Paramount Plus guide: How to get it and what’s really worth watching
From The Flatshare to The Good Fight, Paramount Plus is offering a brilliant range of TV shows to compete with Netflix, iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video and the rest.
While it only launched in the UK on 22 June, the streaming service originated in the US in 2014, under the name CBS All Access.
Initially, it provided subscribers with live-streaming of CBS programming and on-demand access to its shows. Two years later, it began its expansion into offering spin-off CBS series, including Big Brother, The Good Fight and Star Trek: Discovery.
It officially relaunched under the name Paramount Plus in 2021 to offer a broader selection of originals, such as The Flatshare and iCarly, and a range of documentary films, comedies, dramas and rom-coms.
Below, you’ll find everything you need to know about Paramount Plus, from how to get it and how much it costs to a mini-guide of the best shows it has to offer.
How to get it
UK Sky TV subscribers may have access to exclusive Paramount Plus content for free, depending on your subscription plan. Those with Sky Q or Sky Glass can add the Paramount Plus app to their device as they would with other streaming services. But, Sky Cinema subscribers will be able to access Paramount Plus for free.
Similarly, for those in the US, you may have the option to add it to your cable TV plans.
To all those with an Amazon Prime Video account, you’ll have the option to tack it on to your existing subscription for a fee (find below).
How much does it cost?
Starting at $4.99 per month (or $49.99 per year) for US viewers and £6.99 per month (or £69.90 per year) for UK viewers, it’s relatively low cost for its essential plan, which doesn’t include live-streaming of CBS local affiliate stations.
For US viewers who have room in their budget and are looking for a premium viewing experience without ads, and access to live-streaming, you can purchase the premium plan for $9.99 per month (or $99.99 per year).
And if you’re looking for Showtime originals, you’ll have the option to add them as a bundle for $11.99 per month (or $119.99 per year).
Shows to watch
The Flatshare (UK)
Arriving on 1 December, The Flatshare is a Paramount Plus original romcom based on Beth O’Leary’s 2019 novel about two strangers, Leon (Anthony Welsh) and Tiffy (Jessica Brown Findlay), who share a flat and the same bed.
With their lives on opposite schedules, their communication comes solely in the form of post-it notes. They may begin as complete strangers who argue about restocking the toilet tissue, turning off lights, and keeping things organised, but eventually their relationship grows into something more.
American Gigolo (US and UK)
This new drama American Gigolo – which will require the Showtime bundle – follows former gigolo Julian Kaye (Jon Bernthal) after his recent exoneration from 15 years of imprisonment for a murder he didn’t commit.
As he attempts to put his life back together, the detective who initially put him behind bars tries to solve the mystery. Meanwhile, Julian is forced to reconcile with his past as an escort and reconnect with his troubled mother and an old flame.
Let the Right One In (US and UK)
Another Showtime series, Let the Right One In is a horror drama about a father (Demián Bichir) whose young daughter’s (Madison Taylor Baez) transition into a vampire changes their lives forever.
Because she’s only able to go out at night, her father does whatever he can to provide her with the human blood required to keep her alive.
The Ex-Wife (UK)
This gripping thriller brings to the screen Jess Ryder’s bestselling novel of the same name.
Tasha (Céline Buckens) and Jack (Tom Mison) have a seemingly perfect life with their baby daughter, except for one major hiccup: Jack’s ex-wife Jen (Janet Montgomery) is ever-present. But when things fall apart, Tasha has no choice but to turn to Jen, whom she despises, for help.
Ghosts (US)
While not a Paramount Plus original, Ghosts is CBS’s take on the original British comedy. It stars Rose McIver and Utkarsh Ambudkar as a couple who decide to turn their recently inherited mansion into a bed and breakfast, unknowing of the fact that it’s overrun with ghosts.
The sitcom is a feel-good series that endearingly connects the ghosts’ unfinished stories to the mortal world so that they may tie up the loose ends that they left behind.
The Good Fight (US)
Acting as a sequel to the hit series The Good Wife, The Good Fight is a legal drama that picks up a year later.
When a financial scam shatters young lawyer Maia’s (Rose Leslie) reputation and bankrupts her mentor and godmother Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski), the two are forced to join forces with a competing law firm. Both are required to start from the bottom again and are determined to restore their careers and lives at the new company.
iCarly (US)
For nostalgia purposes, US viewers can tune into the reboot of Nickelodeon’s childhood favourite American sitcom. iCarly Reboot brings back a majority of its original cast of characters, including Miranda Cosgrove’s Carly, Jerry Trainor’s Spencer and Nathan Kress’s Freddy as they navigate life in their twenties.
