5 Best R-Rated Movies of 2023 to Stream on Prime in April 2024

With one horror movie, one Western, two pitch-black comedies and a family drama, Prime's got all your R-rated thrills covered with this list of movies from 2023.

1. The Exorcist: Believer

4.8 on IMDb

Finally, a direct sequel to one of the most frightening movies of all time. The Exorcist: Believer sees the return of both Ellen Burstyn and Linda Blair, who reprise their roles as Chris and Regan MacNeil – the mother and daughter who were tormented by the demon Pazuzu in 1973's The Exorcist.

Here, Chris is pulled into a new possession case by two families whose children wandered into the woods and returned with no memories. After a few days, both girls start showing disturbing (and familiar) symptoms. Leslie Odom Jr of Hamilton fame also stars as the father of one of the possessed girls.

Although not the game changer that The Exorcist was, this sequel has some great actors and a few genuinely terrifying moments.

2. Surrounded

6.1 on IMDb

You'll probably remember Letitia Wright for her role as Shuri in the MCU, including her breakout performance in The Black Panther. Wright is almost unrecognizable in this Western, playing former Buffalo Soldier Mo Washington. Mo has kept herself in disguise as a man for five years, first to sign up with the army and free herself from slavery, and now to claim land in Colorado that belongs to her.

Mo's plans are interrupted when her stagecoach is robbed, and she winds up without the deed to her land but in possession of a wanted outlaw (Jamie Bell). The two form a wary partnership as their lives are threatened by the various factions of the Old West.

3. Role Play

5.5 on IMDb

Emma and Dave have a good marriage, but their suburban life with two kids is a bit of a drag on their sex life. When the two decide to spice it up with some role play, Dave gets more than he bargained for – he stumbles upon his wife's secret life as an assassin-for-hire.

Emma is trying to get out of that life, and Dave decides to help her… even though she is the skilled criminal and he is way, way out of his depth.

Kaley Cuoco and David Oyelowo have a lot of fun as Emma and Dave, while Bill Nighy is predictably a hoot as a member of the criminal underworld.

4. Saltburn

7.0 on IMDb

Critics and audiences were fiercely divided on Saltburn. Is it a gorgeous, Gothic ode to Tom Ripley? Or a pretentious, pseudo-edgy slog?

You'll have to watch it yourself to find out. Whether you love it or hate it, you'll have a hard time tearing your eyes away from Oliver Quick, the conniving Oxford scholarship student who weasels his way into the country home of the wealthy, aristocratic Catton family. Oliver's obsession with his friend Felix Catton spirals quickly. Sex, violence, drugs, and murder all follow.

Oh, and Oliver has sex with a grave. Is it any wonder this one is rated 'R'?

5. A Good Person

7.1 on IMDb

Florence Pugh and Morgan Freeman anchor this drama about addiction and redemption. Pugh plays happy-go-lucky Alison, who falls apart after she is responsible for a fatal car accident. Her previously charmed life quickly deteriorates, and she spends her days stoned on Oxycontin and unable to get off of her mother's couch. Meanwhile, her former fiance's grandfather (Freeman) is also grappling with the fallout of the accident and fighting to remain sober.

When the two meet, their matching grief and addiction bring them together in this bittersweet drama directed by Zach Braff (Garden State).