Top Rated Documentary TV Shows on Paramount Plus

Nathan for You

2013

Nathan for You

2013
8.2
Self-proclaimed business expert, writer, director and comedian Nathan Fielder helps real small businesses turn a profit with marketing tactics that no ordinary consultant would dare to attempt. From driving foot traffic to an off-the-strip souvenir shop by using Hollywood flair and a Johnny Depp impersonator, to creating a rebate that can only be redeemed by climbing a mountain, to founding a coffee shop called "Dumb Starbucks,” Nathan has always gone to the limit to make his ideas come to life. With his unorthodox approach to problem solving, Nathan’s genuine efforts to do good often draw the real people he encounters into an experience far beyond what they signed up for.
48 Hours

1988

48 Hours

1988
7.4
This newsmagazine series investigates intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all aspects of the human experience. Over its long run, the show has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, driven the reopening — and resolution — of cold cases, and changed numerous lives. CBS News correspondents offer an in-depth look into each story, with the emphasis on solving the mystery at its heart.
Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough

2015

Great Barrier Reef with David Attenborough

2015
7
Following his visit to the Great Barrier Reef in 1957, naturalist and broadcaster David Attenborough returns and uses the latest filming techniques to unlock the secrets of the natural wonder.
SpongeBob DocuPants

2020

SpongeBob DocuPants

2020
8.6
Imagine classic SpongeBob moments being told through the lens of documentary shows like E! True Hollywood Stories, Dateline, Behind the Music etc. Each episode takes an overly dramatic look into classic SpongeBob storylines.
16 and Pregnant

2009

16 and Pregnant

2009
6.8
16 and Pregnant is an American reality television series that debuted June 11, 2009, on MTV. It follows the stories of pregnant teenage girls in high school dealing with the hardships of teenage pregnancy. Each episode features a different teenage girl, with the episode typically beginning when she is 4 ¹⁄2 – 8 months into her pregnancy. The episode typically ends when the baby is a few months old. The series is produced in a documentary format, with an animation on notebook paper showing highlights during each episode preceding the commercial breaks. 16 and Pregnant has spawned several spin-off series: Teen Mom, Teen Mom 2 and Teen Mom 3. Each series follows the lives of four girls from their respective season of 16 and Pregnant as they navigate their first years of motherhood. As of July 2013, casting for the fifth season of the series is taking place.
Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team

2006

Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team

2006
7.8
Reality show following the auditioning process and making of the annual Dallas Cowboys Cheerleading Squad.
Air Disasters

2011

Air Disasters

2011
8
Harrowing stories of tragedy and triumph are brought to life through official reports, transcripts and interviews with the pilots, air traffic controllers and lucky survivors of history's most terrifying crashes. Widely considered to be the safest form of travel, air transportation is still in its infancy and when midair calamity strikes, the results are often catastrophic. From the cockpit to the cabin, from the control room to the crash scene, we uncover just what went wrong.
The Naked Brothers Band

2007

The Naked Brothers Band

2007
6.2
The Naked Brothers Band is an American musical comedy series created by Polly Draper. The show depicts the daily lives of Draper's sons, who lead a fictional world-renowned rock band from New York City. As a mockumentary, the storyline is a hyperbole of their real lives, and the fictional presence of a camera is often acknowledged. Lead vocals and instrumentation are provided by the siblings; they wrote the lyrics themselves. The show stars Nat Wolff and Alex Wolff, who encounter conflicts with each other that are later omitted. Nat's fictional female admirer and real life preschool friends—including the guitarist who had no prior acquaintance with the family—feature as the band members, with the siblings' genuine father and Draper's husband as their accordion-playing dad and Draper's niece as the group's babysitter. The series is a spin-off of Draper's 2005 film of the same name that was picked up by Nickelodeon, premiering in January 2007. Draper, star of Thirtysomething and her writings The Tic Code
Inside the Factory

2015

Inside the Factory

2015
7.8
Paddy McGuinness and Cherry Healey get exclusive access to some of the largest factories in Britain to reveal the secrets behind production on an epic scale.
MTV Unplugged

1989

MTV Unplugged

1989
6.8
MTV's acclaimed music series showcases today's top artists and rising stars in the industry performing acoustic versions of their songs.
Aerial America

2010

Aerial America

2010
7.5
Take off on a thrilling flight across America. This epic series offers rare glimpses of our nation's most treasured landmarks, all seen from breathtaking heights. From busy cityscapes to quiet landscapes, we capture the history and the pageantry of our amazing country, which is as diverse as the people who occupy it.
11 Minutes

2022

11 Minutes

2022
6.3
A four-part documentary that takes viewers inside the heart-stopping stories of terror and survival experienced by those who were at the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas.
8 Days That Made Rome

2017

8 Days That Made Rome

2017
8.1
Bettany Hughes relives eight pivotal days that defined the Roman Empire and made it the world's first superpower.
Teen Mom: The Next Chapter

2022

Teen Mom: The Next Chapter

2022
7.9
The casts of Teen Mom OG and Teen Mom 2 are each currently in different stages of motherhood - some have kids in diapers, while others are now parenting teenagers! But they all share the unique experience of momming so young. For the first time, the moms and all their stories will be brought together in one supersized series that focuses on the unique bond this "Mom Group" shares as they face the reality of parenthood and adulting while entering this next phase of life together.
The FBI Declassified

2020

The FBI Declassified

2020
7.2
A look at some of the biggest cases handled by real-life FBI agents and analysts.
True Life Crime

2020

True Life Crime

2020
7.3
Take a deep dive into the true-crime stories rocking headlines and social media feeds. These victims were young, the crimes against them were shocking and haunting questions remain.
America in Color

2017

America in Color

2017
7.1
From the 1920s through the 1960s, America transformed from a young country on the rise into a global superpower. Using digital colorization technology, we present these formative decades as few have seen them, revisiting 50 vibrant years of good times and great despair, technological triumphs and natural disasters, and global villains and national heroes.
Nöthin' but a Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal

2024

Nöthin' but a Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal

2024
8.3
A fresh and shockingly candid behind-the-scenes look at one of music's most iconic eras. Each episode showcases the insanity and blazing ambition that has enthralled generations of music lovers and continues to influence culture to this day.
Mafia Spies

2024

Mafia Spies

2024
6.3
Relying heavily on recently declassified material and premium cinematic recreations, this series charts a Cold War game of cat and mouse from Vegas to Miami to Havana that pitted Washington's strongest players against the 20th century's most notorious gangsters and exploring the secret connections among the CIA, the mob and Sinatra's Rat Pack that still resonate today.
FBI TRUE

2023

FBI TRUE

2023
6.7
A real-life look into FBI agents’ high-pressure world with never-before-seen surveillance video, interrogations with hostage takers and terrorists, and personal photos from the agents’ collections.