Seeking a shiver down your spine? Hankering for a rush of adrenaline? Frantic for a flush across your cheeks? All you need to satisfy that urge for excitement is a Hulu subscription.
Whatever kind of thrill you’re seeking, Hulu has got you covered with a library full of twisted tales of love, creepy creature features, dark laughs, mind-snapping crime stories, and fantasy films slathered in mayhem. We’ve scoured the lot to bring you the cream of the crop.
Here are the best thrillers on Hulu streaming now.
1. 12 Hour Shift (2020)
Want chills with a heavy dose of humor? Then you’ll appreciate this dark comedy/horror thriller about a pair of bumbling black-market organ harvesters. Written and directed by Brea Grant, 12 Hour Shift begins in a rundown Arkansas hospital, where Mandy (Angela Bettis) is running on fumes (and some illicit drugs) to get through a long night that involves a kidney handoff to her perky but dunderheaded cousin Regina (Chloe Farnworth). When a cooler mix-up sends a ruthless kingpin (Mick Foley) some chilled cola cans instead of the kidney, the cousins have a few short hours to find the MIA organ…or surrender theirs. Grant’s smart and sassy script sleekly blends grim gags with thundering threats and a giddy brand of mayhem to make for a wildly fun ride.
How to watch: 12 Hour Shift is streaming on Hulu.
2. Fight Club (1999)
Based on Chuck Palahniuk’s brilliant and blistering novel, Fight Club follows the dysfunctional friendship of an unhappy pencil pusher (Edward Norton) and a dashing and dangerous anarchist called Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt). Together, they start an underground boxing club that quickly spirals into a cult of frustrated and aimless men in search of a savior, no matter how deeply flawed he may be. A box office disappointment that found a following on home video, David Fincher’s uncompromising thriller has been ignored, adored, despised, and misunderstood. For all that, Fight Club‘s blend of pitch-black humor, scorching social commentary, and sickening twists makes it one hell of a thrilling ride.
How to watch: Fight Club is streaming on Hulu.
3. Memories of Murder (2003)
South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho has forged a reputation as a modern master of suspense with films like the kinetic creature feature The Host, the seething sci-fi thrill ride Snowpiercer, the ruthlessly intimate drama Mother, and the genre-bending Oscar-winner for Best Picture Parasite. Many of these are also on Hulu right now. But to truly appreciate this heralded director’s genius, you must check out his sophomore feature, which has only recently been accessible in the States. Loosely based on a real series of mysterious killings, Memories of Murder centers on a trio of cops on the hunt for a sinister stalker who murders women whenever it rains. Laced with grisly details, this is a stomach-churning film. Yet true to form, Bong works in edged humor and snarling cultural criticism. In this instance, his sharp script illuminates the dangers of toxic masculinity and copaganda movies by playing as a biting parody of the latter. Recurring Bong collaborator Song Kang-ho co-stars with Kim Roi-ha and Kim Sang-kyung.
How to watch: Memories of Murder is streaming on Hulu.
4. 47 Meters Down (2017)
In this sensational shark-infested thriller, Mandy Moore and Claire Holt star as sisters whose vacation getaway gets way out of hand. When a freak accident drops a shark cage to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, they must rely on their wits to survive a could-be feeding frenzy. Director/co-writer Johannes Roberts smartly charts a course for terror, swimming from one suspenseful escape attempt to the next. With chilling lead performances and splashes of shark action, this creature feature will leave you gasping for breath.
How to watch: 47 Meters Down is streaming on Hulu.
5. Titane (2021)
One of the best films of 2021, Titane is the tale of a sexy serial killer on the run. But not in any way you might expect or feel remotely cool about. Julia Ducournau, the French filmmaker who shocked and awed critics with her cannibal coming-of-age drama, Raw, returns with the tale of a homicidal erotic dancer (a riveting Agathe Rousselle), who flees from her killing spree by taking on the identity of a long-missing boy. And that’s far from the film’s wildest turn. Fueled by blood, gasoline, love, grief, lust, and body horror, Titane is a thriller that opens with a woman having sex with a muscle car, then never lets up from the mind-bending mayhem. This one’s an adrenaline rush that’ll leave you dizzy. Can you handle it?
How to watch: Titane is streaming on Hulu.
6. Black Swan (2010)
Thirsty for a sensational and sexy psychological thriller? Then you’ll want to leap into the thrall and frenzy of Darren Aronofsky’s universally heralded Black Swan. In an Academy Award-winning role, Natalie Portman stars as a ballerina poised to snatch the coveted lead in Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. However, the New York City Ballet scene is one of brutality and ferocious competition. A bitter has-been (Winona Ryder), a relentless artistic director (Vincent Cassel), a sensual rival (Mila Kunis), and a harping stage mom (Barbara Hershey) push her body and mind to their breaking points. Bones crack, synapses snap, and…are those feathers sprouting out from her back? Swirled with surreal sequences, this fascinating film ushers audiences into its heroine’s splintering psyche, which bleeds with lust, ambition, and nightmares. The result is beguiling, haunting, and uniquely exciting. Dare you join the dance?
How to watch: Black Swan is streaming on Hulu.
7. Prospect (2018)
Blending science-fiction and Western elements, this is a hidden gem you won’t want to overlook. Its Wild West is a far-flung alien moon, rich in rare minerals but rife with toxic spores and treacherous rogues. There, an adolescent girl (Sophie Thatcher) is the cautious apprentice to her prospecting father (Jay Duplass). But once they get separated, she reluctantly teams up with a smooth-talking gunslinger (Pedro Pascal) to find the treasure and get out of Dodge before it’s too late. Writers/directors Zeek Earl and Christopher Caldwell create an intoxicating genre blend that makes every turn rich with possibilities for danger and heroism. Yet the greatest thing Prospect has to offer is the dynamic chemistry between a surly Thatcher and a smirking Pascal as their characters form a volatile yet powerful friendship. A slow-burn thriller that sparks with action and the charisma of its stars — which include A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night’s Sheila Vand — Prospect is a dazzling indie to be treasured.
How to watch: Prospect is streaming on Hulu.
8. Border (2018)
One of the most astounding films of 2018, this Swedish hit begins as a romance but winds into a story laced with suspense and fantasy. Eva Melander stars as a homely customs officer with a unique ability to sniff out contraband material. Feeling like an outcast, she leads a lonely life — that is, until she meets a kindred spirit (Eero Milonoff), who urges her to take risks and thereby uncover the secret of her true identity. Folklore inspirations and a gleeful rejection of heteronormative romance collide in surprising and thrilling ways in director Ali Abbasi’s critically heralded offering. But be warned: Amid the love and beauty, Border grows an unnerving crime plotline that’s sure to make you squirm. Slow burn, bittersweet, and boldly buoyant, this movie will thrill and chill and maybe even make you swoon.*
How to watch: Border is now streaming on Hulu.
9. Knives and Skin (2019)
Want a thriller that’ll tingle your spine and have you singing along? Then, you must indulge in writer/director Jennifer Reeder’s hypnotic musical, which begins with a teen girl gone missing. To the audience, there’s no mystery to what became of Carolyn Harper. It’s her grief-stricken mother, confounded peers, and distracted neighbors who struggle with the question. Through this fog of dread and fear, they come together in snarled threads and haunting cover songs, the latter of which are all ‘80s hits, like “Our Lips Are Sealed” and “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” The ennui of small-town life and teen angst is thoughtfully knitted into the emotional tension of an uncertain future. With a candy-colored aesthetic and an eerie atmosphere, Reeder and her crackling ensemble manifest a world that’s as enchanting as it is unnerving.
How to watch: Knives and Skin is streaming on Hulu.
10. American Animals (2018)
Documentarian Bart Layton first wowed film critics with The Imposter, which revealed a twisted tale of a French con man who posed as a missing American kid. His fascinating follow-up blurs the lines between documentary and docudrama to unravel the disturbing case of the Transylvania University library heist. The stranger-than-fiction details involve an obsession with the movie Reservoir Dogs, a plot to fence a rare art book, and old man disguises. Yet Layton takes things to a mind-bending new level. Not only does he cast famous performers like Evan Peters and Barry Keoghan to play the young thieves, but also, he weaves their real counterparts into sequences with them. Plopped into a movie set, the convicted crooks reflect and quibble over differing details with their movie-doppelgängers as they barrel through to a disastrous plan. The result is a thriller that invites audiences to experience the rush of a heist flick and then the agony of its subjects, who got in over their heads and lived to regret it.*
How to watch: American Animals is streaming on Hulu.
(*) denotes writeup comes from a previous Mashable list.
UPDATE: Oct. 1, 2022, 5:00 a.m. EDT This list was updated to reflect current streaming options.
