Movies like Steel Magnolias (1989)
The best movies like Steel Magnolias (1989) are The Magic of Belle Isle (2012), Moxie (2021) and Sunshine Cleaning (2009). If Steel Magnolias hooked you with its drama and comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedOrdinary Angels (2024)7.7/10 from 452 votes
- NewestSoul on Fire (2025)Released 2025
The Magic of Belle Isle (2012)
In an effort to tap into his original talent, a wheelchair-bound author moves to a rural town, where he befriends a single mother and her three kids, who help reignite his passion for writing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMoxie (2021)
Inspired by her mom's rebellious past and a confident new friend, a shy 16-year-old publishes an anonymous zine calling out sexism at her school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSunshine Cleaning (2009)
A single mother and her slacker sister find an unexpected way to turn their lives around in this off-beat dramatic comedy. In order to raise the tuition to send her young son to private school the mom starts an unusual business – a biohazard removal/crime scene clean-up service.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwan Song (2021)
An aging hairdresser escapes his nursing home to embark on an odyssey across his small town to style a dead woman's hair for her funeral, rediscovering his sparkle along the way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlow Dry (2001)
The annual British Hairdressing Championship comes to Keighley, a town where Phil and son Brian run a barbershop and Phil's ex-wife Shelly and her lover Sandra run a beauty salon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisMiss You Already (2015)
The friendship between two life-long girlfriends is put to the test when one starts a family and the other falls ill.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Healer (2017)
The film follows a man with an unwanted gift for healing who meets a teenager with cancer who helps him to find himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBarbershop 2: Back in Business (2004)
The continuing adventures of the barbers at Calvin's Barbershop. Gina, a stylist at the beauty shop next door, is now trying to cut in on his business. Calvin is again struggling to keep his father's shop and traditions alive--this time against urban developers looking to replace mom & pop establishments with name-brand chains. The world changes, but some things never go out of style--from current events and politics to relationships and love, you can still say anything you want at the barbershop.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLady Bird (2017)
Lady Bird McPherson, a strong willed, deeply opinionated, artistic 17 year old comes of age in Sacramento. Her relationship with her mother and her upbringing are questioned and tested as she plans to head off to college.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy One and Only (2009)
A mother takes her two sons on an unusual road trip from New York to Pittsburgh, St. Louis and eventually Hollywood in her quest to find a man to take care of them all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAre You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023)
When her family moves from New York City to New Jersey, an 11-year-old girl navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOrdinary Angels (2024)
Inspired by the incredible true story of a hairdresser who single-handedly rallies an entire community to help a widowed father save the life of his critically ill young daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMr. Church (2016)
A unique friendship develops when a little girl and her dying mother inherit a cook - Mr. Church. What begins as an arrangement that should only last six months, instead spans fifteen years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSounder (1972)
The oldest son of a loving and strong family of black sharecroppers comes of age in the Depression-era South after his father is imprisoned for stealing food.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMarvin's Room (1996)
A leukemia patient attempts to end a 20-year feud with her sister to get her bone marrow.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRachel Getting Married (2008)
A young woman who has been in and out from rehab for the past 10 years returns home for the weekend for her sister's wedding.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThird Star (2010)
James and his three closest lifelong friends go on an ill-advised trip to the stunning coastal area of Barafundle Bay in West Wales. What follows is a touching and comical adventure dealing with friendship, heroism and love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSoul on Fire (2025)
After a horrific accident leaves his body scarred, a young boy strives to live and show everyone what is possible with the help of his family, his faith, his community, his longtime idol's kindness, and the entire city of St. Louis.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDuplex (2003)
When a young couple buys their dream home, they have no idea what the sweet little old lady upstairs is going to put them through!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHelen (2009)
On the outside, Helen has it all – a loving family and a successful career – but when her suppressed mental illness resurfaces, the world crumbles around her. Crippled by depression, Helen finds solace through her friendship with Mathilda, a kindred spirit struggling with bipolar disorder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHamlet Goes Business (1987)
When Hamlet discovers his father’s deceased body, he finds himself pulled into a power struggle as his scheming uncle attempts to secure a monopoly on the Scandinavian rubber duck industry. Will Hamlet avenge his father? Will he become the king of rubber ducks? Does any of it really matter?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNational Theatre Live: Nye (2024)
Confronted with death, National Health Service founder Aneurin 'Nye' Bevan's deepest memories lead him on a mind-bending journey back through his life; from childhood to mining underground, Parliament and fights with Winston Churchill.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
The Family Stone (2005)
An uptight, conservative businesswoman accompanies her boyfriend to his eccentric and outgoing family's annual Christmas celebration and finds that she's a fish out of water in their free-spirited way of life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Christmas Tale (2008)
When their regal matriarch falls ill, the troubled Vuillard family come together for a hesitant Christmastime reunion. Among them is rebellious ne'er-do-well Henri and the uptight Elizabeth. Together under the same roof for the first time in many years, their intricate, long denied resentments and yearnings emerge again.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFriends with Money (2006)
As she reaches her mid-thirties and quits her lucrative job, singleton Olivia finds herself unsure about her future and her relationships with her successful and wealthy friends. She begins to envy the security of her richer friends and, although their lives may seem easier, Olivia's friends have their problems too: screenwriters Christine and Patrick are unable to collaborate on their latest project, Jane and Aaron have lost the romance in their relationship, and Franny and Matt have difficulties handling the demands of parenthood.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Guru (2002)
Bored with Bollywood movies but fascinated with their Hollywood counterparts from his youth, Ram dreams to become a singer and actor in America, the country where dreams are made. He is encouraged when his American-based close friend, Vijay Rao, comes for visit, and brags about driving a Mercedes and living in a penthouse.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisFar North (2008)
In the arctic, as Saiva is being born, a shaman declares that she is evil and will bring harm to all who become involved with her. Saiva is cast out of her tribe of herders and grows up to live a nomadic existence with Anja, a young woman she adopts as an infant. Then Loki, an injured and starving soldier, stumbles into their isolated lives. The women nurse him back to health, but treachery, violence and doom await them all.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe History Boys (2006)
The story of an unruly class of bright, funny history students at a Yorkshire grammar school in pursuit of an undergraduate place at Oxford or Cambridge. Bounced between their maverick English master, a young and shrewd teacher hired to up their test scores, a grossly out-numbered history teacher, and a headmaster obsessed with results, the boys attempt to pass.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSummertime (2015)
In 1971, a young woman moves from the French countryside to Paris and begins a passionate love affair with a feminist leader.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Thin Red Line (1998)
The story of a group of men, an Army Rifle company called C-for-Charlie, who change, suffer, and ultimately make essential discoveries about themselves during the fierce World War II battle of Guadalcanal. It follows their journey, from the surprise of an unopposed landing, through the bloody and exhausting battles that follow, to the ultimate departure of those who survived.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Steel Magnolias?
The closest matches to Steel Magnolias are The Magic of Belle Isle (2012), Moxie (2021) and Sunshine Cleaning (2009). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Steel Magnolias?
Start with The Magic of Belle Isle (2012), the closest match to Steel Magnolias.
What is the highest-rated movie like Steel Magnolias?
Ordinary Angels (2024), rated 7.7/10 by 452 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Steel Magnolias?
Soul on Fire (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Steel Magnolias?
Yes: The Magic of Belle Isle (2012), Moxie (2021) and Sunshine Cleaning (2009).
How are movies similar to Steel Magnolias chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Steel Magnolias, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.