Movies like The city and the captive (2024)
The best movies like The city and the captive (2024) are Verity (2026), The Inhabitant (2022) and The Mean Season (1985). If The city and the captive hooked you with its mystery, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDetective Conan: The Phantom of Baker Street (2002)7.8/10 from 248 votes
- NewestVerity (2026)Released 2026
- In SpanishThe Chalk Line (2022)Also in Spanish
Verity (2026)
Lowen Ashleigh, hired to ghostwrite for best-selling author Verity Crawford, uncovers Verity's autobiographical notes, and becomes involved in what may prove to be a lethal conspiracy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Inhabitant (2022)
Like any other teenage girl, Tara is just surviving high school — yet her father and mother seem strangely distant. Amidst a nearby spree of gruesome ax murders, Tara has sightings of terrifying entities, forcing her to question her own sanity and shocking ancestry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Mean Season (1985)
A routine investigation of a shocking murder takes a bizarre twist when the killer contacts the reporter and appoints him his personal spokesman. As the killer's calls and clues increase, the reporter is lured into a deadly trap.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Rainbow (1989)
Martha Travis is a medium who makes contact with spirits "on the other side" and connects them with their loved ones still alive, in public performances. Trouble begins when she gives a message to Mary Kuron from her husband, Tom. But Tom isn't dead... yet. And Martha not only knows he will die, she also knows who killed him. And the murderer knows she knows...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisCurse of the Blair Witch (1999)
A mockumentary exploring the legend of the Blair Witch and the case of the three missing student filmmakers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnnabelle Hooper and the Ghosts of Nantucket (2016)
Vacationing on historic Nantucket Island, a teenage mystery writer and her friends must outwit two scheming thieves to solve the secret behind a legendary ghost story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Return of Doctor X (1939)
When news reporter Walter Garrett arrives at the hotel room of bombshell actress Angela Merrova to conduct an interview, he finds her dead from multiple stab wounds. He returns with the police to find the hotel empty and the body vanished. Garrett writes about the incident but is fired when Merrova, alive and well, goes to the paper to complain. Now his only chance to get his job back is to find the truth, which involves the grisly scheme of a madman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Night Strangler (1973)
After being run out of Las Vegas, reporter Carl Kolchak heads for Seattle and another reporting job with the local paper. It's not long before he’s on the trail of another string of bizarre murders. It seems that every 21 years, for the past century, a killer murders a certain number of people, drains them of their blood, and then disappears into the night. Kolchak is on his trail, but can he stop him?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Limits of Control (2009)
A mysterious stranger works outside the law and keeps his objectives hidden, trusting no one. While his demeanor is paradoxically focused and dreamlike all at once, he embarks on a journey that not only takes him across Spain, but also through his own consciousness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Infernal Machine (2022)
Reclusive and controversial author Bruce Cogburn is drawn out of hiding by an obsessive fan, forcing the novelist to confront a past that he thought he could escape, and to account for events set in motion by his bestseller decades earlier. Cogburn's search for who is behind the manipulation and mental torment he encounters leads to an emotional roller-coaster ride full of fear and danger, where things are not always as clear as they seem to be, and where past deeds can have dire consequences.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Chalk Line (2022)
After a couple finds a traumatized child of unknown origins, wife Paula must decipher the girl's strange behaviors to unlock her identity and dark past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCleaner (2007)
Single father and former cop Tom Cutler has an unusual occupation: he cleans up death scenes. But when he's called in to sterilize a wealthy suburban residence after a brutal shooting, Cutler is shocked to learn he may have unknowingly erased crucial evidence, entangling himself in a dirty criminal cover-up.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ritual Killer (2023)
Unable to process the death of his daughter, Detective Boyd embarks on a hunt for a serial killer who murders according to a brutal tribal ritual: Muti. The only person who can help Boyd is Professor Mackles, an anthropologist who hides an unspeakable secret. The line between sanity and madness thins as Boyd goes deeper into the killer’s world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisClose Your Eyes (2023)
Years after his mysterious disappearance, Julio Arenas, a famous Spanish actor, is back in the news thanks to a television program.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStrange Harvest (2025)
Detectives are thrust into a chilling hunt for a sadistic serial killer from the past whose return marks the beginning of a new wave of grotesque, otherworldly crimes tied to a cosmic force.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMoebius (1996)
Deep within Buenos Aires's labyrinthine subway system, a train mysteriously disappears along with it's 30 passengers. The subway officials are greatly troubled and call in topographer Daniel Pratt to help them find it. Unfortunately, the tunnels are so vast and complex, that Pratt needs his mentor Hugo Mistein to help him. Unfortunately, he too has vanished.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSound of My Voice (2011)
A journalist and his girlfriend get pulled in while they investigate a cult whose leader claims to be from the future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Widow's Game (2025)
When a man is found dead, the investigation shatters his widow's perfect facade and exposes a hidden double life in this thriller based on real events.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost (1999)
Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Gang visit Oakhaven, Massachusetts to seek strange goings on involving a famous horror novelist and his ancestor who is rumored to have been a witch.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHaunted (1995)
Professor David Ash exposes false spiritulists and mediums. He is invited to Edbrook to resolve the fears and torments within its secretive family. Soon after arriving Ash begins to doubt his own senses, and watching the strange behaviour of its residents does not make his task any easier. In time, he finds there's more to Edbrook than even he can debunk.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like this1-800-FOR-BETH (TBA)
Set in the 80's, lonely college student Corey seeks solace from his party-loving roommate by calling a mysterious sex hotline, where he connects with the alluring voice of Beth. What begins as a flirty exchange quickly escalates into a disturbing conversation, as Beth reveals her dark desires.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
If Only (2024)
On a rainy afternoon, Martha discovers an old Polaroid in her bedroom. She then spends the whole afternoon conversing with someone deeply familiar and significant from her past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
The Moddey Dhoo (2025)
Past and present collide when a mythical beast is reawakened by a couple exploring a historic castle on the Isle of Man.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Failed Exit (2025)
Detached life of two young strangers is interrupted when they are transported to an unknown dimension.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Detective Conan: The Phantom of Baker Street (2002)
Noah's Ark, the latest innovation in VR technology, is set for a showcase to Japan's privileged children. However, their carefree fun is cut short when a company employee is found murdered, with his dying message pointing to a clue hidden within the Ark. Along with the Detective Boys and Ran Mouri, Conan Edogawa enters Noah's Ark to solve this mystery and ensure the perpetrator is caught.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCambio de Hábitos (2025)
Martín returns from vacation and discovers that his lifelong neighbor, Jesús, has completely changed. Intrigued and with the disapproval of his roommate, he decides to investigate what has happened to him. How far will his curiosity take him?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Murder Party (2022)
Jeanne, a brilliant architect has a new assignment: renovate the sumptuous Daguerre mansion owned by an eccentric family, head of a Board Game empire. When the landlord and patriarch Cesar is found dead, everyone present becomes a suspect. Suddenly Jeanne’s mission turns intoa life-size investigation to expose the murderer...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisDead Hasan (TBA)
The villagers, who think that Hasan is dead, believe that he has mystical powers when he opens his eyes. The subsequent course of events begins to unfold around Hasan, and is based on this mystical atmosphere.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
ALF Loves a Mystery (1987)
ALF (short for Alien Life Form) and Benji Gregory explore an shabby mansion hoping to find hidden treasure. During their search, they manage to preview the NBC's Saturday morning schedule of 1987.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The city and the captive?
The closest matches to The city and the captive are Verity (2026), The Inhabitant (2022) and The Mean Season (1985). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The city and the captive?
Start with Verity (2026), the closest match to The city and the captive.
What is the highest-rated movie like The city and the captive?
Detective Conan: The Phantom of Baker Street (2002), rated 7.8/10 by 248 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The city and the captive?
Verity (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like The city and the captive?
Yes: The Chalk Line (2022), Close Your Eyes (2023) and Moebius (1996).
How are movies similar to The city and the captive chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The city and the captive, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.