Movies like Bleak Times (2020)
The best movies like Bleak Times (2020) are DC Showcase - Constantine: The House of Mystery (2022), Cranston Academy: Monster Zone (2020) and The Grandmother (1970). If Bleak Times hooked you with its horror and adventure, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAvatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026)9.0/10 from 1,435 votes
- NewestAvatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026)Released 2026
DC Showcase - Constantine: The House of Mystery (2022)
John Constantine wakes up in the eerie House of Mystery with no recollection of how he got there. Fortunately, Zatanna and his friends are all there. Unfortunately, they have a bad habit of turning into demons and ripping him to shreds, over and over again!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCranston Academy: Monster Zone (2020)
An intelligent 15-year-old high school student is unexpectedly transferred to a boarding school where he opens a portal of monsters from another dimension.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Grandmother (1970)
To escape neglect and abuse from his parents, a young boy plants some strange seeds and they grow into a grandmother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDC Showcase: The Phantom Stranger (2020)
Jess joins her friends at a party in a dilapidated mansion hosted by the mysterious Seth. When odd things begin to happen to Jess and her friends, the Phantom Stranger intervenes to save her from a dreary fate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVan Helsing: The London Assignment (2004)
It tells of the events before the film, in which monster hunter Gabriel Van Helsing travels to London to investigate a series of horrific, and decidedly supernatural murders, being committed by the mad scientist Dr. Jekyll, in the form of his evil alter-ego, Mr. Hyde.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTome of the Unknown (2013)
Wirt and Gregory are brothers who get tired of walking, so, they borrow a car from a romantic songster made of vegetables.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (2012)
After a hurricane levels his city, a young man wanders into a mysterious library where books literally come to life. This film won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film in 2012.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBattle for Terra (2007)
A peaceful alien planet faces annihilation, as the homeless remainder of the human race sets its eyes on Terra. Mala, a rebellious Terrian teenager, will do everything she can to stop it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMad God (2021)
A silent figure known as The Assassin travels through a nightmare underworld of tortured souls, ruined cities and wretched monstrosities forged from the primordial horrors of the unconscious mind of Phil Tippett, the world's preeminent stop-motion animator.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Spine of Night (2021)
When ancient dark magic falls into sinister hands and unleashes ages of suffering onto mankind, a group of heroes from different eras and cultures must band together in order to defeat it at all costs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming (2019)
It's been ten years since the dragons moved to the Hidden World, and even though Toothless doesn't live in New Berk anymore, Hiccup continues the holiday traditions he once shared with his best friend. But the Vikings of New Berk were beginning to forget about their friendship with dragons. Hiccup, Astrid, and Gobber know just what to do to keep the dragons in the villagers' hearts. And across the sea, the dragons have a plan of their own...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisUnderworld: Endless War (2011)
Follows Selene across 3 separate periods in history as she hunts a group of Lycan brothers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCoraline (2009)
Wandering her rambling old house in her boring new town, 11-year-old Coraline discovers a hidden door to a strangely idealized version of her life. In order to stay in the fantasy, she must make a frighteningly real sacrifice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAvatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026)
Avatar Aang, the world's last Airbender, learns of an ancient power that could save his culture from extinction. With the help of his friends, he embarks on a global quest to find it before it falls into the wrong hands and threatens to upend the peace they sacrificed everything to achieve.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Venture Bros.: Radiant Is the Blood of the Baboon Heart (2023)
A nationwide manhunt for Hank Venture leads to untold dangers and unexpected revelations, while The Monarch is literally out for Dr Venture's blood. An imposing evil from the past reemerges to wreak havoc on the Ventures, The Guild, and even the Monarch marriage—it will take friends and foes alike to restore the Ventures' world to order… or end it once and for all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Pagemaster (1994)
Rich knows a lot about accidents. So much so, he is scared to do anything that might endanger him, like riding his bike, or climbing into his treehouse. While in an old library, he is mystically transported into the unknown world of books, and he has to try and get home again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Old Mill (1937)
Night in an old mill is dramatically depicted in this Oscar-winning short in which the frightened occupants, including birds, timid mice, owls, and other creatures try to stay safe and dry as a storm approaches. As the thunderstorm worsens, the mill wheel begins to turn and the whole mill threatens to blow apart until at last the storm subsides.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWelcome to Smelliville (2021)
The Oggly family arrive at the municipal rubbish dump of Smelliville and must look for a new home, but they never feel really welcome anywhere. They stink and are for most humans just a tad too oggly. When Firebottom, the family dragon, crash-lands on the run-down rubbish tip of the small town of Smelliville, the Ogglies at once feel at home. And it's here they want to stay.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSofia the First: The Floating Palace (2013)
After Sofia helps a little mermaid named Oona, Sofia's amulet grants her the power to transform into a mermaid and visit her new friend's underwater kingdom. But when Cedric (disguised as a seamonster) plots to steal Oona's enchanted Mermaid Comb, danger surfaces for both worlds. With a little help from special guest, Princess Ariel, Sofia embarks on an adventure to rescue Oona and prevent a typhoon before it's too late.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPrimeval (2007)
A news team is sent to Burundi to capture and bring home a legendary 25-foot crocodile. Their difficult task turns potentially deadly when a warlord targets them for death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYellow Submarine (1968)
The wicked Blue Meanies take over Pepperland, eliminating all color and music. As the only survivor, the Lord Admiral escapes in the yellow submarine and journeys to Liverpool to enlist the help of the Beatles.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Man in the Trunk (2019)
On an otherwise quiet night there is a startling knock at the door. Andrew Tucker answers the door to find an old friend whom he hasn't seen in years. The disheveled and absent friend comes to him with one request: "I need you to come with me but, I can't tell you where we're going." Andrew takes a chance but learns that every answer brings more questions. Nothing good ever comes knocking after midnight and Andrew's nightmare asks how far you would go to help a friend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Dreams of Life (2026)
A dreamer falls into sleep paralysis.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Exit (2020)
Events take a sinister turn one night in London, when two very different couples arrive at a double-booked apartment. Actions have consequences and not all debts are paid for with money. Leaving, it's harder than you think.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Chickenman Cometh (2024)
A man is haunted by the mysterious CHICKENMAN after he chooses not to order a takeaway.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Revue Starlight: The Movie (2021)
The stage emulates life and compresses it, setting free skills learned over lifetimes in brief but dazzling displays for the amusement and judgment of others. For the performers, it is the ultimate risk, and some will rise while others must fall. Nowhere is this truer than at the Seisho Music Academy, where music, dance and real weapons all come into play in the creation of the next great Star. Karen and Hikari’s destinies have been linked since a childhood promise, but their journeys here have taken very different paths. Now, after Hikari leaves, Karen must discover who she is without her opposite, while Hikari must rediscover her own course. Nor are they the only girls who must reassess and change if they want to achieve their dreams, as the dance, magic, and swordplay continue!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Freaked (1993)
A vain actor, his best friend, and an activist end up at a mutant freak farm run by a weirdo scientist.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFlesh Flows (1974)
In Flesh Flows we see a balance of Beckett’s keen drawing ability, in the probing erotic forms, and his technical acuity, which transforms the carnal images into a compelling, transcendent experience. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with iotaCenter and National Film Preservation Foundation in 2007.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Un Chien Andalou (1929)
Un Chien Andalou is an European avant-garde surrealist film, a collaboration between director Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dali.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUn spectacle interrompu (2012)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Bleak Times?
The closest matches to Bleak Times are DC Showcase - Constantine: The House of Mystery (2022), Cranston Academy: Monster Zone (2020) and The Grandmother (1970). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Bleak Times?
Start with DC Showcase - Constantine: The House of Mystery (2022), the closest match to Bleak Times.
What is the highest-rated movie like Bleak Times?
Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026), rated 9.0/10 by 1,435 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Bleak Times?
Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Bleak Times?
Yes: DC Showcase - Constantine: The House of Mystery (2022), Cranston Academy: Monster Zone (2020) and The Grandmother (1970).
How are movies similar to Bleak Times chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Bleak Times, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.