Summary

• The best psychological thrillers on Hulu offer a blend of genres and great plot twists, keeping viewers on edge and second-guessing everything.
• These thrilling movies range from modern tales of deception to classic murder-mysteries, showcasing the versatility of the genre on Hulu.
• With a mix of Oscar-winners, box office hits, and underrated gems, these tense thrillers play with the mind in exciting and captivating ways.

The best psychological thrillers on Hulu highlight the unsettling, compelling, and mind-bending nature of the genre. Hulu has emerged as one of the best platforms for existing movie content with a large library of new hits, old classics, and its original movies as well. Among the many titles currently available on Hulu, the best psychological thrillers stand out as an ideal viewing option for viewers who don't mind being challenged and put on edge.

Psychological thrillers can be very compelling stories as they can blend with a variety of other genres and often feature great plot twists. These are the types of movies that distort reality and have characters second-guessing everything as they search for the truth. The best psychological thrillers on Hulu show the versatility of the genre, with modern tales of deception and intrigue as well as period stories with a classic murder-mystery vibe. With Oscar-winners to box office hits to underrated gems, these tense thrillers play with the mind in exciting ways.

15 Haunting In Venice (2023)

Detective Hercule Poirot Investigates A Potentially Supernatural Case

A Haunting in Venice marks the third movie in Kenneth Branagh's Hercule Poirot franchise. The star-studded movies find Branagh bringing Agatha Christie's brilliant Belgian detective to life as he gets to the bottom of complex mysteries. As the title suggests, A Haunting in Venice brings a supernatural element into the story with Poirot attending a seance that turns deadly.

It is interesting seeing the rational detective begin to question what he is seeing, perhaps filled with doubt for the first time ever. With a cast that includes Tina Fey, Jamie Dornan, and Michelle Yeoh, critics hailed it as the best of Branagh's Christie adaptations.

14 The Guilty (2018)

A 911 Dispatcher Unravels A Kidnapping In Real Time

The Guilty is a single-setting thriller that puts the audience in the same high-pressure situation as the protagonist. A man named Asger Holm (Jakob Cedergren) is an alarm dispatcher who answers emergency calls for a living. After he picks up a call from a kidnapped woman, the call drops, and from that point on, the race is on to find the missing woman and her kidnapper before time runs out.

With basically one performance happening on screen, the movie perfectly captures the psychological journey this character goes on as his fight to save a life becomes far more complicated.

13 Flatliners (1990)

Students Experiment In The Afterlife

A star-studded cast of young Hollywood actors assembled for the surreal and eerie thriller Flatliners. The movie stars the likes of Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Bacon, and Julia Roberts as a group of young students who begin experimenting with experiencing death by purposely killing themselves and bringing themselves back to life.

The morbid premise gradually grows even more unsettling as the lines between life and the afterlife become blurred. That sense of reality falling apart is one of the cornerstones of the psychological thriller genre which Flatliners pulls off expertly.

12 Personal Shopper (2016)

A Girl Receives A Text Message From Beyond The Grave

A connection with the dead is a popular theme explored in psychological thrillers, such as in Personal Shopper. Kristen Stewart stars as a young woman living in Paris where she works as a shopper for a celebrity. However, her life is changed when she receives a mysterious text from someone claiming to be her deceased brother.

Personal Shopper is a challenging movie with a deliberate pace and jarring tonal shifts, but it is also a fascinating and heartbreaking ghost story. Stewart gives one of her best performances, earning nominations for several critics' choice associations.

11 Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007)

A Simple Crime Spirals Into Tragedy

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead begins like a crime movie before gradually descending into a psychological thriller that explores the torment caused by the guilt of an unspeakable crime. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke star as brothers who decide to solve their respective money issues by robbing a jewelry store owned by their parents.

Sidney Lumet's final movie is a beautiful cap to his amazing career with powerful and raw performances from an amazing ensemble of actors.

10 Phone Booth (2002)

The Choice To Answer A Ringing Phone Puts His Life In Danger

Like The Guilty, Phone Booth uses an isolated setting to put the audience in the same psychologically intense situation as the main character with no place to escape. Colin Farrell stars as a deceitful publicist who answers a ringing telephone in a phone booth and is told by the man on the other end that he will be shot if he hangs up.

What follows is a mind game where Farrell's character is forced to confront his mistakes and fight for his life. In one of his first starring roles, Farrell gives a star-making performance as a complex protagonist the audience roots for. It is a fast-paced and gripping ride from beginning to end.

9 The One I Love (2014)

A Couple Gets Unusual Help With Their Marital Problems

The One I Love is a terrific blend of a lot of different genres into something that feels totally unique and exciting. Elizabeth Moss and Jay Duplass star as a couple going through a difficult time in their marriage and decide to attend an experimental marriage counseling getaway in order to help address their issues.

With elements of comedy, sci-fi, and psychological thriller working wonderfully in sync

However, they soon find they are ed by some unexpected participants. This is the type of movie that works best when entering with as little information as possible. With elements of comedy, sci-fi, and psychological thriller working wonderfully in sync, it is an original approach to an examination of a troubled relationship.

8 Mandy (2018)

A Man Descends In A Nightmare On A Quest For Revenge

Before his acclaimed comeback role in Pig, Mandy proved Nicolas Cage was still making interesting and exciting movies even if it was under the radar. The movie finds Cage playing a loving husband whose ideal life is shattered when a deadly cult targets him and his wife. In the aftermath, he is consumed with embarking on a mission of revenge that takes him to unexpected places. The movie has a nightmarish quality as the violent odyssey breaks from reality while still being grounded in real emotions and characters. It makes for a surreal and bloody experience.

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7 Chronicle (2012)

A Superhero Origin Turns Into A Villain Story

The superhero genre blends with a psychological thriller in Chronicle while also using the found footage format in a fun way. The movie follows a group of teens who make a strange discovery that gives them superpowers.

Chronicle offers a refreshingly original superhero movie

The movie begins as a fun superhero origin movie as the young men have fun with their new amazing abilities, but it gradually turns into a villain origin story as the power begins to corrupt one of the teens. Featuring standout performances from Michael B. Jordan and Dane DeHaan, Chronicle offers a refreshingly original superhero movie.

6 Contagion (2011)

An Eerily Realistic Look At A Global Pandemic

Contagion was a riveting thriller when it was initially released in 2011, but it has since become a fascinating, almost prophetic story following the COVID-19 pandemic. Steven Soderbergh assembled an all-star cast that includes Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Marion Cotillard, and many more in the story of a deadly virus that quickly overtakes the world.

While there have been many movies on the subject, Contagion struck a chord with how grounded and realistic it presented the possibility. Real-life events later proved how accurate the movie was with many of its details.

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