basics to provide insight and history into things we wonder about and that impact our lives. This series tells fascinating stories of the doers, the dreamers and sometime-schemers that create everyday items, technological breakthroughs and manmade wonders. The hit series goes deep to explore the leading edge of human inspiration and ambition.
Cosmos

2014

Cosmos

2014
8.5
Famed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson provides clarity for the vision of the cosmos as he voyages across the universe with never-before-told stories that delve into the scientific concepts of the laws of gravity and the origins of space and time.
Nature

1982

Nature

1982
7.8
Consistently stunning documentaries transport viewers to far-flung locations ranging from the torrid African plains to the chilly splendours of icy Antarctica. The show's primary focus is on animals and ecosystems around the world. A comic book based on the show, meant to be used an as educational tool for kids, was briefly distributed to museums and schools at no cost in the mid-2000s.
Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

2007

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

2007
6.8
Host Guy Fieri takes a cross-country road trip to visit some of America's classic "greasy spoon" restaurants — diners, drive-ins and dives — that have been doing it right for decades.
Snapped

2004

Snapped

2004
7.8
The fascinating cases of every day, seemingly average moms, wives and girlfriends accused of murder. Did they really do it? And if so, why?
Welcome to Wrexham

2022

Welcome to Wrexham

2022
7.8
Documentary series tracking the dreams and worries of Wrexham, a working-class town in North Wales, UK, as two Hollywood stars (Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds) take ownership of the town’s historic yet struggling football club.
Finding Your Roots

2012

Finding Your Roots

2012
6.6
Noted Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has been helping people discover long-lost relatives hidden for generations within the branches of their family trees. Professor Gates utilizes a team of genealogists to reconstruct the paper trail left behind by our ancestors and the world’s leading geneticists to decode our DNA and help us travel thousands of years into the past to discover the origins of our earliest forebears.
Forensic Files

1996

Forensic Files

1996
7.8
Real crimes, disease outbreaks and accidents around the world are solved by experts using scientific laboratory analysis which helps them find previously undetectable evidence. Brilliant scientific work helps convict the guilty and free the innocent.
The Civil War

1990

The Civil War

1990
7.9
A documentary on the American Civil War narrated by Ken Burns, covering the secession of the Confederacy to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.
Wheeler Dealers

2003

Wheeler Dealers

2003
7.1
Experienced car dealer Mike Brewer is joined by multi-talented mechanics in a monumental motoring mission: to find and restore iconic cars to later sell for a profit at their LA-based shop. In the series, Mike has the challenging job of finding vehicles that have money-making potential. He then hands them over to a mechanic, who tackles everything from bare metal re-sprays to gearbox swaps to bring them back to their former glory.
The First 48

2004

The First 48

2004
7.9
The First 48 follows detectives from around the country during these first critical hours as they race against time to find the suspect. Gritty and fast-paced, it takes viewers behind the scenes of real-life investigations with unprecedented access to crime scenes, autopsies, forensic processing, and interrogations.
Shark Week

1988

Shark Week

1988
7.6
The Discovery Channel's Shark Week, first broadcast on July 17, 1987, is a weeklong series of feature television programs dedicated to sharks. Held annually, normally in July or August, Shark Week was originally developed to raise awareness and respect for sharks. It is the longest-running cable television programming event in history. Now broadcast in over 72 countries, Shark Week is promoted heavily via social networks like Facebook and Twitter.
How It's Made

2001

How It's Made

2001
7.6
Have you ever wondered how the products you use every day are made? How It's Made leads you through the process of how everyday products, such as apple juice, skateboards, engines, contact lenses, and many more objects are manufactured.
When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts

2006

When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts

2006
7.5
Spike Lee's award-winning documentary follows the events that preceded and followed Hurricane Katrina's catastrophic passage through New Orleans in 2005.