Disney Pulls the Plug on Hulu: 6 Anime Gems That Prove It Was a Secret Anime Haven

Hulu as we know it is on the clock. Disney says the library gets folded into Disney+ next year, and the standalone Hulu app goes away entirely by 2026. The content is not disappearing, it is just moving homes — series, movies, anime, the whole lot, living inside Disney+ instead of its own app.

Hulu was secretly an anime comfort zone

Weird bit of inside baseball: over the last decade, Hulu quietly became a really solid anime hub in the U.S. It mixed classics with fresh simulcasts across genres, and for a lot of people it was the 'easy button' for anime alongside everything else they were already watching. With the merger coming, it is a good time to shout out a few titles on Hulu right now that show why it worked so well.

Six Hulu anime worth your time (and soon, your Disney+ queue)

• Cowboy Bebop — Spike Spiegel and his misfit crew bounty-hunt their way across space in a stylish sci-fi neo-noir. Jazz-soaked, funny, gorgeous, and basically required viewing at this point. IMDb: 8.9/10.
• Yuri!!! on Ice — A sports anime with a queer heartbeat. After a brutal loss, figure skater Yuri Katsuki hits a wall — until Russian legend Victor Nikiforov shows up and decides to coach him. Stunning skating sequences, big feelings, and the show that helped put MAPPA on a lot of people’s radar. IMDb: 8.2/10.
• Kamisama Kiss — Homeless high schooler Nanami helps a stranger, gets offered a place to stay, and accidentally becomes the new god of an abandoned shrine. Cue divine chaos, cozy comedy, and a slow-burn romance with Tomoe, a very handsome fox yokai. Japanese mythology meets rom-com sweetness. IMDb: 8.1/10.
• Noragami — Yato is a minor god with major ambitions. A chance run-in with human girl Hiyori kicks off a story that juggles action, gallows humor, and the very real ache of being a forgotten deity. Offbeat and sneakily poignant. IMDb: 7.8/10.
• Assassination Classroom — A near-omnipotent creature vows to destroy Earth... but first he insists on teaching a class of written-off students. As Koro-sensei bonds with his kids, the show turns into a surprisingly warm tribute to late bloomers and underdogs. IMDb: 7.9/10.
• Tokyo Ghoul — College student Ken Kaneki becomes half-ghoul in a world where man-eating ghouls hide in plain sight. Expect identity crises, secret societies, and plenty of sharp-toothed politics. A gateway dark fantasy for horror-curious anime fans. IMDb: 7.7/10.

So what actually changes?

The short version: the Hulu app is going away, not the shows. Disney says the library fully merges into Disney+ next year, and the standalone Hulu service disappears by 2026. If you’ve treated Hulu as your anime comfort place — from evergreen classics to day-and-date hits — that vibe should carry over, just under the Disney+ roof.

What else belongs on this list before the big move? I have a few in mind, but I’ll let you go first.