Movies like The Cult (2012)
The best movies like The Cult (2012) are Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013), Preaching to the Perverted (1997) and Scandalous Sex (2004). If The Cult hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedCrumb (1995)7.6/10 from 300 votes
- NewestFetish in E(x)ile (2025)Released 2025
Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013)
A man named Seligman finds a fainted wounded woman in an alley and he brings her home. She tells him that her name is Joe and that she is nymphomaniac. Joe tells her life and sexual experiences with hundreds of men since she was a young teenager while Seligman tells about his hobbies, such as fly fishing, reading about Fibonacci numbers or listening to organ music.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPreaching to the Perverted (1997)
A computer wizard infiltrates a London sex club to get evidence for a shutdown, but falls for the proprietress.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScandalous Sex (2004)
A daughter seeks to restore the reputation of her disgraced father, a wronged college professor. With help of a professional student, she must overcome an ambitious sorority bitch and corrupt college dean.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Awkward Sexual Adventure (2012)
A hyper-repressed and schlubby accountant (Jonas Chernick) strikes a deal with a worldly but disorganized stripper (Emily Hampshire): he'll help her with her crushing debt if she helps him become a better lover.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNine 1/2 Weeks (1986)
An erotic story about a woman, the assistant of an art gallery, who gets involved in an impersonal affair with a man. She barely knows about his life, only about the sex games they play, so the relationship begins to get complicated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Notorious Bettie Page (2006)
Bettie Page grew up in a conservative religious family in Tennessee and became a photo model sensation in 1950s New York. Bettie's legendary pin-up photos made her the target of a Senate investigation into pornography, and transformed her into an erotic icon who continues to enthrall fans to this day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Little Death (2014)
A comedy film that looks into the loosely connected lives of people with strange sexual fantasies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013)
The continuation of Joe's sexually dictated life delves into the darker aspects of her adult life and what led to her being in Seligman's care.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAroused (2013)
Get up close and personal with 16 of the most successful women in the adult film industry as they shed their clothes for an intimate photo shoot with director Deborah Anderson. As questions are asked, personal stories about their lives are revealed, from why they chose the business of sex to how they got into it in the first place. These porn stars have always been discreet about their private lives in the past, yet Anderson has a way of opening up a dialog allowing them to share more than just their naked skin on screen. Their true inner vulnerability is touching, yet the characters they have created are confident and intoxicating. Once you hear their stories, you'll never look at them in the same way again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thissex, lies, and videotape (1989)
Ann, a frustrated wife, enters into counseling due to a troubled marriage. Unbeknownst to her, her husband John has begun an affair with her sister. When John’s best friend Graham arrives, his penchant for interviewing women about their sex lives forever changes John and Ann’s rocky marriage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisExotica (1994)
In the upscale Toronto strip club Exotica, dancer Christina is visited nightly by the obsessive Francis, a depressed tax auditor. Her ex-boyfriend, the club's MC, Eric, still jealously pines for her even as he introduces her onstage, but Eric is having his own relationship problems with the club's female owner. Thomas, a mysterious pet-shop owner, is about to become unexpectedly involved in their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Duke of Burgundy (2015)
Day in and day out, lovers Cynthia and Evelyn enact an elaborate sadomasochistic fantasy as mistress and maid. But as their ritual of domination and submission begins to turn stale, Cynthia yearns for something more conventional, while Evelyn tries to push their taboos even further.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhat's New Pussycat? (1965)
A playboy who refuses to give up his hedonistic lifestyle to settle down and marry his true love seeks help from a demented psychoanalyst who is having romantic problems of his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisHeavy Metal 2000 (2000)
Upon discovery of a shard of what could be the Loc-Nar, a miner named Tyler becomes possessed with an insatiable hunger for power and a thirst for immortality. On his way to the planet of youth, Tyler wipes out most of a space colony and kidnaps a beautiful young woman. His only mistake is that he doesn't kill her sister, Julie, who then sets out on a mission of rescue and revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove Object (2004)
The twisted tale of Kenneth, socially insecure technical writer who forms an obsessive relationship with "Nikki", an anatomically accurate silicone sex doll he orders over the Internet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisSpider Baby (1967)
In a dilapidated rural mansion, the last generation of the degenerate, inbred Merrye family lives with the inherited curse of a disease that causes them to mentally regress from the age of 10 or so on as they physically develop. The family chauffeur looks out for them and covers up their indiscretions. Trouble comes when greedy distant relatives and their lawyer arrive to dispossess the family of its home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLovelace (2013)
Story of Linda Lovelace, who is used and abused by the porn industry at the behest of her coercive husband, before taking control of her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisX-Rated 2: The Greatest Adult Stars of All Time (2016)
Documentary sequel that offers a close-up look into the personal lives of the legendary porn stars who've survived the test of time and influenced popular culture. Blends rare interviews with erotic clips and additional appearances by Whoopi Goldberg, Steven Soderbergh and a host of adult stars, directors and trendsetters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBarbarella (1968)
In the far future, a highly sexual woman is tasked with finding and stopping the evil Durand-Durand. Along the way she encounters various unusual people.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLooking for Mr. Goodbar (1977)
A short, unhappy affair with a married man leads a dedicated schoolteacher into the alcohol-and-drug fueled underworld of singles’ bars, where she begins to engage in a pattern of dangerous sexual activity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBed and Board (1970)
Parisian everyman Antoine Doinel has married his sweetheart Christine Darbon, and the newlyweds have set up a cozy domestic life of selling flowers and giving violin lessons while Antoine fitfully works on his long-gestating novel. As Christine becomes pregnant with the couple's first child, Antoine finds himself enraptured with a young Japanese beauty. The complications change the course of their relationship forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMarnie (1964)
Marnie is a beautiful but emotionally withdrawn thief, stealing from employers before disappearing under new identities. When her new boss, Mark Rutland, discovers her secret, his fascination turns to obsession, and he blackmails her into marriage, convinced he can cure her. But as he probes deeper into Marnie’s fractured mind, long-buried fears and compulsions begin to surface.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Little Thief (1988)
In a small town in post-WWII France, 16-year-old Janine tries to improve her conditions by any means necessary. Three people—Michel, a married lover; Raoul, a fellow thief; Mauricette, a photographer she meets in prison—will help her learn from her mistakes.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrumb (1995)
This movie chronicles the life and times of R. Crumb. Robert Crumb is the cartoonist/artist who drew Keep On Truckin', Fritz the Cat, and played a major pioneering role in the genesis of underground comix. Through interviews with his mother, two brothers, wife, ex-wife and ex-girlfriends, as well as selections from his vast quantity of graphic art, we are treated to a darkly comic ride through one man's subconscious mind.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSoulMaid (2007)
Loosely based on the classic story of Sleeping Beauty, this irreverent gay fairy tale for modern audiences follows a man named Moses, whose frequent seizures are characterized by the appearance of Glintentica, a spurned Goddess planning her return to earth. Problems arise when Glintentica becomes determined to take over the soul of David, Moses' new love interest.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
On the Doll (2007)
A lurid, dark look into the lives of sex workers, where victims of child abuse deal with the consequences later in life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
SnoozefestMovies like thisMelvin Goes to Dinner (2003)
Four thirtysomethings convene for a wine-fueled dinner party that turns increasingly intimate as they discuss everything from religion and ghosts to relationships and sexual fetishes.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Fetish in E(x)ile (2025)
They met onstage at the Mr Leather Russia contest. One of them won the title, the other won the titleholder. 'A tale of two Doms', gay fetish and BDSM activists who tried to make a difference. But soon their world came crashing down.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (1963)
Three tales of very different women using their sexuality as a means to getting what they want.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCrash (1996)
A car crash victim inexplicably finds himself aroused by car accidents and becomes involved with an underground subculture of like-minded souls.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Cult?
The closest matches to The Cult are Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013), Preaching to the Perverted (1997) and Scandalous Sex (2004). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Cult?
Start with Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013), the closest match to The Cult.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Cult?
Crumb (1995), rated 7.6/10 by 300 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Cult?
Fetish in E(x)ile (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Cult?
Yes: Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013), Preaching to the Perverted (1997) and Scandalous Sex (2004).
How are movies similar to The Cult chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Cult, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.