Empire Records. Don't have Hulu yet? Sign up hereThis post is updated frequently as movies leave and enter Hulu. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk.
Everyone needs a good laugh every now and then, probably more than ever in the 2020s. Hulu’s catalog is packed with television and arthouse critical darlings, so it can be hard to leaf through it when you just want something to take the edge off the day. That’s why we’re here. This regularly updated blend of comedy classics, indie films you may not have seen, and newer laugh generators is all you need when it’s time to escape.
How We Pick Our Films
Critic Brian Tallerico watches and writes about movies and TV every day. To curate this list, he dives into Hulu’s comedy catalogue every month to surface laugh-out-loud funny titles — using his taste and a lifetime of cinema study as his guide, instead of whatever the algorithm happens to be pushing. After triple-checking to make sure they’re still available, he watches each and writes his recommendation. We highlight more than just the crowdpleasers: Comedy can be a venue to present interesting ideas, make an impact on cinema, and change our culture. Read on to find something to watch.
Another Round
Year: 2020
Runtime: 1 hour, 57 minutes
Director: Thomas Vinterberg
The Oscar winner for Best International Film in 2021 features one of the best performances ever from the great Mads Mikkelsen. The Hannibal star plays a teacher who decides, with a group of three friends, to be a little drunk all the time. Bored and unmotivated by life, they try an experiment wherein they have a small blood alcohol content at all times. At first, it goes well. It doesn’t end well. Not everything here works but it’s a likable film that features a killer ending.
Another Round Watch on HuluThe Banshees of Inisherin
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 54m
Director: Martin McDonagh
One of the best films of 2022 and a multiple Oscar nominee last year, this dark comedy is already on streaming services, less than a year after its release. Colin Farrell does career-best work as a hapless Irishman who discovers that his best friend, played by Brendan Gleeson, doesn’t want to talk to him anymore. A film about how neighbors become enemies feels particularly timely in the currently fractured world, and this one is brilliant, funny, and moving.
The Banshees of Inisherin watch on huluThe Death of Stalin
Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 47m
Director: Armando Iannucci
Armando Iannucci, the creator of Veep and The Thick of It, co-wrote and directed this viciously dark satire about the power struggle that emerged in the wake of the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953. More nervously unsettling than laugh-out-loud funny, Iannucci’s style works well for his incredible cast, including Steve Buscemi, Paddy Considine, Jason Isaacs, Rupert Friend, Michael Palin, and Andrea Riseborough.
The Death of Stalin watch on hulu*Empire Records
Year: 1995
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director: Allan Moyle
Remember record stores? Empire Records may not be classically great, but it’s a wonderful time capsule of mid-‘90s culture, a time when it was cool to hang out in CD stories all day and most people had a job at one at some point in their teenage lives. It’s also got a great ensemble, including Liv Tyler, Robin Tunny, Renee Zellweger, Ethan Embry, and Rory Cochrane. It’s fun and will play differently for those of you who grew up with music stores as a part of their lives than it will for the iGeneration.
Empire Records watch on huluI, Tonya
Year: 2017
Runtime: 2h
Director: Craig Gillespie
Margot Robbie should have won the Oscar for playing Tonya Harding in this tonal highwire act. More than just a biopic or the true crime story of the 1994 attack on Nancy Kerrigan, Gillespie’s film is an interrogation of sports and celebrity culture. Centering it all is Robbie’s performance, one of the most challenging and impressive of the 2010s.
I, Tonya Watch on HuluI Love My Dad
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 36m
Director: James Morosini
The writer/director here tells a version of his own true story of being catfished by his dad. Yes, you read that right. Morosini plays Franklin, a man whose dad is so concerned about losing touch with him that he creates a fake Facebook profile and, well, things get weird. Patton Oswalt is phenomenal as the dad in the title and Claudia Sulewski, Rachel Dratch, and Lil Rel Howery are great in supporting roles.
I Love My Dad watch on hulu*The King of Comedy
Year: 1983
Runtime: 1h 49m
Director: Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese is often more recognized for his gangster movies, classics like GoodFellas and Casino, but he’s really a filmmaker who can do absolutely everything. One of his most underrated genre experiments is his black comedy that really now looks prescient about how much everyone would want their 15 minutes of fame almost four decades later. Robert De Niro gives one of his best performances as Rupert Pupkin, an unhinged stand-up comedian who becomes obsessed with a talk show host, unforgettably played by Jerry Lewis.
The King of Comedy watch on huluThe Little Hours
Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director: Jeff Baena
There’s a movie on Hulu that features Aubrey Plaza as a profanity-spewing nun and you haven’t watched it yet? Jeff Baena’s Sundance hit also stars Alison Brie, Dave Franco, John C. Reilly, Molly Shannon, and Fred Armisen in a ridiculous, raunchy retelling of The Decameron. It’s reminiscent of classic Mel Brooks in the way it skewers classical storytelling structures with modern comic sensibilities.
The Little Hours watch on huluOn the Count of Three
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 26m
Director: Jerrod Carmichael
Jerrod Carmichael is having an incredible moment, defined recently by his stunning Rothaniel over on HBO Max, his Golden Globes hosting gig, and his sharp dark comedy, the story of two guys who plan to take their own lives at the end of a ridiculous day. Co-starring Chris Abbott and Tiffany Haddish, this is a wickedly smart movie and a sign that Carmichael is a filmmaker to watch.
On the Count of Three watch on huluThe One I Love
Year: 2014
Runtime: 1h 32m
Director: Charlie McDowell
Charlie McDowell directed this brilliant little sci-fi gem, a film that features two of the best performances in the careers of Mark Duplass and Elisabeth Moss. The two play a couple whose therapist (Ted Danson) suggest they take a retreat to find themselves as partners again. From the beginning, something seems just a bit off about the retreat, but the pair discovers something straight out of The Twilight Zone that we wouldn’t dare spoil here.
The One I Love watch on huluPalm Springs
Year: 2020
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director: Max Barbakow
Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti are wonderful in this charming sci-fi rom-com about a pair of people caught up in a time loop and forced to live the same wedding day they’re attending over and over again. This is the kind of comedy gem that got a little screwed by the pandemic, forced to premiere on Hulu when it should have played to packed, laughing crowds in theaters first.
Palm Springs Watch on Hulu*Pineapple Express
Year: 2008
Runtime: 1h 52m
Director: David Gordon Green
Seth Rogen gives one of his best performances as Dale Denton, an average guy who just wants to get high. He visits his dealer (played perfectly by James Franco) on the wrong night as the pair cross paths with hitmen and a police officer on the wrong side of the law. Pineapple Express is an incredibly funny movie, and you don’t need to be high to love it.
Pineapple Express watch on huluPopstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Year: 2016
Runtime: 1h 27m
Directors: Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone
One of the best mockumentaries ever made, Popstar perfectly captures the anarchic spirit of the Lonely Island guys. Andy Samberg plays Connor Friel, a moronic popstar with a massive ego. When Connor’s career collapses, he’s forced to reunite with The Style Boyz, the group he left years ago and the friendships that got destroyed in the process. As consistently hilarious as any comedy of the last decade, this movie should have been much bigger.
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping watch on huluRye Lane
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 22m
Director: Raine Allen Miller
The best romantic comedy in years premiered at Sundance in January 2023 and is already on Hulu. David Jonsson and Vivian Oparah star in a film that’s reminiscent of Before Sunrise in the way it captures two people meeting and walking through a city as they slowly fall in love. Heartbroken, creative people, these characters are so incredibly likable in a film that has a sharp, brilliant screenplay, and stunning use of setting. The world around these people comes so vibrantly to life that it almost feels like a character.
Rye Lane watch on huluSanctuary
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 36m
Director: Zachary Wigon
Some would call this a thriller instead but it’s really close to being a romantic comedy at the same time. Whatever you call it, just watch it. It’s one of the best films of 2023, a two-hander between a future CEO (Christopher Abbott) and the longtime dominatrix (Margaret Qualley) that he’s trying to fire. Abbott and Qualley do some of the best work of their already notable careers in a film that’s unpredictable, twisted, and, yes, funny.
Sanctuary watch on huluSleeping With Other People
Year: 2015
Runtime: 1h 41m
Director: Leslye Headland
If you love Russian Doll (and really who doesn’t) then you should dig into the history of its creator, Leslye Headland. She wrote and directed this clever 2015 comedy starring Jason Sudeikis, Alison Brie, Adam Scott, Jason Mantzoukas, and, of course, Natasha Lyonne.
Sleeping With Other People watch on hulu*Super Troopers
Year: 2002
Runtime: 1h 40m
Director: Jay Chandrasekhar
A lot of the other Broken Lizard movies push their way through the revolving door of streaming services, but the cult comedy classic that really broke the troupe is actually kind of rare. So take the opportunity to watch a stoner comedy that has held up remarkably well in the two-decades-plus since its release.
Super Troopers watch on huluTake This Waltz
Year: 2012
Runtime: 1h 57m
Director: Sarah Polley
The wonderful Sarah Polley won an Oscar earlier this year for her excellent screenplay for Women Talking. Take the chance to check out a very different film she made a decade ago featuring incredible performances from Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen, Luke Kirby, and Sarah Silverman. It works because it allows its married lead, played by Williams, to be vulnerable and flawed as she struggles with attraction to a new neighbor.
Take This Waltz watch on huluTheater Camp
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 35m
Director: Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman
Something like a modern Waiting for Guffman, this Sundance hit lovingly parodies life at theater camps with a bunch of cast members who know a few things about how to stage a musical performance. Ben Platt, Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Jimmy Tatro, Ayo Edebiri, and more star in one of those comedies that feels destined to produce future stars. In particular, Galvin and Tatro are hysterical here in a movie that will work better for anyone who used to be a theater kid.
Theater Camp watch on huluTriangle of Sadness
Year: 2022
Runtime: 2h 29m
Director: Ruben Ostlund
A Best Picture nominee and Palme d’Or winner, Triangle of Sadness is the one of the biggest international critical darlings of 2022. From the writer/director of Force Majeure, this is the story of a model couple on a boat trip from Hell, a journey that goes so disastrously wrong that social lines are blurred forever. It’s a sharp commentary on the haves and have-nots with fun performances from Harris Dickinson, Dolly de Leon, Woody Harrelson, and more.
Triangle of Sadness watch on huluThe Worst Person in the World
Year: 2021
Runtime: 2h 8m
Director: Joachim Trier
The partnership between Neon and Hulu continues to pay off for subscribers as the streamer is the exclusive home of one of the most acclaimed films of 2021 in this Best Original Screenplay and Best Foreign Language Film Oscar nominee. Renate Reinsve is stunning as a young woman named Julie who navigates career, love, and life in a film that’s funny, moving, and true.
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