Movies like Big Bear Lake (1997)
The best movies like Big Bear Lake (1997) are Return of the Seven (1966), Brigsby Bear (2017) and Brother Bear 2 (2006). If Big Bear Lake hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)7.6/10 from 2,449 votes
- NewestSidelined 2: Intercepted (2025)Released 2025
Return of the Seven (1966)
Chico, one of the remaining members of The Magnificent Seven, now lives in the town that they (The Seven) helped. One day someone comes and takes most of the men prisoner. His wife seeks out Chris, the leader of The Seven for help. Chris also meets Vin another member of The Seven. They find four other men and they go to help Chico.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBrigsby Bear (2017)
Brigsby Bear Adventures is a children's TV show produced for an audience of one: James. When the show abruptly ends, James's life changes forever, and he sets out to finish the story himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBrother Bear 2 (2006)
Kenai finds his childhood human friend Nita and the two embark on a journey to burn the amulet he gave to her before he was a bear, much to Koda's dismay.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTed (2012)
John Bennett, a man whose childhood wish of bringing his teddy bear to life came true, now must decide between keeping the relationship with the bear or his girlfriend, Lori.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOpen Season (2006)
Boog, a domesticated 900lb. Grizzly bear finds himself stranded in the woods 3 days before Open Season. Forced to rely on Elliot, a fast-talking mule deer, the two form an unlikely friendship and must quickly rally other forest animals if they are to form a rag-tag army against the hunters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeyond the Reach (2014)
A high-rolling corporate shark and his impoverished young guide play the most dangerous game during a hunting trip in the Mojave Desert.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Revenant (2015)
In the 1820s, a frontiersman, Hugh Glass, sets out on a path of vengeance against those who left him for dead after a bear mauling.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCall of the Wild (1935)
Jack Thornton has trouble winning enough at cards for the stake he needs to get to the Alaska gold fields. His luck changes when he pays $250 for Buck, a sled dog that is part wolf to keep him from being shot by an arrogant Englishman also headed for the Yukon. En route to the Yukon with Shorty Houlihan -- who spent time in jail for opening someone else's letter with a map of where gold is to be found -- Jack rescues a woman whose husband was the addressee of that letter. Buck helps Jack win a $1,000 bet to get the supplies he needs. And when Jack and Claire Blake pet Buck one night, fingers touch.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Adventures of the Wilderness Family (1975)
The story of a modern family bored with the hassles of the city life in Los Angeles. They head for the wilderness never to return.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisDay of Reckoning (2025)
Put-upon lawman John Dorsey is on the verge of losing his wife and his job as sheriff, so he posses up with bullish U.S. Marshall Butch Hayden to hold outlaw Emily Rusk hostage. A battle of wills ensues as Emily turns the posse on themselves, but as her marauding husband and his gang approach, Emily and John realize they will need each other to survive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisDeliverance (1972)
Intent on seeing the Cahulawassee River before it's turned into one huge lake, outdoor fanatic Lewis Medlock takes his friends on a river-rafting trip they'll never forget into the dangerous American back-country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Last Hunt (1956)
A buffalo hunter has a falling-out with his partner, who kills for fun.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHundreds of Beavers (2024)
In the 19th century, a drunken applejack salesman must go from zero to hero and become North America's greatest fur trapper by defeating hundreds of beavers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Man From Snowy River II (1988)
After a few years trying to earn money to marry Jessica Harrison, Jim Craig returns to Snowy River. But he finds that a lot of things have changed.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWild Rovers (1971)
Ross Bodine and Frank Post are cowhands on Walt Buckman's R-Bar-R ranch. Bodine is older and broods a bit about how he will get along when he's too old to cowboy. Post is young and rambunctious and ambitious for a better life than wrangling cows. When one of their fellow cowboys is killed in a corral accident, Post suggests a way into a better life for himself and his friend: robbing a bank. Bodine reluctantly joins in the plan and the two contrive to rob the local bank. They make good their escape initially, but Walt Buckman and his two sons, John and Paul, are incensed at this betrayal by their own trusted employees. John and Paul set out to bring Bodine and Post to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNorth to Alaska (1960)
After striking gold in Alaska, the romantic George sends his womanizing partner Sam to bring his fiancée up from Seattle. When Sam finds that she has already married, he returns instead with Angel, a dancer originally from France.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPlease Don't Destroy: The Treasure of Foggy Mountain (2023)
When three friends who live together realize that they don't like their life trajectory, they set off to find a gold treasure that is rumored to be buried in the nearby mountain.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSidelined 2: Intercepted (2025)
Freshman star quarterback Drayton struggles with the weight of expectations after a devastating setback, while dancer Dallas begins to question the future she thought she wanted. As their high school relationship begins to unravel under the pressures of distance and self-discovery, they’ll learn that the bravest versions of themselves emerge when they let life redirect them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
Ricky is a defiant young city kid who finds himself on the run with his cantankerous foster uncle in the wild New Zealand bush. A national manhunt ensues, and the two are forced to put aside their differences and work together to survive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPitfall (2025)
After a young man is separated from his friends in the woods, he falls into a ten-foot deep pit of spikes, impaling him through his leg and leaving him trapped. He quickly learns that his fall was not an accident.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Big Bear Lake?
The closest matches to Big Bear Lake are Return of the Seven (1966), Brigsby Bear (2017) and Brother Bear 2 (2006). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Big Bear Lake?
Start with Return of the Seven (1966), the closest match to Big Bear Lake.
What is the highest-rated movie like Big Bear Lake?
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), rated 7.6/10 by 2,449 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Big Bear Lake?
Sidelined 2: Intercepted (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Big Bear Lake?
Yes: Return of the Seven (1966), Brigsby Bear (2017) and Brother Bear 2 (2006).
How are movies similar to Big Bear Lake chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Big Bear Lake, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.