Best Free Movies on YouTube You Can Watch Right Now (2023)

With the streaming wars hotter than ever, it’s hard to decide which to subscribe for. Maybe you’ve got a movie in mind, look it up, and find out it’s on HBO Max. But you’ve only got Netflix and Amazon Prime and Disney+ and Hulu and Starz and Showtime and Paramount+! What’ll you do?! These are hard days we’re living in. Most of us are bored with our DVD/Blu-ray collections, and when what we want to watch is only streaming somewhere else, and forking over the four dollars to view it is simply out of the question because subscribing to all the streamers has rendered you broke. But, there is still a refuge.

YouTube is that place. The online platform has a surprisingly robust library of ad-supported free movies. Here are the very best movies you can stream for free on the site at the moment. And for more ideas on where to watch movies for free, here's our handy guide.

Editor's note: This article was updated September 2022 to include The Prince and Me, Beauty Shop, Salt, Practical Magic, Girl in Progress, Series of Unfortunate Events, Girl Interrupted, Independence Day, Iron Giant, Annihilation, and Freaks.

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Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

Mel Brooks | Comedy Romance | 1 hr 44 min

Cast: Cary Elwes, Roger Rees, Richard Lewis

The name Mel Brooks is ubiquitous in the comedy world, with the ninety-five-year-old writer/director/actor having busted the boundaries of genre barriers (say that five times fast) with films like Spaceballs, Blazing Saddles, and History of the World: Part I. But perhaps one of his best — and most overlooked — is 1993’s Robin Hood: Men in Tights, featuring Hollywood heartthrob Cary Elwes as the titular archer. Putting a playful spin on the classic tale of love and revenge, Men in Tights is perhaps the pinnacle of Brooks’ attempts at parodying the genres that influenced his filmmaking, down to the goofy, Old Hollywood style musical number about having to be a man to pull off wearing tights. Featuring stellar performances from an iconic supporting cast — including the late Roger Rees as the Sheriff of Rottingham, and a hilarious cameo from Patrick Stewart as King Richard I — the film is perfect for a night in with a couple of drinks and a lot of laughs. — Maggie Boccella

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The Prince & Me (2004)

Martha Coolidge | Romantic Comedy Family | 1 hr 51 min

Cast: Julia Stiles, Luke Mably, Miranda Richardson

The Prince & Me stars Julia Stiles(The Bourne Identity) at the height of her romantic comedy stardom as college student Paige, who meets and ultimately falls for Danish student and secret prince Eddie (Luke Mably). The Prince and Me is a predictably cute and sweet romance that can be perceived as wish fulfillment to many young girls but is undoubtedly a family-friendly fairy tale. Director Martha Coolidge (Valley Girl) maintains an enjoyable couple of hours where her actors are safe to play without taking many risks or pushing boundaries to be edgy. – Yael Tygiel

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Beauty Shop (2005)

Bille Woodruff | Comedy | 1 hr 45 min

Cast: Queen Latifah, Alicia Silverstone, Djimon Hounsou

Queen Latifah dominates in Beauty Shop, an uproarious comedy about an ambitious and talented hairdresser who opens her own business in Atlanta after she quits working for her shady and incompetent former boss (Kevin Bacon). Supporting Latifah is the star power of Sherri Shepherd, Alicia Silverstone, and icon Alfre Woodard, and on top of the non-stop laughs, Beauty Shop leans into the romantic comedy genre with love interest Joe, played by Djimon Hounsou (Shazam). Directed by Bille Woodruff (Black Lightning), Beauty Shop comes from the producers of the Barber Shop series, as well as a previous Queen Latifah film Bringing Down the House. – Yael Tygiel

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Salt (2010)

Phillip Noyce | Action Spy Thriller Mystery | 1 hr 40 min

Cast: Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, Chiwetel Ejiofor

Before Black Widow and Red Sparrow, Salt hit the screen with Angelina Jolie driving the action in a heavily male-dominated genre. With a script by Kurt Wimmer and directed by Phillip Noyce, Salt follows a CIA agent named Evelyn Salt, who does whatever she can to clear her name after being accused of being a Russian sleeper agent. Supported by Liev Schreiber(Ray Donavan), Salt is a thrilling, action-packed spy adventure that was originally written for an action star like Tom Cruise but later molded to become an underappreciated vehicle for Jolie, who is absolutely riveting in this role. – Yael Tygiel

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Practical Magic (1998)

Griffin Dunne | Fantasy Family Romance | 1 hr 44 min

Cast: Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Stockard Channing, Diane Wiest

Practical Magic is the perfect fall film. Starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman as magical sisters in a family of witches who are cursed never to live happily ever after, Practical Magic is entertaining, sometimes dark, and ultimately heartwarming. Based on the novel by Alice Hoffman, Practical Magic is directed by Griffin Dunne (This Is Us) with a screenplay co-written by Robin Swicord and Akiva Goldsman (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds). The impeccable casting is astounding, featuring Stockard Channing and Diane Wiest as Bullock and Kidman’s aunts, while Evan Rachel Wood (Westworld) appears as one of Bullock’s daughters. – Yael Tygiel

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Girl in Progress (2012)

Patricia Riggen | Comedy Drama | 1 hr 33 min

Cast: Eva Mendes, Cierra Ramirez, Patricia Arquette

Exploring intricate themes of womanhood, adulting, and maturity, Girl in Progress is a beautifully complex film directed delicately by Patricia Riggen (Dopesick) from a screenplay by Hiram Martinez (Snowpiercer). Eva Mendes (Hitch) stars in the touching coming-of-age dramedy as a single mother struggling to be a role model for her teenage daughter (Cierra Ramirez), who is blossoming into a young woman. In her debut role, Ramirez stands sturdy in scenes facing veterans like Patricia Arquette, who plays her teacher, and Matthew Modine(Stranger Things), a married doctor who is also her mother’s lover. Girl in Progress is an authentic look at growing up and finding your way, be it alone or with the support of loved ones. – Yael Tygiel

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Series of Unfortunate Events (2004)

Brad Silberling | Family Fantasy Mystery Comedy | 1 hr 48 min

Cast: Jim Carrey, Jude Law, Meryl Streep

Jim Carrey does his Jim Carrey thing in the first attempt at adapting Daniel Handler’s weird and wonderful A Series of Unfortunate Events book series. A Series of Unfortunate Events follows the three orphaned Baudelaire children as they are taken in by a strange and greedy relative named Count Olaf (Carrey). Intent on uncovering the mystery of their parents’ murder, the children embark on a journey for answers, all while being hunted by Olaf, who seeks to steal their large inheritance. Brad Silberling’s direction is pleasantly whimsical, paralleling the book series. – Yael Tygiel

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Girl Interrupted (1999)

James Mangold | Drama | 2 hrs 7 min

Cast: Winona Ryder, Angelina Jolie, Clea DuVall

Girl Interrupted is a film that defined a generation and skyrocketed Angelina Jolie (Tomb Raider) to superstardom. Based on the devastatingly real biography of Susanna Kaysen, Girl Interrupted reveals the story of a group of young women committed to a hospital for psychiatric care in the late 1960s. Director James Mangold (The Wolverine) harnessed breakout performances from Jolie and Winona Ryder (Stranger Things), but with such a lively cast, Girl Interrupted showcased many stars before they became recognizable names, including Clea DuVall, Brittany Murphy, and Jared Leto (The Suicide Squad). – Yael Tygiel

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Independence Day (1996)

Roland Emmerich | Sci-Fi Action | 2 hr 25 min

Cast: Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman

Annual viewing of the alien action movieIndependence Day, starring Will Smith in one of his first memorable movie roles, is required. Written by the team behindStargate, Roland Emmerich (Moonfall) and Dean Devlin (Leverage: Redemption), comes the story of the humans responsible for fighting an alien invasion. Featuring a prime Jeff Goldblum (Thor: Ragnarok) performance full of his trademark quips and Bill Pullman’s rousing turn as the President of the United States, Independence Day is a time-honored heart-pumping cinematic adventure. Though the special effects are outdated, their big-screen spectacle continues to provide suspense and excitement for July 4th celebrations across the nation. – Yael Tygiel

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The Iron Giant (1999)

Brad Bird | Family Adventure | 1 hr 26 min

Cast: Eli Marienthal, Jennifer Aniston, Vin Diesel, Harry Connick Jr.

BeforeBrad Bird worked with Pixar on timeless favorites such as The Incredibles and Ratatouille, he made the criminally underrated 1999 cult hit The Iron Giant.The film follows misfit Hogarth Hughes (Eli Marienthal) , a young boy who forms a deep bond with a giant robot (Vin Diesel) from Outer Space. Unfortunately for them, the United States government is seeking to destroy the metal goliath. The animated film has the classic Amblin feel and features jaw-droppingly good hand-drawn animation. It’s a story of friendship and youth tucked inside a fantastical story of a 50-foot-tall alien robot. The Iron Giant has all the hallmarks of what makes Bird such a special storyteller.

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Freaks (2018)

Zach Lipovsky, Adam B. Stein | Sci-Fi Thriller | 1 hr 45 min

Cast: Emile Hirsch, Bruce Dern, Grace Park, Amanda Crew

I’m going to save one of the major things that wows me about Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein’sFreaks for the very end of this blurb because I would suggest jumping into this story knowing as little as possible. But, do know that this is one of the best character-driven sci-fi thrillers of 2019. The movie features a show-stopping performance from Lexy Kolker as seven-year-old Chloe. She’s spent her entire life completely isolated from the world inside her home with her father, Henry (Emile Hirsch). He’s always told her that the outside world is a dangerous place, but the older Chloe gets, the more tempted she becomes to venture out - and then she finally does. Okay, are you ready for that semi-spoilery detail to further emphasize how wildly impressive this film is? Here it goes; I love a good big-budget superhero film as much as anyone, but if you’re looking to see what can be accomplished with a limited budget in the genre, Freaks is an absolute must-see. It’s one of those movies that’ll have you leaning in more and more with its early curiosities before absolutely exploding with creativity as Chloe discovers more and more about her reality. — Perri Nemiroff

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Annihilation (2018)

Alex Garland | Sci-Fi Horror | 1 hr 55 min

Cast: Natalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez

A strange and beautiful piece of sci-fi horror, Annihilation was the 2018 follow up to writer/director Alex Garland’s excellent debut, Ex Machina. This one is deeper, stranger, and features two of the more terrifying sequences the genre has seen in a long time. Natalie Portman stars as a biologist whose husband (Oscar Isaac) has returned after a year spent in “the Shimmer,” a penetrable alien-like bubble of a phenomenon that is spreading from its crash-landing point (and from which no one has emerged until now). She and three other female scientists (and one paramedic) venture into the Shimmer in an effort to gather information. It does not go well. Packed with stunning, eerie, and frightening visuals, the tone is consistently foreboding. Annihilation is about something both very large and very small. What this thing from deep in the cosmos is doing on earth is a larger representation of something all too common and destructive to the human experience.

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Batman (1966)

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Leslie H. Martinson | Action Comedy | 1 hr 45 min

Cast: Adam West, Burt Ward, Cesar Romero

Who says the Dark Knight can’t be fun? You don’t have to write off 1966’s Batman as a guilty pleasure, because the adaptation of the renowned television series is completely self-aware. It's packed with amazing jokes, featuring Batman’s shark repellent, The Riddler’s ridiculous clues, and the irreplaceable chemistry of Adam Westand Burt Ward. Everything that Joel Schumacher attempted to do with Batman & Robin was inspired by the original 1966 classic, but Schumacher didn’t capture the campy joy that West embodied. It remains a worthy entry in the DC canon, and a fun watch after some of the darker recent films. — Liam Gaughan

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The Illusionist (2006)

Neil Burger | Drama Mystery | 1 hr 48 min

Cast: Edward Norton, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Biel, Eddie Marden

Released only a few months after The Prestige, another period mystery centering on the life of a famous stage magician, The Illusionist is much less focused on crazy plot twists. The Prestige may be the flashier of the two, but The Illusionist is a stirring romantic epic featuring one of Edward Norton’s best performances. Norton stars as Eduard Abramovich, a poor man who rises in prominence thanks to his engaging magic show. Eduard yearns for the love of his childhood flame (Jessica Biel), but the two are separated by class. Dick Pope’s beautiful visuals earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Cinematography. — Liam Gaughan

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Frank (2014)

Lenny Abrahamson | Musical Drama | 1 hr 35 min

Cast: Michael Fassbender, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Domhall Gleeson

Ah, how to describe Frank. Based on a newspaper article discovered by musician Jon Ronson, Frank is a delightfully quirky film about Jon (Domhall Gleeson), an eager young man determined to make it as a musician and grow as an artist beyond the narrow walls of his small town. During a walk on the beach, he bumps into Don (Scoot McNairy), a jaded artist looking to find a replacement keyboardist for the very quirky pop band The Soronprfbs. Feeling as though he walked into a golden opportunity, Jon agrees to fill the spot. He quickly realizes he might be in over his head, however, when he meets Frank (Michael Fassbender), the enigmatic bandleader who can only function by wearing a giant papier-mâché mask over his head. Soon, you’ll learn to love the offbeat band just like Jon. — Emily Bernard

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The Road Within (2014)

Gren Wells | Drama Comedy | 1 hr 41 min

Cast: Zoë Kravitz, Robert Sheehan, Dev Patel

The difference between a good familiar story and a bad familiar story is often the characters. Gren Wells’ The Road Within, a remake of a German film, takes a standard road movie and delivers something fresh thanks to the trio of oddballs making the trek. Vincent (Robert Sheehan) is a young man with Tourette’s Syndrome who hopes to scatter his recently deceased mother’s ashes in the Pacific. The problem is, he’s been placed in a special clinic in order to get the treatment he needs by his father (Robert Patrick). But Vincent escapes, taking his roommate Alex (Dev Patel), who suffers from extreme OCD, and the anorexic Marie (Zoë Kravitz). The journey becomes one of self-discovery for all three, even sparking a romance between Vincent and Marie. But the big laughs are what make this charming indie a treat. You don’t want to find humor in the conditions of Vincent and Alex, but it’s played so earnestly, you can’t help but crack up at their outbursts and idiosyncrasies, which are frequent, and consistently funny. — Brendan Michael

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