In an age of options, less feels like more. While Netflix has an ever-expanding library, Hulu offers a more focused collection of great movies. Because volume isn’t the objective, Hulu succeeds in curating a batch of excellent films. There are the Academy Awards classics like Terms of Endearment and Rocky, the arthouse darlings like Babel and The Hunt, and the pure entertainment gems like Raiders of the Lost Ark and Goon.
Hulu keeps it simple and offers something for everybody. Here are the 25 best movies that you can watch on Hulu right now.
Last updated: October 12, 2018
Related: The 25 Best Films on Netflix Right Now
Before we start, first a disclaimer. modern streaming libraries are like carousels, always moving and always changing. The films in this list are available on Hulu at the time of writing. We’ll be updating this top 25 list frequently, so keep an eye out for Hulu’s latest and greatest offerings. Also, the list isn't ranked from worst to best, so a lower number is not meant to denote higher quality. It's just a list of 25 great movies.
25. Detroit
While it slipped through awards season without much hype, Detroit remains one of 2017’s best films. Rotten Tomatoes awarded it an 84% for its “gut-wrenching dramatization of a tragic chapter” in American history. Director Kathryn Bigelow tackles the 1967 incident in Motor City with aplomb, deftly guiding a sprawling cast (led by John Boyega and Will Poulter) through a maze of tension, bigotry, and survival. Detroit streams exclusively on Hulu.
24. Child's Play
In theory, a killer doll should be an easy villain to defeat. After all, it's tiny, and made of plastic. The wrinkle 1988's Child's Play adds into the mix is that Chucky has been possessed by the spirit of a dead serial killer via voodoo, and is thus supernaturally indestructible. Director Tom Holland's (no, not that one) film earned praise from both critics and audiences, and would go on to spawn a still ongoing franchise starring Chucky, voiced by Brad Dourif. A remake is coming soon, but the original remains a terror tale worth watching.
23. Arrival
Director Denis Villeneuve solidified his reputation with Arrival, perhaps the most intimate science fiction movie in recent years. Critics awarded it a 94% Rotten Tomatoes score, and domestic fans boosted its box office to over $100 million. Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Forest Whitaker help ground this mind-bending adventure. Should you have any questions about that ending, we've got you covered.
Read More: The New Golden Age of Cerebral Sci-Fi Movies
22. Election
The second feature to be directed by award magnet filmmaker Alexander Payne, Election is based on Tom Perotta's 1998 novel of the same name, and takes a darkly comic look at high school life through the lens of a hotly contested election for student body president. Reese Witherspoon stars as Tracy Flick - an ambitious overachiever who sets her sights on the office - while Matthew Broderick plays frustrated teacher Jim McAllister, who makes it his mission to try and crush the often manipulative girl's dreams.
21. Galaxy Quest
Director Dean Parisot's hilarious 1999 comedy Galaxy Quest manages to succeed on two levels. First and foremost, the film is a loving spoof of classic sci-fi TV, most specifically the original Star Trek series starring William Shatner and its loyal fandom. Beyond that though, Galaxy Quest is just downright hilarious, and doesn't require viewers to be Trekkies in order to bust a gut laughing at the antics of a washed up TV cast thrust into a real life galactic crisis. The all-star cast is led by Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman, and Tony Shalhoub.
20. Jackie Brown
The third feature film by director Quentin Tarantino, Jackie Brown is an adaptation of author Elmore Leonard's 1992 novel Rum Punch, and stars blaxploitation legend Pam Grier in the titular role of a stewardess of runs afoul of a crime lord. In many ways a tribute to Grier's classics like Foxy Brown, Jackie Brown's star-studded cast also includes Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Forster, Bridget Fonda, Michael Keaton, and Robert De Niro. While not as highly regarded as predecessor Pulp Fiction, critics still loved Jackie Brown, which holds an 86% score on RT.
Read More: All of Quentin Tarantino's Movies, Ranked
19. Silence
While it took director Martin Scorsese 25 years to make Silence, his commitment and passion are fully evident in every frame of the movie. As the title suggests, this is a quiet and interior film, a study of faith and persecution set in 17th Century Japan. Silence is a deeply transporting experience fueled by actors Andrew Garfield, Liam Neeson, and Adam Driver. Though largely ignored by the Oscars, Silence garnered an 84% Rotten Tomatoes score.
18. Jacob's Ladder
Those looking for a film designed to unsettle and mess with one's mind need look no further than Jacob's Ladder, directed by Adrian Lyne. Tim Robbins stars as Jacob, a Vietnam vet whose experiences have left him experiencing bizarre hallucinations, some of which include things so strange and chilling that they're bound to leave the viewer also questioning what they're seeing onscreen. Sporting a 69% on RT, genre fans generally regard the film with high esteem. It's also notable for having inspired much of the aesthetic of the Silent Hill video game franchise.
17. Hellraiser
Any dedicated horror fan has surely had their soul torn apart multiple times by Hellraiser's Pinhead (Doug Bradley) by this point. Director Clive Barker (adapting his own novella) crafted one of the most enduring tales of terror to come out of the 1980s, spawning one of the longest-running horror franchises out there as well. Hellraiser may only have a 68% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but it's a certified classic of the genre, and needs to be watched by anyone who enjoys a good fright flick. Direct sequel Hellbound: Hellraiser II is also part of Hulu's roster.
Read More: The Real Life Inspirations Behind 11 Horror Movie Icons
16. Frank
To some, Michael Fassbender is a young Magneto. To others, he’s a two-time Academy Award nominee. To a select few, he’s the gonzo pop musician and eponymous hero in Frank, the offbeat artist who became more famous for his oversized paper-mâché mask than his music. Directed by Lenny Abrahamson (Room), Frank earned a 92% Rotten Tomatoes score and remains a cult classic to adventurous viewers looking for a changeup in their visual diet.
15. Goon
If you’re a hockey fan and have ever laughed at National Lampoon movies, Goon deserves to be on your roster. Directed by Michael Dowse and penned by Jay Baruchel and Evan Goldberg, this slapstick comedy is packed with laughs, action, and memorable one-liners. Seann William Scott leads the fray with Eugene Levy, Kim Coates, Alison Pill and Live Schreiber in this Rotten Tomatoes 82%-fresh comedy.
14. The Hunt
Foreign films are in short supply on Hulu, but director Thomas Vinterberg’s The Hunt closes the gap. Mads Mikkelsen stars in the haunting drama that earned him the Best Actor Award at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival (and a 94% Rotten Tomatoes score for the movie). The Hunt is perhaps more relevant than ever, asking questions about the power of accusation and mass hysteria.
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13. Robocop
Director Paul Verhoeven has always been known for peppering his films with subversive messages, and making films that were uniquely his. That very much extended to his more commercially successful fare, such as 1987's Robocop, which proved popular enough to spawn a franchise that's still ongoing, but also overflowed with satirical attacks on consumerism and capitalism as a whole. For Omni Consumer Products, nothing comes before profit, and not even murder is too far to go to make another buck. Thankfully, Robocop ends up disagreeing with his makers.
12. The Prestige
Ever wanted to see Batman and Wolverine fight over the affections of Black Widow? It’s unlikely to ever happen onscreen, but the next best thing can be found in director Christopher Nolan’s twisty thriller The Prestige, which stars Christian Bale, Hugh Jackman, and Scarlett Johansson in leading roles. Michael Caine and David Bowie also make their weighty presences felt in the film, which holds a 75% RT score.
11. American Psycho
While landing the role of Batman in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy may be what cemented Christian Bale as an A-list star, just a few years earlier, the actor drew raves for his portrayal of yuppie serial killer Patrick Bateman in director Mary Harron's American Psycho. An adaptation of Brett Easton Ellis' controversial 80s-set book, the film excises some of Ellis' more upsetting sequences, but still manages to craft one of the most fascinating horror films of its decade. For his part, Bale is a revelation, exuding both undeniable menace and his own odd charm.
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10. The Fly
One of director David Cronenberg's most harrowing adventures into the realm of body horror, 1986's The Fly is less a remake of the 50s classic, and more a modernized re-imagining of the story. Instead of a scientist and a fly swapping bodies, Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum, in one of his greatest roles) this time out ends up having his DNA full-on fused with a fly after a teleportation experiment goes wrong. This leads to a truly monstrous transformation. Geena Davis and John Getz also star in the film, which boasts a 91% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
9. The Nightmare Before Christmas
Just about every holiday has its own signature movies, with Halloween and Christmas tending to get the most. Rarely though does a film become a staple of both Halloween and Christmas, but that's exactly the case for director Henry Selick and producer Tim Burton's 1993 stop-motion animated classic The Nightmare Before Christmas. Overflowing with both spooky spirit and yuletide delight, Jack Skellington's journey through a portal into Christmas Town remains just as captivating today as it was upon initial release.
8. The Terminator
When director James Cameron made his sci-fi slasher movie The Terminator back in 1984, it's doubtful anyone anticipated it spawning a franchise of soon to be six films, a TV show, video games, comic books, and more. Yet, the tale of Sarah Connor's (Linda Hamilton) attempt to survive the relentless pursuit of the titular cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger) remains one of the most compelling pieces of action and suspense to come out of the decade of New Wave music and feathered hair. Michael Biehn also stars as Sarah's human protector, Kyle Reese.
Read More: 15 Behind-The-Scenes Secrets Of The Terminator Franchise
7. The Graduate
Widely regarded as one of the greatest American films of all time, director Mike Nichols' 1967 dramedy The Graduate earned seven Oscar nominations, winning Best Director. Based on a novel, The Graduate stars Dustin Hoffman - in arguably his signature role - as 21-year-old recent college grad Benjamin Braddock, who finds himself in an odd position when he's seduced by an older woman - Anne Bancroft's legendary Mrs. Robinson - and then falls for her daughter Elaine (Katherine Ross). To call The Graduate anything less than iconic would be an insult.
6. Raging Bull
Needing no serious introduction to any dedicated film buff, director Martin Scorsese's Raging Bull is arguably the greatest sports-based drama of all time, and is also in contention for best biopic ever. Robert De Niro stars as Jake LaMotta, a talented middleweight boxer, but a man in possession of often uncontrollable anger and many self-destructive tendencies. Shot in stark black and white, Jake's story is often tragic, but always compelling.
5. Unbreakable
Early next year will see the theatrical arrival of director M. Night Shyamalan's latest film, the highly anticipated Glass. With that in mind, there's never been a better time to revisit one of the two films Glass functions as a sequel to, 2000's Unbreakable. After surviving a deadly train crash without a scratch, mild-mannered security guard and family man David Dunn (Bruce Willis) comes to discover that he possesses powers beyond normal men, and that he's destined for greatness as a superhero. Guiding him down this path is Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), a mysterious man with secrets of his own.
Read More: Glass Theory: David Dunn's Powers Can Cure Kevin Crumb
4. The Usual Suspects
While the various sexual misconduct allegations surrounding director Bryan Singer and star Kevin Spacey sadly loom a bit large over The Usual Suspects at this point, that doesn't change the fact that the film itself is a terrific (89% on RT) mystery, and sports one of the most game-changing twist endings ever. Centered on the interrogation of a small-time crook named Roger "Verbal" Kint (Spacey), the plot spins a web of intrigue around mythical criminal Keyser Soze, who nobody alive has ever actually seen. Chazz Palminteri, Kevin Pollak, Benicio Del Toro, Gabriel Byrne, and Stephen Baldwin also star.
3. Escape From New York
Director John Carpenter is best known for horror films like Halloween and The Thing, but from the late-70s to the mid-90s, the man was on a hot streak overall, regardless of genre. Case in point is 1981's Escape From New York, starring Kurt Russell as Snake Plissken, one of the most badass antiheroes to ever grace the silver screen. Snake's misdeeds have landed him in the slammer, and the authorities make him an offer: rescue the president from the giant prison that was once Manhattan within 22 hours, and receive a full pardon. Say no, and die.
2. Heathers
A darker than dark comedy, Heathers was written by Daniel Waters and directed by Michael Lehmann, and sports a huge cult following. Winona Ryder stars as Veronica Sawyer, a high school student who runs afoul of former friends the Heathers, a trio of rich, popular girls that rule teen society with an iron fist. After being wronged by them, Veronica makes the mistake of teaming up with outcast bad boy J.D. (Christian Slater) in order to get revenge. Sadly, J.D.'s idea of revenge is straight up murdering his enemies.
1. Let the Right One In
Released in a decade where vampire cinema was dominated by the sparkly Twilight, director Tomas Alfredson's Swedish hit Let the Right One In was exactly what the classic creature needed to remind audiences that despite their affliction, vampire movies don't have to suck. Lina Leandersson stars as Eli, an ageless vampire with the appearance of a child, and Kare Hedebrant plays Oskar, the bullied young boy she enters into an unexpectedly sweet relationship with. The film was later adapted stateside by Matt Reeves, with Chloe Grace Moretz in the Eli role.
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