Miramax Films Coming to Hulu

Hulu has long been a grand utility for TV lovers, but ever since they partnered with The Criterion Collection, their subscription service - Hulu Plus - has felt pretty indisposable for the hardcore cinephile. I signed up the week the Criterion deal was announced and I have never looked back.

Now I have one more reason to look forward - Miramax announced a major deal to license their films to Netflix weeks ago, but apparently that wasn't exactly an exclusive relationship. The art house studio announced a separate streaming deal with Hulu as part of their $7.99/month Hulu Plus package, and is expected to post hundreds of their films as soon as today.

If you go on there right now, there is already quite a selection, including such diverse titles as "Pulp Fiction," "Swingers," "Chasing Amy," "The English Patient," "My Left Foot," "From Dusk 'Til Dawn," "Scary Movie 2," and "The Piano." Before long we could see the "Kill Bill" films, "No Country for Old Men," "Sex, Lies, and Videotape," and even the "Spy Kids" movies.

For Hulu Plus members, all of these films will be presented free of advertisements, which is how the Criterion selection has operated since day one.

For those who don't have a membership, Hulu will soon present a rotating selection of around fifteen Miramax titles to its non-subscriber base. Those will be supported by advertisements, however.

"Making our films available via premium digital distribution channels is extremely important to Miramax," Mike Lang, CEO of Miramax said in the press release. "Hulu has established its presence in the market as a leader in innovation and in delivering value for consumers and content owners. As one of the early promoters of Hulu and its CEO Jason Kilar, I couldn't be more excited than to be in business with them today, and we're thrilled about the prospect of enhancing both our brands by making our fllms accessible to Hulu's fast-growing audience."

Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go watch a little "Swingers." Because I can.