(Photo by Phillip Caruso/Hulu)
Best Hulu Shows and Movies by Tomatometer
Updated March 24, 2020
It may be the unsung hero of the streaming world, but the top shows on Hulu include some of the most prestigious and binge-worthy series out there – you just need to know where to look. The Handmaid’s Tale’s instant success helped establish itself as one of the best shows on Hulu and the streamer as a major player in the originals game. Hulu shows have since become known as buzz-worthy and prestige programs, most recently including a TV adaptation of the Nick Hornby novel High Fidelity, as well as the Emmys-baiting limited series Little Fires Everywhere, which is based on the Celeste Ng novel and stars Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon.
Upcoming Hulu originals include an adaptation of the Sally Rooney novel Normal People, a miniseries about Catherine the Great starring Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult, and Solar Opposites, an animated series from Rick and Morty co-creator Justin Roiland and Mike McMahan. Parent company Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox also means that new Hulu TV shows like the tech industry–set mystery drama Devs can appear both on cable channel FX and Hulu and classic FX series like Nip/Tuck can now be found on the streaming platform too.
In addition to the newest additions, popular Hulu originals also include Pen15, Four Weddings and Funeral, Castle Rock (based on Stephen King’s body of work), Harlots, Shrill, Catch-22, and Veronica Mars.
Rotten Tomatoes put together a guide to Hulu originals you can stream in their entirety in between new episodes. Here are all the Fresh-rated original series and movies you can only find on Hulu. To be included in our list of the best original Hulu movies and series, titles must be Fresh (60% or higher).
Added 4/3: Mrs America.
HULU SERIES
Synopsis: The son of a Middle East dictator reluctantly leaves the U.S. to return to his home country....
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Synopsis: An aging and broke bad-boy rocker from the 1990s gets another shot at fame 25 years later as a songwriter...
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Synopsis: In the future, the first human is sent to Mars to explore the possibility of interplanetary colonization....
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Synopsis: A horror event series from prolific, award-winning producer, Jason Blum's independent TV studio. The series includes 12 super-sized episodes, with...
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Synopsis: A man's quest for the parents who deserted him leads him to believe his father is the Zodiac Killer, one...
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Starring:
Synopsis: A thriller centering on a San Francisco forensic neuropsychiatrist who spirals into a perilous world of mistaken identity, police corruption...
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Synopsis: Set in 1814, Taboo follows James Keziah Delaney, a man who has been to the ends of the earth and...
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Synopsis: A horror anthology series from Brad Falchuk and Ryan Murphy....
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Synopsis: A documentary series about the life and 2016 presidential campaign of Hillary Rodham Clinton....
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Synopsis: A family struggles with relationships, marriage and power during a controversial religious movement in this drama series....
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Synopsis: Based on Celeste Ng's 2017 bestseller, Little Fires Everywhere follows the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect Richardson family and an...
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Synopsis: The trials and triumphs of the Getty family, one of America's most iconic dynasties....
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Synopsis: A vampiric virus spreads through New York City....
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Synopsis: In the darkest depths of cyberspace, there is another world. A lost dimension, home to wonders unseen, terrors unspeakable, and...
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Synopsis: Wu-Tang: An American Saga is set in 1990s New York City during the height of the crack cocaine epidemic and...
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Synopsis: A drama following a gang of professional thieves wrestling with the risks and moral implications of the `profession.'...
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Synopsis: Drama series set against the early days of the crack-cocaine epidemic....
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Synopsis: Ensemble comedy about a disparate group of guys (and a gal) involved in a fantasy-football league....
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Synopsis: Based on Fosse, the biography written by Sam Wasson, this eight-part limited series tells the story of the singular romantic...
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Synopsis: A young computer engineer investigates the secretive development division of her employer, a cutting-edge tech company based in San Francisco,...
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Synopsis: Breeders, a new comedy series starring Martin Freeman and Daisy Haggard, explores the paradox that every parent knows but never...
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Synopsis: An English teacher travels back in time to stop JFK's assassination, but many elements threaten his mission....
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Synopsis: U.S. version of an Australian cult sitcom about a meek young man and a pot-smoking talking dog named Wilfred...
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Synopsis: A female record-store owner in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, uses music to reflect on past relationships in this TV adaptation of...
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Synopsis: Based on Joseph Heller's seminal novel of the same name, Catch-22 is the story of the incomparable, artful dodger, Yossarian...
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Synopsis: A reality-show parody that centers on six well-pampered ladies living in Orlando, Fla....
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Synopsis: During the Autumn of 1942, in occupied France, U-612 is now ready for its maiden voyage, preparing to head into...
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Synopsis: Dark comedy-drama about a larcenous gypsy family who strike it rich by assuming the identities of a rich couple they...
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Synopsis: A Sons of Anarchy spinoff from Kurt Sutter....
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Synopsis: A sitcom about an ob-gyn who wishes her personal life were as successful as her professional one and matched the...
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Synopsis: From Executive Producers Lorne Michaels and Elizabeth Banks comes Shrill, a comedy series starring Aidy Bryant (Saturday Night Live) as...
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Synopsis: Six teenagers with nothing in common join forces after discovering their parents are evil-doers....
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Synopsis: Generation-spanning drama about a Northern California motorcycle club whose members try to protect their hometown from rival gangs while running...
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Synopsis: Mrs. America tells the story of the movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), and the unexpected backlash led...
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Synopsis: Counter-terrorism FBI agent John O'Neill is out to prove his suspicion that the U.S. was targeted by Al Qaeda around...
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Synopsis: A psychological-horror series set in the Stephen King multiverse, Castle Rock is an original story that combines the mythological scale...
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Synopsis: Adapted from the classic novel by Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale is the story of life in the dystopia of...
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Synopsis: The Act is a seasonal anthology series that tells startling, stranger-than-fiction true crime stories. The first season follows Gypsy Blanchard,...
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Synopsis: Spring breakers are getting murdered in Neptune, thereby decimating the seaside town's lifeblood tourist industry. After Mars Investigations is hired...
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Synopsis: This gritty New York-based drama revolves around an alcoholic firefighter who is haunted (quite literally) by ghosts of family and...
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Synopsis: A painfully funny comedy series that explores the differences between dating men and women from the perspective of a person...
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Synopsis: A corrupt and brutal L.A. detective runs an elite squad by his own rules in a neighborhood ravaged by drugs...
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Synopsis: This Way Up is a comedy about moving on, moving forward and trying to find happiness. Aine, played by writer...
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Synopsis: Drama series following the story of a much-loved TV star who is faced with an accusation of historical sexual offences....
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Synopsis: A janitor is called upon to save humanity from alien invaders....
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Synopsis: A legal thriller centering on a take-no-prisoners Manhattan litigator who specializes in corporate-malfeasance cases....
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Synopsis: An animated comedy centered on a suave spy, Sterling Archer, and his misguided cohorts....
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Synopsis: Legion follows the story of David Haller, a troubled young man who may be more than human. Since he was...
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Synopsis: A not-particularly-responsible ex-cop runs an unlicensed detective agency with his best friend, who's not particularly responsible, either....
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Synopsis: Looking For Alaska is an 8-episode limited series based on the John Green novel of the same name. It centers...
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Synopsis: Chip Baskets has always dreamed of being a classically trained clown. After flunking out of French clown college, he returns...
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Synopsis: A bachelor and his divorced sister raise a teenager together and support each other through the trials of the dating...
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Synopsis: Sarah Silverman discusses her views on the current emotional state of the country....
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Synopsis: Two 13-year-old middle-school friends deal with the awkwardness of adolescence in 2000....
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Synopsis: Following a naive twentysomething's unrelenting quest for love....
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Synopsis: Set in New York City, What We Do in the Shadows follows three vampires who have been roommates for hundreds...
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Synopsis: In Mr Inbetween, Scott Ryan plays "Ray Shoesmith," a father, ex-husband, boyfriend and best friend: tough roles to juggle in...
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Synopsis: Two well-meaning coworkers become entangled in a criminal conspiracy when one of them answers a phone that was left behind...
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Synopsis: Two anti-relationship people find themselves in a relationship together....
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Synopsis: A crass comedian struggles to seek legitimacy in his life and career....
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Synopsis: This comedy series zeros in on two irreverent, people-hating best friends in New York City....
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Synopsis: Four egocentric friends run a bar together in Philadelphia and love to revel in each other's misery....
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Synopsis: An anthology series inspired by the 1996 Coen brothers film. The first season follows a drifter who brings trouble to...
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Synopsis: Ramy Hassan is a first generation Egyptian-American who is on a spiritual journey in his politically-divided New Jersey neighborhood. RAMY...
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Synopsis: A drama that centers on a brothel owner in 18th-century London as she struggles to raise her daughters while battling...
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Synopsis: Sam Fox, a single mom and working actor with no filter, raises her three daughters and cares for her aging...
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Synopsis: Two cousins try to work their way up through the Atlanta rap scene....
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Synopsis: A maverick U.S marshal enforces the law his way in his Kentucky hometown....
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HULU MOVIES
#14
Adjusted Score: 64.361%
Critics Consensus: Becoming Bond is an uproarious recreation of George Lazenby's colorful stint as Britain's greatest spy, evidencing that the gregarious Australian may be a greater raconteur than he was a 00.
Synopsis: A unique documentary/narrative hybrid chronicling the stranger-than-fiction true story of George Lazenby, a poor Australian car mechanic who, through an...
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#13
Adjusted Score: 80.451%
Critics Consensus: In the battle over Fyre Festival content, Fyre Fraud comes out swinging with a questionable interview of conman Billy McFarland and a thoughtful exploration of nefarious social strategy.
Synopsis: The Fyre Festival was the defining scam of the millennial generation, at the nexus of social media influence, late-stage capitalism,...
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#12
Adjusted Score: 80.982%
Critics Consensus: The Amazing Johnathan Documentary sets out to survey a magician's final tour -- and ends up pulling off some wildly ambitious tricks of its own.
Synopsis: What begins as a documentary following the final tour of a dying magician -- "The Amazing Johnathan" -- becomes an...
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#11
Adjusted Score: 60.949%
Critics Consensus: A thoughtful rumination on beauty standards and feminism, Tiny Shoulders goes beyond plastic observations to create an even-handed examination of Barbie's role in the broader culture.
Synopsis: A survey of 60 years of women in popular culture through the lens of the iconic doll features interviews with...
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#10
Adjusted Score: 84.657%
Critics Consensus: Led by typically outstanding work from Lupita Nyong'o, Little Monsters is a horror/rom-com hybrid that proves the zombie genre still has fresh brains to savor.
Synopsis: Little Monsters follows Dave (Alexander England), a washed-up musician who volunteers to chaperone his nephew's kindergarten class field trip after...
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#9
Adjusted Score: 87.699%
Critics Consensus: Funny, heartfelt, and brought to life by a smartly assembled ensemble, Big Time Adolescence finds fresh pleasures in the crowded coming-of-age genre.
Synopsis: A seemingly bright and mostly innocent 16-year-old named Mo (Griffin Gluck) attempts to navigate high school under the guidance of...
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#8
Adjusted Score: 86.321%
Critics Consensus: While subsequent documentaries on the subject might be more comprehensive, Untouchable offers a gut-wrenching look at horrific abuses of power.
Synopsis: The inside story of the rise and fall of Harvey Weinstein reveals how, over decades, he acquires and protects his...
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#7
Adjusted Score: 32.272%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Synopsis: One author makes it his crusade to seek justice for Bill Finger, a struggling writer who was the key figure...
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#6
Adjusted Score: 92.129%
Critics Consensus: Crime + Punishment shines a brilliant light on systemic corruption, building a case for change that's as upsetting as it is ultimately inspiring.
Synopsis: Amidst a landmark class action lawsuit over illegal policing quotas, Crime + Punishment chronicles the real lives and struggles of...
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#5
Adjusted Score: 96.868%
Critics Consensus: Like its subject, Ask Dr. Ruth has a breezy charm that's hard to resist -- and a message that's as important as it is entertaining.
Synopsis: Ask Dr. Ruth chronicles the incredible life of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, a Holocaust survivor who became America's most famous sex...
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#4
Adjusted Score: 96.354%
Critics Consensus: Jawline uses one man's bid for online stardom to offer a compassionate, clear-eyed view of the risks and seductive allure of social media.
Synopsis: The film follows 16-year-old Austyn Tester, a rising star in the live-broadcast ecosystem who built his following on wide-eyed optimism...
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#3
Adjusted Score: 99.348%
Critics Consensus: We love them, yeah, yeah, yeah -- and with archival footage like that, you know The Beatles: Eight Days a Week -- The Touring Years can't be bad.
Synopsis: We all know the moment. February 9th, 1964, 8:12pm EST - after a brief commercial break, four young men from...
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#2
Adjusted Score: 82.514%
Critics Consensus: Offering a detailed and highly entertaining oral history of the failed Dana Carvey Show, Too Funny to Fail is too funny to be missed.
Synopsis: It had all the makings of a huge television success: a white-hot comic at the helm, a coveted primetime slot,...
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#1
Adjusted Score: 104.267%
Critics Consensus: Minding the Gap draws on more than a decade of documentary footage to assemble a poignant picture of young American lives that resonates far beyond its onscreen subjects.
Synopsis: Compiling over 12 years of footage shot in his hometown of Rockford, IL, in MINDING THE GAP, Bing Liu searches...
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Thumbnail photo credit: George Kraychyk/Hulu; Michael Desmond/Hulu; Allyson Riggs/Hulu
