An Underrated 2000s Comedy (And Its Sequel) Are Finally Streaming Again

Not every movie gets the love it deserves. During a period that saw the release of classics like Anchorman, Napoleon Dynamite, The Hangover, and Wedding Crashers, a 2000s comedy movie starring Owen Wilson and Jackie Chan went wildly underappreciated. With the streaming era giving audiences access to titles long after they hit theaters, movie lovers now have the chance to watch one of the most underrated comedy movies of the 2000 and its sequel, both of which returned to streaming in August.

Hulu’s content catalog has added dozens of new titles this month, including the 2000 martial arts western action-comedy Shanghai Noon and its 2003 sequel Shanghai Knights. Despite being brilliant buddy movies that put Wilson and Chan’s respective comedy and martial arts skills at the forefront, both films were lesser-appreciated titles during their respective release years. Both movies joined Hulu’s streaming library on August 8th.

Directed by Tom Dey, Shanghai Noon is set in the American West during the 19th century and sees two very different heroes, American outlaw Roy O’Bannon (Wilson) Chinese Imperial Guard Chon Wang (Chan), team up to save a kidnapped Princess Pei Pei (Lucy Liu). Written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, the film also stars Walton Goggins, Roger Yuan, and Xander Berkeley.

Released in 2000, a crowded year for comedies at the cinema with releases like Big Momma’s House, Scary Movie, and Meet the Parents, Shanghai Noon remains one of the most underrated comedies of the decade. The film is still considered a success after grossing nearly $100 million against a $55 million budget, and it is rated fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with an 80% critics’ score and 65% audience rating.

In 2003, a sequel, Shanghai Knights, was released. Directed by David Dobkin and written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, the film follows Wilson and Chan’s characters in London as they seek revenge for the murder of Chon’s estranged father. Fann Wong, Donnie Yen and Aidan Gillen also star in the film, which holds a 66% critics’ score and 54% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.

A third film, titled Shanghai Dawn, had been in the works, but Gough revealed to Collider last year that after getting a script and tentative verbal commitments from both Wilson and Chan, “at a certain point, Jackie just decided he didn’t want to do it. That’s all I really know.”

Both Shanghai Noon and Shanghai Knights are streaming on Hulu now.

New on Hulu

Hulu’s streaming library has grown considerably in August. Along with the recent addition of the two Shanghai films, dozens of other TV shows and movies joined the Disney-owned streamer at the start of the month. See the full list of Hulu’s August 1st arrivals below.

Foundation Forward: Complete Season 1
Kids Diana Show: Greatest Playtime Adventures: Complete Season 1
MTV Floribama Shore: Complete Seasons 1-2
Survivor: Complete Seasons 23-24
Undercover Boss: Complete Seasons 7 and 11
10 Things I Hate About You
28 Days
A Simple Favor
The Beach
Black Knight
The Brothers McMullen
Click
Coyote Ugly
Date Night (2010)
Devil in a Blue Dress
The Devil Wears Prada
The Diary of a Teenage Girl
Did You Hear About The Morgans?
District 9
Equity
Evil Dead (2013)
The Exorcism of Emily Rose
Father Of The Bride
Father Of The Bride Part II
Forrest Gump
The Full Monty
The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy
Ice Age
Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
Ice Age: Continental Drift
Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs
Ice Age: The Great Egg-scapade
It’s Complicated
Kick-Ass
Old School
One Hour Photo
The Other Woman
Night Shift (2023)
Practical Magic
Pretty Woman
The Proposal
Raising Arizona
Ready Or Not
Resident Evil: Extinction
Rio
Robots
Scarface (1983)
The Sessions
Simply Irresistible
Stay
Super 8
Take Shelter
Taken
Thank You For Smoking
Thirteen
Under The Tuscan Sun
Weekend At Bernie’s
Win Win