If you're a relatively new subscriber to Disney Plus, there's a good chance you signed up for its family-friendly animated content. Movies in particular. As well as decades' worth of classic Disney animations, there's the Pixar catalogue to dig into too. But that's just the start. Disney owns Star Wars and Marvel, Indiana Jones, X-Men and more.
There's plenty more on Disney+ to wrap your eyeballs around in the meantime, though.
Below you'll find 50 of the must-watch films available on Disney+. And obviously, that includes some of the faves from the big franchises Disney now owns.
Marvel's big release Captain America: Brave New World recently landed on the service. And that means we can now start asking when Thunderbolts will arrive.
We expect the film to come to streaming some time around August or September 2025, as that leaves the standard gap of three months-odd between the cinema and Disney Plus releases.
Best Disney Plus movies
These are Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar and, of course, the epic library of classic Disney animations. But that's not all Disney+ provides. And what we think many of you may want to pay a bit more attention to is the stuff that exists between these key content silos.
The oldie classics, the new standalone movies and the arthouse pieces that may not come to mind when someone mentions Disney: you'll find them all below.
Fancy some revenge for all those Monsters Inc. repeats? We've got you sorted.
New movie releases on Disney+
Captain America: Brave New World
Is Brave New World as good as the original Captain America movies with Chris Evans? Perhaps not, but we do get the unlikely sight of a red hulk played by one of modern cinema’s biggest icons. We’ll leave the spoilers there. This is largely one for the MCU completionists, but there is some good action in there and a solid thriller plot hidden under all the added Marvel gubbins.
Mission: Impossible - Fallout
We said the original Mission: Impossible was the best film of the series in our recent ranking. But of the more recent movies? Fallout is the one not to miss. Ethan Hunt and co. have to recover plutonium cores to avert a major nuclear attack on multiple cities across the world. Henry Cavill joins the cast in a memorable role that sees him get in a major scrap in a public toilet. Great pacing, top cinematography and plenty of tension make Fallout an all-timer action movie.
Ready or Not
Samara Weaving knocks it out of the park in Ready or Not, a dark comedy horror thriller action movie that doesn’t quite fit into any one box. She plays Grace, a young woman who has married into a rich family. As part of that family’s tradition, she has to pick a game to play to commemorate the event. But after an unfortunate roll of the dice, she finds herself hunted by that very same family.
More of the best movies on Disney+
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
The consensus pick as the best Star Wars film, and arguably the most consequential from a storyline perspective, is our pick here. Disney Plus has seven of the nine Skywalker Saga movies to choose from (only The Last Jedi and Rise Of Skywalker are missing for now), as well as the Rogue One, Solo standalones and The Clone Wars and Rebels animated series. Pick your viewing order wisely.
Toy Story
Pixar’s first film took the fledgling studio to infinity and beyond and remains, arguably, its best. Toy Story introduced us to Pixar’s unrivalled ability to forge complex and compelling characters in a world where humanity only exists on the periphery, and it hasn’t aged a day. An entire generation grew up with Toy Story, and Buzz, Woody and the gang’s next two adventures are also available on Disney+. Toy Story 4 will make it to the streaming platform in 2020.
Guardians of the Galaxy
The funniest, coolest and overall, the most enjoyable and accessible movie from the MCU canon flies the flag in our list. Chris Prat excels as Star Lord, in the role he was born to play, while former WWE star Dave Bautista is a revelation as the tactless Drax. And that soundtrack? It’s as sharp as Gamora’s (Zoe Saldana) Godslayer.
The Lion King
Of the classic 80s/early 90s animated Disney flicks we’re feeling the love (tonight) for The Lion King – narrowly edging out Aladdin, Beauty and The Beast, The Little Mermaid and Lady & The Tramp. Simba’s epic journey from exiled prince to fun-loving abdicator, to vengeful heir is an all-time great character arc. The Elton John/Hans Zimmer soundtrack is so good it went on to fuel one of the most successful musicals ever.
Pirates of the Caribbean
He’s portrayed Edward Scissorhands, Willy Wonka, Hunter S. Thompson, Sweeney Todd and The Lone Ranger, but drunken sailor Captain Jack Sparrow will likely be the role that defines Johnny Depp’s career. The first Pirates movie was everything a swashbuckling blockbuster should be and more. With a fantastic hammed-up turn from Jeffrey Rush and a healthy dose of sex appeal from Keira Knightly and Orlando Bloom, it’s an incredibly fun, funny and action-packed rollercoaster ride (literally, the film was based on a Disney theme park attraction). Now, where’s the rum?
Home Alone
You guys give up, or ya thirsty for more? Thanks to Disney’s purchase of 21th Century Fox, one of the best Christmas movies ever can be enjoyed year-round on Disney+. John Hughes’s festive treat made child neglect hilarious and, in eight-year-old Kevin McCallister, introduced us to the most violent screen pre-teen since Damien. Merry Christmas, ya filthy animals.
Finding Nemo
Perhaps Pixar’s finest achievement, Finding Nemo eclipsed The Little Mermaid as Disney’s best "under the sea" movie. En route to relocating, errant clown fish Nemo gets lost.The studio created an incredibly vibrant underwater world here, and perhaps its richest, funniest cast of characters yet. From clown fish who don’t tell jokes to vegetarian sharks, Finding Nemo was a splash hit for the ages.
Avengers: Endgame
It's hard to choose just one of the Avengers movies but the final one has so much going for it, given it manages successfully to tie up some 22 movies before it. Even though it's not an ending as such - the movies will continue - it wraps up beautifully the first three phases of the MCU.
Black Panther
A groundbreaking picture on so many levels, many fans rank Black Panther top of all 23 MCU movies so far. Indeed, it was the first movie of its ilk to ever be nominated for a Best Picture Oscar. While our trip to the wondrous world of Wakanda brought a sensational performance from Chadwick Brosnan (whose recent death to cancer shocked the entire world), in the title role, Michael B. Jordan’s turn as Killmonger gives us the Universe’s most nuanced villain.
Moana
There was time when Disney Animation Studios movies were lagging behind Pixar but with the likes of Frozen, its sequel, and the fantastic Moana in some ways it the Mouse House is once again king. Filled with catchy tunes, an amazing choice of voice actor in the The Rock and a powerful tale about Moana, the daughter of a chief, summoned by the ocean to find a relic. It's brilliant stuff that you will want to rewatch again and again.
Starship Troopers
On the face of it, Starship Troopers is about gung-ho soldiers fighting big bugs but this is a Paul Verhoeven movie so there’s some great subtext involving totalitarianism, far right behaviour and the draw this has over soap opera friendly faces who want to save America. And this was made 20 years before Trump’s ill-fated Presidential reign.
X-Men: X2
This was the movie that truly proved you could have an adult superhero film that delved into very big themes, while also kicking ass. The beauty of this movie is the way all of the actors are perfect for the characters they are playing - which is going to make recasting the X-Men for a new Disney world pretty damn hard to do.
The Grand Budapest Hotel
While some may have tired of Wes Anderson’s style, he still makes stunning movies and The Grand Budapest Hotel is one of his best. Ralph Fiennes is superb as the concierge who is framed for murder. What ensues is a riot of a movie, bathed in the bright colours Anderson is famed for.
A Complete Unknown
Timothée Chalamet takes on a young Bob Dylan in this biopic directed by James Mangold. It covers the legendary singer’s earlier years, and his rise to fame. Chalamet is electric, a good job as the film is almost entirely focused on him. One big win is that he both sings and plays, rather than having Bob Dylan’s actual voice dubbed on top.
A Real Pain
Kieran Culkin and Jesse Eisenberg star in one of the best-reviewed films of 2025. They play cousins who go on a trip through Poland, a tour of their heritage, after their grandmother dies. It’s a comedy-drama that won Culkin an Oscar, but Eisenberg deserves a big ole’ share of the plaudits as he both wrote and directed this minor modern classic.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
How many films do you know that could top the best Christmas and Halloween movie lists? Tim Burton’s stop-motion musical masterpiece continues to enchant kids and adults alike. Jack Skellington and Sally’s iconic love story, amid the dastardly plot to kidnap Sandy Claws and hijack Christmas, remains one for the ages, and there’s not a single frame of CGI to be found.
Tron
Both the original Tron and the impressive sequel Tron Legacy are on Disney Plus UK and we recommend that you watch them both in one sitting. The effects of the original are a little bit dated but they hold up well - the less said about CGI Jeff Bridges, though, the better.
Office Space
Office Space is a fantastic look at what happens when the bastards wear you down. It also features the best fight with a printer we have ever seen. Its creator Beavis and Butthead’s Mike Judge headed into similar territory with his superb show Silicon Valley.
Little Miss Sunshine
A fantastic indie movie about a family who goes cross country to take their little girl to a beauty pageant. It’s a strange, likeable road movie that’s packed with characters and features a superb performance from Alan Arkin, as well as Abigail Breslin as the seven year old. Toni Collete, Paul Dano and Steve Carell all star.
The Fly
Jeff Goldblum might be all suave and sexy now, but watch him in The Fly snap a man’s bone while arm wrestling and puking acid vomit and, well, he’s still damn suave and sexy! That aside, this is a fantastic body horror film by David Cronenberg and Goldblum is brilliant as the man turning into the fly.
Frozen
Unquestionably the most-beloved Disney movie of the 21st century and the source of that song sits pride of place within its new streaming service. If you have a small human in your home, good luck getting to watch anything Elsa (sorry) during waking hours. We’d imaging the 2019 sequel will hit Disney+ in 2020.
Soul
Soul was originally meant for cinemas but with Covid-19 scuppering the world's plans, Disney did the right thing and made it available on Disney Plus on Christmas Day. And what a treat it is, focusing on a jazz teacher who has aspirations for playing on the stage. When he gets his big chance he falls down a manhole and his whole life - and the movie - changes.
Edward Scissorhands
An absolute joy of a movie that is Tim Burton at his greatest. It's the macabre tale of a Frankenstein's monster type character who grows up with scissors as hands, thanks to his maker not making him complete. Johnny Depp puts in a career best as Edward, while Winona Ryder and Dianne Wiest are sensational as the pair that befriend him.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Both of Matt Reeves’ takes on the Planet of the Apes mythos are breath-taking. Dawn is our favourite, though, proving that the fight between ape and man is a story that fizzes with politics as much as it does violence. We really can’t wait to see his take on Batman as he managed to take this well-worn franchise to new heights.
The Muppets
The Muppets Movie that was released back in 2011 helped to reinvigorate a franchise that was on the wane. IT's superb fun, full of knowing nods to the original movies and series while retaining its own charm. A bit part of this was the songs, written by Flight of the Conchords alumni Bret McKenzie. They are so good that he won an Oscar
Alien
The entire Aliens series is available to stream on Disney+. But for our money, the 1979 original remains the best. It’s a taut sci-fi horror that brought us the iconic Xenomorph alien, designed by H.R. Giger, and cemented Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley as one of the most badass heroes of the era. Sure, the sequel Aliens offers a greater sense of spectacle, but this tense and atmospheric classic is probably the better film.
White Men Can't Jump
It’s the chemistry between Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson that makes this movie. The plot is slight: a white man pretends he can’t play basketball to hustle people out of money. But the quips between the two leads make this a film that’s so much fun to watch - and endlessly quotable, too. "It's hard work makin' you look so bad."
Ford v Ferrari (Le Mans 66)
This is old-school filmmaking at its finest. Directed by upcoming Indy V director James Mangold, this true tale is about a idiosyncratic racing driver and his team up with a car designer to create a Ford car that could actually win Le Mans. While the acting shines, it's the racing that will keep your enthralled.
Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid
One of the best ‘buddy’ films ever made, Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid is a Western that was born out of the counter culture of the 60s, a boys’ own adventure that tells the true tale of two famous outlaws. Paul Newman and Robert Redford star.
Crimson Tide
Crimson tide has one of the tightest scripts around, thanks to a young Quentin Tarantino doing a rewrite on the thing. It adds to the menace of the atmosphere of a movie that’s about a possible nuclear attack and those on a sub that might have to fire the missiles.
The French Connection
Popeye Doyle is the sort of detective who’s ten-a-penny on TV right now (angry, doesn’t play by the rules) but in The French Connection Gene Hackman’s weather-beaten cop was a breath of stale air at the time. It’s a bleak movie, packed with violence and one of the best car chases of all time.
Thin Red Line
There are more famous actors cut out of The Thin Red Line than there is in the movie, but that’s what makes this big-screen war epic so great. Terence Malik may be making a movie a year at the moment, but this was his big comeback and it came out in a similar time as Saving Private Ryan. The Thin Red Line is a very different movie, more an elegy about the futility of war with some of the most beautiful cinematography you will see.
Commando
Yes, it’s an absolutely guilty pleasure but we have to admit that we jumped for joy seeing Commando on the Star list. Colonel John Matrix (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is pissed - the former Marine’s unit have all been killed by terrorists and now his daughter is kidnapped. This means he has to don the camouflage once more to defeat the bad guys. Let off some steam, Bennett!
Once Upon a Time In America
Sergio Leone’s epic Once Upon a Time In America clocks in at a whopping three hours 49 minutes. It will gobble up a whole evening, but is one of those enduring texts of cinema. The plot follows a former gangster who returns to Manhattan thirty years after his heyday, played by Robert De Niro. It’s a slow-building film that demands some patience, but the time is used to create a movie of real texture. This was Leone’s last film.
The Life Aquatic
While it’s the most divisive Wes Anderson movie, we have a massive soft spot for The Life Aquatic. Maybe it’s the Bowie soundtrack, the elaborate water-based backdrop or just the actors having the time of their life charting the story of oceanographer Steve Zissou. It’s Anderson aiming high and slightly missing but we still love the scope of this film.
Poor Things
Oscar nominated Poor Things is as strange as it is hilarious. It’s a Yorgos Lanthimos-directed film starting Emma Stone as Bella, a woman who is brought back to life. But as she has had a brain transplant, using the mind of a baby, she starts off as a blank slate. She learns about the world and goes through an accelerated maturation period. A surreal film that has real emotional weight.
The Menu
A black comedy with deep seams of horror, The Menu is one of the darker movies you’ll find on Disney+. It is also one of the most highly-reviewed horror films in recent memory. Ralph Fiennes stars as a chef who invites a bunch of people to a remote island for a very special meal. What could possibly go wrong? Also stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult and John Leguizamo.
Deadpool & Wolverine
Not everyone will have the tolerance required for the extreme meta-referential style of this last hurrah for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine, but it sure was a big deal. This film made more than $1.3 billion in cinemas, making it one of the highest grossing Marvel movies ever — despite the superhero slump we’re arguably in. Deadpool and Wolverine team up to take down a plan to destroy the universe. And we get cameos from a huge number of figures along the way.
Banshees of Inisherin
The polar opposite of the Disney family movies that fill out the Disney+ library, Banshees of Inisherin is a depressing-but-brilliant film about the end of a friendship. It stars Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell, both of whom were nominated for Oscars for their respective roles. What initially seems a comedy gains increasing streaks of bleak despair. Don’t be put off, though, this is one of the best movies in years.
Free Solo
Disney Plus includes a raft of content from National Geographic including Free Solo. The Oscar-nominated story of free-climber Alex Honnald’s death-defying efforts to scale El Capitan without safety equipment (or any equipment) is truly compulsive viewing that’ll leave stomachs in knots and hearts in mouths.
All of Us Strangers
One of the best-reviewed films of 2023. All of Us Strangers stars Andrew Scott as Adam, a man who lives in a near-empty high-rise apartment block in London. He has a romantic encounter with the one other person living there, Paul Mescal’s Harry. And the experience sends him on a journey through his past, It’s a beautifully observed study of loneliness and loss.
Alien: Romulus
Is this the best Alien film since 1986’s Aliens? We reckon it might just be. Cailee Spaeny and David Jonsson lead as a young woman and her Android, who loves bad puns. They are trapped in indentured servitude on a mining planet, but a derelict space station in orbit offers them a way out, the Renaissance. There’s something aboard that space station that might make their plans a bit tricky, mind.
The Favourite
The Favourite is the movie that won Olivia Coleman the Oscar (it got 10 nominations in total), and for good reason. It’s a brilliant, strange film about the relationships of Queen Anne. Yorgos Lanthimos directs and if you have seen any of his previous movies, then you know you are in for an original ride.
The Kid Who Would King
In an alternate reality, The Kid Who Would Be King would be a runaway success. It's a movie in the mould of The Goonies, a fantastic quest film that takes the myth of King Arthur and transposes it on to a modern day England. It's fun with a huge heart and fingers crossed it finds its audience.
Nomadland
One of the best movies on Disney Plus is an Oscar winner. Although a movie, Nomadland blends real actors with real-life Nomads who decided to live on the road once the 2008 financial crash hit the US. It’s a beautifully shot movie with a powerful performance from Frances McDormand and fantastic direction from Chloé Zhao.
The Princess And The Frog
This is a lovely little movie. It brings the Princess and the Frog bang up to date with the modern era, repositioning the story to New Orleans where waitress Tiana kisses a frog that's rather princely. It didn't do the box office it should have, but if you are harking for 2D animated fun from Disney then this is one of its better options.
Rye Lane
It's been a while since a decent romcom has come along, but Rye Lane manages to more than make up for it with its wit, charm and (albeit too) sunny look at South London. It's about two strangers who decide to spend the day together. The key here: they both have recently broken up. There are hints of Before Sunset in the setup, but it manages to balance this with some laugh out loud moments. Take a bow director Raine Allen-Miller, you've created something special here.
The Rocketeer
The Rocketeer is a proper old-school actioner that plays like it has been made in the golden era of Hollywood. It wasn't. It was made in 1991 by Joe Johnston, a director who earned his stripes with George Lucas and also helmed the rather brilliant Captain America: The First Avenger. It's about a superhero of sorts that uses a prototype jetpack to beat the bad guys.
Return To Oz
Return to Oz is a strange movie, and all the better for it. Disney was never going to win with a straight laced sequel to one of the most-loved movies of all time. Instead it offer a mind-melting mix of strange new characters and scenes that will put the fear of god into most - those... bloody... wheelers. We wouldn't say it's an amazing movie but it is an absolute must watch, maybe with the lights on.
Control Freak
Here's a rare thing: an actual horror movie on Disney Plus. Kelly Marie Tran stars as motivational speaker Val. She starts feeling a strange and unceasing itch in the back of her head. It’s a body horror movie not afraid to reach further than its grasp. And as a result it’s a little bit of a mess, one that requires you to go with it a bit. But it does have some real stand-out moments and earns extra points for its rarity on the platform.
- Want something to watch today? Head to our best Netflix movies shortlist
- Best Disney Plus shows - brilliant shows that you can watch right now.
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