Star Trek is one of the best free movies to stream this weekend (August 15-17)

By Dan Girolamo Published August 14, 2025

Last weekend, two new releases dominated the box office. Zach Cregger’s Weapons dazzled audiences on its way to a $42 million domestic opening weekend. Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis participated in another body-swap comedy in Freakier Friday, which opened to just under $30 million.

While those films are in theaters, the movies below can be watched inside your home for no cost. These free movies range from a coming-of-age comedy to a sci-fi reboot.

We also have guides to the best new movies to stream, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, and the best movies on Amazon Prime Video.

The coming-of-age movies that take place within 24 hours are my personal favorite. At the top sit Dazed and Confused, The Breakfast Club, and American Graffiti. Somewhere below that tier sits Can’t Hardly Wait, the teen comedy that predominantly takes place at a high school party.

The senior class at Huntington Hillside High convenes for a graduation party. Shy kids, like Preston Meyers (Ethan Embry), want to tell their crush (Jennifer Love Hewitt) how they feel. The nerds, like William Lichter (Charlie Korsmo), hope to exact revenge on their bully (Peter Facinelli). If you’re Kenny (Seth Green) and Denise (Lauren Ambrose), all that matters is escaping a locked bathroom. Can’t Hardly Wait does not reinvent the wheel, but its charming cast and hilarious gags are a welcome addition to the high school genre. 

Stream Can’t Hardly Wait on Tubi.

Sharon Stone is a member of the “Femme Fatale Hall of Fame” with her performance in Basic Instinct. After the murder of a rock star, homicide detective Nick Curran (Michael Douglas) is tasked with finding the killer. The suspect is the girlfriend, Catherine Tramell (Stone), a crime novelist whose recent book mirrors her boyfriend’s murder.

Instead of investigating Catherine, Nick engages with her in a sexually driven affair. The affair with Catherine negatively affects his relationship with Dr. Elisabeth Garner (Jeanne Tripplehorn), who also becomes a suspect in the murder case. While I wouldn’t recommend watching this movie with your family, Basic Instinct is the addictive erotic thriller that today’s audiences have been begging for more of.

Stream Basic Instinct on Pluto TV.

After the failures of 2002’s Star Trek: Nemesis, the Star Trek franchise needed a fresh start. Enter J.J. Abrams, the architect who rebooted the sci-fi property through an alternate timeline, the Kelvin universe. The result became 2009’s Star Trek. After a chance meeting with a captain, James T. Kirk (Chris Pine), the son of a fallen officer, joins Starfleet Academy.

While responding to a distress signal, Kirk boards the USS Enterprise, the famous ship from the original Star Trek. After the capture of Commander Pike (Bruce Greenwood), Kirk takes it upon himself to save the galaxy from the villainous Nero (Eric Bana). But first, Kirk must patch things up with his rival, Spock (Zachary Quinto), setting the stage for their future partnership.

Stream Star Trek on Pluto TV.