Movies like The Purpose (2025)
The best movies like The Purpose (2025) are The Cat and the Canary (1927), The House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018) and Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953). If The Purpose hooked you with its horror and comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedScooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost (1999)7.4/10 from 519 votes
- NewestMAUDE (2026)Released 2026
The Cat and the Canary (1927)
A group of potential heirs gather in a forbidding old house to learn which of them will inherit a fortune. Later, they learn that a flesh-rending maniac is loose.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018)
When ten-year-old Lewis is suddenly orphaned, he is sent to live with his Uncle Jonathan in a creaky (and creepy) old mansion with a mysterious ticking noise that emanates from the walls. Upon discovering that his uncle is a warlock, Lewis begins learning magic, but when he rebelliously resurrects an evil warlock he must find the secret of the house and save the world from destruction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953)
As American policemen in London, Bud and Lou meet up with Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDave Made a Maze (2017)
Dave, an artist who has yet to complete anything significant in his career, builds a fort in his living room out of pure frustration, only to wind up trapped by the fantastical pitfalls, booby traps, and critters of his own creation. Ignoring his warnings, Dave’s girlfriend Annie leads a band of oddball explorers on a rescue mission. Once inside, they find themselves trapped in an ever-changing supernatural world, threatened by booby traps and pursued by a bloodthirsty Minotaur.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe 'Burbs (1989)
When secretive new neighbors move in next door, suburbanite Ray Peterson and his friends let their paranoia get the best of them as they start to suspect the newcomers of evildoings and commence an investigation. But it's hardly how Ray, who much prefers drinking beer, reading his newspaper and watching a ball game on the tube expected to spend his vacation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFreaked (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: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Fearless Vampire Killers (1967)
A noted professor and his dim-witted apprentice fall prey to their inquiring vampires, while on the trail of the ominous damsel in distress.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisReturn to... Return to Nuke 'Em High aka Vol. 2 (2017)
Following the events of Volume 1, the mutated glee club continue their violent rampage in Tromaville. Chrissy and Lauren, two innocent lesbian lovers, must fight not only the Cretins, mutants, and monsters but also the evil Tromorganic Foodstuffs Conglomerate. Can they, and Kevin the Wonder Duck, save Tromaville High School and the world?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisManiac (1963)
When a stranger enters a quiet, country town and is seduced by a sensuous married woman he unwittingly finds himself at the centre of a storm of sexual guilt and murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster (2010)
Scooby-Doo and the gang are on the case when a mysterious lake monster starts scaring the guests at a summer resort in Erie Point, where Fred, Daphne, Velma and Shaggy have taken on seasonal jobs to pay for a barn they accidentally burned down. But in addition to sneaking suspicions, there's some romance in the air.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScared Stiff (1953)
A nightclub singer and his partner escape mobsters by fleeing to Cuba with a beautiful heiress, who has inherited a haunted castle on an isolated island. The trio hunt for a hidden treasure and encounter a ghost, a zombie, and a mysterious killer...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonster House (2006)
Monsters under the bed are scary enough, but what happens when an entire house is out to get you? Three teens aim to find out when they go up against a decrepit neighboring home and unlock its frightening secrets.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Locals (2003)
Two best friends, Grant and Paul, hita country road for a night of fun, but unfortunately take a short cut to their fate...where they meet the Locals.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHalloween with the New Addams Family (1977)
The original TV Addams Family members prepare for Halloween.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSong of the Thin Man (1947)
While attending a glamorous jazz cruise on New York’s East River, Nick and Nora Charles witness the fatal shooting of a wealthy patron. When suspicion falls on a young bandleader and his musicians, the couple steps in to clear their friends and uncover the real killer. Their investigation leads through a lively world of jazz clubs, radio personalities, high society, and backstage rivalries, where almost everyone has a secret and the next clue may be hidden in the music.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & 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 comedy & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCarnival of Souls (1962)
Mary Henry ends up the sole survivor of a fatal car accident through mysterious circumstances. Trying to put the incident behind her, she moves to Utah and takes a job as a church organist. But her fresh start is interrupted by visions of a fiendish man. As the visions begin to occur more frequently, Mary finds herself drawn to the deserted carnival on the outskirts of town. The strangely alluring carnival may hold the secret to her tragic past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisScooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins (2009)
Unjustly accused of staging a spooky practical joke complete with ghosts, Daphne, Velma, Fred and Shaggy are suspended from Coolsville High. To clear their names, they team up to solve the supernatural mystery…and head straight into nonstop laughs and adventure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPhantom of the Megaplex (2000)
Pete Riley is a 17-year-old who lands a part-time job at a multiplex in his neighbourhood. He and his friends are excited when it's announced that the theatre will play host to the premier of a major motion picture, with a number of Hollywood celebrities in attendance. However, when the big night comes, Pete has to contend with disappearing staff, malfunctioning equipment, and a broken popcorn machine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExtraordinary Tales (2015)
Five tales by Edgar Allan Poe come to life thanks to a pictorical style animation, five tales that exude madness, pestilence, murder and torture.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like this60 Seconds of Solitude in Year Zero (2011)
An anthology of one-minute films created by 51 international filmmakers on the theme of the death of cinema. Intended as an ode to 35mm, the film was screened one time only on a purpose-built 20x12 meter public cinema screen in the Port of Tallinn, Estonia, on 22 December 2011. A special projector was constructed for the event which allowed the actual filmstrip to be burnt at the same time as the film was shown.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & horror
1-800-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 horror & mystery
Badineries (2025)
While their couple is falling apart, Baptiste and Violette, two students, discover a new passion that may revive their relationship: murder. Yet, it is not sure that Gabriel and Madeleine, their Catholic and puritan friends, are going to approve this process...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & horror
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 horror & mystery
Class of Nuke 'Em High 2: Subhumanoid Meltdown (1991)
At the Tromaville Institute of Technology's nuclear plant, Prof. Holt has perfected "subhumanoids": living beings without emotions who perform menial tasks. When school reporter Roger Smith meets a beautiful subhumanoid named Victoria, they fall in love and he becomes determined to save her and the school from a giant mutant squirrel, Tromie.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisSon of the Mask (2005)
Tim Avery, an aspiring cartoonist, finds himself in a predicament when his dog stumbles upon the mask of Loki. Then after conceiving an infant son "born of the mask", he discovers just how looney child raising can be.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisEl Juego del Ahorcado (2023)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Astray (2025)
Police officers Kim and Jeroen are dispatched to a report from an elderly couple. What should have been an ordinary shift spirals into a nightmare as the duo stumbles upon a discovery that forces them to confront their fears and beliefs.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
MAUDE (2026)
Maude is a horror, drama short set in the present day, unfolding within the suffocating confines of a small, cluttered flat belonging to an elderly woman who is slowly disappearing from the world. Misunderstood and painfully lonely, Maude’s yearning to remain youthful masks a deeper grief she is struggling to confront. When she kidnaps a young boy, she follows an ancient ritual; one that will expose his spirit, restore her fading body, and release her husband she has kept bound to this world though love and denial.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)
The third graders of South Park sneak into an R-rated film by ultra-vulgar Canadian television personalities Terrance and Phillip, and emerge with expanded vocabularies that leave their parents and teachers scandalized. When outraged Americans try to censor the film, the controversy spirals into a call to wage war on Canada and Terrance and Phillip end up on death row, with the kids their only hope of rescue.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Purpose?
The closest matches to The Purpose are The Cat and the Canary (1927), The House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018) and Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Purpose?
Start with The Cat and the Canary (1927), the closest match to The Purpose.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Purpose?
Scooby-Doo! and the Witch's Ghost (1999), rated 7.4/10 by 519 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Purpose?
MAUDE (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Purpose?
Yes: The Cat and the Canary (1927), The House with a Clock in Its Walls (2018) and Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953).
How are movies similar to The Purpose chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Purpose, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.