Movies like Unlicensed (2025)
The best movies like Unlicensed (2025) are Jawbone (2017), Beast (2026) and Bruised (2021). If Unlicensed 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
Jawbone (2017)
A former youth boxing champion, Jimmy McCabe is a man in search of hope but looking in all the wrong places. When he hits rock bottom he turns to his childhood boxing club and the only family he has left: gym owner Bill corner man Eddie and promoter Joe. Back in training, years after anyone thought he was a contender, he risks his life, as he tries to stand tall and regain his place in the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
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 thisBruised (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 thisConvict (2014)
Set in the dark and old Parramatta prison built by the original convicts our lead character Ray a war veteran finds himself serving 18 months for manslaughter after defending his fiance. He soon realizes that the prison boss has it in for him and does everything possible to break Ray even going after his fiance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 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 thisWelcome to Sudden Death (2020)
Jesse Freeman is a former special forces officer and explosives expert now working a regular job as a security guard in a state-of-the-art basketball arena. Trouble erupts when a tech-savvy cadre of terrorists kidnap the team's owner and Jesse's daughter during opening night. Facing a ticking clock and impossible odds, it's up to Jesse to not only save them but also a full house of fans in this highly charged action thriller.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEmpire (2002)
Big time drug dealer Victor Rosa is looking to get out of the game and sees his chance with a big deal with a new friend who happens to be a Wall St. stockbroker. Thinking this will be his chance to go out on top, Victor soon finds out that he's been double crossed and his last option is to get revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn Full Bloom (2019)
Set shortly after the end of World War II, a philosophical boxing drama of two fighters from opposite worlds (USA and Japan) who are pulled together for a questionable fight arranged by their unscrupulous managers and the Yakuza.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHunting Season (2025)
When a reclusive survivalist and his daughter rescue a mysterious, wounded woman from a river, they become entangled in a deadly web of violence and revenge, forcing them to confront a brutal criminal to survive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies 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 thisSalting the Battlefield (2014)
David Hare concludes his trilogy of films about MI5 renegade Johnny Worricker with another fugue on power, secrets and the British establishment. Johnny Worricker goes on the run with Margot Tyrell across Europe, and with the net closing in, the former MI5 man knows his only chance of resolving his problems is to return home and confront prime minister Alec Beasley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe System (2022)
When a young soldier, newly returned from war, gets caught up in a drug bust, he is recruited by the authorities to go undercover in a notoriously dangerous prison in order to figure out what is really going on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAbove the Rim (1994)
Story of a promising high school basketball star and his relationships with two brothers, one a drug dealer and the other a former basketball star fallen on hard times and now employed as a security guard.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSalvable (2025)
When a battered boxer past his prime finds his dreams and his relationships on the ropes, he falls back in with a dangerous crowd and has to take the biggest swing of his life to reclaim his hope and his family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbsolution (2024)
An aging ex-boxer gangster working as muscle for a Boston crime boss receives an upsetting diagnosis. Despite a faltering memory, he attempts to rectify the sins of his past and reconnect with his estranged children. He is determined to leave a positive legacy for his grandson, but the criminal underworld isn’t done with him and won’t loosen their grip willingly.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisIn the Blood (2014)
When her husband goes missing during their Caribbean vacation, a woman sets off on her own to take down the men she thinks are responsible.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisJungleland (2020)
Stanley manages his boxer brother Lion but when a devastating loss in the ring leaves the pair in debt, an opportunity to recoup the cash leads to a series of misadventures that threaten to break the bond between them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHands of Stone (2016)
The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Days of American Crime (2020)
In the not-too-distant future, as a final response to crime and terrorism, the U.S. government plans to broadcast a signal that will make it impossible for anyone to knowingly break the law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMost Unusual Matches (1985)
Jesse "The Body" Ventura takes the WWE Universe on a trip down memory lane with some of the wildest matches in history; this presentation features everything from battle royals and lumberjack matches to an unforgettable bout inside a steel cage.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
WWE WrestleFest '93 (1993)
As "Mean" Gene Okerlund and Bobby "The Brain" Heenan are on an ill-fated journey, viewers are treated to a lineup of matches; "The Ugandan Giant" Kamala vs. Bret "Hit Man" Hart for the Intercontinental Championship; Papa Shango vs. Crush.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
WWE Survivor Series 2014 (2014)
Survivor Series featured professional wrestling matches involving different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds, plots, and storylines that played out on WWE's primary television programs, Raw and SmackDown. Wrestlers portrayed heroes or villains as they followed a series of events that built tension, and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
WWE SummerSlam 2024 (2024)
SummerSlam 2024, also promoted as SummerSlam: Cleveland, was a professional wrestling event produced by WWE. It was the 37th annual SummerSlam and took place on Saturday, August 3, 2024, at Cleveland Browns Stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. The event aired via pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming and featured wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. This was the second SummerSlam event to emanate from Cleveland, after the 1996 event, which was held at the Gund Arena (now known as Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse). WWE wrestler and Cleveland area native The Miz served as the host of the event.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
Wrestling Superheroes (1990)
Host Sean Mooney presents some of the most exciting Superstars in action, including The Ultimate Warrior vs. "Macho Man" Randy Savage and Hercules Hernandez challenging Hulk Hogan for the WWE Championship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
Macho Madness (1988)
Delving into the mind of Macho Madness in this home video classic that highlights the one and only "Macho Man" Randy Savage; "Mean" Gene Okerlund hosts this look at Savage's career, including his many battles with Ted DiBiase for the WWE Title.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
Wrestling's Most Embarrassing Moments (1987)
Hilarious mistakes, miscues, and other annoying curve balls perpetrated by various WWE Superstars of the 1980s; host "Mean" Gene Okerlund presents a variety of funny incidents that found their way to national television.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & action
WWE Royal Rumble 2018 (2018)
The 30th anniversary of Royal Rumble will come to the WWE Universe from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia tonight and you can get your tickets now! Relive incredible past Royal Rumble events on the award-winning WWE Network, and don’t miss out when Royal Rumble returns to Philadelphia.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWWE Night of Champions 2011 (2011)
Night of Champions (2011) was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by WWE and presented by WowWee's Light Strike that took place on September 18, 2011 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. It was the fourth annual WWE Night of Champions event and the eleventh in the WWE Vengeance/Night of Champions overall chronology. This is also the first live pay-per-view event to feature the WWE Superstars without the WWE Brand Extension. Eight matches took place at the event, seven of which were broadcast live on pay-per-view. The event featured multiple main events, with Triple H defeating CM Punk, John Cena defeating Alberto Del Rio for the WWE Championship, and Mark Henry defeating Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Championship. The event garnered 161,000 buys, down from 165,000 buys the previous year.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
Wrestling Tough Guys (1990)
Hosts Sean Mooney and Lord Alfred Hayes highlight some of the toughest customers the WWE has ever known; from "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and Haku to Akeem and The Bushwhackers, the special spotlights some of the most rugged individuals in WWE history.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama
Like Unlicensed and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Unlicensed?
The closest matches to Unlicensed are Jawbone (2017), Beast (2026) and Bruised (2021). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Unlicensed?
Start with Jawbone (2017), the closest match to Unlicensed.
What is the highest-rated movie like Unlicensed?
Beast (2026), rated 7.5/10 by 227 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Unlicensed?
Beast (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Unlicensed?
Yes: Jawbone (2017), Beast (2026) and Bruised (2021).
How are movies similar to Unlicensed chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Unlicensed, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.