Hulu always serves up a great offering of critically acclaimed movies. And each month, it adds more and more movies to its deep library, which is why it's one of the best streaming services out there.
But sometimes it can be a struggle to find exactly which new arrivals are worth watching first. Lucky for you, we've sifted through the new movies on Hulu this in January 2025 and landed on a group that meets the rarified threshold of 90% "fresh" or higher on Rotten Tomatoes.
This month, that group of acclaimed movies includes "Paddington," which might just be one of the most widely beloved movies ever made. It also includes "The Town," one of the best crime thrillers of the 2010s. Unfortunately, it does not include the "John Wick" movies — the first three are now on Hulu, but they all fall just short of the 90% "fresh" rating cutoff.
So without further ado, here are five new-to-Hulu movies this month with 90% or higher on Rotten Tomatoes. And don't forget to check out the full list of everything new on Hulu in January 2025.
'Paddington' (2014)
"Paddington" is almost universally beloved, perhaps only surpassed by the sequel "Paddington 2," which some genuinely consider one of the best movies ever made. Based on the Paddington Bear character created by Michael Bond, this comedy stars Ben Whishaw as the voice of the marmalade-loving bear.
Paddington is the only animated character in this otherwise live-action film. It also stars Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Madeleine Harris and Samuel Joslin as the Brown family, who take in the bear from "Darkest Peru" when they discover him lost in Paddington Station. However, they're not the only ones to discover the talking bear. Museum taxidermist Millicent Clyde (Nicole Kidman) also becomes aware of his existence and becomes obsessed with adding him to her collection.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%
Watch on Hulu now
'Sleep' (2023)
"Sleep" will require subtitles, but don't let that put you off this acclaimed Korean-language horror movie. A dark thriller with some comedic elements, this movie stars Jung Yu-mi as Soo-jin and Lee Sun-kyun as Hyeon-soo, a newlywed couple in South Korea. One night, Soo-jin shockingly discovers Hyeon-soo sleepwalker, something he's never done before.
If that wasn't creepy enough, when he enters this trancelike state, he turns into an entirely different person and the next morning, he has no memory of anything that happened. Now, she's worried he might harm their unborn child. This 95-minute thriller gets a ton of praise for its director Jason Yu's ability to build a well-constructed horror movie and even was nominated for Caméra d'Or at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%
Watch on Hulu starting January 21
'Sorry to Bother You' (2018)
"Sorry to Bother You" stars LaKeith Stanfield as Cassius "Cash" Green. Cash lives in his uncle Sergio's (Terry Crews) with his girlfriend Detroit (Tessa Thompson) and he desperately needs a job. He gets one as a telemarketer but only finds success when he starts using his "white voice" (voiced by David Cross) at the behest of his coworker Langston (Danny Glover).
This science fiction black comedy was a success commercially and critically when it came out in 2018. Debutant writer/director Boots Riley in particular, was showered with praise for his examination of classism and capitalism in America. If you want a movie that's both thought-provoking and entertaining, then this is the movie for you.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
Watch on Hulu now
'The Town' (2010)
![The Town - Official Trailer [HD] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/uAjECYnrYks/maxresdefault.jpg)
"The Town" is a phenomenal crime thriller, loaded with acting talent. It stars co-writer/director Ben Affleck as Douglas "Doug" MacRay, a member of a four-man bank robbing crew from Charlestown, Boston that includes his close friends James "Jem" Coughlin (Jeremy Renner), Albert "Gloansy" MacGloan (Slaine), and Desmond "Dez" Elden (Owen Burke). In the middle of a bank robbery, Jem takes the bank's manager Claire (Rebecca Hall) hostage and while he ultimately lets her go, Doug tracks her down and strikes up a friendship with her as he tries to figure out what she knows. That friendship quickly becomes something more.
Unfortunately, their relationship has some real problems. It turns out Claire does know something, though she doesn't realize that Doug is one of the people who robbed her. Further complicating things is FBI Special Agent Adam Frawley is now hot on the gang's tail, after connecting them to Irish mobster Fergus "Fergie" Colm (Pete Postlethwaite). As these opposing forces start to collapse in on each other, it becomes clear that this won't end happily ever after. Don't miss "The Town" on Hulu this month, nor Jeremy Renner's Academy Award-nominated performance.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 92%
Watch on Hulu now
'Stopmotion' (2023)
"Stopmotion" stars Stella Gonet as Suzanne Blake. Suzanne is a stop-motion animator who has crippling arthritis. Because of this handicap, she forces her daughter Ella (Aisling Franciosi) to help her finish the film she is working on. But when she suffers from a stroke, its up to Ella to finish the film. To do this, she rents an apartment which causes her to meet a little girl (Caoilinn Springall) who finds the story boring.
But when Ella works on creating a new story, things get gross, creepy and all too real. If you're a horror fan, this movie could be a must-watch, as critics loved it, particularly its disturbing and grotesque second half. Just keep in mind that it received a much more negative response from audiences.
Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%
Watch on Hulu now
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