Movies like Friend (2025)
The best movies like Friend (2025) are The Deadly Affair (1967), The Ritual Killer (2023) and Gorky Park (1983). If Friend hooked you with its thriller and mystery, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThree Days of the Condor (1975)7.3/10 from 1,445 votes
- NewestRelay (2025)Released 2025
The Deadly Affair (1967)
Charles Dobbs is a British secret agent investigating the apparent suicide of Foreign Office official Samuel Fennan. Dobbs suspects that Fennan's wife, Elsa, a survivor of a Nazi Germany extermination camp, might have some clues, but other officials want Dobbs to drop the case. So Dobbs hires a retiring inspector, Mendel, to quietly make inquiries. Dobbs isn't at all sure as there are a number of anomalies that simply can't be explained away. Dobbs is also having trouble at home with his errant wife, whom he very much loves, having frequent affairs. He's also pleased to see an old friend, Dieter Frey, who he recruited after the war. With the assistance of a colleague and a retired policeman, Dobbs tries to piece together just who is the spy and who in fact assassinated Fennan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & 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 & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisGorky Park (1983)
Police Inspector Renko tries to solve the case of three bodies found in Moscow's Gorky Park but finds his attempts to solve the crime impeded by his superiors. Working on his own, Renko seeks out more information and stumbles across a conspiracy involving the highest levels of the government.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Caveman's Valentine (2001)
Romulus, a misunderstood musician turned recluse hiding from personal demons in a New York City cave, finds the frozen body of a young drifter in a tree. The authorities, including his police officer daughter, claim the death is accidental. Romulus is convinced the man was murdered by a prominent art photographer but how can he prove he's right when everyone thinks he's insane?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisEncounter (2021)
A decorated Marine goes on a rescue mission to save his two young sons from an unhuman threat. As their journey takes them in increasingly dangerous directions, the boys will need to leave their childhoods behind.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Doctor (2011)
Dr. Martin Blake, who has spent his life looking for respect, meets an 18-year-old patient named Diane, suffering from a kidney infection, and gets a much-needed boost of self-esteem. However, when her health starts improving, Martin fears losing her, so he begins tampering with her treatment, keeping Diane sick and in the hospital right next to him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Commuter (2018)
A businessman, on his daily commute home, gets unwittingly caught up in a criminal conspiracy that threatens not only his life but the lives of those around him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBackstabbing for Beginners (2018)
An idealistic young employee at the U.N. investigates the grisly murder of his predecessor – and uncovers a vast global conspiracy that may involve his own boss.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
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 thriller & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRiver Wild (2023)
Follows a pair of siblings who love but distrust each other as they embark on a white-water rafting trip with a small group. One of their friends from childhood turns out to be more dangerous than he appears.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Lady Vanishes (2013)
Young socialite Iris Carr befriends an older woman while traveling solo by train. When Iris wakes from a nap, the woman is gone and other passengers claim she never existed.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Independent (2022)
It's the final weeks of the most consequential presidential election in history. America is poised to elect either its first female president or its first viable independent candidate. Reporting history as it's made, an idealistic young journalist teams up with her idol, legendary journalist Nick Booker, to uncover a conspiracy that places the fate of the election, and the country, in their hands.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisForeign Correspondent (1940)
American crime reporter John Jones is reassigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent to cover the imminent war. When he walks into the middle of an assassination and stumbles on a spy ring, he seeks help from a beautiful politician’s daughter and an urbane English journalist to uncover the truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThree Days of the Condor (1975)
When bookish CIA researcher Joe Turner finds all his co-workers dead, he, together with a woman he has kidnapped, must work together to outwit those responsible until he determines who he can really trust.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Quiller Memorandum (1966)
After two British Secret Intelligence Service agents are murdered at the hands of a cryptic neo-Nazi group known as Phoenix, the suave agent Quiller is sent to Berlin to investigate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisMindcage (2022)
Detectives Jake Doyle and Mary Kelly seek the help of an incarcerated serial killer named The Artist when a copycat killer strikes. While Mary searches for clues in The Artist's brilliant but twisted psyche, she and Jake are lured into a diabolical game of cat and mouse, racing against time to stay one step ahead of The Artist and his copycat.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisRelay (2025)
A broker of lucrative payoffs between corrupt corporations and the individuals who threaten them breaks his own rules when a new client seeks his protection to stay alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Parallax View (1974)
An ambitious reporter gets in trouble while investigating a senator's assassination which leads to a vast conspiracy involving a multinational corporation behind every event in the world's headlines.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMona Lisa and the Blood Moon (2022)
A young woman with psychokinetic powers breaks out of a Louisiana asylum and makes her way to New Orleans, where she falls into the city’s netherworld of misfits and miscreants.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Public Eye (1992)
A crime photographer gets involved in a conspiracy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Little Bit Like Murder (1973)
A malevolent old house is pervaded by evil spirits who inflict harm upon the occupants. Their latest victim is a woman who is overcome with hatred for her family.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & mystery
The Mothman Prophecies (2002)
Reporter John Klein is plunged into a world of impossible terror when fate draws him to the sleepy West Virginia town of Point Pleasant, whose residents are being visited by a great winged shape that sows hideous nightmares and fevered visions.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBreak the Blade (2021)
Sebari Milach is an awareness film aimed at showing the dark ritualistic practices of female circumcision illegally practiced in Africa. This film touches on a true story about a young Ethiopian girl who gets tricked by her mother into getting circumcised at a ritual purification ceremony shortly after her sister passed away from the same practice.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & thriller
Vegas Stories: 2 the Hard Way (2023)
Allies in the criminal world are fickle. Jalil "Jah" Douglas finds out the hard way with best friend Leon "L". Down and out till a chance encounter at work the two are now a part of a crew of seven. Allegiance is tested when a crew member flips to local law enforcement, setting off a chain of mysterious events. —Good Shot Films
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery & drama
Golden Slumber (2018)
A delivery man has to flee for his life when he is framed for the assassination of a political candidate and the evidence against him begins to accumulate.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like this20th Century Boys 3: Redemption (2009)
The final showdown, and the final reveal. Who is Friend? How can he be stopped?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGoon... In Plain Sight (2024)
After two fat bodies turn up gooned in the dimly lit mason household, Leopold and Jerry, a dynamic duo with an insatiable appetite for unraveling mysteries, find themselves thrust into the heart of a chilling investigation. With the clock ticking and tension mounting, they embark on a harrowing journey through the house, determined to uncover the enigmatic identity of the elusive Gooner of 02’. As they peel back the layers of deception and danger, they realize that nothing is as it seems, and the truth may be their greatest adversary yet.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
The Burglar (2025)
The Burglar, is about a thief that breaks into the wrong house on the wrong night—only to become the hunted. But when the body vanishes and reality starts to warp, it’s clear this break-in was just the beginning.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
False Flag (2025)
A sidelined CIA Operator wrestles with the decision to execute orders for a false flag terrorist event or defy his own country in order to protect it.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
The Trouble with Jessica (2024)
Sarah and Tom are in terrible financial trouble. On the brink of losing everything, they’ve managed to find a buyer for their stylish London home. When their best friends Richard and Beth come round for a final dinner, an uninvited old friend, Jessica, tags along.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Friend?
The closest matches to Friend are The Deadly Affair (1967), The Ritual Killer (2023) and Gorky Park (1983). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Friend?
Start with The Deadly Affair (1967), the closest match to Friend.
What is the highest-rated movie like Friend?
Three Days of the Condor (1975), rated 7.3/10 by 1,445 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Friend?
Relay (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Friend?
Yes: The Deadly Affair (1967), The Ritual Killer (2023) and Gorky Park (1983).
How are movies similar to Friend chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Friend, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.