How to Unlock Movies on Hulu? Complete Guide!

Are you looking for ways how to unlock movies on Hulu easily? We have the solutions right here!

You might be wondering what’s with all the lock icons in the movie thumbnails on your Hulu. If you’re seeing it, you do not have access to that particular movie.

Hulu is likely having issues on their end and causing this problem. You might also be in another country where some content is geo-locked.

To unlock your favorite movies on Hulu, you want to ensure there’s nothing wrong with Hulu’s servers. It’s a rare occurrence, but check if there’s a service outage. You also want to check Parental Controls and make sure it’s turned off. Lastly, you can upgrade to Hulu’s premium plans to get access to their entire library.

Now that you understand the problem better let’s start identifying why some movies are locked on Hulu.

Why Are Movies Locked on Hulu

The movie thumbnail is blurred out, or a lock icon is displayed beside it. This means that you don’t have access to that particular content.

At this point, we recommend checking whether there are filtering features activated or it’s not available for you.

Here are the reasons that you will encounter if you are looking at how to unlock movies on Hulu:

1. You’re Out Of The Country

If you’re traveling and fired up your Hulu, you will notice that you will not be able to watch much of the content. It’s because the content is only available in the US and not anywhere else in the world.

2. Content Filtering

Hulu comes with filters that can block certain movies available to children. Make sure you check if these are activated or not.

3. Not Available For Your Plan

Hulu comes with different subscription tiers. The lowest one gives you access to the most basic of content, and there will be some that will be locked.

4. Server Issues

Hulu’s streaming servers don’t go out a lot, and they do enjoy excellent uptime rates. However, in cases that they are down, some content will not be available.

Let’s move on to the troubleshooting solutions so you can watch your favorite movies now!

How to Watch Locked Movies on Hulu

Before we move forward and get to the steps on how to unlock locked movies on Hulu, we recommend that you restart the app and device.

It’s a quick step that will not take a lot of your time. If the issue is temporary, a restart should make those movies available.

Only do this if you’re certain you can watch that movie like you’re on the highest subscription tier, and you have the filters disabled. If not, let’s get on with the rest of the solutions:

Solution #1: Turn Off Parental Controls

Hulu allows you to create profiles for your kids that filter out content you will let them watch.

As the account owner, you can set different profiles to “Kids” to block their access to mature content.

However, it’s also possible that you can do this by mistake and set the profile you’re using to “Kids.”

One of the first things you need to check is the Parental Controls on each profile to make sure these are set properly.

Here’s how to turn off Parental Controls on your Hulu profiles:

1. Log in to your Hulu account.
2. Click on your name in the upper right corner.
3. Select Manage Profiles.
4. Choose a profile and click on the pencil icon.
5. Under the Kids section, toggle the switch to OFF.

Note: Hulu’s content filtering is not as extensive as other streaming providers as it only blocks depending on rating.

Solution #2: Use a VPN to Unlock Blocked Content

Whenever you travel abroad, one of the most common scenarios is where you will see locked content on your Hulu.

Geo-restrictions will prevent you from watching US programming. The best way to bypass this is by using a VPN.

There are also instances where IP address glitches will let Hulu think you’re not in the US. You can also use your VPN to go around this.

Here’s how to use a VPN to watch Hulu:

1. Open your VPN app.
2. Connect to a US server.
3. Launch your Hulu app or go to the website.
4. Find the show or movie you want to watch.
5. Enjoy watching like normal.

Pro Tip: Make sure that your VPN is connected before opening Hulu.

Solution #3: Upgrade to Hulu’s Premium Plans

If you’re in the country and checked that your Parental Controls are set to OFF, the next thing you need to look at would be your current subscription.

Hulu does come with different tiers, offering a Basic and Premium package.

If you only have the Basic subscription, you do not have access to all the content available on the platform.

You will have to upgrade to the Premium plan to unlock the movies you want to watch.

Here’s how to upgrade your Hulu subscription:

1. Log in to your Hulu account.
2. Go to the Your Subscription section.
3. Click on Manage Plan.
4. Toggle the switch to ON for the plan you want to upgrade to.
5. Click on Review Changes for confirmation.

Note: You can also add different add-ons to your account by going to Manage Add-Ons.

Solution #4: Clear Hulu’s Cache and App Data

Hulu saves temporary files into your device’s storage. For the most part, you really won’t have to worry about this as it can cycle these files effectively.

However, some of these files can get corrupted and cause streaming errors.

Deleting the corrupted files will help resolve performance and stability issues, including the annoying locks on programs you know you can watch.

Here’s how to clear the cache and app data on your device:

On your Android device:

1. Go to your device’s Settings app.
2. Select Apps.
3. Navigate to Hulu, then select Storage.
4. Click Clear Cache, then Clear Data.
5. Restart your device.

For Fire TV devices:

1. Go to your Fire TV’s Settings.
2. Select Applications.
3. Click on Manage Installed Applications.
4. Navigate to the Hulu app.
5. Select Clear Cache, then Clear Data.

Note: For iPhones and iPads, you simply need to reinstall the app, as this will clear up the existing data for that particular app.

Solution #5: Update Your Hulu App

Finally, if none of these steps seem to work, you can update your Hulu app.

As long as you’re sure you have access to the locked content, it’s possible that it’s a software bug on the app.

It can happen especially if you have not updated the app in a while and you’re more than a couple of versions behind.

Whether you’re updating on your phone, a streaming device, smart TV, or game console, the process will be similar.

Here’s how to update your Hulu app:

1. Go to your device’s app store.
2. Search for Hulu and select it.
3. If an update is available, the app store will prompt you.
4. Click on Update to start the process.
5. Restart your device.

Tip: For some devices, you might need to check for updates before it will show you the Update button.

There are a few causes that are going to be beyond your control. If you’re still experiencing the issue, you’re likely looking at a server problem on Hulu’s side.

You can contact Hulu customer support to make sure and to confirm how long it will take for them to fix it.

Read Next: Why Can’t I Watch Hulu on My Mac?

Bottom Line

Now that you know how to unlock movies on Hulu easily, you can take the necessary steps to resolve it.

You will now be able to enjoy the film that you’re looking forward to watching since it will be unlocked.

Remember to call Hulu support if you’re not able to solve the issue, as it might be a major bug that requires work on their end.