These are Screen Rant’s top picks for the greatest TV shows and limited series to watch only on HBO Max for the week of September 22, 2025.
Screen Rant has got you covered with some of the most critically acclaimed series and relevant new releases to watch on HBO Max right now.
This week’s roundup includes a brand new crime drama, an instant classic comedy, a masterful sci-fi epic, an Emmy-winning dramedy, and one of the greatest HBO series of all time.
Also, check out our top TV choices to stream this week on Prime Video, Hulu on Disney+, and Netflix, and catch up on some highly bingeable HBO Max shows that you can watch in just one weekend.
Task
Episode 3 is streaming now
Consider this your weekly reminder to watch HBO’s new acclaimed series Task. The series features an extraordinary cast led by Mark Ruffalo and Tom Pelphrey and is created by Mare of Easttown creator Brad Ingelsby.
Ruffalo plays a tragedy-stricken FBI agent named Tom Brandis who leads a task force to solve a series of armed robberies in rural Pennsylvania. On the other side of the inevitable collision course is Pelphrey’s Robbie Pendergrast, a decent man making an indecent living just trying to keep his head above water.
Task premiered on September 7, 2025, and is currently releasing new episodes every Sunday only on HBO and HBO Max. Consider HBO Sundays officially back, if you were under the impression that they had gone anywhere, because Task is fantastic in just about every way – story, performances, tension, setting, and more are exceptional across the board.
Screen Rant gave Task a 9/10 star rating. We called Task “stunning,” and noted “Ingelsby writes with natural immersion and masterful authenticity that transcends both genre and medium. It’s HBO’s new masterpiece.”
Most critics agree that Task is one of the best new shows out right now. The series has earned a Certified Fresh Rotten Tomatoes score of 95%. Its most recent episode, which is the third of seven, has a 9.0 rating on IMDb at the time of writing, suggesting that Task gets better and better with each new episode. If there’s one HBO show you don’t want to miss this fall, it’s undoubtedly Task.
High Maintenance
Critically acclaimed with 98% RT score
High Maintenance was a celebrated web series during the early 2010s before it became a critically acclaimed HBO comedy series during the latter half of the decade. Similar to the classic comedy show Weeds, High Maintenance revolves around weed and the people who partake in it, particularly in New York City.
High Maintenance was always well-received by critics and audiences alike, but was constantly snubbed at the Emmys. Despite a near-perfect Certified Fresh Rotten Tomatoes score of 98% and an IMDB rating of 8.1, it was not nominated for a single award during its four-season run on HBO.
High Maintenance stars Ben Sinclair (who also created the series) as The Guy, or the weed guy, as he travels throughout Brooklyn tending to his customers. This often creates a laid-back yet random energy that is perfect for vegging out on the couch. It features supporting roles from actors like Britt Lower, who recently won an Emmy for Severance, as well as Dan Stevens (Legion), Greta Lee (The Studio), Amy Ryan (The Office), and more.
IndieWire writes in their A- review of High Maintenance season 4, “There are as many fascinating New York stories as there are fascinating New Yorkers, and “High Maintenance” continues to mine the depths for the most luminous ones.” If you’re looking for something that’s first and foremost funny but also unconventional and completely unpredictable, then High Maintenance is truly a fantastic option for your binge-watching session this week.
Westworld
An immersive sci-fi binge
Westworld is one of the best sci-fi series ever made on HBO, even though some viewers and critics alike would attest that the series lost its plot in its later seasons. That said, Westworld season 1 was an absolute feat that, similar to True Detective season 1, immortalizes the entire franchise on its own.
Created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, inspired by the 1973 film by the prolific screenwriter Michael Crichton (Twister, Jurassic Park), Westworld is a dystopian sci-fi series heavily focused on artificial intelligence and humanoid-like technologies. In the series, Westworld is a place where paying customers can live out their fantasies with programmed robots contributing to their main character narrative.
Westworld features an incredible cast that includes Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffrey Wright, Ed Harris, Thandiwe Newton, James Marsden, Tessa Thompson, Luke Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Jimmi Simpson, Aaron Paul, and more. It earned an 80% on Rotten Tomatoes, an 8.4 rating on IMDb, and 7 Emmys, including Best Supporting Actress for Newton.
USA Today recommends Westworld “for anyone who loves coherent science fiction, beautifully shot vistas, artfully constructed mysteries and compelling stellar performances.” Similar to The Leftovers and Watchmen, Westworld has one of the most unique and captivating sci-fi premises out of HBO’s entire catalog.
Barry
Won 10 Emmys
Barry was one of the best shows on TV during its 4-season run between 2018 and 2022. If you never got around to watching it during its heyday, now’s the perfect time to dive into the critically acclaimed comedy/drama series, which took home 10 Emmys, including Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Bill Hader.
Barry follows Hader’s Barry Berkman, a hitman from the Midwest who decides to become an actor in Los Angeles after traveling there for a hit. After Barry gets a taste of acting, he throws himself into the LA arts scene, eager to leave his criminal past behind him in chase of the limelight, which proves to be easier said than done.
In addition to its multiple Emmy wins, Barry earned a near-perfect 98% Certified Fresh Rotten Tomatoes score and an IMDb rating of 8.3. Screen Rant’s review noted, “Barry turns out to be a whip-smart dark comedy that has much more up its sleeve. Leave it to Hader to craft a part that not only shows a different side of him, but really takes full advantage of his range as an actor.”
If you enjoyed Bill Hader on Saturday Night Live and in various movies like The Skeleton Twins and Trainwreck, then you will absolutely enjoy Barry, since it is his career-defining performance. He’s joined by a stellar ensemble cast that includes Stephen Root, Sarah Goldberg, Anthony Carrigan, and Henry Winkler.
Treme
An HBO classic with 97% RT score
Treme is quite literally one of the best TV shows ever made by HBO, but remains so heavily slept on. Created by David Simon and Eric Ellis Overmyer, best known for The Wire, Treme is essentially a portrait of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as residents try to rebuild their lives.
Treme stars Khandi Alexander, Rob Brown, Kim Dickens, Melissa Leo, Steve Zahn, Clarke Peters, and more in a fantastic ensemble cast. It consists of four seasons and 36 episodes, all roughly an hour each. You won’t finish it in a week, but you won’t want to. In fact, you’ll likley end up wishing more TV shows were made with this much thought and care.
Treme earned a 97% Rotten Tomatoes score, including two perfect 100% ratings for seasons 2 and 3. It was originally released back in 2010 and concluded in 2013, winning only one Emmy Award for Sound Mixing.
The Boston Globe’s review noted, “This is the kind of TV that viewers ask for but rarely get, driven by characters who are more than the sum of one or two qualities and who harbor depths that are revealed slowly, subtly, and authentically.”