Sometimes, sitting down to watch a movie at home when you have no specific title in mind can be quite difficult. To make things a bit easier for you, we've put together a list featuring the best movies streaming on Hulu (one of the best streaming services to subscribe to) right now, so that you can relax and get your stream on without spending most of your time scrolling through options and silently telling yourself, “Ehhhh… not that one tonight.”
There is already one 2024 movie release available, as well as plenty of 2023 movie releases original to the platform, like Rye Lane or No One Will Save You, along with many recognizable, older classics, and plenty of other amazing choices, regardless of what genre will fill your heart with joy. Now, on with the best of what you can watch with your Hulu subscription!
Independence Day (1996)
One of Will Smith’s best movies and the thriller that cemented his A-list star status is Independence Day – Roland Emmerich’s alien invasion movie classic depicting the world’s unification against malevolent extraterrestrials.
Stream Independence Day on Hulu.
Working Girl (1988)
Director Mike Nichols’ acclaimed dramedy Working Girl stars Melanie Griffith as an office assistant who assumes the role of her backstabbing, ailing boss (played by Sigourney Weaver) and strikes up a partnership with a successful investment broker (played by Harrison Ford).
Boys Don’t Cry (1999)
Hilary Swank earned her first Academy Award for her portrayal of real-life transgender man Brandon Teena in director Kimberly Pierce’s intense, intimate true crime thriller, Boys Don’t Cry.
Stream Boys Don’t Cry on Hulu.
Get Out (2017)
Comedian Jordan Peele showed the darker side of his talents as the writer and director of one of the best horror movies of all time, Get Out – a clever thriller elevated by strong social commentary in which young, Black photographer Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) discovers he has more to be concerned about when meeting his white girlfriend’s family.
Holes (2003)
In Holes, which is based on the award-winning book by Louis Sachar, a misunderstanding forces Stanley (Shia LaBeouf) to go to a detention camp where troubled teens spend their days digging in the Texas desert.
I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
With his Oscar-nominated documentary, I Am Not Your Negro, Raoul Peck crafts prolific author and activist James Baldwin’s unfinished manuscript for Remember This House into a moving portrait of his life and a shockingly relevant indictment on modern racial injustice, featuring Samuel L. Jackson as Baldwin’s voice.
Stream I Am Not Your Negro on Hulu.
Fight Club (1999)
One of the best ‘90s movies on Hulu is FIght Club – David Fincher’s cult classic adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk’s novel starring Brad Pitt and Edward Norton as an unlikely pair who create a support group for men to let out their frustrations through violence, which soon evolves into something more sinister.
Alien And Aliens (1979, 1986)
The movies that made Sigourney Weaver one of the all-time greatest horror Scream Queens are Ridley Scott’s slasher-style, claustrophobic creature feature, Alien, and James Cameron’s more action-packed follow-up, Aliens – both of which are considered some of the best space movies of all time.
Stream Alien on Hulu.
Stream Aliens on Hulu.
Romy And Michele’s High School Reunion (1997)
Mira Sorvino and Friends cast member Lisa Kudrow make a charming and hilarious pair in Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, in which the titular duo decide to stretch the truth when returning to their hometown for their high school reunion.
Stream Romy And Michele’s High School Reunion on Hulu.
It Follows (2014)
One of the best horror movies on Hulu is David Robert Mitchell’s It Follows, which stars Maika Monroe as a young woman afflicted with a sexually transmitted curse that makes her the target of one of the scariest modern horror villains: a shape-shifting entity only she can see.
That Thing You Do! (1996)
Tom Hanks makes his feature-length debut as a writer and director in one of the best music movies of its time, That Thing You Do!, which also stars the Oscar winner as the manager of an up-and-coming pop band riding the wave of success from their chart-topping single in the 1960s.
Stream That Thing You Do! on Hulu.
Planet Of The Apes (1968)
Charlton Heston plays an astronaut who crash-lands on a strange world where humans are not the dominant species in Planet of the Apes – one of the greatest sci-fi movies of all time and the premiere installment in one of cinema’s most enduring franchises.
Stream Planet of the Apes on Hulu.
The Sandlot (1993)
A group of young baseball fans try to retrieve a ball signed by Babe Ruth from a junkyard where a seemingly scary dog resides in The Sandlot – not only one of the best family movies of its time, but one of the best sports movies of all time.
Little Women (2019)
In 2019, another adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s seminal novel, Little Women – following the lives of the March Sisters in 19th-century Massachusetts – seemed unnecessary. However, writer and director Greta Gerwig’s refreshing take on the source material and wonderful performances by Saoirse Ronan, Florence Pugh, and more proved that notion wrong.
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson star in O Brother, Where Art Thou? as a trio of prison escapees searching for a lost fortune in 1930s Mississippi. This retelling of Homer’s The Odyssey, set in the early 20th Century, is one of the Coen Brothers’ most acclaimed movies, especially for its hit, Grammy-winning soundtrack.
Stream O Brother, Where Art Thou? on Hulu.
High Fidelity (2000)
High Fidelity is not just an impassioned celebration of music, but an insightful analysis of its connection to the most important aspects of life, including love. Director Stephen Frears’ adaptation of Nick Hornby’s novel stars John Cusack as the fourth-wall-breaking Rob Gordon – a Chicago record store owner who recalls the Top Five most pivotal heartbreaks he has ever endured.
Poor Things (2023)
Emma Stone won her second Oscar at the 2024 Academy Awards for playing Bella Baxter – a woman brought back from the dead and with the mind of a child who experiences the joys and pains of life from a one-of-a-kind perspective. Director Yorgos Lanthimos’ adaptation of Alasdair Gray’s novel, Poor Things, is also a one-of-a-kind film, with gorgeous, experimental cinematography, wondrous production design, and out-of-this-world costumes.
My Cousin Vinny (1992)
Few courtroom movies are nearly as funny as director Jonathan Lynn’s brilliant culture clash satire, My Cousin Vinny. Academy Award winner Joe Pesci stars in the title role – a New York-native attorney with a wiseguy attitude tasked with clearing his wrongfully accused cousin (Ralph Macchio) and his buddy (Mitchell Whitfield) of murder in a southern town.
Stream My Cousin Vinny on Hulu.
Anatomy Of A Fall (2023)
Had co-writer and director Justine Triet’s Anatomy of a Fall been submitted for Best International Feature at the 2024 Academy Awards, it very likely could have won. Four other Oscar nominations – including Best Picture and Best Actress for Sandra Hüller – and a win for Best Original Screenplay were given to the captivating French-language courtroom drama detailing a woman’s struggle to prove her innocence following her husband’s mysterious death.
Stream Anatomy of a Fall on Hulu.
The Abyss (1989)
Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael Biehn, and more star in The Abyss as a search and recovery team who make a startling discovery on a mission to retrieve a lost submarine. Nominated for four Academy Awards, what makes this undersea thriller one of writer and director James Cameron’s best movies is its intense, claustrophobic suspense and cutting-edge visual effects.
Self Reliance (2024)
Jake Johnson makes his feature film debut as a writer and director with the killer Hulu exclusive dark comedy, Self Reliance. Johnson also stars in the lead role of a man given the opportunity to win an enormous fortune, with the catch that he must never be alone, or the many assassins tracking him will be allowed to strike.
Once Upon A Time In Hollywood (2019)
The lives of an actor struggling to transition from TV to film (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), his longtime friend and stuntman (played by Brad Pitt in an Academy Award-winning performance), and blossoming star Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie) intersect in late 1960s Los Angeles. All Quentin Tarantino movies are love letters to cinema, but Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is his first time exploring what goes on behind the scenes with a dazzling spin of revisionist history.
Stream Once Upon a Time in Hollywood on Hulu.
Juno (2007)
Elliot Page gave a breakthrough, Academy Award-nominated performance in the titular role of a charmingly sarcastic teen dealing with an unwanted pregnancy. Director Jason Reitman’s Juno also earned Diablo Cody an Oscar win for her sharply funny and heartfelt screenplay.
Tombstone (1993)
Not only one of the best Kurt Russell movies but considered by many to be one of the best Western movies of its time, if not ever, is director George P. Cosmatos’ Tombstone. Brilliant performances and breathtaking action sequences make it the favored example of two Wyatt Earp biopics which were released around the same time.
Akira (1988)
Writer and director Katsuhiro Ôtomo adapts his own manga into one of the most iconic anime movies of all time. Akira follows a gang of teenage bikers who must help save Tokyo from their friend, who has been transformed into a rampaging psychic by a secret government project.
Theater Camp (2023)
If not for its recognizable cast members – including Ben Platt, Jimmy Tatro, and co-writer Noah Galvin – you might be easily convinced that this faux documentary chronicling the goings-on at a rundown summer camp for theater prodigies was real. Co-written and co-directed by Nick Lieberman and star Molly Gordon, Theater Camp offers a hilarious, but relatively accurate, inside look at just how seriously young theater obsessives take this medium.
The Banshees Of Inisherin (2021)
For the first time since In Bruges, writer and director Martin McDonagh reunites with both Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell for this story of a longtime friendship that suddenly comes to an end, and with drastic consequences for both. Set on a remote island against the backdrop of the Irish Civil War’s tail end in 1923, The Banshees of Inisherin is a beautifully acted perfect blend of sharp, thought-provoking satire and occasional pitch-black drama of even a heartbreaking sort that only a writer like McDonagh could master.
Stream The Banshees of Inisherin on Hulu.
No One Will Save You (2023)
You could argue that the silent era – a time when movies relied primarily on visual storytelling – might have been the true golden age for horror cinema and, every once in a while, a modern horror movie helps reinforce that claim. Case in point: writer and director Brian Duffield’s alien invasion movie No One Will Save You – also one of Kaitlyn Dever’s best movies – which ingeniously favors relentless high-wire suspense over dialogue.
Stream No One Will Save You on Hulu.
Rye Lane (2023)
After two twenty-somethings (played by Vivian Oparah and David Jonsson) who’ve both gone through bad recent breakups meet cute, they spend an eventful day in their London neighborhood getting to know one another and helping each other through the pain. A delightful new film, which is one of the few romantic comedies scoring above 90% on Rotten Tomatoes, anyone hankering for a bright, funny, slightly odd look at love can’t go wrong with Rye Lane.
Fire Island (2022)
A recent underrated rom-com with great LGBTQ+ representation, Fire Island follows a group of queer friends who head to the titular locale for their annual holiday and find themselves confronting more questions about life and love than usual.
Summer Of Soul (2021)
In the debut film from famed musician Questlove (which won him an Oscar), we finally get a look at the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, which celebrated Black music, history, culture, and fashion over six weeks and was attended by thousands. Summer of Soul is a documentary that blends footage of the original festival with a modern investigation of why this massive event has become forgotten by pop culture.
Palm Springs (2020)
Two wedding guests (played by Cristin Milioti and Andy Samberg) begin to fall in love after they both become trapped in a very strange situation. Palm Springs was one of the most joyful surprises of 2020, giving viewers a fresh, funny, and romantic take on a high-concept sci-fi trope.
This list will absolutely give you a great place to start when it comes to the best movies streaming on Hulu right now.
