What Are Some Good Free Movies on YouTube?

YouTube is the top social media site when it comes to video streaming services. It has replaced the TV in people’s homes as a source of endless entertainment. When you want to watch a funny sitcom or a good movie, YouTube is your go-to site. No need to search the world wide web, YouTube has almost everything you want to see.

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Why watch movies on YouTube

The internet hosts tons of movies that are free to watch. However, people still prefer using the YouTube website or the mobile app. Here are the reasons why you should watch on YouTube and not anywhere else:

It is much easier to search titles on the platform.
The built-in video player is supported by all devices.
No need to install a new video player or unknown application or program.
It will not ask for your credit card details.
You are safe from viruses and malicious software (malware).

Rent or buy a movie

Of course, some films still have active licenses. Renting or purchasing these movies now is so much cheaper though because they are in digital form. You may rent titles on YouTube or Amazon Prime for as little as $3 for a high-definition (HD) copy, or buy a permanent copy for around $10. These are free of advertisements, so you may enjoy a viewing party with your family and friends without any interruptions.

If you do decide to rent a movie on YouTube, you are given 30 days to start watching it. But once you have started the film, you are only given 48 hours before your rental expires. During this 48-hour period, you may play the movie as many times as you wish.

But the more important part that you want to know is what are some good free movies on YouTube?

And when you’re finished, take a look at YouTube premium and YouTube TV for more ad free content:

List of the best movies on YouTube right now

These movies are legally available to watch on the platform because their licenses have expired and are now under public domain or the channel owners have acquired the rights to stream the movies. They are of good video quality, unlike the movie rips or pirated copies that are on other video streaming sites.

If the link shows a notification that the video is not available in your country, you may try using a free VPN service to change your IP address to a different location.

Without further ado, here’s our curated list of the best free movies on YouTube. Enjoy!

1. Ghost in the Shell

Year: 1995

Director: Mamoru Oshii

Genre: Anime, Science-Fiction, Action, Mystery

IMDB Score: 8.0/10

Rating: R

Runtime: 1h 23min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

Set in the year 2029, technology has made major advancements in robotics and especially in the modification of the human body. Humans are now capable of recording information and connecting their brains directly to the internet. The story follows a police officer who is on a mission to catch a cybercriminal who is hacking minds for valuable information.

2. Ghost in the Shell 2 Innocence

Year: 2004

Director: Mamoru Oshii

Genre: Anime, Science-Fiction, Action, Drama

IMDB Score: 8.0/10

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 1h 40min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This is a stand-alone movie that you can watch even without seeing the first anime movie that was released back in 1995. The setting is the year 2032, cyborgs and robots are common additions in our world. The protagonist is a cyborg detective working on a case of a robot who murdered her owner. The movie questions the fine line between robots and humans and what humanity is.

3. The Terminator

Year: 1984

Director: James Cameron

Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Paul Winfield, Lance Henriksen, Michael Biehn

Genre: Sci-fi, Action

IMDB Score: 8.0/10

Rating: R

Runtime: 1hr 47min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

A sci-fi movie that features a time-traveling soldier from 2029 who is sent back to 1984 to save the world from impending doom. He has to stop a cyborg, killing machine – also from the future – from assassinating the woman who is vital to saving the world.

4. Kung Fury

Year: 2015

Director: David Sandberg

Stars: David Sandberg, Jorma Taccone, Steven Chew

Genre: Action, Comedy

IMDB Score: 8.0/10

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 31min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

Winner of the Mexico City International Contemporary Film Festival and nominated at the Cannes Film Festival, this short movie is a tribute to 80’s martial arts films. The story follows a Miami cop who is imbued with supernatural abilities after being struck by lightning and bitten by a cobra. Interlaced with time travel, Vikings, and Adolf Hitler, his various kung-fu adventures are sure to entertain everyone.

5. Furious

Year: 1984

Director: Tim Everitt, Tom Sartori

Stars: Simon Rhee, Arlene Montano, Phillip Rhee, Loren Avedon, Mika Elkan, Howard Jackson

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

IMDB Score: 4.6/10

Rating: R

Runtime: 1h 13min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This is a movie full of surprises and ingenuity – shot in Southern California in less than a week with only a $30,000 budget. The movie has less dialogue because it literally didn’t have a script, and more fight scenes, which are incredible by the way. This is the movie the blackbelt-sporting Rhee brothers have filmed before they entered Hollywood. Filled with fantastical elements, this is a movie that belongs to the “it’s so bad that it’s good” category. It’s a cult classic that deserves some watch time.

6. Nosferatu

Year: 1922

Director: F. W. Murnau

Stars: Max Schreck, Greta Schroeder, Gustav von Wangenheim, Alexander Granach

Genre: Silent, Horror, Fantasy

IMDB Score: 7.9/10

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 63 minutes

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

One of the most famous silent films, it introduced to the world the character of a creature who feeds on human blood – a vampire. The story follows a real estate salesman who is trying to sell a property to a mysterious count. The salesman’s wife attracts the attention of his client, who will not stop at anything to get the woman he wants.

7. Night of the Living Dead

Year: 1968

Director: George A. Romero

Stars: Judith O’Dea, Duane Jones, Russell Streiner, Karl Hardman

Genre: Horror, Thriller

IMDB Score: 7.9/10

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 1h 36min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This indie film is a classic, setting the bar for a good zombie horror movie. The father of zombie films, this movie has been the peg for modern zombie shows of today; even inspiring the production of parody and comedy movies.

The story follows the struggle for survival of 7 individuals in a zombie apocalypse. Powerplay, cannibalism, and primal fear mix together in this classic thriller. Who will survive the night?

8. Cube

Year: 1997

Director: Vincenzo Natali

Stars: Maurice Dean Wint, David Hewlett, Nicky Guadagni, Wayne Robson, Nicole de Boer, Andrew Miller

Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Mystery, Drama

IMDB Score: 7.2/10

Rating: R

Runtime: 1h 30min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

Cube is a low-budget but superbly made science fiction thriller. Six strangers awaken to find themselves lost inside a giant cube with countless rooms. The only way to get out is to solve the puzzles in every room and escape the traps set up in each one. These individuals from different walks of life – an escape artist, a building architect, a doctor, a cop, a math genius, and a man with a physical disability – have to use their unique capabilities to escape this living horror alive.

9. Super Size Me

Year: 2004

Director: Morgan Spurlock

Stars: Morgan Spurlock, Chemeeka Walker, Daryl Isaacs

Genre: Documentary

IMDB Score:

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 1h 40min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

Winner and nominee in various film awards, Super Size Me is a documentary that tells an eye-opening story of the state of the American diet. In a country dominated by the fast-food industry, this film shows the major effects of eating McDonald’s fast food every day for a month. With the help of medical experts, the protagonist embarks on a month-long journey of living the lifestyle of an average American – fast food for every meal, no exercise, and less than 5,000 steps per day.

10. With Great Power: The Stan Lee Story

Year: 2010

Directors: Terry Dougas, Nikki Frakes, Will Hess

Stars: Avi Arad, Jeremy Piven, Jim Goodkind

Genre: Documentary, Biography

IMDB Score: 7.1/10

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 1h 20min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This documentary features the life story and remarkable career of Stan Lee – the man who brought us the X-Men, Fantastic Four, Spiderman, Iron Man, and many other superheroes that the world needed and loved.

11. The Game Changers

Year: 2018

Director: Louie Psihoyos

Stars: James Wilks, Patrik Baboumian, Arnold Schwarzenegger

Genre: Documentary

IMDB Score: 7.9/10

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 1h 26min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This film is produced by James Cameron, Jackie Chan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Pamela Anderson, and other big names in the industry. The story follows a UFC fighter, whilst recovering from an injury, researching on plant-based diet. He interviews experts, nutritionists, doctors, and world-class athletes who have been practicing a plant-based diet. The results are astounding and may change our beliefs about eating meat forever.

12. Hunt for the Wilderpeople

Year: 2016

Director: Taika Waititi

Stars: Sam Neill, Julian Dennison, Rachel House, Oscar Kightley, Rhys Darby, Rima Te Wiata, Tioreore Ngatai-Melbourne

Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama

IMDB Score: 7.9/10

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 1h 41min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

It’s a story about being lost – metaphorically and literally in the wilderness of New Zealand — and finding a literal and figurative home. It follows the relationship of a city orphan and his adoptive father from the countryside as they try to survive the harsh conditions down under. Hunt for the Wilderpeople is a heart-warming and eye-pleasing film that everyone has to watch.

13. A Perfect Life

Year: 2011

Director: Chad Ruin

Stars: Joe Rosati, Ashley Cozine, Scott C. Brown

Genre: Drama, Mystery

IMDB Score: 8.4/10

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 1h 27min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This movie is a depiction of what everyone wants, a perfect life. However, man’s insatiable lust for more once again gets in the way of this. In this film, we listen to a homeless man’s monologues and dreams of a perfect wife, kids, big house, and successful job. It’s a poignant slice of life movie that a lot of people can relate to or sympathize with.

14. Waking David

Year: 2016

Director: Kevin Nash

Stars: Kristy Bruce, Shane Bruce, Harriet Madeley, Mark Katz

Genre: Drama

IMDB Score: 6.7/10

Rating: No Rating

Runtime: 1h 29min

Click here to watch it on YouTube.

This is a movie featuring classic British realism. The story follows an American psychologist who went to visit and connect with her deceased father’s side of the family in the UK. With the typical British propensity for keeping silent about family matters, the protagonist has to pry the whole story about her family and father bit by bit from her close-lipped relatives.

Final thoughts on movie uploads

YouTube provides a whole lot of entertainment value to its users by hosting full-length feature films. The platform is very strict, though, about licensing and proper attribution. If you violate their terms of service, your account will be shut down.

Still, a lot of personal channels gain millions of subscribers and video views from just curating movies for free on the platform. So, if you plan on earning some cash by uploading movies on YouTube, just make sure that the film is under public domain or that you obtain proper permission and rights from the makers.If uploading movies to your channel does not fit with your brand identity, another way to gain thousands of organic followers fast is to get help from the best YouTube growth service.