Memorial Day weekend is right around the corner, and there’s no better time to make it a 4-day movie marathon. Whether you’re craving underrated action movies, Academy Award darlings, rom-com favorites, or superhero movies outside the scope of MCU, there’s a movie on this list for it all, now on Hulu. Check out our list of the best Hulu movies below before they leave the streaming service in May 2022.
As Good as It Gets (1997)
Leaving May 31st
Director: James L. Brooks
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, Cuba Gooding Jr., Skeet Ulrich, Shirley Knight
As Good as It Gets stars Jack Nicholson as a misanthropic romance novelist with OCD. After his neighbor, a gay artist played by Greg Kinnear, is attacked, he looks after his neighbor’s dog, which starts to soften him up and slowly let others into his life; this includes a single mother and waitress (Helen Hunt) who has a sick kid. The endearing performances earned both Nicholson and Hunt Academy Awards for Best Actor and Best Actress, respectively. If you haven’t seen this film about an unlikely romance, be sure to give it a watch.
Can’t Buy Me Love (1987)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Steve Rash
Cast: Patrick Dempsey, Amanda Peterson, Dennis Dugan, Cort McCown, Seth Green
Named after a hit song from The Beatles, Can’t Buy Me Love is an underrated 80s rom-com that plays off the fake dating trope. Before he was McDreamy, Patrick Dempsey starred as a high school nerd who was in serious need of a makeover. After he rescues the most popular girl (Amanda Peterson) in school, they pretend to date for a month in order to make him look cool. Over the course of the month, however, she starts to fall for him. Though the movie focuses on this love story, it also teaches a valuable lesson– high school popularity isn’t the most important thing in the world.
Hanna (2011)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Joe Wright
Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Tom Hollander, Olivia Williams, Michelle Dockery, Cate Blanchett
If you’re looking for a good yet less popular action movie as part of your Memorial Day weekend, look no further than Hanna. Saoirse Ronan stars as the title character who’s trained by her father (Eric Bana) from a young age to be a skilled assassin. When a CIA agent, played by Cate Blanchett, tracks Hanna and her father down in order to eliminate them, she goes on the run throughout Europe, evading capture and learning the truth about her upbringing along the way. Ronan re-teams with Joe Wright, who directed her in Atonement, in this action thriller, which showcases her versatility as a 17-year-old action star.
Juno (2007)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Jason Reitman
Cast: Elliot Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Allison Janney, J. K. Simmons
Winner of Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards in 2008, Juno tells the story of an offbeat and independent teen (Elliot Page) whose unplanned pregnancy changes the surrounding lives. When Juno chooses to give the baby up in a closed adoption to a couple, played by Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman, Juno faces adulthood and its own complications while still figuring out her feelings for the father of the child, her best friend Paulie Bleeker (Michael Cera). The coming-of-age drama has an eclectic soundtrack and endlessly quotable lines, courtesy of writer Diablo Cody, that sticks with you long after the credits roll.
My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Ivan Reitman
Cast: Uma Thurman, Luke Wilson, Anna Faris, Eddie Izzard, Rainn Wilson, Wanda Sykes
What happens when you end a relationship and your ex happens to be a superhero? That’s what Matthew Saunders (Luke Wilson) finds out in this mid-00s comedy. When G-Girl (Uma Thurman) doesn’t take her break up well, she uses her superpowers to embarrass her ex and try to make him see that they should get back together. Her nemesis (Eddie Izzard) uses this as an opportunity to attempt to drain her of her powers. Though it’s hard to believe in the superhero landscape we’re in today, My Super Ex-Girlfriend, directed by Ivan Reitman, offers the genre a low stakes, lighthearted comedy not based on IP.
Pretty Woman (1990)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Garry Marshall
Cast: Julia Roberts, Richard Gere, Jason Alexander, Héctor Elizondo, Laura San Giacomo
When a wealthy businessman (Richard Gere) picks up Vivian (Julia Roberts), a prostitute, off Hollywood Boulevard, their lives are forever changed. After a few etiquette lessons and an expensive shopping spree, she agrees to be his escort for a week of business functions, charming his colleagues. Over the course of the week, they fall in love with each other. It doesn’t get more classic than Pretty Woman, directed by the great Garry Marshall. The trio of Roberts, Gere, and Marshall would later re-team for another great rom-com, Runaway Bride.
Scooby-Doo (2002)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Raja Gosnell
Cast: Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard, Linda Cardellini, Rowan Atkinson, Neil Fanning
Before James Gunn brought together the misfit teams of Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad, he wrote the live action adaptation of the hit animated series from the 70s. After the Mystery Inc team part ways, a new mystery brings them back together two years later on Spooky Island. As they work together to solve the mystery of the brainwashed tourists, the former friends realize there’s more to each of them than just the stereotypes and roles they once filled. Scooby-Doo blends the humor and the action seamlessly with the computer animated famous Great Dane, voiced by Neil Fanning, which spawned a sequel just two years later.
Starship Troopers (1997)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Casper Van Dien, Dina Meyer, Denise Richards, Jake Busey, Neil Patrick Harris, Clancy Brown
Based on the novel of the same name, Starship Troopers follows Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien) as he enlists in the Mobile Infantry to join the war against the “Bugs,” a hostile insectoid species. Though on the surface it appears as just another 90s sci-fi movie, Starship Troopers satirizes a militarized society and offers commentary on colonialism and fascism, questioning who the real villains are. With a message ahead of its time and epic action sequences, it’s no wonder Starship Troopers has since gone from a box office bomb to a certified sci-fi cult classic.
Watchmen (2009)
Leaving May 31st
Director: Zack Snyder
Cast: Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Carla Gugino, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Patrick Wilson
Before Man of Steel and the campaigns for the Synderverse, Zack Snyder directed the movie adaptation of the famous graphic novel from Adam Moore. When one of the members of their team is murdered, Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) tracks down his former team in order to solve the mystery. As he continues to investigate, he uncovers a conspiracy that threatens catastrophic consequences for the world. Unlike other superhero movies of the time, the R-rated Watchmen leans into the gritty violence, as well as the moral complications that come from their line of work. If you’re craving more Watchmen after watching the movie, be sure to also check out the limited series from Damon Lindelof as well.