Best Movies and TV Shows on Hulu | Lifehacker
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The movies and television shows below are the best of what’s coming to Hulu this month—according to me. Because I’m an expert at watching things.
Hulu is really leaning into horror for October. There’s a new season of What We Do in the Shadows, intriguing original horror flicks like Mr. Crocket and Hold Your Breath, and a ton of paranormal “documentary” shows too. All that, plus the streaming premiere of Late Night With the Devil, one of the best horror movies I’ve seen in years.
What We Do in the Shadows, Season 6
This supernatural comedy series has been putting out weird, funny TV for five seasons and built up a loyal fanbase of weirdos eagerly awaiting every episode. Sadly, season 6 is the final season, but happily, there’s a new season of What We Do in the Shadows. This year sees Nadja facing the horror of the corporate world, and the ghoulish gang getting a new roommate, Jerry, who’s been sleeping since 1976.
Starts streaming Oct. 21.
Late Night With the Devil (2023)
In October, lots of casuals say, “what’s a good horror movie?” The answer this year is Late Night With the Devil, and I’m not the only one who thinks so: The movie is sitting at 97% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. Late Night purports to present the videotape of a 1970s TV talk show where a spooky-themed Halloween episode goes terribly, demonically wrong. The pacing is taut, the performances solid, and the period details are absolutely perfect. It’s scary, too, but in a fun way.
Starts streaming Oct. 19.
Mr. Crocket
Mr. Crocket digs into the horror of childhood and the weirdness of kids’ TV. Set in the 1990s, The title character is the star of Mr. Crocket’s World, a kiddie TV show that hides a very dark secret. It seems the host, Mr. Crocket, likes climbing out of the television, into your living room, and taking your children. The mother of a victim is forced to face her own demons to rescue her child from this TV-based monster.
Starts streaming Oct. 11.
Hold Your Breath
In this psychological horror film, Sarah Paulson plays Margaret Bellum, a mother trying to guide her children through the dustbowl disaster in Oklahoma in the 1930s. If the Great Depression wasn’t scary enough, the Bellums are visited by “The Grey Man,” a supernatural entity that travels through the dust and causes its victims to commit horrific crimes. Hold Your Breath pits a mother against the forces of nature, evil, and madness, just in time for Halloween!
Starts streaming Oct. 3.
Rivals
David Tennant and Alex Hassell play the bitter Rivals of the title in an eight-part series set among the crumbling aristocracy of 1980s Great Britain. Hassell plays Rupert Campbell-Black, a member of Parliament and a rake and raconteur. Tennant plays Lord Tony Baddingham, the head of Corinium Television. The two hate each others’ guts in a very British, very rich way, so look for dishy action and scandals in boardrooms and bedrooms.
Starts streaming Oct. 18.
Sting
If you want to confront your deeply buried arachnophobia, check out Sting; it features one scary-ass spider. Alyla Browne plays Charlotte, a rebellious tween who discovers a tiny spider and raises it as a pet, but the little guy doesn’t stop growing and soon becomes a huge flesh-eating monstrosity that targets her family. If you’re a fan of creature-feature flicks that don’t take themselves too seriously, check out Sting.
Starts streaming Oct. 11.
I’ll Haunt You When I’m Dead, season 1
I can’t find much information about this supernatural reality series coming to Hulu for Halloween month, but it has the best title, so I’m using it to represent the metric crap-ton of shows about supposedly real-life paranormal events on offer by Hulu in October. Others on the list include The Haunting Of…, My Ghost Story: Caught on Camera, Stalked by a Ghost, Supernatural Sisters, The UnXplained, UFO Files, The Bermuda Triangle: Into Cursed Waters, Swamp Mysteries, and more. So if this is your bag, you’re going to be on overload all month.
Starts streaming Oct. 1.
Family Guy Halloween Special
Everybody likes Halloween specials right? Family Guy has put out sporadic Halloween episodes over its 23-season run, but this year, they’re making a whole thing about it, like The Simpsons. So if you want to see Stewie’s teddy bear Rupert become a knife-wielding killer, the gang compete in a pumpkin carving contest, and more Family Guy-style Halloween madness, check it out.
Starts streaming Oct. 14.
American Horror Stories: Huluween Event
If you dig shows like Tales from the Crypt and Dark Mirror, check out American Horror Stories. The anthology spin-off of the long-running horror franchise American Horror Story will drop five, spooky, hour-long episodes at once for Halloween, each telling a different dark tale on topics like tapeworms, organ thieves, and jealous artificial intelligences. (I want to watch the one about the tapeworm most.)
Starts streaming Oct. 15.
Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sarah
What kind of jerk would want to mess with quirky, indie-folk duo Tegan and Sarah? “Fegan” (as fans call fake-Tegan) hacked into Tegan’s files and spent 15 years impersonating her in order to trick the band’s fan base into fake friendships and fake romantic relationships. Fanatical digs deeply into the mystery, interviewing victims, experts, and band members, in an effort to track down the person behind the catfish.
Starts streaming Oct. 18.
Carved
Remember back in the 80s and 90s, when horror movies with preposterous premises like Uncle Sam and The Gingerdead Man gathered dust on video store shelves? Carved feels like a throwback to those days. The movie asks, “what if there was an evil killer pumpkin that wanted revenge for all the pumpkins we eviscerate on Halloween?” It’s silly, but knowingly silly, so if you want an over-the-top horror comedy B-movie, check out Carved.
Starts streaming Oct. 21.
Last month’s picks
English Teacher
I have a good feeling about English Teacher. Brian Jordan Alvarez both created English Teacher and stars as Evan, an idealistic gay high school teacher navigating the complex cultural, political, and personal landscape of a high school in 2024 America. It’s earned an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, a solid B+, and promises a fearless but sensitive look at how we’re all getting along these days.
Starts streaming Sept. 2.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives
Mormon households have a reputation for being traditional and pious, with husbands working, wives raising babies, and everyone praying all the time. The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives rips the lid off that myth by documenting the true story of the Mormon moms of #MomTok, who are into partying hard and swinging like a screen-door. Scandalous!
Starts streaming Sept. 6.
The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed (2023)
Joanna Arnow wrote, directed, and stars in an intimate sex comedy about a depressed woman in her thirties pursuing her interest in BDSM. If you’re into deadpan humor about social isolation, you’re a fan of awkwardness, or you just want to watch something original for a change, check out The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed.
Starts streaming Sept. 13.
How to Die Alone
The hilarious Natasha Rothwell stars in a gentle comedy series that tackles big questions. Rothwell plays Mel, a downtrodden, lonely airline employee whose depressing-but-safe life is turned inside out after a brush with death sets her on a quest for meaning and love. If you like comedies with an emotional core where you’re really rooting for the underdog hero, How to Die Alone is your show.
Starts streaming Sept. 13.
Universal Basic Guys
Fox’s Sunday night lineup launched adult-animated classics The Simpsons, Family Guy, and Bob’s Burgers. Universal Basic Guys aims to pick up the mantle of anything-goes cartoon comedy. The premise: a bunch of small town dude-bros are laid off from a factory and given a basic income with no strings attached. This leaves them free to pursue every stupid idea they’ve ever had.
Starts streaming Sept. 9.
Child Star
We’re in the middle of a cultural reckoning about child stardom. On the heels of HBO’s Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV comes Child Star, a documentary series directed by former child star Demi Lovato. Lovato digs into the highs and lows of being famous before you can drive through archival footage and interviews with ex child stars like Drew Barrymore, Kenan Thompson, JoJo Siwa, Raven-Symoné, and Alyson Stoner.
Starts streaming Sept. 17.
High Potential
In this catch-the-bad-guys series, Kaitlin Olson stars as Morgan, a single mom with an IQ of 160 who works as a cleaning lady. When a seasoned detective uncovers her unique talent for deduction and crime solving, he teams up with her to solve baffling cases. (Yes, this sounds a little like The Cleaning Lady, but it’s actually based on popular French series Haut Potentiel Intellectuel.)
Starts streaming Sept. 18.
Grotesquerie
Horror fans: Hulu sees you. Grotesquerie could be the full-tilt horror show you’ve been waiting for. When a series of gruesome crimes rocks a small town, local detective Lois Tryon starts to suspect that she’s the real target. With no leads to go on, Tryon turns to Sister Megan, a nun with a special insight into the supernatural, and the unlikely pair are led into a maelstrom of evil where they uncover sinister secrets.
Starts streaming Sept. 26.
She Taught Love
This thoughtful film is a modern take on a premise that’s worked for romantic comedies since Shakespeare. Darrell Britt-Gibson and Arsema Thomas play Frank Cooper and Mali Waters, two very different people who fall in love. Cooper is a barely employed actor who fills his time between roles with booze and women. Thomas is a driven career woman on a mission to take over the world. Can these star-crossed lovers learn to embrace each others’ differences and get to their happy ending?
Starts streaming Sept. 27.
Social Studies
This docuseries follows diverse groups of teenagers from different high schools in Los Angeles, digging into a school year of their lives. The subjects have opened their phones as well as their lives, and Social Studies takes a look at the digital habits that are shaping the first generation of online natives as they grapple with beauty standards, sexuality, the future, and more.
Starts streaming Sept. 28.
