‘Brittany Murphy: An ID Mystery’ and Every Other Movie Coming To Hulu This Week

Looking to line up a few fresh movie nights? Here’s a quick, no-nonsense guide to what’s dropping this week, with the essentials on plots, casts, and the creative teams behind each title. We’ve also tucked the exact date each one arrives into the paragraphs so you can plan without scrolling back and forth.

You’ll find a clever horror favorite, a brand-new dystopian thriller, a romantic two-hander set in an airport during a snowstorm, and a true-crime documentary special revisiting a much-discussed Hollywood case. Read on for the key details—who stars, who wrote and directed, and what each project is about—so you can pick what fits your mood.

‘The Cabin in the Woods’ (2012)

Drew Goddard’s directorial debut follows five college friends whose lakeside getaway turns into something far stranger when their choices are secretly steered by an underground facility with a chilling global purpose; it arrives Thursday, October 16. The ensemble features Kristen Connolly, Chris Hemsworth, Anna Hutchison, Fran Kranz, and Jesse Williams as the students, with Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford as the technicians pulling the levers behind the scenes; Goddard co-wrote the screenplay with Joss Whedon and the film was produced through Mutant Enemy with Lionsgate distributing.

Behind the camera, Peter Deming handled cinematography and Lisa Lassek edited, while David Julyan composed the score. Shot largely in Vancouver, the film blends horror, science fiction, and black comedy elements as it riffs on slasher tropes and unleashes a menagerie of monsters—summoned after the group triggers a curse in the cabin’s cellar—while the facility’s operators race to complete a ritual.

’40 Acres’ (2025)

Arriving Friday, October 17, this post-apocalyptic thriller centers on the Freeman family, farmers safeguarding their isolated homestead after plagues and wars collapse society; as raids escalate and the children chafe against strict survival rules, the parents’ resolve is tested. Danielle Deadwyler stars as Hailey Freeman, a former soldier and fiercely protective mother, with Michael Greyeyes as Galen Freeman; R.T. Thorne directs. Coverage and festival materials describe the film as a survival family drama threaded with action and themes of land, heritage, and resilience.

Additional casting highlighted in rundowns and databases includes their teenage son Emmanuel, and the project’s path included a Toronto festival bow before its wider rollout. Publicity notes emphasize Deadwyler’s combat training for the role and the film’s focus on a Black and Indigenous family navigating scarcity, moral choices, and the constant threat of violent raiders.

‘What Happens Later’ (2023)

This romantic comedy—landing Friday, October 17—brings together Meg Ryan (also the director and co-writer) and David Duchovny as former partners who reunite by chance when both are stranded overnight at a regional airport during a snowstorm. The screenplay is by Steven Dietz, Kirk Lynn, and Meg Ryan, adapted from Dietz’s stage play ‘Shooting Star’, with Bartosz Nalazek as cinematographer and Jason Gourson as editor; the film was produced by Prowess Pictures and Ten Acre Films and released by Bleecker Street.

Within the airport’s liminal spaces, the two characters revisit old conversations, unresolved questions, and the small memories that defined their relationship, with the story unfolding largely in dialogue across gates and concourses. Production notes list Jonathan Duffy, Kelly Williams, Laura D. Smith Ireland, and Kristin Mann among the producers, and the film runs approximately 104 minutes with a score by David Boman.

‘Brittany Murphy: An ID Mystery’ (2020)

Premiering Saturday, October 18, this Investigation Discovery special re-examines the 2009 death of actor Brittany Murphy, compiling archival material and interviews while revisiting allegations, timelines, and questions that surrounded the case. The program features the perspective of family members—most prominently Murphy’s father, Angelo—and frames the inquiry within the broader public fascination and media coverage that followed.

Built as a single-episode documentary, it surveys the circumstances leading up to Murphy’s sudden passing at age 32 and the subsequent death of her husband, Simon Monjack, providing context from investigators and commentators familiar with the case history. The special is part of ID’s slate of crime-focused documentaries and originally aired in 2020.

What are you queuing up first this week—tell us in the comments!