Love is a magical thing. It can also be a terrible thing. But whether you have it in your life or not, most of us can enjoy a solid romantic comedy. Either it’s a fun, light way to spend a movie night or you can laugh at the foibles and trials of other people without feeling them too closely. Hulu knows how to give the people what they want, which is why it’s assembled a great lineup of romantic comedies for instant enjoyment. But in such a crowded genre, there are bound to be some duds! These are the best rom-coms on Hulu now.
Need more rom-coms this weekend? Check out our roundups of the best rom-coms on Amazon Prime Video and the best romantic comedies on Netflix.
As Good As It Gets (1997)
Jack Nicholson is all grumpy charisma in this rom-com about an obsessive-compulsive, rude, romantic fiction writer who finds his edges softened when he looks after his gay neighbor Simon’s (Greg Kinnear) dog. While finally taking care of something other than himself, the writer soon finds he can finally make room for love (with Helen Hunt’s single mom character, Carol) — something he’s never been able to do for himself, despite writing about it for everyone else.
Rotten Tomatoes: 85%
Stars: Jack Nicholson, Greg Kinnear, Helen Hunt
Director: James L. Brooks
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 138 minutes
It’s Kind of a Funny Story (2010)
A bit heavier than your average rom-com, It’s Kind of a Funny Story still shines a light on love through some darker humor. Stressed-out 16-year-old Craig Gilner (Keir Gilchrist) checks himself into a mental health clinic, soon finding that the youth wing is closed, forcing him to spend a mandated five-day stay with adults. But while he’s there, he meets a new mentor in Bobby (Zach Galifianakis) and becomes drawn to another teen, Noelle (Emma Roberts), who might just be the key to his recovery.
Rotten Tomatoes: 55%
Stars: Keir Gilchrist, Emma Roberts, Zach Galifianakis
Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 100 minutes
Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015)
This intergenerational romantic comedy thrives on the charms of its two leads, Sally Field and Max Greenfield. Doris (Field) is an older, single woman who becomes smitten with a younger co-worker (Greenfield) in her office. With the help of her best friend’s granddaughter, Doris comes up with a clever scheme to get his romantic attention.
Rotten Tomatoes: 85%
Stars: Sally Field, Max Greenfield, Isabella Acres, Tyne Daly
Director: Michael Showalter
Rating: R
Runtime: 90 minutes
Under the Tuscan Sun (2003)
The romantic ideal: Eloping to Tuscany to fall in love with a handsome Italian gentleman. Frances Mayes (Diane Lane) lives out this romantic fantasy after learning her husband is cheating on her. Her life turned upside down and finding herself in a depression, Frances decides to take a tour of Italy on the urging of her best friend. During the trip, the new divorcée impulsively buys a rural Tuscan villa and decides to create a new life in wine country. Soon enough, that life includes love when she meets the handsome Marcello (Raoul Bova).
Rotten Tomatoes: 62%
Stars: Diane Lane, Sandra Oh, Raoul Bova
Director: Audrey Wells
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 113 minutes
It Had to Be You (2016)
Ever since she was cast as the mom in How I Met Your Mother, Cristin Milioti has proven to be a very versatile romantic lead. In It Had to Be You, Milioti plays Sonia, a jingle writer who has a bright future in advertising. Sonia also has a boyfriend, Chris (Dan Soder), whom she has been dating for a long time. However, Sonia is so afraid of commitment that she not only shoots down Chris’ marriage proposal, she torpedoes their relationship and runs off to Italy to fulfill a fantasy. Unfortunately for Sonia, the reality of her romantic fantasies is less than ideal, and she may have let her true love get away.
Rotten Tomatoes: 60%
Stars: Cristin Milioti, Dan Soder, Halley Feiffer, Kate Simses, Erica Sweany
Director: Sasha Gordon
Rating: R
Runtime: 85 minutes
2 Days in Paris (2007)
The writing-directing debut of actress Julie Delpy, 2 Days in Paris follows Marion (Julie Delpy) and Jack (Adam Goldberg), a struggling international couple that embarks on a European vacation to try and piece their romance back together. But after arriving in Paris to pick up Marion’s cat, they decide to stay for two nights in the famous city. As the pair begins encountering a number of Marion’s French-speaking ex-lovers, Jack begins to question his girlfriend’s fidelity, further fraying the weather-worn strings keeping him and Marion together. A beautiful breakout from Delpy featuring amazing characters, graceful camerawork, and an emotional score (composed by Delpy), 2 Days in Paris is hard to forget.
Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Stars: Julie Delpy, Adam Goldberg, Daniel Brühl
Director: Julie Delpy
Rating: R
Runtime: 95 minutes
Happiest Season (2020)
Abby (Kristen Stewart) and Harper (Mackenzie Davis) a lesbian couple, are planning on spending the holidays with Harper’s right-leaning parents. Embarking on their yuletide trip, Abby has a surprise up her own sleeve in the form of a marriage proposal to her longtime girlfriend. Terms of endearment are prematurely shelved, though, when Abby discovers that Harper hasn’t officially come out to her mother and father. A loving rom-com and a new holiday classic with a glossy sheen, Happiest Season isn’t breathtakingly original, but its sincere story and earnest performances from Stewart and Davis help to elevate the film above other rom-com streaming fodder.
Rotten Tomatoes: 83%
Stars: Kristen Stewart, Mackenzie Davis, Mary Steenburgen, Dan Levy
Director: Clea DuVall
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 102 minutes
Plus One (2019)
Alice Mori (Maya Erskine) and Ben King (Jack Quaid) are friends in their late 20s and both unwed. Forced to watch everyone in their social circle get married, the duo makes a pact: For every wedding that they’re both invited to, they’ll act as each other’s “plus ones.” Leaning heavily on the onscreen chemistry between Erskine and Quaid, Plus One was released a year before Palm Springs (also featured in this roundup), a rom-com with a similar premise, albeit laced with surreal antics. Plus One goes for a more grounded approach, delivering low-key laughs instead of show-stopping set pieces, a narrative choice that works remarkably well.
Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Stars: Maya Erskine, Jack Quaid, Ed Begley Jr.
Director: Jeff Chan, Andrew Rhymer
Rating: NR
Runtime: 96 minutes
Young Adult (2011)
Young Adult stars Charlize Theron as young adult fiction writer Mavis Gary. Fueled by resentment, alcohol, and an unfulfilling career, Mavis leaves Minneapolis to return to her hometown of Mercury, Minnesota. Her intention: To steal her old high school sweetheart, Buddy (Patrick Wilson), from his married life. Mavis and her narcissistic tendencies are in for a rough ride though when a former classmate named Matt (Patton Oswalt) begins to infiltrate Mavis’ selfish plans for a glory-days homecoming. Powered by a rich lead performance by Theron and a biting script by Diablo Cody, Young Adult is a lesser-remarked-upon Jason Reitman flick but a worthy one all the same.
Rotten Tomatoes: 80%
Stars: Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Patrick Wilson
Director: Jason Reitman
Rating: R
Runtime: 94 minutes
Palm Springs (2020)
It’s November 9th, and Nyles (Andy Samberg) is heading to the wedding of friends Tala and Abe — again and again and again. It turns out that after entering a strange vortex in a desert cave, Nyles is stuck in an unbreakable time loop. The situation becomes more complicated once Sarah (Cristin Milioti), the maid of honor and sister of the bride, enters the portal with him, thereby cursing herself to the same vacuum. Oh, and let’s not forget that Nyles is being hunted by a man named Roy (J.K. Simmons). Taking the rom-com genre by storm, Palm Springs dishes out violence and hearty humor in all the right doses. It’s one you don’t want to miss. And miss. And miss.
Rotten Tomatoes: 94%
Stars: Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, J.K. Simmons
Director: Max Barbakow
Rating: R
Runtime: 90 minutes
Date Night (2010)
When Phil and Claire Foster (Steve Carrell and Tina Fey) decide to spice up their mundane date-night routine, Phil chooses a hot and popular Manhattan restaurant for him and his spouse. The only issue is they didn’t call ahead, and there are no more tables. No worries. Phil, ignoring Claire’s protests, takes the table of a no-show couple known as the Tripplehorns. While dining, Phil and Claire are approached by Collins (Common) and Armstrong (Jimmi Simpson), two mob enforcers that believe the Fosters are the Tripplehorns and that they’ve stolen from their boss, Joe Miletto (Ray Liotta). What follows is an action odyssey, buoyed by two incredible comedic performances from Carrell and Fey.
Rotten Tomatoes: 66%
Stars: Steve Carrell, Tina Fey, Mark Wahlberg
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: R
Runtime: 102 minutes
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