5 Must-Watch Hulu Shows That Are Perfect to Stream in the Summer

Hulu may not be known as the biggest streamer, but it is definitely one of the best.

There’s an incredible lineup of shows that can keep Hulu subscribers busy well into the fall. And now that summer is heating up, there’s no better time to catch some of the streamer’s best shows.

The Watch With Us team has selected the five must-watch Hulu shows that are perfect to stream in the summer.

Four of our picks are already streaming on Hulu right now, while the fifth will be providing some blockbuster fireworks when it debuts in August.

‘Paradise’ (2025 – Present)

Paradise is not the show that you may think it is from the first glimpse. There are some twists worth protecting, so we won’t be spoiling those here. Sterling K. Brown headlines the series as Xavier Collins, the lead Secret Service agent for President Cal Bradford (James Marsden), a man who has just been found murdered.

Untangling this murder mystery is going to be the challenge of Xavier’s life, especially since he’s apparently the main suspect. Xavier had some unresolved issues with the late President, and the secrets of this administration are going to come out into the open. Hulu has already renewed Paradise for a second season, so there’s more to come in the future.

Paradise is streaming on Hulu.

‘Doctor Odyssey’ (2024 – Present)

Doctor Odyssey takes the usual medical drama tropes and puts them out to sea, literally. Joshua Jackson stars as Max Bankman, the new doctor for The Odyssey, a luxury cruise ship. In theory, this should be the easiest job that Max has ever had. But there’s a surprisingly high number of medical emergencies that he’s called upon to handle on a weekly basis.

Max’s team includes a pair of nurses, Avery Morgan (Phillipa Soo) and Tristan Silva (Sean Teale), who had a complicated relationship even before he came on board. Romantic love triangles may be the least of their worries, but there is definitely tension when Max shows interest in Avery, whom Tristan desires more than anyone else on the ship.

Doctor Odyssey is streaming on Hulu.

‘The Bear’ (2022 – Present)

It’s become a summer tradition on Hulu to drop an entire season of The Bear in June, and this year’s no different as the fourth season of this brilliant comedy/drama drops on June 25. That should give newcomers plenty of time to catch up on the first three seasons. But be warned, this show can get a little intense.

The series follows Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) as he takes over his late brother’s floundering restaurant and attempts to transform it into a prestigious establishment. Not all of the employees, including Richie Jerimovich (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), are initially on board with those plans.

But Carmy’s new sous-chef, Sydney Adamu (Ayo Edebiri), is more open to it, and the others eventually come around. Fighting to keep that dream alive and dealing with their inner demons is a constant battle for the characters on this show, and it makes for an incredibly compelling series.

The Bear is streaming on Hulu.

‘The Defenders’ (2018)

The Defenders‘ limited run on Hulu has been extended at least through June, so why not enjoy the superhero extravaganza while it’s still around? When Marvel was still making TV shows for Netflix, they were all meant to feed into The Defenders as an Avengers-style crossover epic for television.

This show never quite hits the highs of those movies, but it’s an absolute blast to see Daredevil (Charlie Cox), Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), Luke Cage (Mike Colter) and Iron Fist (Finn Jones) playing off each other and fighting an evil death cult that may destroy New York City. Ritter and Cox will actually be reuniting in Daredevil: Born Again season 2 in 2026, and we’re holding out hope that Colter and Jones will eventually join them for a complete set of Defenders.

The Defenders is streaming on Hulu.

‘Alien: Earth’ (2025)

To close out the summer, FX and Hulu are dropping the xenomorphs on our home world in Alien: Earth. The first-ever TV series in the franchise takes place two years before the 1979 movie, and it reveals a previously hidden encounter that brought the xenomorphs to Earth in a crashed spaceship.

Sydney Chandler has the leading role as Wendy, the first-ever human/android hybrid. Her body may be artificial, but her mind is real. Wendy and her ragtag team of soldiers are among the first to encounter the xenomorphs on Earth. And no matter how skilled these people are, the xenomorphs are still among the most lethal predators in the galaxy. Humanity may fall if they aren’t stopped at the source.

Alien: Earth will stream on Hulu on August 12.