Movies like The Set-Up (1978)
The best movies like The Set-Up (1978) are Bruised (2021), Beast (2026) and Embattled (2020). If The Set-Up hooked you with its drama and action, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBeast (2026)7.5/10 from 227 votes
- NewestBeast (2026)Released 2026
Bruised (2021)
Jackie Justice is a mixed martial arts fighter who leaves the sport in disgrace. Down on her luck and simmering with rage and regret years after the fight, she's coaxed into a brutal underground fight by her manager and boyfriend Desi and grabs the attention of a fight league promoter who promises Jackie a life back in the Octagon. But the road to redemption becomes unexpectedly personal when Manny - the son she gave up as an infant - shows up at her doorstep. A triumphant story of a fighter who reclaims her power, in and out of the ring, when everyone has counted her out
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeast (2026)
MMA legend Patton James, now a commercial fisherman, is pulled back into the cage when his brother is in danger. Reuniting with his old coach Sammy, he commits to one final fight in one championship against the brutal champion Xavier Grau.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEmbattled (2020)
The eldest son of a ruthlessly tough MMA champion must fight his way out of the abusive cycle his father has continued.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMexicali (2026)
A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Enforcer (2022)
A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to save the young girl from the deadly organization he’s spent his life building.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDirt (2018)
In search of a lifeline for his struggling off road racing team, a man takes on a young car thief looking for a second chance, but as their worlds collide, they must struggle to forge a successful alliance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIron Jawed Angels (2004)
Defiant young activists take the women's suffrage movement by storm, putting their lives at risk to help American women win the right to vote.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIntroducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999)
An acclaimed stage performer, Dorothy still struggled with the challenge of her color, in a time that wouldn't let some stars in by the front door. Yet against the odds she beat out many more famous rivals for the role of "Carmen Jones", becoming the first black woman ever nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award. Marriages and affairs would break her heart, but her heart was strong. Seductive and easily seduced, she was born to be a star - with all the glory and all the pain of being loved, abused, cheated, glorified, undermined and undefeated. Here was a woman who wouldn't wait in the wings. Halle Berry stars as Dorothy Dandrige.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLucky Them (2013)
More interested in partying and flirting with young musicians than work, veteran rock journalist Ellie Klug has one last chance to prove her value to her magazine’s editor: a no-stone-unturned search to discover what really happened to long lost rock god, Matt Smith, who also happens to be her ex-boyfriend. Teaming up with an eccentric amateur documentary filmmaker, Ellie hits the road in search of answers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Safety of Objects (2002)
In a suburban landscape, the lives of several families interlace with loss, despair and personal crisis. Esther Gold has lost focus on all but caring for her comatose son, Paul, and neglects her daughter and husband. Lawyer Jim Train is devoted to his career, not his family. Helen Christianson wants to find a new spark in life, while Annette Jennings tries to rebuild hers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Trials of Cate McCall (2013)
In order to be reinstated to the bar and recover custody of her daughter, a hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and on probation, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCall Me Crazy: A Five Film (2013)
A psychotherapist helps a law student cope with schizophrenia in one of five interconnected tales dealing with mental illness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTalhotBlond (2012)
Thomas Montgomery, a married father of two young daughters, gets seduced by the world of online gambling and chat rooms where a virtual romance and sexual obsession ultimately leads to the murder of an innocent man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBastard Out of Carolina (1996)
A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as her last chance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Truth About Emanuel (2013)
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Girl in the Book (2015)
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies 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
SnoozefestMovies like thisA Dry White Season (1989)
During the 1976 Soweto uprising, a white school teacher's life and values are threatened when he asks questions about the death of a young black boy who died in police custody.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRogue Agent (2022)
Conman Robert Freegard poses as an undercover MI5 agent and kidnaps countless victims amidst a high-stakes manhunt, until the woman who fell for him brings him to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDiablillos de arrabal (1940)
In a poor neighborhood in Mexico City, two gangs of kids fight for control of the center where they work as "boleros", musicians or announcers. "Completo" joins the gang led by "Rorro", a rival of the group headed by "Curricán".
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Cry (2007)
In New York, detective Alex Scott is investigating with his partner Sergio Perez the disappearance of several children. When they visit the Mexican witch Gloria, the woman advises that a powerful evil force is chasing the reincarnation of her son and drowning the other children to bring pain to their mothers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Brownsville Bred (2025)
Set against the vibrant yet challenging backdrop of her urban neighborhood, the complexities of adolescence are explored as Elaine faces an unexpected upheaval in her life due to her father, Manny, an aspiring salsa musician whose struggles lead him away from his family.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Jacob Have I Loved (1989)
In the early 1940s, a depressed young woman, who's been eclipsed all of her life by her beautiful twin sister, tries to overcome her low self-esteem with help from a crusty old sea captain.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
A Million Little Pieces (2019)
A young drug-addled writer approaching the bottom of his descent submits to two months of agonizing detox at a treatment center in Minnesota.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDer Duft von Holunder (2011)
Once Sofie Möller left her idyllic hometown with the aim of making a career in the big city. Now she returns with her mother Agnes to attend the funeral of her grandmother and to revamp her empty house for sale. It does not take long for Sofie to be confronted with her past, which apart from the grandmotherly love consisted of many personal injuries. When she meets her former boyhood friend Tom Sommer again, Sofie has come to the time to rethink her own emotional life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Christmas Secret (2014)
While her life is falling apart, single mother Christine finds a magical family heirloom that leads to love and good fortune during Christmas.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBut Muzeyyen That's the Deepest Desire (2014)
Arif, who is trying to write his first book, believes that life contains many unanswerable questions, especially about women and relationships. But when Müzeyyen appears unexpectedly, everything he has ever known or tried to learn is suddenly turned upside down.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEurope in the Evening (1989)
Based on the novel "Trust D. E." by Ilja Ehrenburg. Jens Boot, a successful manager in a multinational corporation, organizes the takeover of companies in Europe. Very soon he realizes his task—the preparation of the destruction of Europe. He suspects his girlfriend of being involved in the conspiracy. Only in the European desert do they meet again.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Apatride (2018)
Henia will give anything to mend her broken past and find her mother, from whom she has been separated since the conflict between Morocco and Algeria during the Black Demonstration of 1975. After being given an opportunity to assist an elderly blind man, she accepts the offer and eventually finds herself agreeing to marry him. For Henia, this is a chance to get the necessary papers for her return to Algeria. For the old man, it’s a chance to start over. For his son, it is a disgrace.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like The Set-Up and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Set-Up?
The closest matches to The Set-Up are Bruised (2021), Beast (2026) and Embattled (2020). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Set-Up?
Start with Bruised (2021), the closest match to The Set-Up.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Set-Up?
Beast (2026), rated 7.5/10 by 227 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Set-Up?
Beast (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Set-Up?
Yes: Bruised (2021), Beast (2026) and Embattled (2020).
How are movies similar to The Set-Up chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Set-Up, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.