“Fire Island,” “Palm Springs,” “Brown Sugar,” and “Sleepless in Seattle” are among the best romantic comedies now streaming on Hulu.
There’s nothing like a feature-length chance to fall in love. And there’s no better time to see it than right now.
Whether you’re preparing a cozy evening for two, having a long-distance hang with friends, or embarking on a private, solo cry over love lost/love won/the state of the planet/etc., romantic comedies are one of our greatest resources for emotional catharsis. Roll into the romance and humor of it all with abandon (and our help). Mashable has combed through every rom-com on Hulu to assess the best of the best for your streaming buck.
Here are the 10 best romantic comedies now on Hulu.
1. Palm Springs
Credit: Hulu
In one of the best movies of 2020, Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti play nihilistic wedding guests who become stuck in a time loop à la Groundhog Day. Stupidly funny and surprisingly sweet, this sci-fi nightmare-meets-rom-com explores a been-there-done-that premise with a fresh approach and two leads you’ll fall for instantly. (Fair warning: If you’re in the middle of an existential crisis, maybe hold off on this one. Palm Springs isn’t your average meet-cute.) — Alison Foreman, Entertainment Reporter
How to watch: Palm Springs is streaming on Hulu.
2. Brown Sugar
Credit: K C Bailey / Fox Searchlight / Kobal / Shutterstock
Forget enemies to lovers, can you handle traveling the rocky road from friends to lovers? Rick Famuyiwa’s 2002 rom-com follows a pair of childhood friends on their journey to grown-up lust and commitment. Their story begins on a street corner, where listening to hip hop spurred big career dreams for a boy and girl. Years later, Dre (Taye Diggs) is a successful record exec, while Syd (Sanaa Lathan) is a powerful magazine editor. But despite their natural chemistry, other could-be loves keep getting in the way. Can they get “the best of both worlds…the buddy and the booty?” Interweaving a passion for music with desire for each other, Brown Sugar lays down a sweet and smooth story you can’t help but fall for. Nicole Ari Parker, Boris Kodjoe, and Queen Latifah co-star. — Kristy Puchko, Film Editor
How to watch: Brown Sugar is streaming on Hulu through Starz.
3. Fire Island
Credit: Hulu
Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice gets a modern makeover with Fire Island. Joel Kim Booster reimagines the rom-com of manners as a gay love story set in the eponymous vacation spot. There, a chosen family of gay men and their lesbian den mother (Margaret Cho) revel with sunshine, champagne, and karaoke. But an unexpected buzzkill arrives in the form of a pretentious and posh lawyer (Conrad Ricamora), who seems to sneer at the group’s idea of a good time. Despite an awkward introduction, the lawyer and the group’s main character (Booster) kick off a promising romance. But can it be more than a summer fling? — K.P.
How to watch: Fire Island is streaming on Hulu.
4. Sleepless in Seattle
It might get frequently confused with You’ve Got Mail, but Sleepless in Seattle is in solid company in the niche but excellent Tom-Hanks-and-Meg-Ryan-fall-in-love-without-meeting genre. Hanks plays widower Sam, whose son (Ross Malinger) convinces him to talk about his late wife on the radio. This story captivates listeners around the country, including Annie (Ryan), who writes to Sam and asks him to meet her at the Empire State Building on Valentine’s Day. As the day ticks closer, life mostly goes on, but chance encounters and missed connections pile up until the fateful meeting.
We know what you’re thinking: Do they go to the Empire State Building? Do they live happily ever after?? Who knows!!* — Proma Khosla, Senior Entertainment Reporter
How to watch: Sleepless in Seattle is now streaming on Hulu.
5. Crush
Credit: Hulu
The most refreshing thing about Hulu’s latest queer rom-com is that all the characters are super queer. This isn’t a coming-out story about the one queer girl at her high school or the shy lesbian who’s secretly crushing on the cool, unattainable straight girl — relatable, yes, but we’ve done it. Crush follows a playful (if predictable) love triangle in which very-out Paige (Rowan Blanchard) desperately tries to lock down her longtime crush Gabriella (Isabella Ferreira), the popular girl (guess what, she’s queer!), while drumming up a sweet connection with Gabi’s twin sister (Auli’i Cravalho), an introverted bi skater-girl type. The flirting is a little elementary at times, but the short-and-sweet Crush excels at showing young queer people being themselves and getting a sappy love story to call their own.* — Oliver Whitney, Freelance Contributor
How to watch: Crush is streaming on Hulu.
6. 50 First Dates
50 First Dates is one of those rom-coms you never remember loving quite as much as you do. (See what I did there?) Adam Sandler stars as a laid-back womanizer who falls head over heels for a woman with short-term memory loss, played by Drew Barrymore. This classically funny premise offers a framework for some killer comedic acting by the movie’s entire cast, as well as a surprisingly sensitive reflection on what it means to love unconditionally. Plus, it’s got penguins! And a walrus! —A.F.
How to watch: 50 First Dates is streaming on Hulu.
7. I’m Your Man
Credit: Bleecker Street
Want an edge of sci-fi to your romance? Then you’ve got to watch this 2021 gem, which was German’s entry for the Best International Feature Oscar. Maren Eggert stars as a scientist tasked with testing out a robot companion to see how convincingly human it might be. Tom (Dan Stevens) is handsome, attentive, and loves to dance. He’s designed to say the right thing and anticipate every need. The idea is seductive, but this deeply rational (and a bit cynical) woman isn’t so eager to fall for a robo-boy toy whose beating heart is an aim-to-please algorithm. Can real love bloom between (wo)man and machine? And what would that even mean!? Find out with I’m Your Man. — K.P.
How to watch: I’m Your Man is streaming on Hulu.
8. Rye Lane
Credit: Searchlight Pictures
Among the most winsome movies of Sundance 2023 is this South London-set romantic comedy. Directed by Raine Allen Miller, Rye Lane stars David Jonsson (Industry) and Vivian Oparah (Class) as heartbroken twenty-somethings who fatefully cross paths and might just tumble into new love. A humbling beginning with a bathroom meet-not-so-cute swiftly spins into a happenstance first date full of fun, banter, surprises, and a wee bit of breaking and entering. (Hey, breakups get messy.)
Painted in saturated colors, paced like a dance party, and brought to life by a kinetic ensemble cast, Rye Lane is a pure pleasure to watch. But it’s Jonsson and Oparah, with their killer comedic timing and off-the-charts chemistry, that make this movie soar.* — K.P.
How to watch: Rye Lane is now streaming on Hulu.
9. Notting Hill
English screenwriter Richard Curtis is the luminary of rom-coms, having contributed to such delights as Love Actually, Bridget Jones’s Diary, About Time, and Four Weddings and a Funeral. Among his most beguiling romances is this tale of boy meets movie star. Hugh Grant headlines as a humble bookshop owner whose simple life is thrown into spin — and the spotlight — when he falls for an ultra-famous American actress (Julia Roberts). Their flirtations are an alluring collision of British charm and American candor. The supporting cast boasts a scene-stealing Rhys Ifans, and the finale will make you cheer and swoon. — K.P
How to watch: Notting Hill is streaming on Hulu.
10. Sliding Doors
If you can handle a dash of drama in your rom-com, you’ll love writer/director Peter Howitt’s 1998 head-spinner. Offering two tales of love for one subway ticket, Sliding Doors follows Londoner Helen Quilley (Gwyneth Paltrow) on a splintered story of what happens to her if she catches her train or misses it. In one scenario, she catches her philandering boyfriend (John Lynch) in bed with another woman (a deliciously devilish Jeanne Tripplehorn). In the other, she arrives too late to expose his infidelity, so their relationship rumbles along while her other persona pursues passion with a charming stranger (John Hannah). Peppered with whimsy, warmth, and some shocking turns, this one will have you gasping, but leave you grinning.* — K.P
How to watch: Sliding Doors is now streaming on Hulu.
11. Happiest Season
Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis star in this sapphic rom-com co-written and directed by Clea DuVall. But rather than it being a charming tale of falling in love, this is a rocking Christmas-set comedy about the drama of meeting the parents. When metropolitan Abby (Stewart) accompanies her girlfriend Harper (Davis) home for the holidays, she not only meets kooky family members, and a smoking hot ex (Aubrey Plaza), but also discovers her lover is closeted. Can this couple have a happy holiday under these conditions? Hijinks, drag queens, and Dan Levy will ensue. —K.P.
How to watch: Happiest Season is now streaming on Hulu.
12. Easy A
Want a raunchy teen comedy that’s surprisingly smart? Then revisit 2010’s winsome rom-com Easy A. Emma Stone stars as Olive, a modern-day Hester Prynne, which in this context means a high school girl who’s trading fictional sexcapades for gift cards. The boys get high fives for their sexual prowess, while — double standards being what they are — Olive get slut-shamed as a pariah. But don’t worry, she’s got a plan.
Will Gluck directs a star-studded cast that includes You‘s Penn Badgley as a lovable crush, Amanda Bynes as a judgmental mean girl, Thomas Haden Church as a confounded mentor, and Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci as Olive’s parents, who are funny, outrageous, and the definition of couple goals. They’ve got a pocketful (pocketful, pocketful) of sunshine, and all you have to do to enjoy is hit play.* — K.P.
How to watch: Easy A is now streaming on Hulu.
UPDATE: Oct. 27, 2023, 11:28 a.m. EDT This post has been updated to reflect the current selection available on Hulu.
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