3 sci-fi movies on Hulu you need to watch in December 2024

There aren’t a lot of new sci-fi movies to watch on Hulu this month, but there are a handful of great ones. And since everyone is busy with the holidays, we’ve narrowed things down to the three sci-fi movies on Hulu that you need to watch in December.

Our picks include an underrated adaptation of one of the all-time great sci-fi comedy novels, a less-great but still enjoyable sci-fi action flick, and a science-fiction drama that’s celebrating its fifth anniversary this year.

Need more recommendations? Then check out the best new movies to stream this week, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (2005)

Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

It’s unfortunate that Disney’s adaptation of Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy wasn’t a bigger hit, because it’s very funny, and there could have been some great sequels based on the novels. Adams co-wrote the script for this film before his death, and he makes an unexpected cameo that you may miss if you aren’t looking for it. Sherlock‘s Martin Freeman stars as Arthur Dent, the unluckiest man alive simply because he’s the last living human male when Earth is destroyed by alien construction workers.

The good news for Arthur is that his friend, Ford Prefect (Mos Def), was secretly an alien tour guide writer who saved him from being destroyed alongside the rest of the planet. Trillian (Zooey Deschanel), a woman Arthur barely knows, also survived Earth’s destruction, and now they’re both traveling with Ford and his “semi-cousin” Zaphod Beeblebrox (Sam Rockwell), and a depressed robot named Marvin (Alan Rickman) on an absurd quest to find the ultimate question. They already know the answer, they just don’t know what to make of it.

Watch The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy on Hulu.

I, Robot (2004)

20th Century Studios

Much like the recently profiled Bicentennial Man, I, Robot was inspired by the writings of Isaac Asimov… albeit with a much heavier emphasis on action than Asimov would have ever written. Will Smith stars as Del Spooner, a Chicago police detective who isn’t shy about sharing his distrust for robots. He’s partially cybernetic himself, after an accident, but he’s seen the cold and hard logic of robots first hand, and it frightens him.

Not even Spooner knows what to make of it when the world’s most prominent robot inventor, Dr. Alfred Lanning (James Cromwell), is killed and the prime suspect is his prototype robot, Sonny (Alan Tudyk). Unlike other robots, Sonny has emotions and he’s especially friendly toward Del, whom he believes will lead robots into a new era. First, Del has to figure out who murdered Lanning, as well as the secrets at the heart of the case.

Watch I, Robot on Hulu.

Ad Astra (2019)

20th Century Studios

It’s funny how so many sci-fi dramas boil down to daddy issues. But there’s nothing funny about Ad Astra, which takes its story seriously. In the 22nd century, enigmatic power surges are threatening life on Earth, and it’s all connected to the Lima Project, a satellite in orbit of Neptune that hasn’t been heard from in decades.

Space Command’s Roy Richard McBride (Brad Pitt) has a personal connection to the Lima Project, since his father, H. Clifford McBride (Tommy Lee Jones), was the commander of that doomed mission. Now, Roy’s on a mission of his own to reach the missing satellite and determine if there are any survivors. That’s assuming that Roy can endure the difficult journey ahead.

Watch Ad Astra on Hulu.