Movies like Only Once (1998)
The best movies like Only Once (1998) are The Choice (2016), Love at First Sight (2023) and About a Boy (2002). If Only Once hooked you, these 27 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Best of Me (2014)7.5/10 from 2,775 votes
- NewestYour Fault: London (2026)Released 2026
The Choice (2016)
Travis and Gabby first meet as neighbors in a small coastal town and wind up in a relationship that is tested by life's most defining events.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLove at First Sight (2023)
Hadley and Oliver begin falling in love on a flight from New York to London, but when they lose each other at customs, can they defy all odds to reunite?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAbout a Boy (2002)
Will Freeman is a good-looking, smooth-talking bachelor whose primary goal in life is avoiding any kind of responsibility. But when he invents an imaginary son in order to meet attractive single moms, Will gets a hilarious lesson about life from a bright, but hopelessly geeky 12-year-old named Marcus. Now, as Will struggles to teach Marcus the art of being cool, Marcus teaches Will that you're never too old to grow up.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAfter We Collided (2020)
Tessa finds herself struggling with her complicated relationship with Hardin; she faces a dilemma that could change their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAfter Ever Happy (2022)
As a shocking truth about a couple's families emerges, the two lovers discover they are not so different from each other. Tessa is no longer the sweet, simple, good girl she was when she met Hardin — any more than he is the cruel, moody boy she fell so hard for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Best of Me (2014)
A pair of former high school sweethearts reunite after many years when they return to visit their small hometown.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisYour Fault: London (2026)
Nick and Noah are both embarking on life-changing adventures that are threatening to pull them apart—Nick in business with his father and Noah starting a fresh chapter at Oxford University. Now living separate lives, and meeting new people, they find themselves entangled in temptations, rivalries, and betrayals and their bond is tested like never before. As secrets unravel and temptation rises, they must fight to hold onto each other—or risk losing everything.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Great Gilly Hopkins (2015)
Young and feisty Gilly Hopkins devises a scheme to escape from her new foster home and reunite with her birth mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Lost Husband (2020)
Trying to put her life back together after the death of her husband, Libby and her children move to her estranged Aunt's goat farm in central Texas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Place in the Sun (1951)
A young social climber wins the heart of a beautiful heiress but his former girlfriend's pregnancy stands in the way of his ambition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSafe Haven (2013)
A young woman with a mysterious past lands in Southport, North Carolina where her bond with a widower forces her to confront the dark secret that haunts her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThis Boy's Life (1993)
When a son and mother move to Seattle in hopes for a better life, the mother meets a seemingly polite man. Things go south when the man turns out to be abusive, endangering their lives. As the mother struggles to maintain hope in an impossible situation, the son has plans to escape.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (2025)
Bridget Jones navigates life as a widow and single mum with the help of her family, friends, and former lover, Daniel. Back to work and on the apps, she's pursued by a younger man and maybe – just maybe – her son's science teacher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWuthering Heights (1992)
Young orphan Heathcliff is adopted by the wealthy Earnshaw family and moves into their estate, Wuthering Heights. Soon, the new resident falls for his compassionate foster sister, Cathy. The two share a remarkable bond that seems unbreakable until Cathy, feeling the pressure of social convention, suppresses her feelings and marries Edgar Linton, a man of means who befits her stature. Heathcliff vows to win her back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSneakerella (2022)
When El, an aspiring sneaker designer from Queens, meets Kira King, the fiercely independent daughter of legendary basketball star and sneaker tycoon Darius King, sparks fly as the two bond over their mutual affinity for sneakers. With a little nudge from his best friend and a sprinkle of Fairy Godfather magic, El finds the courage to use his talent to pursue his dream of becoming a ‘legit’ sneaker designer in the industry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisI Capture the Castle (2003)
In 1930s England, 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain and her eccentric family struggle to survive in a decaying English castle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Princess Diaries (2001)
A socially awkward but very bright 15-year-old girl being raised by a single mom discovers that she is the princess of a small European country because of the recent death of her long-absent father, who, unknown to her, was the crown prince of Genovia. She must make a choice between continuing the life of a San Francisco teen or stepping up to the throne.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHigh School Musical 3: Senior Year (2008)
As seniors in high school, Troy and Gabriella struggle with the idea of being separated from one another as college approaches. Along with the rest of the Wildcats, they stage a spring musical to address their experiences, hopes and fears about their future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Can Only Imagine 2 (2026)
Following the breakout success of the song 'I Can Only Imagine', MercyMe's Bart Millard is living the dream—sold-out arenas, a devoted fanbase, and a thriving career. But behind the spotlight, Bart's past threatens the family he's built, especially the fragile bond with his son Sam. When hopeful newcomer Tim Timmons joins the band for their biggest tour yet, he unknowingly brings a renewed gratitude to Bart's life through their unlikely friendship. Bart soon discovers that Tim carries hardships—and secrets—of his own, forcing him to face his past and repair his relationships with Sam and his wife Shannon before fame costs him what matters most.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLove Me Love Me (2026)
After her brother's death, June moves to Milan for a fresh start, finding comfort in Will, the perfect honor student at her new international school. But when his troubled best friend James—hiding a dangerous life in clandestine MMA fights—sparks a rivalry that quickly turns into irresistible attraction, June must choose between safety and a love that upends everything she thought she wanted.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWrong Move (1975)
Six days in the life of Wilhelm: a detached man without qualities. He wants to write, so his mother gives him a ticket to Bonn, telling him to live. On the train he meets an older man, an athlete in the 1936 Olympics, and his mute teen companion, Mignon. She's an acrobat in market squares for spare change.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMad Enough to Kill (1975)
Julie Ballenger has spent five years in a psychiatric clinic. Leaving the clinic apparently cured, she is hired by a wealthy industrialist, Mostri, to work as a governess to his young nephew, Thomas. The boy is heir to a huge fortune after the recent death of his wealthy parents who died in mysterious circumstances. During a visit to a park, Julie and Thomas are kidnapped at gun-point and driven away to deserted quarry. The two hostages manage to escape, but are closely pursued by an armed killer...
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Roseland (1977)
"Roseland" is made up of three stories, sometimes connecting, all set in the famed New York City dance palace, and all having the same theme: finding the right dance partner.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Try to Remember (2004)
Fifteen years after a murderer is convicted he is released and all the witnesses against him begin to be murdered.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Come, Closer (2010)
An omnibus film of the romances and breakups of five couples: Soo-jin works in a cafe in Seoul. One day, she receives a call at work from a Polish man in Rotterdam, who tells her the story of his missing fiance. Eun-hee shows up one night and blames her ex-boyfriend Hyun-oh for ruining her life. Although she has a new relationship, she is still upset that Hyun-oh breaks up with her. Se-yeon seduces Young-soo, who is rumoured to be dating a man. Young-soo's long-time lover Woon-chul is heartbroken when he makes a confession and decides to end their relationship. Indie bandmates Hye-young and Joo-young discuss about love while taking a walk in Namsan park.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Peasant Psalm (1989)
The movie follows the turbulent life of Wortel, a deeply devout yet flawed Flemish farmer at the turn of the 20th century. Wortel has an intense bond with his land, but his life is defined by a relentless series of tragic hardships.Throughout his journey, Wortel faces the loss of multiple children, the suicide of his son, and the heartbreaking deaths of his wives, Fien and Frisine. Despite these devastating misfortunes, he is constantly urged by the local village priest to accept this suffering as part of God's grand plan. Mixing heavy melodrama with moments of dark, bittersweet humor, the film portrays Wortel’s fierce survival instinct, human weaknesses, and ultimate search for solace through his faith and hard labor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Where There's Smoke (1973)
An election campaign becomes more interesting when anonymously published photographs depict the wife of a candidate, Dr. Peyrac, attending a sex party. Are the photographs fake or genuine ?
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Like Only Once and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Only Once?
The closest matches to Only Once are The Choice (2016), Love at First Sight (2023) and About a Boy (2002). Below are 24 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Only Once?
Start with The Choice (2016), the closest match to Only Once.
What is the highest-rated movie like Only Once?
The Best of Me (2014), rated 7.5/10 by 2,775 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Only Once?
Your Fault: London (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Only Once?
Yes: The Choice (2016), Love at First Sight (2023) and About a Boy (2002).
How are movies similar to Only Once chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Only Once, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.