The Steamiest Movies On Hulu Right Now
The best movies are windows into the best aspects of our shared humanity: doubt, danger, devotion, death, and, of course, the down and dirty. Love, romance, self-discovery, and sex are all integral to the human condition, and because of that, they're majorly important to the movies and shows we make. Aside from that particular, infamous category of movies that focuses just on the sex (which we won't be covering here), there are a ton of genres that use physical and emotional relationships to tell some of the most compelling stories there are, and even during their deep explorations into society and self, some can get pretty steamy.
Like the other top streaming platforms, Hulu has a plethora of worthwhile shows and movies, from its vast library of rented material to its many stellar originals. Naturally, that means that Hulu has its share of movies that show every side of love and lust, and just as naturally — some are better than others. If you're in the mood for that type of sweetness, spice, or a savory blend of the two, but aren't sure where to start or what's worth your time, check out this list of the steamiest movies on Hulu right now.
Professor Marston and the Wonder Women (2017)
These days, thanks to the evolution of modern comic books and especially to Gal Gadot's performance in several massively-popular DCEU films, Wonder Woman is considered a wholesome, triumphant character — an icon of strength, morality, and feminism worthy of adoration from leagues of young women (and all genders). Yet, the character spent a long time during her formative years as more of a kink icon than anything else, better known to many as a frequent damsel in distress and bondage subject than a superhero. The 2017 drama "Professor Marston and the Wonder Women" digs into the character's more erotic roots, specifically her real-life creator and the women who inspired her characterization.
The film, which garnered rave reviews, stars Luke Evans as William Moulton Marston, Wonder Woman's creator. It also stars Rebecca Hall as Elizabeth Holloway Marston and Bella Heathcote as Olive Byrne, the women who acted as Marston's research partners, polyamorous partners, and the inspiration for the character — they are the titular "Wonder Women." The film is interesting, original, and compelling, and it also tackles a number of uncommon (for the age) sexual styles in a positive, supportive way. Also, as you may have predicted, the women who inspired a BDSM icon are themselves pretty kinky.
R100 (2013)
Trust us: "R100" is not like any movie you've seen before. Even more than that, large chunks of "R100" are nothing like what you'll see in the rest of the film, anyway. You may read this and think to yourself, "Well, I've seen a lot of movies," but we guarantee that none can prepare you for "R100" in its totality and that only adds to its value. At times, the film is funny, heartbreaking, tense, and most of all, unpredictable, and even if it didn't have its share of steamy scenes, it would merit a viewing.
The 2013 Japanese dramedy centers around a humdrum salesman named Takafumi who decides to take his secret submissive kink to the extreme by joining the most exclusive, eccentric BDSM club available. Instead of private sessions or sexual intercourse, as you might expect from such a club, the dominatrixes spend a year tormenting Takafumi at random intervals and in increasingly unexpected ways, whether he is in private or in public.
One of the first dominatrixes to plague Takafumi surprises him as he sits in a restaurant, trying to eat his sushi. She stands silently behind him, punching his food into a paste and watching as he eats the mess with his hands. Another simply runs vaguely threatening laps around him while he's out walking at night, while another interrupts him while he's visiting his comatose wife and using her mastery of impressions to torment him in his wife's voice. Seriously, there is no other film like "R100."
A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy (2011)
Did you like the film "Sisters," in which Amy Poehler and Tina Fey co-star as the titular siblings who throw one last, epic, blowout party before their parents sell their childhood home? Or perhaps did you dislike the film, thinking it could have used more orgy sequences? Either way, you're in for a treat when you watch "A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy," which featured the exact same plot as "Sisters" a full four years earlier but trades out the party for an all-night orgy between friends.
True to its name, "A Good Old-Fashioned Orgy" is chock full of sex sequences, especially in its final act, and there is no shortage of variation, either. The steaminess is there, but the movie is also good for a few laughs (which, according to critic and fan reviews, might be all its good for), thanks to its all-star cast of comedy actors, including Jason Sudeikis, Leslie Bibb, Lake Bell, Nick Kroll, Tyler Labine, Lindsay Sloane, Martin Starr, Lucy Punch, and Will Forte. Don't go into the movie expecting "Citizen Kane," and you'll find yourself with a quick detour through some genuinely charming comedic banter and plentiful steaminess.
Elena Undone (2010)
If you start "Elena Undone" on Hulu looking for steaminess, you'll first have to bear some decidedly steam-less shlock for a while, but in the end, it will be worth it. Within ten minutes, the movie's soap-opera camerawork, lighting, dialogue, soundtrack, performances, and heavy-handed narration (and everything else, really) are likely to send some viewers running to the bigger-budgeted hills. But when "Elena Undone" finally gets going, thanks almost entirely to the performances of Necar Zadegan and Traci Dinwiddie as main characters Elena and Peyton, respectively, it becomes a decent romance with a fairly fresh take, alongside an intimate look at a scandalous love affair.
Elena is a pastor's wife, and the first fifteen minutes of the movie are almost exclusively dedicated to hammering home how stifled that has made her. When she finally meets Peyton, a lesbian writer who is as non-stifled as can be, she finally starts to open up, and boy does she ever. Tensions gradually rise between the two, and at around 54 minutes in, they bubble over in a big way. From then on, if you can overlook writer Nicole Conn's grating dialogue (like Elena telling Peyton her kiss "is soft, soft like velvet"), Elena and Peyton might as well be Pacino and De Niro because this movie is pure "Heat."
Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies (2020)
If you're in the market for a spicy movie on Hulu, what better than a documentary that chronicles the entire history of spiciness in movies? The 2020 documentary "Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies" lives up to its name, showcasing the most famous and foxiest moments in cinema history, and is therefore virtually guaranteed to offer whatever strain of spice you're after.
The documentary moves from the earliest days of film to the modern era (at least as recent as the 2017 HBO series "The Deuce"), along the way interviewing a number of actors and actresses, many of whom acted out the nudity in question. Being true to its subject, "Skin" doesn't censor cinematic nudity or shy away from its presentation in any way. It focuses on major milestones for sex and skin in movie history, films such as "Caligula," "Last Tango in Paris," "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," "Boogie Nights," and more. Actresses like Shannon Elizabeth speak on their iconic nude scenes — in her case the now-controversial masturbation scene in "American Pie" — and reveal how the scenes were shot, what they meant to the cast and crew, and what they meant to cinema in general. "Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies" is a stimulating watch, even more so for your brain than anything else.
Nymphomaniac Volume I (2014)
As a Lars von Trier film, "Nymphomaniac" is very predictably one of the strangest, most unique, most insightful, and most provocative entries in this list. Like Trier's other major works, like "Breaking the Waves," "Antichrist," and "Melancholia," the 2014 drama is unlike any of its contemporaries and it is all but guaranteed to challenge its viewers throughout. Yet amid all the avant-garde camera work, oblique dialogue, and discomforting dives into mental health, "Nymphomaniac" also finds time to live up to its name and get pretty overtly racy.
For anyone looking for steam on Hulu, "Nymphomaniac" has good news in three parts: The adult scenes are numerous, they're exceptionally explicit, and the movie is long — very long. The original version is a staggering 325 minutes (or five hours and 25 minutes) long, which forced von Trier to edit it down to a tidy four hours and then split it into two volumes. Both volumes stand relatively well on their own, especially if you have a taste for von Trier's commitment to psychological exploration over plot. As a chronicle of the life of nymphomaniac Joe (Charlotte Gainsbourg), "Nymphomaniac" works as both an uninhibited look at hypersexuality and a deep, dense study of character.
Not Another Teen Movie (2001)
Though the 2001 satire "Not Another Teen Movie" is by far the oldest movie on this list, it holds up to modern standards surprisingly well. It's not the type of movie that will ever win over a lion's share of critics, but like any good satire, it does shed light on tropes kept too long in the dark, and while it does so — it gets fairly risqué and pretty darn funny. Both assets reach their peak, at least for a great many fans, when a young Chris Evans acts out a scene wearing nothing but a whipped cream bikini.
It's entirely possible, in fact, that "Not Another Teen Movie" hits harder now than it did upon release, as the past couple of decades have caused society to begin looking harder at the treatment of women, especially young women, in film (and the film industry). In 2001, however, the movie — whether parody or not — wasn't perceived by critics as a parody as much as it was just another example of the genre, and it suffered for it. Nowadays, "Not Another Teen Movie" more obviously holds up a decent mirror to the tropes and flaws of teen comedies, as well as including its share of sexy scenes.
Lost Girls & Love Hotels (2020)
Of all the steamy movies on Hulu right now, "Lost Girls & Love Hotels" probably boasts the most adult content per frame. Be aware going in, however, that every scintillating scene comes with a price: the script, direction, and performance from lead Alexandra Daddario hammer home the point that sex is not the same as sensuality, romance, or even simple fun. Instead, Daddario's character in "Lost Girls & Love Hotels" is a consistent warning that sex can sometimes be used as an unhealthy coping mechanism and a powerful dissociation from reality. Nevertheless, it's still exceptionally steam-filled.
Daddario is the film's main draw, and perhaps not for the reason you think. The actress has received consistent attention over the years for her attractiveness, even landing multiple roles in which she was purposefully meant to portray a somewhat two-dimensional object of affection. As she told Men's Journal about her nudity in "True Detective" and her career thereafter, "in my heart I'm just a theater nerd, and I sort of took that and said, 'This is good for my career,' and embraced it... it's great, it's fun, but I think it can be negative, some of the attention, and so I try to ignore some of the more negative aspects of it." With "Lost Girls & Love Hotels," Daddario takes that double-edged sword and wields it like a master, revealing the truth about addiction to intimacy — ugliness and all.
Sharp Stick
For fans of Lena Dunham and her unique blend of realism, insight, wit, and whimsy, her 2022 coming-of-age comedy "Sharp Stick" is a must-watch. For better or worse, it may be the writer's Lena Dunham-est script yet, and as a result, you can expect it to tackle some of the most difficult, nuanced aspects of female romance and sexuality you can imagine. Like "Girls," the characters in "Sharp Stick" are heightened, animated, and quirky, but still somehow completely believable, and likewise, what their story reveals about love and life seems almost impossibly universal. Yet, regardless of its themes, messages, and merit, it's also worth a watch for being one the steamiest things on Hulu.
In the film, Kristine Froseth plays the repressed, naive Sarah Jo, who decides to take charge of her sexuality (or lack thereof) and give herself an accelerated course in all things sex. Her education begins when she enters into an affair with one very married Jon Bernthal, as all she wants is to learn how to please him. Then, when the affair falls apart, she turns his sex education into a way to stick it to Bernthal's character by surpassing him as a sexual being. The execution may be chaotic, but "Sharp Stick" definitely delivers on the usual Dunham fare, including the steam.
Ammonite (2020)
You may have heard of the period romance "Ammonite" for a few reasons. One reason is its status as the token "forbidden love romance as Oscar-bait" movie of 2020, another is its critical acclaim, and yet another is its obvious role as the inspiration for the "Saturday Night Live" sketch "Lesbian Period Drama." In that sketch, Kate McKinnon and Carey Mulligan play blatant stand-ins for Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan from "Ammonite," complete with all the will-they-won't-they sexual tension and the inevitable, explosive release. Unlike the sketch, however, "Ammonite" has a genuine story to tell, and the chemistry between Winslet and Ronan keeps its otherwise-standard romantic storyline afloat.
The two masterful actresses keep the film alive — ironic, given that it is about digging up dead animals — and infuse it with some palpable electricity. The romance and physicality they share are certainly spicy, and they're made even spicier by the taboo nature of everything they do. It takes a long time for Winslet and Ronan to share their first, meek, tentative kiss in "Ammonite," but from then on, the pair move quickly. Their love and lust develop quickly enough that the "SNL" sketch parodied their (ahem) advanced physical maneuvers with the line, "It's 1840. I don't think that's been invented yet."
Trust (2021)
Movies like 2021's "Trust" telegraph their sauciness immediately. Before the movie even begins, the Hulu synopsis describes it as "sexy and twisty," and dubious wording aside, the presence of Victoria Justice and Matthew Daddario (brother to actress Alexandra Daddario) as its stars confirms at least the sexiness. The affirmations continue as the opening scenes feature montages of sex, models, erotic art, and almost compulsive flirting. Then the main plot is formed, in which both leads begin illicit, extramarital affairs, and by this point, anyone watching "Trust" knows exactly what's on sale.
For Justice's character Brooke, the first temptation comes in the form of Ansgar, a statuesque Irish artist specializing in nude painting. For Daddario's character Owen, it's the young, blonde student/fangirl Amy. The most interesting feature of "Trust" begins to slowly reveal itself after the first infidelity (and yes, spoiler: this movie about affairs does include at least one affair), as a series of double-crosses and hidden motivations start to show that the tryst, along with any potential trysts thereafter, is far more complicated than it seemed at first. Ultimately, the movie is indeed all about trust, but given its cast and characters, an equally apt title would be lust.
Sex Appeal (2002)
More than any other movie on this list, the 2022 Hulu original "Sex Appeal" is about the wild, awkward, fumbling melee that occurs when young adults first discover their sexualities, and all the joys and complications they bring with them. Even through its wacky, sitcom-esque plot — which centers around a high school prodigy developing an app to make her first time having sex as scientifically structured as possible — "Sex Appeal" manages to tell a coming-of-age story as mature as it is fun. And did we mention it also manages to get pretty steamy?
The movie stars up-and-comer Mika Abdalla as the studious Avery and Jake Short as Larson, her lifelong friend who she ropes into becoming her "research partner" in collecting data on the optimal procedures for foreplay and sex. Though the way in which Avery and Larson eventually begin to catch feelings for each other won't surprise you, the movie's ending and the way in which their feelings are reconciled very well might (and no spoilers here). Either way, "Sex Appeal" lives up to its name, especially for younger audiences, who may have recently endured similar emotional rollercoasters — without an app to guide them through it.