Last updated: August 30, 2026. This guide covers movies currently included with Amazon Prime Video in the United States. Availability may vary by region.
Amazon Prime Video has one of the largest movie libraries in streaming, which sounds great until you actually try to decide what to watch.
The service mixes Prime subscription movies with rentals, purchases and add-on channels, meaning something appearing in an Amazon search does not necessarily mean it is included with your Prime membership.
We have done the digging for you.
This guide collects 20 of the best movies on Prime Video right now, with recommendations covering science fiction, action, comedy, drama, romance, animation, thrillers and modern classics. More importantly, these are movies currently included with a standard Prime Video subscription rather than titles that require an additional rental or purchase.
The list will be updated regularly as Amazon adds new movies and licensed titles rotate out of the catalog, so bookmark this page whenever you are wondering what to watch on Prime Video.
TL;DR: The Best Movies On Prime Video Right Now
- Best new movie: Project Hail Mary
- Best animated movie: The Wild Robot
- Best action movie: Road House
- Best thriller: Challengers
- Best classic: Pulp Fiction
- Best drama: Sound of Metal
- Best comedy: The Big Sick
- Best romance: The Idea of You
- Best true story: Thirteen Lives
- Best movie for something weird: Saltburn
The 20 Best Movies On Prime Video Right Now
The movies below are presented in no particular order. Every title was included with Amazon Prime Video in the United States when this guide was last updated.
1. Project Hail Mary (2026)
Genre: Science Fiction, Adventure, Drama
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller
Best for: Science-fiction fans and viewers who loved The Martian
If there is one movie that should probably be at the top of your Prime Video watchlist right now, it is Project Hail Mary.
Based on the novel by Andy Weir, the film stars Ryan Gosling as Ryland Grace, a science teacher who wakes aboard a spacecraft without remembering who he is, why he is there or what exactly he is supposed to accomplish.
As his memories gradually return, Grace discovers that his mission is considerably more important than he imagined. Something is threatening the sun, and the solution could determine whether humanity survives.
Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller turn scientific problem-solving into genuine entertainment without losing sight of the character story underneath it. The less you know about where Grace’s mission ultimately takes him, the better.
For anyone searching for the best movie on Prime Video right now, this is the obvious starting point.
2. The Wild Robot (2024)
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Family
Voices: Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Catherine O’Hara
Best for: Families and animation fans
DreamWorks delivered one of its most beautiful animated movies with The Wild Robot.
ROZZUM unit 7134—or Roz—finds herself stranded in the wilderness after a shipwreck. Designed to serve humans, she instead encounters animals who have little idea what to make of the strange machine suddenly walking through their home.
Roz’s purpose changes when she becomes responsible for an orphaned gosling, forcing a machine programmed around efficiency to learn about parenting, community and sacrifice.
The painterly animation gives the movie an immediately distinctive look, but its emotional storytelling is what makes it memorable.
Children can enjoy the adventure and animals while adults may find themselves unexpectedly affected by what the movie has to say about parenthood and letting go.
3. Challengers (2024)
Genre: Drama, Romance, Sports
Starring: Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist
Best for: Viewers who like messy relationships and intense character dramas
Tennis is technically the sport being played in Challengers.
Power is the real game.
Zendaya stars as Tashi Duncan, a former tennis prodigy whose career was cut short by injury. Years later, she is coaching her husband Art, a professional player struggling to regain his confidence.
Then Art finds himself facing Patrick, his former best friend—and Tashi’s former boyfriend.
Director Luca Guadagnino moves backward and forward through the trio’s history, gradually revealing how competition, attraction, jealousy and ambition have shaped their relationships.
Even viewers with no interest in tennis may find themselves completely invested in who wins the final match because by that point, the score means considerably more than a trophy.
4. Pulp Fiction (1994)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Dark Comedy
Starring: John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Bruce Willis
Best for: A modern-classic movie night
More than three decades later, Pulp Fiction remains one of the defining movies of the 1990s.
Quentin Tarantino intertwines several Los Angeles crime stories involving hitmen Vincent Vega and Jules Winnfield, gangster Marsellus Wallace, his wife Mia, boxer Butch Coolidge and an assortment of criminals who repeatedly make questionable decisions.
The nonlinear structure was hugely influential, but the movie’s dialogue and performances are just as responsible for its longevity.
Samuel L. Jackson’s Jules remains one of his most recognizable roles, while John Travolta’s performance helped completely reshape his career.
If Pulp Fiction has somehow remained one of those classics you keep meaning to watch, Prime Video currently gives you a perfect excuse.
5. Air (2023)
Genre: Drama, Sports, Business
Starring: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Jason Bateman, Viola Davis
Best for: Sports fans and business dramas
Most viewers already know that Michael Jordan eventually signed with Nike.
Air somehow turns the negotiations into a suspenseful story anyway.
Matt Damon plays Nike basketball executive Sonny Vaccaro, who becomes convinced that an incoming NBA rookie named Michael Jordan is not simply another player worth signing. He believes Jordan could transform the company’s struggling basketball division.
The problem is that Nike is hardly Jordan’s preferred destination.
Ben Affleck directs and co-stars as Nike co-founder Phil Knight, while Viola Davis makes an enormous impression as Deloris Jordan.
The film is really about recognizing value before everyone else does—and then convincing everyone around you to take the same risk.
6. Sound of Metal (2020)
Genre: Drama, Music
Starring: Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci
Best for: Powerful character dramas
Riz Ahmed gives one of his finest performances in Sound of Metal.
He plays Ruben, a drummer whose life is built around touring and performing with his girlfriend Lou. When Ruben suddenly begins losing his hearing, he treats the diagnosis as a problem that needs to be fixed as quickly as possible.
The people around him encourage a different possibility: perhaps his life does not need to be restored exactly as it was.
The movie’s remarkable sound design allows audiences to experience parts of Ruben’s changing relationship with sound rather than simply watching from the outside.
Paul Raci is equally excellent as Joe, who runs a sober house for deaf people and challenges Ruben’s assumption that deafness automatically means something is broken.
7. Manchester by the Sea (2016)
Genre: Drama
Starring: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Lucas Hedges
Best for: Emotional character studies
Manchester by the Sea is not an easy movie to watch, but it is an exceptionally good one.
Casey Affleck plays Lee Chandler, a withdrawn handyman who returns to his Massachusetts hometown following the death of his brother.
Lee discovers that he has been named guardian of his teenage nephew, forcing him to confront a community—and a past—he deliberately left behind.
Kenneth Lonergan’s film understands that grief does not follow a convenient dramatic structure. Some wounds do not disappear because a character reaches the final act of a movie.
Michelle Williams has relatively limited screen time but delivers one of the film’s most devastating moments when her character and Lee finally confront what happened between them.
8. The Big Sick (2017)
Genre: Romance, Comedy, Drama
Starring: Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Holly Hunter, Ray Romano
Best for: Date night
The Big Sick takes a true story from Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon’s relationship and turns it into one of the strongest romantic comedies of the last decade.
Nanjiani plays a fictionalized version of himself, a struggling comedian who begins dating Emily despite knowing his traditional Pakistani family expects him to enter an arranged marriage.
Their relationship falls apart—then Emily suddenly becomes seriously ill.
Kumail finds himself spending time with her parents while she is placed in a medically induced coma, creating a wonderfully unusual romantic comedy where one half of the central couple disappears for a significant section of the movie.
Holly Hunter and Ray Romano are excellent as Emily’s parents, giving the film an entire second relationship worth caring about.
9. Saltburn (2023)
Genre: Drama, Thriller, Dark Comedy
Starring: Barry Keoghan, Jacob Elordi, Rosamund Pike
Best for: Viewers who want something provocative
Saltburn became one of Prime Video’s biggest conversation starters for a reason.
Barry Keoghan plays Oliver Quick, an Oxford student who becomes fascinated by his wealthy and charismatic classmate Felix Catton.
When Felix invites Oliver to spend the summer at his family’s enormous estate, Oliver enters a world of privilege that is simultaneously seductive and deeply strange.
Emerald Fennell has little interest in making the characters particularly respectable. Instead, she lets obsession, class resentment, desire and manipulation slowly consume nearly everyone involved.
Some scenes became infamous almost immediately after release. Even if you already know about them, the real fun comes from watching how Oliver gradually changes the balance of power inside the Catton family.
10. Road House (2024)
Genre: Action, Thriller
Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Daniela Melchior, Billy Magnussen, Conor McGregor
Best for: Straightforward action
Doug Liman’s Road House remake understands that subtlety is probably not what most viewers came looking for.
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Dalton, a former UFC fighter hired to protect a Florida Keys bar from the criminals attempting to intimidate its owner.
Dalton would rather avoid unnecessary violence.
Unfortunately, unnecessary violence keeps finding Dalton.
Gyllenhaal brings enough personality to keep the character from becoming another generic action hero, while Conor McGregor approaches his role as Knox with all the restraint of someone smashing through a door with a motorcycle.
The result is loud, ridiculous and entertaining in exactly the ways a modern Road House probably should be.
11. Heads of State (2025)
Genre: Action, Comedy
Starring: Idris Elba, John Cena, Priyanka Chopra Jonas
Best for: Buddy-action comedy
John Cena and Idris Elba play leaders of two allied nations who can barely tolerate each other.
Then someone tries to kill them both.
Cena’s U.S. president and Elba’s British prime minister are forced to cooperate after becoming targets of a larger international conspiracy.
The setup gives both actors plenty of opportunities to lean into their very different comedic personalities. Cena plays broader and louder, while Elba’s increasingly irritated reactions become half the joke.
Priyanka Chopra Jonas rounds out the central trio as MI6 agent Noel Bisset.
Heads of State is not attempting to reinvent action cinema. It knows the appeal is watching charismatic movie stars argue while surviving increasingly elaborate situations.
12. Deep Cover (2025)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime
Starring: Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom, Nick Mohammed
Best for: Crime comedies
Three improv performers joining an undercover police operation sounds like an obviously terrible idea.
That is precisely why Deep Cover works.
Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed play performers recruited to infiltrate London’s criminal world because their improvisational skills supposedly make them capable of reacting convincingly when situations change.
The mission quickly grows beyond anything they expected.
There is a clever comedy concept underneath the action: improv teaches performers to accept whatever information their scene partner gives them and keep moving forward.
That philosophy becomes considerably more dangerous when the people sharing the scene happen to be actual criminals.
13. The Idea of You (2024)
Genre: Romance, Drama
Starring: Anne Hathaway, Nicholas Galitzine
Best for: Romantic drama
Anne Hathaway stars as Solène, a 40-year-old single mother whose unexpected encounter with international pop star Hayes Campbell develops into something neither of them planned.
The relationship itself is only one part of The Idea of You.
As their romance becomes public, Solène discovers how differently the world judges a middle-aged woman dating a younger man compared with the countless examples where the genders are reversed.
Hathaway gives the movie considerably more emotional weight than its celebrity-romance premise might suggest, while Nicholas Galitzine manages to make Hayes feel like a person rather than simply an idealized pop star.
For viewers looking for romance on Prime Video, this is one of the platform’s better originals.
14. Another Simple Favor (2025)
Genre: Mystery, Comedy, Crime
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively
Best for: Twisty mysteries with a sense of humor
Stephanie Smothers and Emily Nelson probably should not be spending any more time together.
Naturally, Another Simple Favor reunites them anyway.
Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively return for a sequel that moves the action to Capri, where Emily is preparing to marry a wealthy Italian businessman.
Stephanie is invited to the wedding despite everything that happened between them previously, which should immediately tell viewers that something is going to go wrong.
Director Paul Feig once again combines murder mystery, outrageous fashion, dark comedy and characters who are rarely telling the complete truth.
It is bigger and more ridiculous than the original, but fans of Kendrick and Lively’s strange chemistry should find plenty to enjoy.
15. Thirteen Lives (2022)
Genre: Drama, Thriller, True Story
Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Colin Farrell, Joel Edgerton
Best for: Intense true stories
Ron Howard’s Thirteen Lives dramatizes the extraordinary 2018 rescue of a Thai youth soccer team trapped inside the flooded Tham Luang cave.
The entire world already knew the outcome by the time the movie was released.
That does very little to reduce the tension.
Viggo Mortensen and Colin Farrell play British cave divers Rick Stanton and John Volanthen, who join an international rescue effort facing a nearly impossible logistical problem.
The underwater sequences are claustrophobic because Howard emphasizes just how little space the divers have while navigating submerged cave passages.
The movie also avoids reducing the rescue to one or two heroes, showing the enormous number of volunteers, divers, engineers and local officials required to make the operation possible.
16. The Burial (2023)
Genre: Courtroom Drama, Comedy
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Tommy Lee Jones, Jurnee Smollett
Best for: Crowd-pleasing courtroom dramas
Jamie Foxx gets one of his most entertaining roles in years as attorney Willie E. Gary.
The Burial is inspired by the story of funeral home owner Jeremiah O’Keefe, played by Tommy Lee Jones, who becomes locked in a legal battle with a massive funeral company after a business deal collapses.
O’Keefe hires Gary, an unconventional and charismatic trial attorney whose courtroom style could hardly be more different from his own personality.
What begins as a contract dispute gradually develops into a larger story involving corporate power and racial inequality.
Foxx and Jones make an entertaining odd couple, while Jurnee Smollett gives Gary a formidable courtroom opponent.
17. One Night in Miami… (2020)
Genre: Drama
Starring: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, Leslie Odom Jr.
Best for: Dialogue-driven historical drama
On February 25, 1964, Cassius Clay defeated Sonny Liston to become heavyweight champion of the world.
Regina King’s One Night in Miami… imagines what might have happened afterward when Clay spent time with Malcolm X, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke.
The movie brings four enormously influential Black figures together inside a hotel room and allows them to argue about fame, activism, responsibility and how each man is using his influence.
Kingsley Ben-Adir gives Malcolm X both conviction and vulnerability, while Leslie Odom Jr.’s Sam Cooke increasingly challenges the idea that entertainment and activism must always take the same form.
Most of the film depends on conversation, but the personalities involved make those conversations more compelling than many movies’ action sequences.
18. The Report (2019)
Genre: Political Drama, Thriller
Starring: Adam Driver, Annette Bening, Jon Hamm
Best for: Political and investigative thrillers
Adam Driver plays Senate investigator Daniel Jones in The Report, a procedural drama centered on the investigation into the CIA’s post-9/11 detention and interrogation program.
Writer-director Scott Z. Burns takes a story involving paperwork, committee meetings and government reports and manages to create genuine tension from the fight to determine what happened—and whether the findings will ever become public.
Driver’s performance is deliberately controlled. Jones is not an action hero or whistleblower sneaking documents out of a building. His weapon is persistence.
The movie works particularly well for viewers who enjoy films such as Spotlight or All the President’s Men, where gathering and protecting information becomes the central conflict.
19. The Tomorrow War (2021)
Genre: Science Fiction, Action
Starring: Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, J.K. Simmons
Best for: Big science-fiction action
Soldiers from the future suddenly appear with terrible news: humanity is losing a war against an alien species, and they need reinforcements from the past.
That premise gives The Tomorrow War an efficient excuse to send ordinary present-day people decades into the future and immediately place them into an apocalyptic conflict.
Chris Pratt stars as Dan Forester, a former soldier and current teacher drafted into the future war.
The alien creatures are appropriately unpleasant, and the movie delivers plenty of large-scale action. What gives the story additional weight is Dan’s discovery that his own family’s future is directly connected to the mission.
It is an easy recommendation when you want popcorn science fiction rather than something particularly subtle.
20. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (2020)
Genre: Comedy, Satire
Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Maria Bakalova
Best for: Extremely uncomfortable comedy
Sacha Baron Cohen returning as Borat more than a decade after the first movie seemed unlikely to work. The character had become far too recognizable.
The sequel solves that problem in part by introducing Maria Bakalova as Borat’s daughter Tutar.
Bakalova proved more than capable of matching Cohen’s commitment to unpredictable real-world interactions, eventually becoming the movie’s breakout performer.
The film was created in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 U.S. election, making it an unusual time capsule of an especially chaotic period.
The humor is deliberately uncomfortable and frequently confrontational, so it certainly will not be for everyone.
For fans of Sacha Baron Cohen’s particular style of satire, however, it remains one of Prime Video’s most recognizable comedy originals.
Which Prime Video Movie Should You Watch Tonight?
If choosing between 20 movies still sounds like too much work, start with your mood.
- Want something new? Watch Project Hail Mary.
- Want science fiction? Choose Project Hail Mary or The Tomorrow War.
- Want action? Go with Road House or Heads of State.
- Want animation? Watch The Wild Robot.
- Want romance? Try The Idea of You or The Big Sick.
- Want a thriller? Choose Challengers.
- Want something strange? Watch Saltburn.
- Want a serious drama? Pick Sound of Metal or Manchester by the Sea.
- Want a true story? Try Thirteen Lives or Air.
- Want a crime mystery? Watch Another Simple Favor.
- Want a classic? Choose Pulp Fiction.
- Want something funny? Try The Big Sick, Deep Cover or Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.
Why Prime Video’s Movie Library Can Be Confusing
Amazon Prime Video works a little differently from some other major streaming services.
Searching for a movie through Amazon may show titles included with Prime alongside movies that must be rented or purchased and movies that require subscriptions to additional Prime Video Channels.
Seeing a movie inside the Prime Video app therefore does not automatically mean it is included with your regular Prime membership.
This guide focuses specifically on movies included through Prime Video without requiring an additional digital rental, purchase or premium channel subscription.
How We Choose The Best Movies On Prime Video
This list is not simply a copy of Amazon’s popularity chart.
Major new releases deserve consideration, particularly when something like Project Hail Mary arrives on the service, but popularity alone does not determine whether a movie belongs among the best choices available.
Recommendations are also based on performances, filmmaking, critical reception, audience response, entertainment value, originality and the overall strength of each movie within its genre.
Variety matters too. A useful streaming guide should offer something for viewers looking for an ambitious drama as well as someone who simply wants to watch Jake Gyllenhaal punch people for two hours.
Most importantly, we check whether movies are actually included with Prime Video in the United States before adding them to this guide.
Frequently Asked Questions About Movies On Prime Video
What are the best movies on Prime Video right now?
Some of the best movies currently included with Prime Video are Project Hail Mary, The Wild Robot, Challengers, Pulp Fiction, Sound of Metal, Air, Saltburn, The Big Sick, Thirteen Lives and Manchester by the Sea.
What is the best new movie on Prime Video?
Project Hail Mary is currently one of the strongest newer movies on Prime Video. The science-fiction adventure stars Ryan Gosling as a teacher who wakes aboard a spacecraft and gradually discovers that his mission could determine humanity’s survival.
What are the best action movies on Prime Video?
Road House, Heads of State and The Tomorrow War are good choices depending on whether you want hand-to-hand action, buddy-action comedy or large-scale science fiction.
What are the best dramas on Prime Video?
Sound of Metal, Manchester by the Sea, One Night in Miami… and The Report are among the strongest serious dramas currently included with Prime.
What is the best family movie on Prime Video?
The Wild Robot is one of the easiest family recommendations on Prime Video. DreamWorks’ animated adventure works for younger viewers while offering enough emotional depth and visual beauty to keep adults invested.
What are the best romantic movies on Prime Video?
The Big Sick remains one of the strongest modern romantic comedies available on Prime Video, while The Idea of You offers a more contemporary celebrity romance starring Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine.
Is Pulp Fiction on Prime Video?
Yes. Pulp Fiction is currently included with Prime Video in the United States. Because it is a licensed movie rather than a permanent Amazon original, its streaming availability is more likely to change than Prime-owned titles.
Does Prime Video include every movie shown on Amazon?
No. Amazon also operates a digital movie store and offers subscriptions to additional streaming channels. Some movies shown inside the Prime Video interface require a rental, purchase or separate channel subscription. Look for the Prime inclusion label before assuming a movie is part of your regular membership.
Do movies leave Prime Video?
Yes. Licensed movies regularly rotate into and out of Prime Video as streaming agreements begin and expire. Amazon and MGM originals generally provide more stable recommendations, although streaming libraries can always change.
How often is this Prime Video guide updated?
This guide is updated regularly as new Prime Video movies arrive, licensed titles leave and stronger recommendations become available.
Prime Video Has Much More Than Movies To Rent
Amazon’s enormous digital movie marketplace can sometimes make it easy to overlook how many worthwhile films are actually included with Prime.
The service has developed a substantial catalog of original movies while also rotating acclaimed studio releases and older classics into its subscription library.
That creates an unusual combination. On the same service, you can move from a massive new science-fiction release like Project Hail Mary to an animated favorite like The Wild Robot, an Oscar-winning drama like Manchester by the Sea or a modern classic like Pulp Fiction.
The challenge is simply knowing which titles are included and which ones Amazon wants you to rent.
That is why this guide will keep changing. Bookmark it and check back regularly as we update our picks for the best movies on Prime Video right now.
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