Movies like The Waiting Man (2026)
The best movies like The Waiting Man (2026) are The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007), The Ritual (2017) and Backrooms (2026). If The Waiting Man hooked you with its horror, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBackrooms (2026)7.0/10 from 4,073 votes
- NewestBackrooms (2026)Released 2026
The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007)
When hundreds of videotapes showing torture, murder and dismemberment are found in an abandoned house, they reveal a serial killer's decade-long reign of terror and become the most disturbing collection of evidence homicide detectives have ever seen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ritual (2017)
A group of university friends reunite for a hiking trip in Sweden, but are stalked by a menacing presence when they're diverted through the woods.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBackrooms (2026)
A strange doorway appears in the basement of a furniture showroom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPhoenix Forgotten (2017)
Twenty years after three teenagers disappeared in the wake of mysterious lights appearing above Phoenix, Arizona, unseen footage from that night has been discovered, chronicling the final hours of their fateful expedition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Cleansing Hour (2019)
Two entrepreneurs stage elaborate fake exorcisms on social media until one of their girlfriends becomes possessed by a demon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParanormal Activity (2009)
After a young, middle-class couple moves into what seems like a typical suburban house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be demonic, but is certainly the most active in the middle of the night.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt Follows (2015)
A young woman is followed by an unknown supernatural force after a sexual encounter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBodycam (2026)
A call to a quiet suburban home unleashes unthinkable carnage when two officers mistakenly shoot a man and his infant child, spiraling the tragedy into a fierce, unrelenting fall into the unknown.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBarbarian (2022)
In town for a job interview, a young woman arrives at her Airbnb late at night only to find that it has been mistakenly double-booked and a strange man is already staying there. Against her better judgement, she decides to stay the night anyway.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHost (2020)
Six friends hire a medium to hold a séance via Zoom during lockdown — but they get far more than they bargained for as things quickly go wrong. When an evil spirit starts invading their homes, they begin to realise they might not survive the night.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Den (2013)
A young woman studying the habits of webcam chat users from the apparent safety of her apartment witnesses a brutal murder online and is quickly immersed in a nightmare in which she and her loved ones are targeted for the same grisly fate as the first victim.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParanormal Activity 3 (2011)
In 1988, young sisters Katie and Kristi befriend an invisible entity who resides in their home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisInfluencers (2025)
In the picturesque landscapes of Southern France, a young woman's chilling fascination with murder and identity theft sends her life into a whirlwind of chaos.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCreep (2014)
Looking for work, Aaron comes across a cryptic online ad: "$1,000 for the day. Filming service. Discretion is appreciated." Low on cash and full of naiveté, he decides to go for it. He drives to a cabin in a remote mountain town where he meets Josef, his cinematic subject for the day. Josef is sincere and the project seems heartfelt, so Aaron begins to film. But as the day goes on, it becomes clear that Josef is not who he says, and his intentions are not at all pure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCobweb (2023)
Eight year old Peter is plagued by a mysterious, constant tapping from inside his bedroom wall—one that his parents insist is all in his imagination. As Peter's fear intensifies, he believes that his parents could be hiding a terrible, dangerous secret and questions their trustworthiness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMalignant (2021)
Madison is paralyzed by shocking visions of grisly murders, and her torment worsens as she discovers that these waking dreams are in fact terrifying realities with a mysterious tie to her past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHell House LLC Origins: The Carmichael Manor (2023)
A group of cold case investigators stay at the Carmichael Manor, site of the grisly and unsolved murders of the Carmichael family back in the eighties. After four nights, the group was never heard from again. What is discovered on their footage is even more disturbing than anything found on the Hell House tapes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStrange Harvest (2025)
Detectives are thrust into a chilling hunt for a sadistic serial killer from the past whose return marks the beginning of a new wave of grotesque, otherworldly crimes tied to a cosmic force.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParanormal Activity 2 (2010)
Just as Daniel and Kristi welcome a newborn baby into their home, a demonic presence begins terrorizing them, tearing apart their perfect world and turning it into an inescapable nightmare.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisV/H/S/99 (2022)
A thirsty teenager's home video leads to a series of horrifying revelations, harkening back to the final punk rock analog days of VHS, while taking one giant leap forward into the hellish new millennium.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisBlood: The Last Vampire (2000)
In Japan, the vampire-hunter Saya, who is a powerful original, is sent by her liaison with the government, David, posed as a teenage student to the Yokota High School on the eve of Halloween to hunt down vampires. Saya asks David to give a new katana to her. Soon she saves the school nurse Makiho Amano from two vampires disguised of classmates and Makiho witnesses her fight against the powerful demon.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Conjuring: Last Rites (2025)
Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren take on one last terrifying case involving mysterious entities they must confront.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNaprata (2013)
Inspired by an infamous online video clip of a son beating his mother, a television crew from Belgrade comes to a remote Serbian village to shoot a report on violence against women. Inquiring with the locals about the protagonists of the video, they encounter a local expert on supernatural phenomena and learn about a ritual of summoning an ancient demon, naprata. Wanting to capture the first authentic footage of something otherworldly, they change their plans. Excited by the prospective success of the recording, they defy the old saying that "it's better to believe than to be convinced."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Husbandhood (2016)
In January of 2014, five filmmakers suddenly disappear while shooting in the nearby Drigh Lake Larakana woods. One week later, their camera was found.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Consumer (TBA)
Anna invites something sinister into her home when her online shopping obsession leads to a mysterious late-night delivery.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Lights Camera Death (2026)
A group of aspiring actors gathers at a remote holiday house to shoot a horror film with a promising director who harbors a dark secret. He knowingly allows them to discover a sinister symbol that serves as a gateway for a demon.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Bloody Way of Ehraman (2021)
A film crew travels out to a village in Anatolia to shoot a movie. But after each were affected by a dream they saw, the remaining four team members decide to stay and investigate the incident.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Dead Residence (2019)
A young couple buys a house with intention of "flipping it". Mysterious activities start happening to them while they are repairing the home.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Conte Cruel 3 - Un lundi au refuge (2022)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Lianne (2024)
Social Media influencer Erin takes her millions of fans on a live stream adventure inside an abandoned haunted house to raise money for the disease that took her friends life. The longer she stays the more she can raise.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Waiting Man?
The closest matches to The Waiting Man are The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007), The Ritual (2017) and Backrooms (2026). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Waiting Man?
Start with The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007), the closest match to The Waiting Man.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Waiting Man?
Backrooms (2026), rated 7.0/10 by 4,073 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Waiting Man?
Backrooms (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Waiting Man?
Yes: The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007), The Ritual (2017) and Backrooms (2026).
How are movies similar to The Waiting Man chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Waiting Man, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.