The Roku Channel has slowly emerged as one of the more reliable and well-known free streaming services around right now, and for good reason. The platform is overflowing with both contemporary and classic film gems, all of which are available to stream on it without paying a single subscription fee.
With that in mind, here are the best movies you can stream for free right now on the Roku Channel, whether you are in the mood for a high-octane action thriller, a laugh-out-loud comedy or an affecting, unforgettable romance.
“John Wick” (2014)
It’s the film that launched one of the most successful and beloved action franchises of the past 20 years. Despite inspiring five sequels, a spin-off TV show and countless, inferior imitators, though, 2014’s “John Wick” has not lost an ounce of its entertaining, thrilling power over the past 11 years.
That is due, in no small part, to the enduring nature of Keanu Reeves’ quietly commanding central performance as the film’s revenge-fueled, grieving protagonist, as well as director Chad Stahelski’s skilled eye for blocking, pacing and composing action sequences that leave your jaw on the floor. It’s a slick, neon-colored thriller that makes pulling off all of its world-building and action set pieces look deceptively easy.
“Mrs. Doubtfire” (1993)
1993’s “Mrs. Doubtfire” is both a timeless comedy and a treasured showcase of one of cinema’s most charismatic and eccentric performers. Featuring a transformative, spell-binding star performance for the ages from Robin Williams, director Chris Columbus’ early ’90s classic is an absurd yet heartfelt exploration of family, love and, in its own way, creativity.
It is a risky comedy that just works, regardless of how old you are or where you are in your life when you watch it. That is partly because it is just about as striking a portrait of Williams’ one-of-a-kind screen presence as any other film he ever made.
“Pulp Fiction” (1994)
One of writer-director Quentin Tarantino’s crowning achievements, 1994’s “Pulp Fiction” is a non-linear crime comedy that moves and hits all of its violent and laugh-out-loud worthy moments better than many of the innumerable films it has influenced over the years.
A sprawling ensemble piece, “Pulp Fiction” finds consistently surprising ways to take its multiple, interconnected stories into places that defy expectation and keep the film’s characters — and its viewers — constantly on their toes. It is an exhilarating thrill ride that is so unpredictable and so deranged that it could have only been made by Tarantino.
“Mean Girls” (2004)
Like “Mrs. Doubtfire,” 2004’s “Mean Girls” is a comedy so beloved that it has firmly reached iconic status. Written by Tina Fey, this farcical send-up of traditional coming-of-age films skewers the typically cliquey nature of American high schools and yet still manages to acutely capture the awkwardness, yearning and isolation of adolescence.
Featuring an unforgettable, star-making performance from Rachel McAdams as the film’s blonde-haired antagonist, “Mean Girls” is overflowing with memorable lines and scenes. There are not many comedies from its era that are as deserving of your time as it.
“Planes, Trains and Automobiles” (1987)
One of writer-director John Hughes’ greatest masterpieces and a Thanksgiving holiday staple, “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” is a singular road trip comedy. The film follows a high-strung executive (Steve Martin) who ends up the reluctant traveling companion of a kind-hearted but bumbling salesman (John Candy) as they journey together over three long, difficult days to try to get to Chicago in time for Thanksgiving.
“Planes, Trains and Automobiles” has everything that made Hughes’ work stand out: infectious, absurd comedy, razor-sharp dialogue and a level of sensitivity that always manages to sneak up and surprise you. That is particularly true in “Planes, Trains and Automobiles,” which rides high on the megawatt star power and comedic chemistry of Martin and (especially) Candy.
“Man on Fire” (2004)
The title for the best film collaboration between late director Tony Scott and actor Denzel Washington goes to 2004’s “Man on Fire.” Based on a 1980 novel of the same name, the film follows a suicidal former CIA operative (Washington) who goes on a violent revenge spree looking for the nine-year-old girl (Dakota Fanning) who was kidnapped under his watch.
The plot of “Man on Fire” is not, in other words, anything particularly original. But through Scott’s impressionistic direction and Washington’s deeply felt performance, “Man on Fire” is able to reach unexpectedly spiritual, cathartic places. Despite its dime-a-dozen plot, there are not many thrillers like it.
“Moonstruck” (1987)
1987’s “Moonstruck” is, simply put, one of the greatest American romance films ever made. Directed by Norman Jewison and written by John Patrick Shanley, the film follows a widowed Italian-American woman (Cher) who unexpectedly falls in love with her fiancé’s younger brother (Nicolas Cage).
Shanley’s dialogue is potent and lyrical, and Jewison sprinkles the entire film with enough moments of whimsy and heart-stopping melancholy to make watching “Moonstruck” feel a whole lot like, well, falling in love. As a comedy, it is endlessly quotable. As a romance, it is striking and deeply affecting.
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