Movies like The Contest (2019)
The best movies like The Contest (2019) are I'll Be Home for Christmas (2016), Starting Over (1979) and A Merry Little Ex-Mas (2025). If The Contest hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedSecrets & Lies (1996)7.6/10 from 758 votes
- NewestA Merry Little Ex-Mas (2025)Released 2025
I'll Be Home for Christmas (2016)
Jackie Foster, a dynamic Assistant District Attorney and single mom, is looking forward to wrapping up her latest case and spending Christmas with Gracie, her adorable and precocious, eight-year old daughter. But when Jackie’s estranged dad, Jack , a gruff retired police officer, unexpectedly shows up at her door, they will be forced to confront old wounds.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStarting Over (1979)
After divorcing his ambitious singer wife, a middle-aged man begins a new relationship with a teacher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Merry Little Ex-Mas (2025)
Recently separated, Kate hopes to celebrate one last perfect family Christmas with her soon-to-be ex-husband Everett and their kids before their divorce is final and the house is sold. But her holiday plans are hilariously derailed when Everett unexpectedly brings his younger, successful new girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Noel Diary (2022)
Cleaning out his childhood home at Christmas, a novelist meets a woman searching for her birth mother. Will an old diary unlock their pasts — and hearts?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHolidate (2020)
Fed up with being single on holidays, two strangers agree to be each other's platonic plus-ones all year long, only to catch real feelings along the way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEvelyn (2002)
Desmond Doyle is devastated when his wife abandons their family on the day after Christmas. His unemployment, and the fact that there is no woman in the house to care for the children—Evelyn, Dermot and Maurice—make it clear to the authorities this is an untenable situation. The Catholic Church and the Irish courts decide to put the Doyle children into Church-run orphanages.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Dead (1987)
After a convivial holiday dinner party, things begin to unravel when a husband and wife address some prickly issues concerning their marriage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEXmas (2023)
When Graham decides to surprise his family by traveling home for Christmas, he is shocked to discover them already celebrating with an unexpected guest of honor, his ex-fiancée, Ali. The two exes battle it out to see who the family will pick to stay through Christmas Day and who must go.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFeast of the Seven Fishes (2019)
A slice of life story that follows a large Italian family on Christmas Eve as they prepare for the traditional Feast of the Seven Fishes, reminisce about the past and seek love in the future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSecrets & Lies (1996)
After her adoptive mother dies, Hortense, a successful black optometrist, seeks out her birth mother. She's shocked when her research leads her to Cynthia, a working class white woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Thin Man (1934)
Former detective Nick Charles has retired from police work, preferring a life of cocktails, parties, and relaxation with his wealthy wife, Nora. Their holiday is interrupted when the daughter of Nick’s former client asks for help finding her missing father, eccentric inventor Clyde Wynant. When Wynant’s body is discovered, Nick is drawn back into the investigation, with Nora eagerly joining him. As the couple questions Wynant’s family, friends, and business associates, a tangled web of greed, deception, and murder begins to unravel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Map That Leads to You (2025)
Heather is a young woman traveling Europe with friends before starting her perfectly planned life. A chance meeting with Jack sparks an unexpected romance that leads to deep emotional discovery. As secrets and life choices test their bond, her path changes forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHoliday Affair (1949)
Just before Christmas, department store clerk Steve Mason meets big spending customer Connie Ennis, who's actually a comparison shopper sent by another store. Steve lets her go, which gets him fired. They spend the afternoon together, which doesn't sit well with Connie's steady suitor, Carl, when he finds out, but delights her young son Timmy, who quickly takes to Steve.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby (2019)
Christmas brings the ultimate gift to Aldovia: a royal baby. But first, Queen Amber must help her family and kingdom by finding a missing peace treaty.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSt. Vincent (2014)
A young boy whose parents just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic, war veteran who lives next door.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Best Man Holiday (2013)
When college friends reunite after 15 years over the Christmas holidays, they discover just how easy it is for long-forgotten rivalries and romances to be reignited.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Christmas Princess (2019)
A struggling chef living in a trendy New York borough, Jessica took over a small restaurant where she used to work as a waitress, but it’s growing tough to make ends meet. Prince Jack, who’s in the city for his family’s annual Christmas charity dinner, finds himself in need of a last-minute chef for the royal event when he meets Jessica. As their relationship evolves and a romance blooms, so do the obstacles. But as the event arrives, she decides to go through with the dinner, and may just get the best Christmas present of all… love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Prince for Christmas (2015)
A prince from Europe meets a charming waitress when he travels to America during the Christmas holiday to escape an arranged marriage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Face of Love (2013)
A widow falls for a guy who bears a striking resemblance to her late husband.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNational Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
It's Christmastime, and the Griswolds are preparing for a family seasonal celebration. But things never run smoothly for Clark, his wife Ellen, and their two kids. Clark's continual bad luck is worsened by his obnoxious family guests, but he manages to keep going, knowing that his Christmas bonus is due soon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
Like The Contest and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Contest?
The closest matches to The Contest are I'll Be Home for Christmas (2016), Starting Over (1979) and A Merry Little Ex-Mas (2025). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Contest?
Start with I'll Be Home for Christmas (2016), the closest match to The Contest.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Contest?
Secrets & Lies (1996), rated 7.6/10 by 758 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Contest?
A Merry Little Ex-Mas (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to The Contest chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Contest, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.