Movies like The King (2013)
The best movies like The King (2013) are Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972), Karol: The Pope, The Man (2006) and The Book of Daniel (2013). If The King hooked you with its drama and history, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLive and Become (2005)7.4/10 from 208 votes
- NewestDuse (2025)Released 2025
- In ItalianBrother Sun, Sister Moon (1972)Also in Italian
Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972)
In his delirium from his return from war, Francesco Bernardone goes back in his memories to the days when he lived for parties and carnal pleasures. He slowly recovers, but after the illness he is no longer the Francesco that everybody knew. Instead of spending hours in taverns, he meditates on the beauty of God's creatures, soon renouncing his riches and his family with plans to rebuild an abandoned church and his life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKarol: The Pope, The Man (2006)
This highly acclaimed feature film on Pope John Paul II was filmed on location in Italy and Poland. Focusing on the papacy of John Paul and the tremendous impact he had on the Church and the world, Karol: The Pope, The Man stars actor Piotr Adamczyk in a deeply moving portrayal of the beloved pontiff. It is the powerful true story of a charismatic spiritual leader who helped bring down Communism, renewed the life of the Church, greatly impacted youth worldwide with love for Christ, and a Pope who reached out to other religions and world leaders with a message of peace and love. Also stars Raoul Bova (Saint Francis), Michele Placido (Padre Pio: Between Heaven and Earth) and Adriana Asti as Mother Teresa. The beautiful film score is by legendary film composer Ennio Morricone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Book of Daniel (2013)
Taken into slavery after the fall of Jerusalem in 605 B.C., Daniel is forced to serve the most powerful king in the world, King Nebuchadnezzar. Faced with imminent death, Daniel proves himself a trusted Advisor and is placed among the king's wise men. Threatened by death at every turn Daniel never ceases to serve the king until he is forced to choose between serving the king or honoring God. With his life at stake, Daniel has nothing but his faith to stand between him and the lions' den.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Greatest Story Ever Told (1965)
From his birth in Bethlehem to his death and eventual resurrection, the life of Jesus Christ is given the all-star treatment in this epic retelling. Major aspects of Christ's life are touched upon, including the execution of all the newborn males in Egypt by King Herod; Christ's baptism by John the Baptist; and the betrayal by Judas after the Last Supper that eventually leads to Christ's crucifixion and miraculous return.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKing of Kings (1961)
Who is Jesus, and why does he impact all he meets? He is respected and reviled, emulated and accused, beloved, betrayed, and finally crucified. Yet that terrible fate would not be the end of the story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOranges and Sunshine (2010)
The story of Margaret Humphreys, a social worker from Nottingham, who uncovers one of the most significant social scandals in recent times – the forced migration of children from the United Kingdom to Australia and other Commonwealth countries. Almost singlehandedly, Margaret reunited thousands of families, brought authorities to account and worldwide attention to an extraordinary miscarriage of justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMary (2024)
A miraculous conception. A merciless king. A murderous pursuit. Mary's journey to give birth to Jesus unfolds in this biblical coming-of-age epic.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Robe (1953)
Drunk and disillusioned Roman, Marcellus Gallio, wins Jesus' robe in a dice game after the crucifixion. Marcellus has never been a man of faith like his slave, Demetrius, but when Demetrius escapes with the robe, Marcellus experiences disturbing visions and feels guilty for his actions. Convinced that destroying the robe will cure him, Marcellus sets out to find Demetrius — and discovers his Christian faith along the way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDuse (2025)
In the years between WWI and the rise of Fascism, legendary thespian Eleonora Duse shocks everyone by getting back onstage at over 60 years of age. Struggling with the brutality of historical events unfolding and clinging to the possibility of utopia, she makes her art a revolutionary act, even at the cost of sacrificing health and affection—facing her final journey aware she could give up life itself, but not her own true nature.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMunich - The Edge of War (2021)
At the tense 1938 Munich Conference, former friends who now work for opposing governments become reluctant spies racing to expose a Nazi secret.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRadium Girls (2020)
Young women toiling in a factory are exposed to hazardous material which takes a disastrous toll on their health.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPanther (1995)
In this sprawling, fictionalized history of the Black Panthers, 1960s Oakland becomes a war zone as the Panthers battle for the right to exist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOutlaws - For Greater Glory (2012)
A chronicle of the Cristeros War (1926-1929), which was touched off by a rebellion against the Mexican government's attempt to secularize the country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both history & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisVincere (2009)
The story of the descent into madness of Mussolini's secret first wife, Ida Dasler, who was seduced by his passion and vigor but blind to the fascist dictator's many flaws.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFuori (2025)
Rome. The 1980s. After the magnum opus The Art of Joy she has been working on for a decade is rejected by the Italian publishing world, writer Goliarda Sapienza commits a desperate theft that costs her her reputation and social position. Incarcerated in Italy’s largest female prison, she finds herself living alongside thieves, junkies, sex workers and revolutionaries. After her release, she continues to meet with these women and over the course of a sweltering summer, a life-changing relationship flowers – a relationship that will reawaken her the desire to live and to write.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAdventures of a Mathematician (2021)
The warmhearted story of Polish immigrant and mathematician Stan Ulam, who moved to the U.S. in the 1930s. Stan deals with the difficult losses of family and friends all while helping to create the hydrogen bomb and the first computer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKarol: A Man Who Became Pope (2005)
The life of the pope John-Paul II, from his youth as a writer, actor, and athlete in war-torn occupied Poland to his election as Pope at the age of 58.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Scarlet and the Black (1983)
Fr. Hugh O'Flaherty is a Vatican official in 1943-45 who has been hiding downed pilots, escaped prisoners of war, and Italian resistance families. His activities become so large that the Nazis decide to assassinate him the next time he leaves the Vatican.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJesus (1999)
Jesus, a carpenter living a simple life, discovers his destiny as the biblical Messiah.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCome Sunday (2018)
Evangelist Carlton Pearson is ostracized by his church for preaching that there is no Hell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisDukh Bhanjan Tera Naam (1974)
This Punjabi Movie, Dukh Bhanjan Tera Naam is a Punjabi movie about Sikhism. It was a great success. It portrays the people's belief in the almighty god who is one and how life teaches a lesson to those who does not believe so.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history
The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966)
Covering only the first 22 chapters of the Book of Genesis, vignettes include: Adam and Eve frolicking in the Garden of Eden until their indulgence in the forbidden fruit sees them driven out; Cain murdering his brother Abel; Noah building an ark to preserve the animals of the world from the coming flood; and Abraham making a covenant with God.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGood Soil (2007)
Ships from Europe brought Christianity to the shores of Japan in 1549. For decades the seeds of faith grew under the watchful gaze of the Shogun, but the fear of foreign influence eventually gave rise to persecution. By 1624, Japanese Christians enjoyed only a few more years of peace. Jinbei Mauda comes to a point in his journey were he has to choose between his family or faith. Jinbei Masuda, a Japanese Christian of the samurai class who draws his strength from his faith, family and kenjitsu (Art of the Sword). However, he is caught up in the shogun's policy of religious persecution and must choose between his loved ones or his God.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history
Words with Gods (2014)
The first of four installments in the groundbreaking Heartbeat of the World anthology film series. Comprised of several short films by some of the world's most exciting directors, Words with Gods follows the theme of religion - specifically as it relates to an individual's relationship with his/her god or gods...or the lack thereof. In Words with Gods, each director recounts a narrative centered around human fragility, as well as environmental and cultural crises involving specific religions with which each has a personal relationship; including early Aboriginal Spirituality, Umbanda, Buddhism, the Abrahamic faiths, Hinduism, and Atheism. An animated sequence by Mexican animator Maribel Martinez is woven through each of the film segments, with each segment narratively connected as a feature-length film.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Live and Become (2005)
In 1980, the black Falashas in Ethiopia are recognised as genuine Jews and are secretly carried to Israel. The day before the transport the son of a Jewish mother dies. In his place and with his name (Schlomo) she takes a Christian 9-year-old boy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Tribunal (2016)
The stakes are much higher than life or death in The Tribunal, a courtroom drama set in a Catholic Marriage Tribunal. On the surface, it appears that the struggle between Tony and Joe, two best friends who both love Emily, hinges on Joe obtaining an annulment of his first marriage, so Emily, a devout Catholic, can marry him. As they each fight for whom they love, the Tribunal slowly answers the ever-present question hanging over the proceedings, "What does God want?" Why it matters to these three is the reason it matters to every person. Our souls will not rest until they rest in the arms of the Lord.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
David (1997)
A distinguished military leader whose reign was touched by great scandal, shocking betrayals and rousing victories. A simple shepherd boy chosen to be king, under the watchful eyes of prophet Samuel.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Enemy (1974)
Christians Betsy and Tim grapple with demons who have possessed a pair of young brothers. Based on the novel by Jim Grant.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Mortality (2021)
A Man runs away from a Shadowy Figure whilst coming to terms with what’s next…His Mortality.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Cakemaker (2017)
Thomas, a young German baker, is having an affair with Oren, an Israeli married man who has frequent business visits in Berlin. When Oren dies in a car crash in Israel, Thomas travels to Jerusalem seeking for answers regarding his death. Under a fabricated identity, Thomas infiltrates the life of Anat, his lover’s newly widowed wife, who owns a small Café in downtown Jerusalem. Thomas starts to work for her, creating German cakes and cookies that bring her Café to life. Thomas finds himself involved in Anat’s life in a way far beyond his anticipation. To protect the truth he will stretch his lie to a point of no return.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
Like The King and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The King?
The closest matches to The King are Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972), Karol: The Pope, The Man (2006) and The Book of Daniel (2013). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The King?
Start with Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972), the closest match to The King.
What is the highest-rated movie like The King?
Live and Become (2005), rated 7.4/10 by 208 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The King?
Duse (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Italian movies like The King?
Yes: Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972), Karol: The Pope, The Man (2006) and Duse (2025).
How are movies similar to The King chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The King, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.