Movies like While I Was Waiting (2023)
The best movies like While I Was Waiting (2023) are The Giver (2014), Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die (2026) and Ladies First (2026). If While I Was Waiting hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedTerminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)8.2/10 from 15,172 votes
- NewestLadies First (2026)Released 2026
The Giver (2014)
In a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGood Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die (2026)
A 'Man from the Future' arrives at an LA diner where he must recruit the precise combination of disgruntled patrons to join him on a one-night quest to save the world from the terminal threat of a rogue artificial intelligence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLadies First (2026)
An arrogant but charismatic ladies' man finds his life of money, power and casual flings upended when he wakes up in a parallel world dominated by women.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisCocktail (1988)
After being discharged from the Army, Brian Flanagan moves back to Queens and takes a job in a bar run by Doug Coughlin, who teaches Brian the fine art of bar-tending. Brian quickly becomes a patron favorite with his flashy drink-mixing style, and Brian adopts his mentor's cynical philosophy on life and goes for the money.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Heavenly Kid (1985)
After dying in a car crash, Bobby Fantana is forced to pay for his misdeeds by becoming someone's guardian angel. He reluctantly agrees to watch over awkward high schooler Lenny Barnes, teaching him how to be cool and confident. As Bobby teaches Lenny, the two form a close bond.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPandorum (2009)
Two crew members wake up on an abandoned spacecraft with no idea who they are, how long they've been asleep, or what their mission is. The two soon discover they're actually not alone – and the reality of their situation is more horrifying than they could have imagined.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDivergent (2014)
In a world divided into factions based on personality types, Tris learns that she's been classified as Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUpside Down (2012)
In an alternate universe where twinned worlds have opposite gravities, a young man battles interplanetary prejudice and the laws of physics in his quest to reunite with the long-lost girl of his dreams in this visually stunning romantic adventure that poses the question: what if love was stronger than gravity?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLegion (2010)
When God loses faith in humankind, he sends his legion of angels to bring on the Apocalypse. Humanity's only hope for survival lies in a group of strangers trapped in an out-of-the-way, desert diner with the Archangel Michael.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Death of the Incredible Hulk (1990)
In his final attempt to free himself from the curse of the Hulk, Dr. David Banner becomes involved in a dangerous international espionage mission that may finally lead to a cure. As forces close in and the stakes rise, Banner faces an ultimate sacrifice, bringing his tragic journey to a definitive and emotional conclusion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962)
A rebellious youth, sentenced to a boy’s reformatory for robbing a bakery, rises through the ranks of the institution by impressing its Governor through his prowess as a long distance runner. He is encouraged to compete in an upcoming race, but faces ridicule from his peers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Dark Tower (2017)
A boy haunted by visions of a parallel world aids its disillusioned guardian in preventing the destruction of the nexus of universes known as the Dark Tower.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisMammal (2016)
After Margaret, a divorcée living in Dublin, loses her teenage son, she develops an unorthodox relationship with Joe, a homeless youth. Their tentative trust is threatened by his involvement with a violent gang and the escalation of her ex-husband's grieving rage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Incredible Hulk (2008)
Scientist Bruce Banner scours the planet for an antidote to the unbridled force of rage within him: the Hulk. But when the military masterminds who dream of exploiting his powers force him back to civilization, he finds himself coming face to face with a new, deadly foe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Stakelander (2016)
When his home of New Eden is destroyed by a revitalized Brotherhood and its new Vamp leader, Martin finds himself alone in the badlands of America with only the distant memory of his mentor and legendary vampire hunter, Mister, to guide him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Tender Bar (2021)
JR is a fatherless boy growing up in the glow of a bar where the bartender, his Uncle Charlie, is the sharpest and most colorful of an assortment of quirky and demonstrative father figures. As the boy’s determined mother struggles to provide her son with opportunities denied to her — and leave the dilapidated home of her outrageous if begrudgingly supportive father — JR begins to gamely, if not always gracefully, pursue his romantic and professional dreams, with one foot persistently placed in Uncle Charlie’s bar.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTerminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Ten years after the events of the original, a reprogrammed T-800 is sent back in time to protect young John Connor from the shape-shifting T-1000. Together with his mother Sarah, he fights to stop Skynet from triggering a nuclear apocalypse.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTHX 1138 (1971)
People in the future live in a totalitarian society. A technician named THX 1138 lives a mundane life between work and taking a controlled consumption of drugs that the government uses to make puppets out of people. As THX is without drugs for the first time he has feelings for a woman and they start a secret relationship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMortal Kombat II (2026)
The fan favorite champions—now joined by Johnny Cage himself—are pitted against one another in the ultimate, no-holds barred, gory battle to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn that threatens the very existence of the Earthrealm and its defenders.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLocked (2025)
When Eddie breaks into a luxury SUV, he steps into a deadly trap set by William, a self-proclaimed vigilante delivering his own brand of twisted justice. With no means of escape, Eddie must fight to survive in a ride where escape is an illusion, survival is a nightmare, and justice shifts into high gear.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
Like While I Was Waiting and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like While I Was Waiting?
The closest matches to While I Was Waiting are The Giver (2014), Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die (2026) and Ladies First (2026). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after While I Was Waiting?
Start with The Giver (2014), the closest match to While I Was Waiting.
What is the highest-rated movie like While I Was Waiting?
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), rated 8.2/10 by 15,172 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like While I Was Waiting?
Ladies First (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like While I Was Waiting?
The closest matches are in other languages.
How are movies similar to While I Was Waiting chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside While I Was Waiting, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.