Movies like The Second Stage (2011)
The best movies like The Second Stage (2011) are Where the Red Fern Grows (1974), Where the Red Fern Grows (2003) and Skater Girl (2021). If The Second Stage hooked you with its drama and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Secret Life of Bees (2008)7.5/10 from 603 votes
- NewestOn Behalf of My Son (2026)Released 2026
Where the Red Fern Grows (1974)
Billy Coleman works hard and saves his earnings for two years to achieve his dream of buying two red-bone coonhound pups. He develops a new trust in life as he faces overwhelming challenges in adventure and tragedy roaming the river bottoms of Cherokee country with his dogs, Old Dan and Little Ann.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhere the Red Fern Grows (2003)
Set in the Ozark Mountains during the Great Depression, Billy Coleman works hard and saves his earnings for 2 years to achieve his dream of buying two coonhound pups. He develops a new trust in God as he faces overwhelming challenges in adventure and tragedy roaming the river bottoms of Cherokee country with "Old Dan" and "Little Ann."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSkater Girl (2021)
Prerna, a teenager growing up in rural India, comes of age when she’s introduced to the sport of skateboarding. As a result, she has to fight the odds to follow her dreams and compete in the national championship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAngels in the Snow (2015)
The affluent, yet troubled Montgomery family hits the road for a special Christmas in the mountains.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Second Chance: Rivals! (2019)
As Maddy takes on coaching a team of young twelve-year-old gymnasts, she faces up to intense city versus country rivalry, racism, cyberbullying and her own self-doubt but eventually takes the challenge head on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAn American Girl: McKenna Shoots for the Stars (2012)
A young girl struggles to maintain her school grades while competing as a gymnast.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Second Chance (2011)
A young girl and her coach overcome adversity to make their way into the National Australian Gymnastics Squad.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFlicka: Country Pride (2012)
Flicka and Toby help out a struggling stable owner and her teenage daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Lord Fauntleroy (1980)
Young Cedric Errol and his widowed mother live in genteel poverty in 1880s Brooklyn after the death of his father. Cedric's grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt, has long ago disowned his son for marrying an American. But after the death of the Earl's remaining son, he decides to accept Cedric as his heir.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFlicka (2006)
Katy McLaughlin desires to work on her family's mountainside horse ranch, although her father insists she finish boarding school. Katy finds a mustang in the hills near her ranch. The headstrong 16 year old then sets her mind to tame a mustang and prove to her father she can run the ranch. But when tragedy happens, it will take all the love and strength the family can muster to restore hope.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Believe (2019)
A 9 year old boy experiences God's power in a supernatural way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Secret Life of Bees (2008)
Set in South Carolina in 1964, this is the tale of Lily Owens a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother. To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen, her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother's past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Dry White Season (1989)
During the 1976 Soweto uprising, a white school teacher's life and values are threatened when he asks questions about the death of a young black boy who died in police custody.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Truth About Emanuel (2013)
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTalhotBlond (2012)
Thomas Montgomery, a married father of two young daughters, gets seduced by the world of online gambling and chat rooms where a virtual romance and sexual obsession ultimately leads to the murder of an innocent man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRemember (2015)
With the aid of a fellow Auschwitz survivor and a hand-written letter, an elderly man with dementia goes in search of the person responsible for the death of his family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOmaha (2025)
A young girl and her brother are awoken by their father and loaded into the car on an early morning in 2008. As they road trip across the American West, she discovers the truth about their seemingly spontaneous journey.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUndercurrent (1946)
After a rapid engagement, a dowdy daughter of a chemist weds an industrialist, knowing little of his family or past. He transforms her into an elegant society wife, but becomes enraged whenever she asks about Michael, his mysterious long-lost brother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Good Neighbor (2022)
A nightmarish evening unfolds for neighbors David and Robert when they accidentally hit a woman on her bike and flee the scene. While David is increasingly plagued by feelings of guilt, Robert shows no remorse and becomes overbearing and possessive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPhantom Halo (2014)
Two brothers barely scrape by as their father continues to gamble and drink away the money they do bring home. They hatch a plan for a robbery but at what price?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisFinding Solace (2026)
When two adopted siblings lose their mother, they struggle to come to terms with their own grief while keeping the family together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & family
King of the Iron Will (TBA)
After overthrowing the tyrant who slaughtered his family, a battle-scarred king confronts his defeated enemy in a final war of words that will determine whether vengeance crowns him a liberator or a tyrant.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
On Behalf of My Son (2026)
Vicentina struggles to cope with the death of her son Wesley after a tragic bus accident, in which he was the driver. As the investigation unfolds, evidence suggests that Wesley’s actions may have been suicidal. Vicentina then embarks on a journey to seek out the victims’ families and apologize, while confronting her own grief and uncertainty.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Enter the Wild (2018)
On a trek to find the world's rarest tree, Dylan and his friends descend into harsh ravines and canyons. As the wilderness closes in on them they come face to face with hard truths about friendship, unrequited love, and the consequences of letting go of the past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Across the River and into the Trees (2023)
In post WW2 Venice Italy, American Army Col. Richard Cantwell, haunted by the war, faces news of his illness with stoic disregard. Determined to spend a weekend in quiet solitude, he commandeers a military driver to visit his old haunts in Venice. As Cantwell's plans begin to unravel, a chance encounter with a remarkable young woman begins to rekindle hope. Based on the harrowing novel by Ernest Hemingway.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Purgatory of Ghosts and Grief (2021)
A bereaved man is visited by the ghost of his wife, and in doing so, she hinders his healing and ability to process his loss.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Summer of Broken Rules (TBA)
Following the death of her sister eighteen months ago, Meredith Fox shut everyone out. But this summer, she's determined to join the world again. The annual family vacation to Martha's Vineyard seems like the perfect place to reconnect. Her entire extended family is gathering for a big summer wedding, and although Meredith is dateless after being unexpectedly dumped, she's excited to participate in the traditional Fox family game of assassin that will take place during the week of wedding festivities. Claire always loved the game, and Meredith is determined to honor her legacy. But when Meredith forms an assassin alliance with a cute groomsman, she finds herself getting distracted. Meredith tries to focus on the game and win it for her sister, but she can’t help falling for him. And as the week progresses, she realizes she's not only at risk of losing the game, but also her heart.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Blackbird (2026)
Autumn 1979: 15-year-old Motte’s world is turned upside down when his best friend Bogi falls seriously ill, his parents separate, and he falls in love with Jacqueline, the most beautiful girl in the world. Torn between lovesickness and guilt toward his friend, he experiences an emotional rollercoaster. Yet all Motte really wants to do is listen to David Bowie, play soccer, and finally work up the courage to jump from the ten-meter diving board — his sanctuary whenever things get to be too much. Steffi, a self-confident chimney sweep, also throws his world into disarray with her zest for life. Many years later, Motte — now a structural engineer — is commissioned to demolish the ten-meter diving tower at the weather-beaten outdoor pool. But this place, which holds such deep significance, is filled with memories of the events from that year that changed his life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dedicated to Morris Burke (TBA)
Judy Brooks discovers that the final novel of her late best-selling author husband isn’t dedicated to her like all the others. Instead, it’s dedicated to a man named Morris Burke. Judy pushes her grieving, as well as her son Lucas, to the side as she becomes consumed by trying to find out who Morris Burke is.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like The Second Stage and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Second Stage?
The closest matches to The Second Stage are Where the Red Fern Grows (1974), Where the Red Fern Grows (2003) and Skater Girl (2021). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Second Stage?
Start with Where the Red Fern Grows (1974), the closest match to The Second Stage.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Second Stage?
The Secret Life of Bees (2008), rated 7.5/10 by 603 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Second Stage?
On Behalf of My Son (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Second Stage?
Yes: Where the Red Fern Grows (1974), Where the Red Fern Grows (2003) and Skater Girl (2021).
How are movies similar to The Second Stage chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Second Stage, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.