Disney to Retire Hulu App, All of Its Content Is Moving to Disney+ by 2026

The Disney company is unifying Hulu and Disney+ into a single streaming experience, and by 2026, the standalone Hulu app is going away.

If you subscribe to one or both services or you’re just trying to figure out which plan to keep, this move changes how you sign in, where you watch, and how your profile, parental controls, and downloads work.

Disney has already laid much of the groundwork. Hulu shows and movies began surfacing inside Disney+ in the U.S. back in March 2024.

Soon you’ll open one Disney+ app to find Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, 20th Century, FX, and the full Hulu catalog. 

What the Hulu app move entails

Disney has just spelled this out on its August 2025 earnings call and in its Q3 FY2025 investor materials. Disney’s leadership framed this as a strategic pivot:

“Today we are announcing a major step forward in strengthening our streaming offering by fully integrating Hulu into Disney+,” CEO Bob Iger and CFO Hugh Johnston announced.

“This will create an impressive package of entertainment, pairing the highest-caliber brands and franchises, great general entertainment, family programming, news, and industry-leading live sports content in a single app,” he added.

Johnston continued:

“By creating a truly differentiated streaming offering, we will be providing subscribers with tremendous choice, convenience, quality, and enhanced personalization. … expected higher engagement, lower churn, and advertising revenue potential, as well as operational efficiencies that over time may result in savings that we can reinvest back into the business.”

Earlier, in March 2024, Disney launched Hulu on Disney+ in the U.S., making Hulu fare discoverable and playable within Disney+ for eligible subscribers.

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International Hulu changes

Hulu and Disney+

Outside the U.S., Disney+ uses a “Star” tile for general entertainment. Disney says Hulu will replace the Star tile on Disney+ internationally, unifying under one global brand. 

Hence, you will have the same mature-content toggles and profile ratings, just with the Hulu name and the Hulu library where you previously saw Star.

The current Hulu and Disney+ confusion

Currently, you can use Hulu on Disney+, as mentioned earlier. However, this integration has a few downsides that we have observed. They include:

  • Profiles and parental controls: If you want the full Hulu catalog to appear in your Disney+ interface, you must raise the content rating on the profile you’re using. Disney+ parental controls let you set per-profile ratings up to TV-MA and lock profiles with a PIN. Failure to set this, you will not access several shows.
  • Watchlists and history don’t fully sync: If you add a Hulu show to your Disney+ Watchlist, it doesn’t automatically appear in your Hulu app’s My Stuff, and vice versa. Until the Hulu app sunsets, don’t assume complete cross-sync. 

The unified app should simplify this, but while both apps exist, treat each Watchlist as separate. It will also simplify the need to juggle between two accounts and different settings. So, you get everything under one roof.

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What happens to Hulu’s already existing live TV channels?

In January this year, Disney and Fubo streaming firms announced a deal to combine the Hulu + Live TV and Fubo streaming businesses in a proposed joint venture majority-owned by Disney.

The transaction is subject to closing conditions and regulatory approvals; until it closes, you can continue to use your current live-TV app. 

Disney also said on its August 2025 call that it intends to deliver one app experience that bundles entertainment and live sports. ESPN’s flagship direct-to-consumer service launches in 2025, and Disney has been clear that it wants the bundle within a single interface. 

How exactly Hulu + Live TV entitlements surface inside the 2026 app will be clarified as the JV closes and the unified app ships.

However, the direction is that the firm will have one app, one login, multiple entitlements, including live TV channels, unlocked by your plan.

What you should do now as we wait for 2026

In preparation for the move:

  • Consolidate your login: Ensure Disney+ and Hulu use the same email for MyDisney. If they don’t, switch so your entitlements line up when the unified app arrives.
  • Tune your profiles: Set per-profile content ratings and Profile PINs in Disney+ so TV-MA/R-rated Hulu titles only appear for the right viewers in your household.
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