A celebration of freedom, and a federal holiday that’s marked annually on June 19, Juneteenth honors the date in 1865 on which the abolishment of slavery was finally enforced in every U.S. state. One way to observe the holiday is to watch movies and TV series that highlight the stories and contributions of Black trailblazers in the arts, culture, and history.

Read on for our recommendations of Black films and shows you can stream for Juneteenth on Paramount+. And remember: You can watch iconic titles from the Black Voices Collection all year long. Not only that, Paramount+ is the new home of BET+ shows and movies. So, start streaming – and celebrating.

Note: Some titles require the Paramount+ Premium plan to stream.

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What to watch for Juneteenth

Juneteenth is all about Black stories, and on this holiday (and all year round!), you can stream films and TV series created by and starring Black artists – and with a focus on Black narratives – with the Black Voices Collection on Paramount+. From that library, we’ve selected some recommendations for great Juneteenth watches. Check out our picks below.

Shows and movies based on historical figures

Selma

What it’s about: Directed by the Oscar®-nominated Ava DuVernay, Selma brings the voting-rights marches of the early 1960s to life. Rather than offering a sweeping historical overview, the film focuses on the strategy, tension, and emotional toll behind the movement, centering on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (David Oyelowo) as he navigates political resistance, personal doubt, and the urgency of justice. From the brutality that occurred in 1965 on the Edmund Pettus Bridge on what would become known as “Bloody Sunday,” to the quiet conversations that went on behind closed doors, Selma captures how change is fought for moment by moment and at great cost.

Why it matters: Selma centers Black leadership and resilience, reminding us how collective action helped shape civil rights progress. What shines most in this film are the behind-the-revolution moments between King, his wife Coretta Scott King (played by Carmen Ejogo), and his closest advisors. Oyelowo received a Golden Globe® nomination for his moving performance of King at what became the climactic moment of the civil-rights leader’s life.

WATCH NOW: Selma

Lawmen: Bass Reeves

This Paramount+ original anthology series follows Bass Reeves (David Oyelowo) and his rise from enslavement to law enforcement as one of the first Black U.S. Deputy Marshals west of the Mississippi. Despite arresting more than 3,000 outlaws during the course of his career, Reeves finds the weight of the badge heavy, and must wrestle with how his ever-dangerous job affects his family. Oscar® nominee Taylor Sheridan and series star Oyelowo are among the executive producers.

WATCH NOW: Lawmen: Bass Reeves

Birthing a Nation: The Resistance of Mary Gaffney

Directed by journalist-turned-filmmaker Nazenet Habtezghi, this 19-minute Emmy®-nominated documentary explores forced reproduction in the antebellum South. The film specifically focuses on Mary Gaffney, an enslaved Texas woman who discovered a way to take control of her body and her fertility for almost a decade.

WATCH NOW: Birthing a Nation: The Resistance of Mary Gaffney

The Green Book: Guide to Freedom

This hourlong special tells the story of Victor H. Green’s Green Book, a travel guide that advised Black citizens of the 1930s to 1960s on how to safely navigate the country during a time of severe institutionalized racism. Throughout the course of the special, an array of experts delve into the book’s history, including historians, business owners, and individuals who experienced first-hand the phenomenon of “traveling while black” in pre-Civil Rights Era America. Written and directed by acclaimed documentarian Yoruba Richen, The Green Book: Guide to Freedom looks at the daily realities that Black travelers faced on the road – both the struggles, indignities and dangers, as well as the opportunities found and triumphs won along the way.

WATCH NOW: The Green Book: Guide to Freedom

Becoming King

Directed by Jessica Oyelowo – actor, singer-songwriter, and an executive producer for Lawmen: Bass Reeves – this documentary feature centers on Oyelowo’s husband, David Oyelowo, and his seven-year journey to portray civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. for the film Selma. Featuring behind-the-scenes footage, intimate home videos, and interviews with such famous friends as Ava DuVernay, Lee Daniels, George Lucas, and Oprah Winfrey, Becoming King follows the Emmy®, Golden Globe® and SAG® nominee from his humble beginnings in Nigeria to the role of a lifetime.

WATCH NOW: Becoming King

Amistad

This Oscar®-nominated Steven Spielberg-directed film dives into the story behind the landmark legal case of The United States vs. Amistad, which chipped away at the definition of personhood in the mid-19th century. It follows a group of Mende men stolen from a free part of colonial British West Africa. Though the men gain control of their captors’ ship and attempt to sail home, they are apprehended in U.S waters. Imprisoned as runaway slaves, the Mende captives lose hope of ever returning to their native country – that is, until a shrewd abolitionist lawyer takes their case. The star-studded cast includes Morgan Freeman, Anthony Hopkins, Matthew McConaughey, Chiwetel Ejiofor (his first feature film), and, in his breakout role as the rebellion leader, Djimon Hounsou.

WATCH NOW: Amistad

Shows and movies about musical icons

Bob Marley: One Love

Bob Marley: One Love celebrates the life and music of an icon who has inspired generations through his message of love, peace, and unity. Starring Kingsley Ben-Adir as the titular singer-songwriter, this powerful and uplifting biopic tells the incredible story of how Bob Marley overcame adversity, and how his revolutionary music came to change the world.

WATCH NOW: Bob Marley: One Love

All Up in the Biz

This SHOWTIME® documentary film focuses on the late, great rapper/beatboxer Biz Markie, best known for his mega-hit “Just a Friend.” Featuring never-before-seen footage, musical interludes, animation, and puppetry – not to mention interviews with such celebs as Fat Joe, Nick Cannon, Tracy Morgan, and Markie himself – All Up in the Biz tells the story of how an underdog from humble beginnings achieved pop culture ubiquity. Directed by writer, filmmaker, and musician Sacha Jenkins, the movie ultimately speaks to how an individual can chart his own destiny while simultaneously shaping the future of a culture.

WATCH NOW: All Up in the Biz (Paramount+ Premium plan)

Hitsville: The Making of Motown

This SHOWTIME® documentary goes to Detroit, Michigan, to unearth the stories of Motown’s unsung heroes and household names both. Covering Motown Records’ infancy in the 1950s to its expansion to Hollywood in the 1970s, this film juxtaposes Berry Gordy’s revolutionary hitmaking system against rising racial tensions in the country. Step back in time with rare footage and interviews of greats like legendary singer-songwriter and producer Lamont Dozier, and GRAMMY® winners Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson.

WATCH NOW: Hitsville: The Making of Motown (Paramount+ Premium plan)

Black TV shows and movies to stream right now

The Chi

At this point, with The Chi in its eighth and final season, it’s as if we’re all part of the family. The drama follows a group of people brought together by coincidence as they live, love and, in some cases, die in the South Side of Chicago. If you’re a longtime viewer of this SHOWTIME® drama, you’ve watched younger characters grow to adults, and face true consequences – and now we’ll see how their stories wrap up. Executive produced by Emmy® winner Lena Waithe, and filmed entirely in its namesake city, The Chi presents life in this tough neighborhood, where real dangers daily threaten to squelch dreams, and the simplest decisions can become life or death situations. New episodes are now streaming on Paramount+.

WATCH NOW: The Chi (Paramount+ Premium plan)

Tyler Perry’s Zatima

Now in its fourth season, Tyler Perry’s Zatima continues to bring the laughs and the drama for the storied couple Zac and Fatima Taylor (Devale Ellis and Crystal Renee Hayslett, respectively). The Sistas spinoff is chock full of secrets, shenanigans, and stalkers, and catch up on the show’s myriad twists and turns with every season available to stream on Paramount+ and new episodes streaming weekly on Tuesdays.

WATCH NOW: Tyler Perry’s Zatima

Tyler Perry’s Divorced Sistas

In another hit Sistas spinoff, series creator Tyler Perry keeps us on our toes as we follow the show’s heroines on their journeys through love, heartbreak, and tests to their friendships. This soapier take on Girlfriends stars former Destiny’s Child member LeToya Luckett as the matriarch of the group, and her pals’ shining example of grace in adversity. For teary-eyed brunches with girlfriends you can (mostly) count on, all episodes are currently streaming on Paramount+.

WATCH NOW: Tyler Perry’s Divorced Sistas

Beyond the Gates

Daytime Emmy® winner Michele Val Jean left CBS’ The Bold and the Beautiful to helm a new, luxurious daytime drama that places Black decadence center stage. The result is: Beyond the Gates. The multigenerational story follows the exploits of the Dupree family as though the Duprees were royalty (complete with the scandals). Largely set in a gated community in the DMV (Delaware-Maryland-Virginia) area, Beyond the Gates showcases the characters’ political ambition just as much as their business acumen. Watch new episodes on CBS and Paramount+ (with the Paramount+ Premium plan). Stream episodes on demand on Paramount+ (with a subscription to any plan).

WATCH NOW: Beyond the Gates

Gladiator II

Oscar® winner Denzel Washington and his megawatt charisma are major reasons to stream this long-awaited Ridley Scott sequel. Here, Washington plays Macrinus, a wealthy social climber who purchases prisoner Lucius (Paul Mescal) to fight in the Colosseum. Even when his character is up to no good, Washington runs off with every scene he’s in … and might end up running all of Rome, if he plays his cards right. Want to know more? Stream this thrilling epic on Paramount+. Just make sure to avoid the sharks along the way …

WATCH NOW: Gladiator II

The Wood

Directed and co-written by Rick Famuyiwa (The Chi), The Wood follows three friends (Richard T. Jones, Omar Epps, and Taye Diggs) through their lives, highlighting pivotal moments that shape their relationships with women and with one another. This coming-of-age tale, released in 1999, and set in titular Inglewood, California, captures a level of realism about the city and its residents that resonates to this day.

WATCH NOW: The Wood

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

With Capt. Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), the Star Trek franchise’s first Black captain, at the helm, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine broke from the colorblind utopia of The Federation. Sisko is a multifaceted Black character who is more than just a figurehead delivering commands from the bridge. We see him grieve the loss of a spouse, navigate being a single father, and ultimately fall in love again. Worf (played by one of Star Trek’s most integral Black actors, Michael Dorn), too, is a considerably layered individual, one struggling with his role among two worlds and two disparate cultures. As the shows in the Star Trek universe are known to do, DS9 tackles serious topics with gravitas, and also balances out the heavier themes with humor. The narratives of Sisko and Worf? Key examples.

WATCH NOW: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

What is Juneteenth?

Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day or Emancipation Day, is a federal holiday observed annually on June 19. It commemorates the date – June 19, 1865 – when a Civil War-era Union general, Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, announced to the people of Galveston, Texas, that all enslaved people had been freed under the Emancipation Proclamation.

Why was this announcement so noteworthy? President Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation more than two years earlier, on Jan. 1, 1863. To those still enslaved in Galveston, the news of the President’s proclamation – and the freedom that came with it – was only now reaching them.

Indeed, despite President Lincoln’s decree that “persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State … shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free,” the Emancipation Proclamation could not be implemented in areas under Confederate control before the April, 1865 conclusion of the Civil War. Juneteenth, therefore, is an observance of the true and complete end to slavery. It is also a day to remember America’s long history of slavery, and to celebrate the rich culture and myriad achievements of Black Americans.

Long observed as a ceremonial holiday in many U.S. states, Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021 when President Biden signed legislation adding it to the government holiday calendar. This was the first national holiday established since 1983, when one was created to honor Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday.

What else is available in the Black Voices Collection?

The offerings in the Black Voices Collection are as exciting as they are varied. Among its movies, you can find riveting historical dramas like Ali, Oscar® nominees like Collateral, and even classic Eddie Murphy hits, including Beverly Hills Cop. There are great music documentaries, too, such as Milli Vanilli, the story of the meteoric rise and public fall of the ’90s pop duo of the title, and The French Montana Story: For Khadija, which covers the rise of recording artist French Montana thanks to the sacrifices of his single mother.

The Black Voices Collection also features TV comedy favorites, such as Moesha and The Neighborhood. There are reality TV shows, such as RuPaul’s Drag Race. And there are Black-led drama series, such as Watson, Star Trek: Discovery and The Good Fight. You’ll also find great stand-up comedy and sketch comedy options, including the classic Key & Peele. From tear-jerking dramas to laugh-out-loud picks, the Black Voices Collection has tons of

iconic options to stream during Juneteenth – and throughout the year.

How to watch Black movies and TV shows on Paramount+

You can watch the movies and TV shows featured in the Black Voices Collection with a

Paramount+ subscription. Subscribers to the Paramount+ Essential plan get access to 40,000 episodes and movies on Paramount+, including BET and BET+ favorites, as well as many other great titles in the Black Voices Collection. Subscribers to the Paramount+ Premium plan get everything the Paramount+ Essential plan offers, plus access to all SHOWTIME® shows and movies, such as The Chi, House of Lies, and Noah’s Arc: The Movie.

Availability of titles is subject to change.