There’s never been a better time to start your 2025 streaming watchlist now, and thankfully Hulu has released its everything new in January 2025 list well in advance. After scouring its lists of new movies, there are five with over 90% on Rotten Tomatoes that have made the cut this month.
If you’re a fan of unsettling horrors with unique plotlines or if crime thrillers are up your alley, this month’s list is for you. Starting off, we have a fairly recent British psychological horror packing both animation and live-action elements, followed by a South Korean black comedy horror mystery and a crime thriller written and directed by Ben Affleck. However if these are a little too intense for you, Hulu has others that rest on the more light-hearted side, including a family favorite based on a classic children’s book, and a comedy drama from Boots Riley.
It’s safe to say that our list of best Hulu movies will need some major reshuffling when Hulu’s next wave of titles arrive in the new year, and we’d imagine that the same will happen with our best Hulu shows list – it’s why we credit it as one of the best streaming services. Which movie will you kick off your 2025 with?
Stopmotion (2023)
RT score: 91%
Age rating: R
Length: 93 minutes
Director: Robert Morgan
Arriving on: January 7
Just from its incredibly unsettling trailer, Stopmotion is the first movie making it into my Hulu watchlist for January 2025. I’m a huge horror fan regardless, so throw in a creepy animation cross live-action hybrid twist and you immediately have my attention.
In Morgan’s directorial debut, this indie horror flick follows Ella (Aisling Franciosi) who’s overbearing and abusive mother enlists her to help her finish a stop-motion movie due to her becoming increasingly poorly with arthritis. When her mother falls even more unwell eventually slipping into a coma, Ella takes it upon herself to complete her mother’s work. Now living in a secluded apartment building, Ella meets a young girl who criticizes her work thus offering suggestions. As a result, Ella listens to her, becoming increasingly obsessed with the world of unsettling characters she has created.
Sleep (2023)
RT score: 95%
Age rating: R
Length: 94 minutes
Director: Jason Yu
Arriving on: January 21
Another horror new to Hulu in January 2025 comes from filmmaker Jason Yu in yet another directorial debut. Starring the late Lee Sun-kyun (Parasite), Sleep had its premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival and received critical praise from renowned South Korean director Bong Joon-ho.
Married couple Hyun-su (Lee Sun-kyun) and Soo-jin (Jung Yu-mi) live a harmonious life together having just welcomed a child into their lives, but this peace is quickly disturbed when Hyun-su starts experiencing night terrors like no other. Each night, he talks in his sleep and sleep walks displaying a behaviour that’s unlike his usual self with no recollection the next morning. Feeling threatened that her husband’s unsettling behaviour could harm their newborn, Soo-jin seeks the advice of a medical professional, however his behaviour intensifies.
Paddington (2014)
RT score: 97%
Age rating: PG
Length: 95 minutes
Director: Paul King
Arriving on: January 1
If you’re not a fan of creepy horrors then fear not, as Hulu is bringing this family-friendly favorite to the platform in January 2025. It’s definitely the most light-hearted movie in my list this month, standing the test of time becoming a British modern classic.
Based on the famous character of Paddington Bear from Michael Bond’s series of children’s books, Ben Whishaw stars as the marmalade-loving bear alongside an ensemble cast of British icons Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Julie Walters, Jim Broadbent, and Imelda Staunton. When an earthquake ruins his home in a Peruvian rainforest, a bear embarks on a journey to London where he meets the Brown family who take him in as their own. He settles into his new London life very well, but when he catches the eye of taxidermist Millicent Clyde (Nicole Kidman) he finds himself amidst a huge threat.
Sorry to Bother You (2018)
RT score: 93%
Age rating: R
Length: 105 minutes
Director: Boots Riley
Arriving on: January 1
The third directorial debut in my list comes from Boots Riley, whose black comedy sci-fi flick packs a powerful cast featuring LaKeith Stanfield (Get Out), Tessa Thompson, Terry Crews, Steven Yeun, and Armie Hammer.
Set in an alternate version of present-day Oakland, a Cassius Green (Stanfield) lives in his uncle’s garage struggling to make ends meet with rent. When he gets a job as a telemarketer, his new boss guides him on how to adopt a ‘white voice’ in order to present a casual persona to customer in which he swiftly succeeds. As his success grows and his presence in the company becomes highly valued, his days of worrying about rent are over. However as his friends and co-workers uncover the company’s inhumane values and thirst for corporate dominance, he’s offered a salary he could only dream of, and is torn between the two sides.
The Town (2010)
RT score: 92%
Age rating: R
Length: 124 minutes
Director: Ben Affleck
Arriving on: January 1
Written and directed by Ben Affleck, his crime thriller is adapted from the 2004 novel Prince of Thieves by Chuck Hogan about a Boston-based bank robber Doug MacRay – played by Affleck.
Serving as the leader of a crew of bank robbers, Doug shares a close bond with fellow thief James (Jeremy Renner) who during a raid holds a bank employee, Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall) hostage. Things get a complicated for Doug when he learns that the hostage lives in the same neighborhood, and the more he gets to know her, the more he realizes his deeper feelings for her. Coming to terms with the fact that he’s in love with her, he decides to flee his life of crime.
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