There are a lot of great streaming services out there today, including some, like Tubi, that don’t cost you a penny and don’t require you to sign up for an account where you have to worry about ever-changing password-sharing rules or other issues impacting subscribers. Sure, you won’t find the latest and greatest shows from the 2023 TV schedule on the robust platform, but hey, it’s free, incredibly easy to navigate, and is home to some of the medium’s best shows, both from yesterday and today.
With shows like Lovecraft Country, Hell’s Kitchen, and Columbo, it’s easy to see that the platform has a remarkable collection of series, and a ridiculous variety at that, making it a great place to watch an episode, two episodes, or entire seasons in a long weekend binge session. Here are a baker’s dozen of free TV shows streaming on Tubi.
Lovecraft Country
A big hit with horror fans upon its release in August 2020, the HBO original series, Lovecraft Country, followed Korean War vet Atticus “Tic” Freeman (Jonathan Majors) as he traveled through the Jim Crow Era American South in search of his missing father. Fully expecting to deal with racism and attacks from White America in his journey, Tic had no idea what supernatural horrors awaited him and his fellow travelers.
Unfortunately, Lovecraft Country only lasted one season at HBO. The show, however, did further propel Majors’ career, which is now in overdrive with 2023 movies Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Creed III.
Stream Lovecraft Country on Tubi.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Though known mostly for movies like Psycho, Rear Window, and other classic suspenseful thrillers, Alfred Hitchcock also had his own long-running anthology series in the mid-20th century. Similar to The Twilight Zone and other horror anthology series that followed its release, Alfred Hitchcock Presents featured various short stories telling all kinds of tales with some kind of twist. The show also featured then-up-and-coming talent like Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford, and even Ricardo Montalbán.
The series ran for a total of 10 seasons starting in 1955, and episodes from the first and seventh seasons are currently available to stream for free on Tubi.
Stream Alfred Hitchcock Presents on Tubi.
The Fall
Beginning in 2013, before Jamie Dornan was receiving awards consideration for his performance in Belfast, hell, even before he became a major star with the Fifty Shades movies, he played a complex serial killer named Paul Spector on Allan Cubitt’s Irish crime drama, The Fall. Throughout the series, Spector, a family man by day, and sadistic murderer by night, was hunted by DSU Stella Gibson (Gillian Anderson), a brilliant yet complicated investigator who took extreme measures in her quest to capture the killer.
All three seasons of The Fall are streaming for free on Tubi, which makes now a great time to check out one of the best crime dramas of the past decade.
Roots
Released in 1977, Roots was and remains today one of the greatest TV events in the history of the medium, with its story of Kunta Kinte (LeVar Burton and John Amos), a young man taken from Gambia and sold into slavery in the American South, whose unbreakable spirit and quest for freedom carried through multiple generations of his descendants.
The entire miniseries, which earned 37 Primetime Emmy nominations and won nine, is streaming in full on Tubi right now. If you, for one reason or another, have yet to watch one of the most iconic series of all time, now is the time to change that.
Columbo
One of the best mystery shows of all time, the long-running crime series, Columbo, followed Peter Falk’s titular Los Angeles homicide detective as he got to the bottom of countless murders in the “City of Angels” week-in and week-out over the course of 10 seasons (as well as multiple specials).
With the show (which began in 1968) experiencing a resurgence thanks to Rian Johnson’s “case of the week” crime series, Poker Face, there’s never been a better time to jump on the Columbo train and watch every single episode for free on Tubi.
Hell's Kitchen
There are cooking competition shows and then there is Hell’s Kitchen, which turns up the heat and adds Gordon Ramsay’s high stand standards, volatile temper, and mastery of every four-letter word in the book. Like many of Ramsey’s other programs, Hell’s Kitchen is an obsession for a lot of people for a number of reasons that varies from person to person.
If you’ve never watched an episode of Hell’s Kitchen (and it's still going strong with 21 seasons) or are just looking for a reason to go back and watch it all from the beginning, you can do so, as the entire series is available for free on Tubi.
Stream Hell’s Kitchen on Tubi.
The Carol Burnett Show
Between 1967 and 1978, The Carol Burnett Show was one of the most popular and consequential sketch comedy shows on TV, and that remains the case more than a half-century after the hit variety series first debuted on CBS. Alongside Burnett appeared Harvey Korman, Vicki Lawrence, Lyle Waggoner, and numerous others in a seemingly never-ending list of hilarious skits and bits that laid the groundwork for shows like Saturday Night Live and countless others.
The entire 11-season run is available on Tubi right now, which is perfect for those who want to know more about the legendary entertainer and the show that bears her name, especially after her great run on Better Call Saul.
Stream The Carol Burnett Show on Tubi.
The Jeffersons
One of the longest-running sitcoms in the history of TV, The Jeffersons broke new ground for the medium throughout its 11-season run on CBS. The series, which was a spin-off of All in the Family, followed George (the late Sherman Hemsley) and Louise Jefferson (Isabel Sanford), an African-American couple, who, due to the success of their business, were able to move on up to the East Side of Manhattan from Queens, breaking all kinds of barriers along the way.
Though you can’t watch the entire 1975-1985 series run on Tubi, the platform does have the first two seasons available for free right now.
Stream The Jeffersons on Tubi.
Cowboy Bebop
Before being turned into a short-lived live-action series on Netflix, Cowboy Bebop was a landmark anime series that introduced a new generation to the genre at a time in the late 1990s when the artform was at a peak. This hip and beautifully animated series follows a group of bounty hunters as they traverse the Solar System taking on one job after the next while also avoiding danger lurking around every corner.
The entire series is available for free on Tubi, and the purists will be happy to find out that it’s the subtitled version of the classic anime.
The Dark Side Of The Ring
There are few wrestling documentaries or docuseries that go into the level of detail about the most notorious names and infamous events in the squared circle than the Vice original series, Dark Side of the Ring, which began in 2019. Whether it’s breaking down the short life of Bruiser Brody, the exploits of New Jack in ECW, or the tragic story of the Chris Benoit double-murder-suicide, the series offers a no-holds barred approach to life, death, and professional wrestling.
The first two seasons of Dark Side of the Ring are streaming for free on Tubi, and hopefully the third season isn’t too far behind.
Stream Dark Side of the Ring on Tubi.
Mr. Bean
Before writing classic romantic comedies like Four Weddings and a Funeral, Noting Hill, Bridget Jones’s Diary, and Love Actually, Richard Curtis got his start on the small screen with classic British TV shows like Blackadder and Mr. Bean, both alongside Rowan Atkinson. Between 1990 and 1995, Atkinson’s silent and accident prone character found himself in all sorts of trouble at the local pool, the laundromat, and just about everywhere else on the face of the Earth (as well as on an airplane), creating comedy gold in the process.
A total of 14 episodes of Mr. Bean are available for free on Tubi right now, so why not revisit this timeless example of expertly-crafted physical humor with a new generation.
The Hour
The BBC Two period drama series, The Hour, told the story of the launch of a new current affairs news show, the first of its kind, and the major players who brought the idea to fruition. With incredible performances by Ben Whishaw, Romola Garai, and Dominic West, The Hour highlighted one of the most exciting times in the history of broadcast journalism and the impact it has decades later.
Both seasons of the short-lived 2011-2012 series, which was brought to the States on BBC America’s “Dramaville” block, are available to stream for free on Tubi right now.
Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
Released in 2014, Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey took what influential astrophysicist Carl Sagan achieved with his landmark educational series from the early 1980s, and brought it to modern times with dazzling special effects, incredible stories, and a personal presentation by Neil DeGrasse Tyson. Though much flashier and more sophisticated than the original Cosmos: A Personal Journey, this continuation of the brand captured the same spirit and sense of wonder.
The entire series is available right now on Tubi, and is one that shouldn’t be missed, even if science, or the study of the heavens, is not your thing.
Stream Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey on Tubi.
This is but a small portion of the great offerings available for free on Tubi right now. If you want to check out even more of what Tubi and other free streaming services have to offer, check out our roundup of the best free movies and how to watch them.
