Get live streams to EPIX and FX channels
Want to check out all of the movies and original series like Get Shorty on the EPIX channel without a cable subscription?
How about all of the cool movies and shows on FX, FXX and FXM?
Here’s the short answer. A Sling Blue channel bundle ($25 per month) gets you FXX and Epix Drive-In. You can add on EPIX, EPIX2 and EPIX Hits for an extra $5 per month. A free trial lets you check out Sling TV for 7-days. If you want a fuller slate of FX channels, then Hulu with Live TV or fuboTV is a better option. I’ll break down the details of each service below.
Both EPIX and FX have a couple things in common. They are studio-owned channels and parents to offshoots with similar names. There are four EPIX channels, including EPIX 2, EPIX Drive-In and EPIX Hits. FX (once known as Fox Extended) also has FXX and FXM in its wheelhouse.
These channels were once exclusive to cable subscribers, but that’s not the case anymore. You may have recently heard that EPIX has a standalone app. That hasn’t launched yet. So for now, you still need a cable subscription to be able to sign in and use it.
Like many popular streaming services and channels, EPIX is getting into original content. Their roster of new original content includes documentaries focused on athletes. And the dark comedy series “Get Shorty”, which is partially based on the 1990 novel by Elmore Leonard.
Don’t count on seeing Chili Palmer in this one.
Instead, Miles Daly is a Nevada hitman who tries to become a movie producer as a way to leave his criminal life behind. Rick Moreweather is a washed up movie producer who is desperately trying to maintain any relevancy in Hollywood.
When the unlikely pair team up, dark comedy ensues all over Hollywood.
What’s the difference between EPIX vs Epix2, or EPIX Drive-In vs EPIX Hits?
EPIX 2, EPIX Drive-In and EPIX Hits are distributed less than its flagship channel. Here’s a few details about the four EPIX channels.
EPIX: The flagship channel that airs blockbuster movies, original series, documentaries, concerts and comedy specials.
EPIX2: carries movies and specials and reruns of EPIX original series and documentaries. Once exclusive to cable, you can now find it on Sling TV under the Hollywood Extra channel bundle.
EPIX Hits: gets first-run movies, and EPIX original movies and specials. It’s available on PlayStation Vue’s Elite Slim channel package. Sling TV has it as part of its Hollywood Extra bundle.
EPIX Drive-In: only airs in standard definition. It has comedy, action, science fiction and horror movies from the 1970s to present. This is also part of the Hollywood Extra package on Sling TV.
How to get EPIX channels without cable
There are a couple of ways to get EPIX channels without a cable subscription. You can use almost any streaming device for a PlayStation Vue subscription. The Elite Slim channel package has EPIX Hits. It’s also offered as an add-on channel packaged with Showtime, which costs $11.49 per month.
PlayStation Vue has a free 5-day trial.
EPIX Hits often gets a lot of same movies and shows, including original documentaries seen on its sister channel EPIX. But there’s no guarantee you will be able to get everything on the EPIX Hits channel.
If you subscribe to Sling TV, it’s a different story. To get all EPIX channels, including EPIX, EPIX 2, EPIX Drive-In and EPIX Hits, you need to subscribe to the Hollywood Extra package.
You can check out Sling TV with a free 7-day trial, but that won’t get you the EPIX channels. The Hollywood Extra package costs an extra $5 per month.
Sundance TV, Turner Classic Movies, Fandor and HDNet Movies also comes with the Hollywood Extra package.
How to get FX, FXX and FXM channels without cable
If you subscribe to a live streaming service like DirecTV Now, you can tap into the entire FX library in a couple of ways. The same thing is true if you are a subscriber to Hulu with Live TV, PlayStation Vue, Sling TV or sports-focused fuboTV.
Here’s a quick rundown of the three channels within the FX wheelhouse.
FX channel: focuses on original drama and comedy series. It’s the home of popular drama series, Sons of Anarchy. The show is about a fictional outlaw motorcycle club that protects a California town from drug dealers and corporate developers. The animated series Archer was another hit. So wasn’t Justified, a drama series based on Elmore Leonard’s short story “Fire in the Hole.”
FX Movie Channel (FXM): began operating in 2012 with a commercial-free block of older movies from 20th Century Fox library between 3 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET. An expanded roster of newer films from Fox and other studios runs from 3 p.m. to 3 a.m., but is largely supported by ads.
FXX channel: primarily focuses on comedies, and has some original programming, feature films and drama series. The channel is aimed at young men ages 18 to 34.
Aside from the live channels on your live streaming subscription, you can also sign in to the FXNOW app using a subscription to DirecTV Now, Hulu with Live TV, fuboTV, Sling TV or PlayStation Vue. I love the app because it also has a great TV Everywhere function where you get a live feed of FX, FXX and FXM channels on the east and west coast.
That’s a tremendous value because you are essentially getting more live channels than live streaming service.
The app includes a great on-demand movie selection broken down by genre. I’ve listed a few picks for the summer below.
Hulu with Live TV has a free 7-day trial if you want to check out the FX movie selection via the app. So doesn’t fuboTV, the sports-first streaming platform, and Sling TV.
EPIX and EPIX Hits movies streaming right now
Here are a few noteworthy movies on the EPIX channels this summer. EPIX is also working on landing new concerts, comedy specials while developing their own series.
Star Trek Beyond (EPIX Hits)
Mulholland Drive (EPIX Hits)
The Magnificant Seven (EPIX)
Tangerines (EPIX)
Mr. Majestyk (EPIX)
FXM movies streaming right now
If you follow this guide to tap into all the on-demand movies available on the FXNow app, then you will notice there are a few gems to watch this summer.
Sicario
Captain America: Winter Solider
Dracula Untold
A Walk Among the Tombstones
Prometheus
Best options for streaming EPIX channels without cable
There are plenty of options to check out movies and series on EPIX channels for free if you take advantage of free trials offered by streaming services.
I recommend checking out Sling TV. The entry level Sling Orange channel package costs $25 per month, and you will have to pay an extra $5 per month for the Hollywood Extra package for EPIX channels.
Best options for streaming FX channels without cable.
A Hulu with Live TV subscription will give you the most bang for your buck. You will get 60+ channels, including FX, FXX and FXM with 50 hours of Cloud DVR for $54.99 per month. You’ll get a bonus for being a live TV subscriber with Hulu. There’s unlimited access to Hulu’s massive on-demand library of movies and TV shows — the same one that people pay $5.99 per month for. That includes all Hulu Originals like “The Path” and “The Handmaid’s Tale”.
Use your subscription to authenticate the FXNow app to get even more FX channels and on-demand movies and shows.
You can check out the Hulu’s live TV channel lineup before signing up for a 7-day free trial.
A free 7-day trial of fuboTV is the best choice if you are a sports fan. You will get about 110 channels, including beIN sports channels as part of the Premier subscription. In addition to FX channels, you can get A&E, History Channel, HGTV, Food Network and Travel channel. You can use your subscription to authenticate the FXNow app.
With a Sling TV trial, you can get access to the FX channels and the app with a free 7-day trial.
Which service do you use to watch EPIX channels or FX? Tell readers about it in the comments below.
Jim Kimble is a seasoned industry expert with over two decades of journalism experience. He has been at the forefront of the cord-cutting movement since 2016, testing and writing about TV-related products and services. He founded The Cord Cutting Report in 2016.
Major publications, including MarketWatch, Forbes, and South Florida Sun Sentinel, have interviewed Kimble for his years of expertise. He gives advice on the complexities consumers are navigating with streaming options, and over-the-air TV. Kimble has been a staff writer or correspondent for several award-winning, daily newspapers, including The Boston Globe. You can follow Jim on LinkedIn, YouTube and at X at @james_kimble
I am trying to get rid of Sling but keep Epix and Starz. Starz is available as an add-on through Amazon, but not Epix? This blows. A Roku stand-alone, as has been suggested above, would be a runaway hit. I have no idea why they aren’t making themselves available on tablets, laptops and phones everywhere. Seems like easy money to me.
Right, look at their lineup and it looks great. I added a trial on my Amazon, and there’s a whooping 11 series available! Huh? worthless! There’s zero reason to add this unless you get full access. In this day, you will sink if you think this as a viable/competitive option to Netflix, Showtime, etc. It’s a shame but I’ll never sign up with them until/unless they decide to be standalone also.
Too bad it’s not stand alone, like BritBox, Netflix,HBO, or other services, could put a lot of providers on the run. Has some great movies and series
Agree!
Meh, you still have to subscribe to a cable service to get the Epix channels. Sling TV and Playstation Vue are basically Cable TV providers. Not impressed with what either of those services has to offer.
I still have Comcast because I compared them to the OTT streaming services and deduced that for price per channels that I watch none of those streaming services offered a better option. Each service was lacking in either channels, features or user experience. When factoring in internet service, I would not be saving enough to offset what I would be losing to switch to any of those other services.
I would like to get Epix but since Comcast does not carry it and strangely Epix is not offered as a stand alone streaming service, I will just have to do without. As it is not worth the extra cost to subscribe to Sling TV on top of Comcast.
Not that Comcast’s service and pricing is all that good. Many of their policies are ridiculous and they are still doing business like they did 20 years ago. They are too slow and almost reluctant to embrace new technologies. It is just better than the alternatives currently available IMO.
Still waiting for one of these OTT streaming services to offer something that suites my needs.