Bette Davis Obsession - How and Where to Watch Her Movies Free


If you are a new fan, old fan or casual fan of Bette Davis, chances are that you might have a hard time finding her classic movies in one place. While she was at one major studio for almost 20 years, Warner Brothers doesn't seem to offer her movies in an easily accessible way. It's certainly possible that they do not own the rights to all of those films anymore.

Here's an overview of how and where to watch her movies, assuming you don't want to spend hundreds of dollars buying DVDs, rent via streaming for movies you may want to own (some are worth it!), and a few places you can watch her for free or a paid service you are already subscribed to. 

Free to Watch or Free With Subscription

First stop is WarnerArchive.com, although a little slim, you can do a trial for 7 days and watch a few of her earlier titles like Jimmy the Gent, 1934 (with James Cagney) and Thank Your Luck Stars, 1943. If you are voraciously watching anything you can get her hands on with her face in it, there is a wonderful WWII documentary about one of her proud achievements in philanthropy called the Hollywood Canteen. She organized and ran an entertainment + canteen focused establishment where stars would perform during meal times, big bands played and people like Hedy Lamar and Marlene Deitrict would wait your table. Better won an Distinguished Civilian Service Medal for this later in her life which she was duly recognized.

A few later titles available on the Warner Archive are The Star,1952 and Dead Ringer1964,. 

Next is Amazon. While they have just about anything you can get your hands on for a price, the two titles that are currently free with Amazon Prime are Of Human Bondage1934, her first Academy Award nomination and one her early and smaller roles Hell's House 1932

If you have a cable subscription, Turner Classic Movies have been playing her titles since inception. On her profile page for the website, there is a schedule of what titles are playing when (just about every other day). They vary but today's schedule shows A Stolen Live (1946), The Scapegoat (1959), The Sisters (1938) and All This and Heaven Too (1940).
Netflix = sadly zero, so don't bother searching if you are reading this in 2017.

Youtube. Now these are clearly copyright infringement but here are the links in case they survive: 


Other Performances + Appearances

If you have a Hulu subscription, there are no movie titles, but there is a gem of an interview with her on the Dick Cavett show from the 70's. She's complete in back go-go style boots, smoking and dominating the conversation as only Bette Davis does. It's a long interview, but there are so many great stories she tells. Certainly worth a viewing!


Paid Movies

If you find yourself wanting to watch a specific movie that you'd be willing to buy or rent, here's a list of the most popular Bette Davis movies:

All About Eve (1950)

Jezebel (1938)

Whatever Happened to Baby Jane (1962)

Dark Victory (1939)

Now Voyager (1942)

The Private Lives of Elizabeth of Essex (1939)

A Stolen Live (1946)