Movies like Mami Wata (2023)
The best movies like Mami Wata (2023) are Big Fish (2003), Stillwater (2021) and Where the Wild Things Are (2009). If Mami Wata hooked you with its drama and fantasy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks
- Highest ratedBig Fish (2003)7.7/10 from 8,042 votes
- Newest2073 (2024)Released 2024
Big Fish (2003)
Throughout his life Edward Bloom has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, he remains a huge mystery to his son, William. Now, to get to know the real man, Will begins piecing together a true picture of his father from flashbacks of his amazing adventures.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStillwater (2021)
Bill Baker, an American oil-rig roughneck from Oklahoma, travels to Marseille to visit his estranged daughter, Allison, who is in prison for a murder she claims she did not commit. Confronted with language barriers, cultural differences, and a complicated legal system, Bill builds a new life for himself in France as he makes it his personal mission to exonerate his daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhere the Wild Things Are (2009)
Max imagines running away from his mom and sailing to a far-off land where large talking beasts—Ira, Carol, Douglas, the Bull, Judith and Alexander—crown him as their king, play rumpus, build forts and discover secret hideaways.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFairyTale: A True Story (1997)
In 1917, two children take a photograph, which is soon believed by some to be the first scientific evidence of the existence of fairies. Based on the true story of the Cottingley Fairies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Shepherd (2023)
On Christmas Eve, a fighter pilot on his way home becomes lost while flying over water and needs a miracle to land safely.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisParadise Hills (2019)
A young woman is sent to Paradise Hills to be reformed, only to learn that the high-class facility's beautiful facade hides a sinister secret.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisHilda and the Mountain King (2021)
When Hilda wakes up in the body of a troll, she must use her wits and courage to get back home, become human again — and save the city of Trolberg.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeasts of the Southern Wild (2012)
Hushpuppy, an intrepid six-year-old girl, lives with her father, Wink, in 'the Bathtub', a southern Delta community at the edge of the world. Wink’s tough love prepares her for the unraveling of the universe—for a time when he’s no longer there to protect her. When Wink contracts a mysterious illness, nature flies out of whack—temperatures rise and the ice caps melt, unleashing an army of prehistoric creatures called aurochs. With the waters rising, the aurochs coming, and Wink’s health fading, Hushpuppy goes in search of her lost mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Witch (2008)
A mysterious woman comes in to town and inhabits the local haunted mansion, making everyone wonder if she's a witch or "The Grey Lady".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMio in the Land of Faraway (1987)
Under the watch of his unkind realtives, lonely Bosse's luck is changed when he is sent to the land where his real father is the King. In that country, he sets out on a quest, together with his new friend, to destroy the evil Knight Kato.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Secret of Roan Inish (1994)
Ten-year-old Fiona is sent to live with her grandparents in a small fishing village in Donegal, Ireland. She soon learns the local legend that an ancestor of hers married a Selkie – a seal who can turn into a human. Years earlier, her baby brother was washed out to sea and never seen again, so when Fiona spies a naked little boy on the abandoned Isle of Roan Inish, she is compelled to investigate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Witch's Family (2011)
A young witch visits her cousin in a small town during a heated mayoral election race. Her kind-hearted cousin, the town’s beloved “good witch” and newlywed with two teenage step-kids, is running for office, but must keep her family from falling apart when their visitor uses her magic to put them—and the whole town—under her bitter spell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOn Fire (2023)
Inspired by true and harrowing events, an ordinary man finds his world suddenly torn apart as devastating wildfires rip through the surrounding countryside. With precious moments ticking by, he must flee with his son and pregnant wife if they have any hope of surviving the rapid forces of mother nature.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Poseidon Adventure (1972)
When their ocean liner capsizes, a group of passengers struggle to survive and escape.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like this2073 (2024)
Inspired by Chris Marker's iconic 1962 featurette La Jetée; the year is 2073—a not-so-distant dystopian future—and the setting is New San Francisco, the scorched-earth tech-dominant police state where democracy and personal freedom have been well and truly obliterated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Witch's Gift (2010)
Almost as soon as Jake and Cassie decide to get married on Christmas Eve, complications arise.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)
To prevent a world war from breaking out, famous characters from Victorian literature band together to do battle against a cunning villain.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Caveman's Valentine (2001)
Romulus, a misunderstood musician turned recluse hiding from personal demons in a New York City cave, finds the frozen body of a young drifter in a tree. The authorities, including his police officer daughter, claim the death is accidental. Romulus is convinced the man was murdered by a prominent art photographer but how can he prove he's right when everyone thinks he's insane?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisPinocchio (2009)
The enchanted story of Pinocchio.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThree Wishes (1995)
While Jane Holman is driving with her two sons, she accidentally runs into a drifter, Jack McCloud, who breaks his leg. Being responsible, Jane invites Jack, and his dog, to stay at her home until his leg has healed. Jack struggles to adapt their lifestyle, and finds himself loved by the family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBIGFEET (2023)
We're all searching for something! Explorer Reed Randle goes deep into the woods on an adventure looking for the "Bigfoot" creature. Lost within himself, can he find meaning again?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
Dyesebel (1990)
After years of hiding from a cruel, suspicious society on the land, the mermaid Dyesebel returns and falls in love with a man named Fredo. However, she becomes the target of Fredo's jealous ex girlfriend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & drama
Dyesebel (1978)
Dyesebel is unique among the merfolk for she is the only mermaid born of human parents from the surface world. A mermaid from birth, she is shunned by the superstitious due to her physical form. After her father is killed by an angry, superstitious mob, Dyesebel is taken to the ocean by her mother where she is sent into exile since her chances for survival are greater there than on land. The young girl-mermaid is found by Banak who adopts her and takes her to their kingdom where she is welcomed into their community.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
Dyesebel (1953)
Dyesebel is a story of a girl with a mother who is really obsessed with mermaids. When she was born, she had deformities which her father was really angry. The family decided to relocate and leave their village so they can raise Dyesebel secretly and to avoid from angry mobs. Dyesebel met his guy Fredo who saved him when she was kidnapped.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
Beba, the Mermaid (1973)
Kung Fu star and Hong Kong big Boss Charles Heung, stars in this fantasy martial arts drama, Trouble abound when he strikes up a relationship with an enchanting mermaid.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
The Mermaid (2021)
A story of Yang Fan who fell into the sea when chasing a mermaid, Xiaoyu. Yang Fan fell in love with a half fish, half girl. But the mermaid have to say bye bye because she want a half fish half human boyfriend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
Félix and the Fish (2011)
Félix finds a young man lying unconscious on the beach and realizes he has scales on his back. Félix takes him home and takes care of him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Peter Pan (2003)
In stifling Edwardian London, Wendy Darling mesmerizes her brothers every night with bedtime tales of swordplay, swashbuckling and the fearsome Captain Hook. But the children become the heroes of an even greater story, when Peter Pan flies into their nursery one night and leads them over moonlit rooftops through a galaxy of stars and to the lush jungles of Neverland.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPeter Pan (1953)
Leaving the safety of their nursery behind, Wendy, Michael and John follow Peter Pan to a magical world where childhood lasts forever. But while in Neverland, the kids must face Captain Hook and foil his attempts to get rid of Peter for good.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDyesebel (1996)
After years of hiding from a cruel, suspicious society on the land, a mermaid, Dyesebel returns and falls in love with a man named Fredo. However, she becomes the target of Fredo's jealous ex girlfriend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Mami Wata?
The closest matches to Mami Wata are Big Fish (2003), Stillwater (2021) and Where the Wild Things Are (2009). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Mami Wata?
Start with Big Fish (2003), the closest match to Mami Wata.
What is the highest-rated movie like Mami Wata?
Big Fish (2003), rated 7.7/10 by 8,042 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Mami Wata?
2073 (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Mami Wata?
Yes: Big Fish (2003), Stillwater (2021) and Where the Wild Things Are (2009).
How are movies similar to Mami Wata chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Mami Wata, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.





























