I'd cancel these 3 streaming services this month

Canceling streaming services to make room for different entertainment options, or just to help meet your budget, is a tricky thing. So while some came back to Netflix for Stranger Things 4, I'm of the opinion you might just cancel it again. Ever since I canceled Netflix earlier this year (and then came back for Better Call Saul), I've been wondering when Netflix was going to push me to consider canceling again.

But Netflix isn't the only streaming service I'd consider giving the axe this month. As you probably know, the big red streaming machine has had a bad run of things lately, as canceling streaming services is very in vogue. (Netflix's password sharing crackdown has begun, and looks like a disaster, by the way). I'd bet it has something to do with budgets being adjusted for going back to the movies, but many also say inflation has something to do with it. 

This all adds up to a simple truth: while we can help compile the best streaming services, it's become all too much for most people to wrap their heads around. So that's why I'm looking at what some of the most popular services will be adding in June 2022. 

This way, anyone who is thinking about canceling one or more services will know what they're missing out on. Think of this as my advice for how you can save money on your streaming bill. I'm not canceling all of these services, but that's because I have weird little reasons, which I'll explain below.

As I do eveery month, I'm breaking down the biggest newest additions to Netflix, HBO Max, Apple TV Plus, Hulu and Disney Plus. I won't get into the stuff they already have, as it's impossible to measure the services by that on a month-to-month basis. 
Peacock and Paramount Plus are also rising, but not to consideration for this list.

We're skipping Amazon Prime Video, because it's less of a standalone service than a Prime membership perk. Speaking of Prime Video, though, check out our my spoiler-free The Boys season 3 review to see what I thought of the new season.

Should you cancel Apple TV Plus in June 2022?

The little streaming service that could, Apple's recently gained a lot of attention off of Severance's success. A string of solid Apple TV Plus ($4.99 / £4.99 / AU$7.99 per month) shows released after that, including Shining Girls (ending June 3) and The Essex Serpent (ending June 10), have shown that Apple's a place you can turn to for interesting television. Neither were the hits that Severance is, but both are compelling nonetheless.

And, for June 2022, Apple's got one of its longest-running critically acclaimed shows returning for a third round: For All Mankind (June 10). And as we've written about previously here, Physical is an Apple TV Plus show worth considering a binge of to catch up for its June 3 return. 

In terms of new shows, there's the family-friendly Lovely Little Farm, which mixes CGI animals with live-action humans for a series that may look adorable or too-cute — do you want sassy animals? — depending on your point of view. It's from the makers of Teletubbies, if that helps you make your decision.

Apple TV also has a big new movie, Cha Cha Real Smooth, which won an Audience Award at Sundance this year. It stars writer-director Cooper Raiff as a Bar Mitzvah party host who falls for a the mother (Dakota Johnson) of one of the kids at his parties. It currently holds a 91% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Apple's other returning show is Home (June 17), a high-end home architecture series that gives in-depth looks at the most peculiar homes that you'll wish you lived in. 

Then, you've got Maya Rudolph starring in Loot (June 24), a new series from Alan Yang (Master of None) and Matt Hubbard (30 Rock). In it, Rudolph plays billionaire Molly Novak who has it all, except for the fact that her long-time husband betrays her. There is no trailer yet.

My recommendation: This feels like the weakest Apple TV month in a while — that said, Physical and For All Mankind fans will want to stick around, as will Maya Rudolph's.

• If that sounds like a great month of programming, sign up for Apple TV

Should you cancel Disney Plus in June 2022?

Marvel and Star Wars fans may find it impossible to cancel Disney Plus this month. For starters, Doctor Strange 2 Disney Plus release date is official, and it's good news: the film arrives on June 22, much closer to the 45-day release window's ending than Eternals and Shang-Chi had been dropped online.

Not only is the new Obi-Wan Kenobi series dropping new episodes each week (June 1, 8, 15, 22), but when the Ms. Marvel release date (June 8) hits, there's another reason to stick with Disney Plus. The first reactions to Ms. Marvel are a chorus of cheers for its lead (newcomer Iman Vellani), and it seems like a new MCU star is born.

Honestly, that feels like all Disney Plus needs to keep people's money this month. But, just like Hulu, it's also getting Love, Victor seasons 1 through 3 (June 15).

Elsewhere on Disney Plus, all of Glee (June 1) arrives for some early-oughts nostalgia. The Disney Plus Stargirl series gets a sequel titled Hollywood Stargirl (June 3) about its kind and amazingly-voiced teen.

Then, a documentary about the story of Buzz Lightyear (June 10) arrives to drive hype for the summer film. Family Reboot (June 15), a competition-based reality TV show with households who need to shake things up sounds interesting (and we're always happy to see Disney Plus get something that isn't a reboot or spinoff).

Then, there's Rise (June 24), a film about the true-life story of NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo and his family, who immigrant story will bring all the feels. 

Last up, the Baymax! (June 29) show arrives to bring San Fransokyo's favorite inflatable hero to Disney Plus.

My recommendation: Disney Plus is for Star Wars and Marvel fans, and they're not going anywhere any time soon.

• If you need to see Obi-Wan and Ms. Marvel, sign up for Disney Plus

Should you cancel HBO Max in June 2022?

We've long praised HBO Max as the best streaming service. But even the best of the best have bad months. And after Hacks season 2 finishes, you might be ready to take a break. Though we've got good news: HBO Max finally announced Our Flag Means Death season 2 is happening.

While it's technically a May release, the holiday weekend preceding the month started HBO Max off with Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (May 30).

HBO Max's biggest arrival in June is Westworld season 4 (June 26) which arrives to continue its complex, sci-fi world of where violent delights have violent ends. Thandiwe Newton, Aaron Paul, Jeffrey Wright, Tessa Thompson, Luke Hemsworth, Ed Harris and Evan Rachel Wood are all coming back, for the series where Delos Incorporated built a world where android "hosts" became sentient and rose up against their human captors. Far from HBO's strongest series, Westworld is that show that a lot of people drifted out of. 

Earlier this month, Irma Vep (June 6) sees Alicia Vikander star in a satire about the entertainment industry, and it seems like a very interesting and potentially strong show — though it has a very complicated and circuitous story to it. It might draw praise, but when the show is about a director adapting the 1915 silent serial Les Vampires as a TV series? It's not an easy plot to parse. Especially when it shares a title with its director Olivier Assayas' 1996 film Irma Vep, which was also about a director remaking Les Vampires. 

Maybe the teaser trailer can help:

HBO Max gets very topical with documentary The Janes (June 8), which tells the story of women in the 1970's who had to take extreme measures to defy anti-abortion legislation.

Then, another documentary arrives to focus on one of the most beloved names in food TV history, as Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain (June 9) tells the chef, writer and host's story. 

After that, the biggest thing on the HBO Max list is an updated version of Father of the Bride (June 16) starring Andy Garcia, Gloria Estefan, Isabela Merced, and Diego Boneta. We're not sure who asked for this, but it looks amusing.

Highlights of licensed content coming to HBO Max include A Star is Born (June 1) and Tuca & Bertie season 2 (June 24).

My recommendation: You can probably save $10-$15 this month, if you ask me. 

• If you're ready for more Westworld, sign up for HBO Max

Should you cancel Netflix in June 2022?

Canceling Netflix is really in vogue right now (I would know, I was doing it back in February). But June has a decent lineup for Netflix fans, who may still be watching the super-sized Stranger Things 4 volume 1 that dropped at the end of May. (speaking of which, we've got the one thing to know if you're watching Stranger Things 4 right now).

Anyone who isn't marathoning ST4 (or is a patient fan of Peaky Blinders or The Umbrella Academy) may not want to cancel Netflix right now, I admit that. But I disagree. Plus, the five-week gap between ST4's first seven episodes and its final two makes it harder to consider canceling Netflix (though Stranger Things 4 suffers from Netflix's biggest problem, which may be alienating users) But I digress.

Netflix also has Hustle (June 8), a feel-good dramedy starring Adam Sandler as a basketball scout who is trying to help a potential superstar in Spain. Later this month, Halftime (June 14) is a Jennifer Lopez documentary about her career and personal life.

Netflix's love of silly competition-based reality TV is back with Floor Is Lava season 2 (June 3), where a comical obstacle course is here with a new slippery volcano. This may not be the show for most people, but it seems like enough tuned in for season 1 to get it a second season. Later this month, Netflix debuts Snowflake Mountain (June 22), a series that brings "kidults" to a wilderness survival retreat that has no Wi-Fi or running water. 

The first big return for Netflix in June is Peaky Blinders season 6 (June 10) which has been out in the UK for a while now — which is part of why it doesn't feel like as strong a debut for Netflix. Anyone with a functioning knowledge of how VPN services work can have already jumped the gun., No spoilers here, but we can say that there's a lot of bad things coming to the Shelbys. Not everybody's into period piece dramas, though, so we won't act like this popular series (which is one of the best shows on Netflix) is for all.

Netflix is all about the laughs this month, with big specials including some framed around specific stars. Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration (June 9) sees Billy Eichner host the likes of Wanda Sykes, Sandra Bernhard, Margaret Cho and Tig Notaro. Further specials are hosted by Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda (June 14), Bill Burr (June 6), Amy Schumer (June 11), David Letterman (June 7), Snoop Dogg (June 16) and Pete Davidson (June 13). It all culminates with Best of the Fest (June 23), which compiles moments from the 11-day Netflix Is A Joke festival. There's also going to be a Bob Saget tribute show called Dirty Daddy.

All that comedy highlighted a surprising trend we've noticed this month: Netflix feels light on true crime, at least compared to previous months. There are three notable titles in this usually heavy-strong category. The Martha Mitchell Effect (June 17) is a documentary about the woman who spoke out against Richard Nixon at a high personal cost. Then, there's Civil (June 19), a documentary about civic rights lawyer Ben Crump who sought justice following the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Lastly, Web of Make Believe: Death, Lies and the Internet (June 15) is a documentary series about how the dark web is a very unsafe place.

Then, the next big Netflix event is the service's second Chris Hemsworth film, Spiderhead (June 17). No, this isn't an MCU spin-off, but an adaptation of a short story by George Saunders that was published in The New Yorker. Miles Teller and Jurnee Smollett play inmates in a secret facility that's been doing testing on them. Hemsworth plays the genius running the show. 

Fans of the Spanish-language crime drama Money Heist have a new twist this month, as a Korean mint is under siege in Money Heist: Korea - Joint Economic Area (June 24). 

Lastly, you've got the return of the Hargreeves siblings with Umbrella Academy season 3 (June 22), which looks like a much better take on the multiverse than Marvel offered up in Doctor Strange 2. After saving the world, our heroes have discovered alternate versions of themselves as their father's decided to make a new franchise: the Sparrow Academy. Its fans will skip past this section entirely, and I don't blame them.

My recommendation: Unless you love standup comedy, Umbrella Academy, Adam Sandler, Jennifer Lopez or Chris Hemsworth, this seems like a good month to save money and cancel Netflix.

Should you cancel Hulu in June 2022?

Hulu (starting at $6.99 per month) isn't as expensive, so we don't expect as much as say Netflix or HBO Max. Still, it has a very interesting June 2022. Just like Disney Plus, it starts off by getting all of Glee. It's also fresh off the release of Conversations with Friends, which dropped all 12 episodes on May 15. 

Dancing With Myself (June 1) is a new dance-focused competition series on the service (via NBC), and other new releases include The Croods: Family Tree Season 3 (June 2) and the premiere of The Orville: New Horizons (June 2), which continues Seth MacFarlane's sci-fi series on Hulu.

The most exciting news if you ask me is that Hulu is getting The Worst Person In The World (June 13), an excellent indie movie that was more than worth the price of admission. This emotionally powerful film tracks Julie (Renate Reinsve) as she pursues love and tries to find meaning in life. 

The biggest title for Hulu this month is the returning Only Murders in the Building Season 2 premiere, which arrives on June 28. This season finds Charles (Steve Martin), Oliver (Martin Short) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) on the wrong end of the implicatons after the death of Arconia Board President Bunny Folger. 

The other big name at the table is the third and final season of Love, Victor, which is debuting on both Disney Plus and Hulu. It finds Victor and his friends at that familiar crossroad for all teens: what to do after high school.

There's also a new FX series called The Bear (June 23, only on Hulu), which focuses on Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White), a young chef dealing with a death in the family and the nightmare that is running a food business. 

Also new to Hulu is the new film Gasoline Alley (June 25), which stars Bruce Willis, Devon Sawa and Luke Wilson — but reviews aren't good, with one IMDb review noting "Wow, couldnt even make it through the whole showing. Awful, awful, awful, awful. Run away from this total cliche of a dumpster fire."

My recommendation: Hulu's June has big sequel seasons for some of its stronger shows, so I wouldn't be surprised for some to stay and others to return.

• If that sounds like it's worth $7, sign up for Hulu

Streaming services in June: Highlights this month

The three streaming services I'd cut this month 

As I said last month (and the one before that) your mileage may vary when it comes to my recommendations. Standup comedy lovers are going to be glued to Netflix, Umbrella Academy and Westworld fans will likely balk at my recommendation. Stranger Things 4 watchers who aren't binge-streaming the new series won't be running away either. 

And as someone who gets Apple TV Plus at a discount through though the Apple One bundle, I'm not dropping that either. I also have too big a backlog on Netflix and HBO Max to really get rid of it now.

Either way, I think folks can save north of $15 or so this month, as Netflix Standard ($15.49 / £10.99 / AU$16.99 per month) and HBO Max ($9.99 with ads, $14.99 without ads) and Apple TV Plus ($4.99 / £4.99 / AU$7.99 per month) just don't feel as compelling as in previous months. 

This is all to say: make sure you're actually using the streaming services you pay for.

Next: We've got the Celtics vs. Warriors live stream details for the NBA Finals. The new No. 3 Netflix movie is one of the funniest movies of all time and exactly what we need to watch right now. Also, looking for the best cheap streaming device? This is the best under $40.