Movies like Pay the Piper (1959)
The best movies like Pay the Piper (1959) are Tender Mercies (1983), The Apostle (1997) and Wise Blood (1979). If Pay the Piper hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Pay the Piper
Quick picks
- Highest ratedOrdinary Angels (2024)7.7/10 from 451 votes
- NewestPrey (2025)Released 2025
Tender Mercies (1983)
Alcoholic former country singer Mac Sledge makes friends with a young widow and her son. The friendship enables him to find inspiration to resume his career.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Apostle (1997)
After his happy life spins out of control, a preacher from Texas changes his name, goes to Louisiana and starts preaching on the radio.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWise Blood (1979)
A Southerner--young, poor, ambitious but uneducated--determines to become something in the world. He decides that the best way to do that is to become a preacher and start up his own church.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisElmer Gantry (1960)
A charismatic charlatan begins a business — and eventually romantic — relationship with a roadside evangelist to sell religion to 1920s America. Based on Sinclair Lewis' novel of the same name.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOrdinary Angels (2024)
Inspired by the incredible true story of a hairdresser who single-handedly rallies an entire community to help a widowed father save the life of his critically ill young daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSalesman (1969)
This documentary from Albert and David Maysles follows the bitter rivalry of four door-to-door salesmen working for the Mid-American Bible Company: Paul "The Badger" Brennan, Charles "The Gipper" McDevitt, James "The Rabbit" Baker and Raymond "The Bull" Martos. Times are tough for this hard-living quartet, who spend their days traveling through small-town America, trying their best to peddle gold-leaf Bibles to an apathetic crowd of lower-middle-class housewives and elderly couples.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Shack (2017)
A grieving man receives a mysterious, personal invitation to meet with God at a place called 'The Shack'.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhite Lightnin' (2009)
Deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains in West Virginia, where every man owns a gun and a moonshine still, abides living legend Jesco White, "the dancing outlaw". As a boy Jesco was in and out of reform school and the insane asylum. To keep him out of trouble, his daddy D-Ray taught him the art of mountain dancing, a frenzied version of tap dancing to wild country banjo music. After his father's death, crazy Jesco dons his father's tap shoes and takes his show on the road.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJezebel (1938)
In 1850s Louisiana, the willfulness of a tempestuous Southern belle threatens to destroy all who care for her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTalladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)
The fastest man on four wheels, Ricky Bobby, is one of the greatest drivers in NASCAR history. A big, hairy American winning machine, Ricky has everything a dimwitted daredevil could want, a luxurious mansion, a smokin' hot wife, and all the fast food he can eat. But Ricky's turbo-charged lifestyle hits an unexpected speed bump when he's bested by flamboyant Euro-idiot Jean Girard and reduced to a fear-ridden wreck.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Love Song for Bobby Long (2004)
A headstrong young woman returns to New Orleans after the death of her estranged mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTyler Perry's Divorce in the Black (2024)
Ava, a young bank professional is devastated when her husband Dallas abandons a marriage she is determined to fight for until fate intervenes, revealing Dallas' wicked deeds that have trashed their marriage, and once upon a time sabotaged Ava's destiny to be loved by her true soulmate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Blind (2023)
Long before Duck Dynasty's Phil Robertson became a reality TV star, he fell in love with Miss Kay and started a family, but his demons threatened to tear their lives apart. Set in the backwoods swamps of 1960s Louisiana, 'The Blind' shares never-before-revealed moments in Phil's life as he seeks to conquer the shame of his past, ultimately finding redemption in an unlikely place. This stunning cinematic journey chronicles the love story that launched a dynasty, the turmoil that nearly brought it crashing down, and the hope that rose from the ashes to create a foundation for generations to come.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDays of Wine and Roses (1963)
An alcoholic falls in love with and gets married to a young woman, whom he systematically addicts to booze so they can share his "passion" together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBordello of Blood (1996)
A seedy private eye gets more than he ever bargained for when a missing persons case leads him to a brothel overseen by the mother of vampires and her lusty army of the undead.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGod's Not Dead: A Light in Darkness (2018)
Pastor Dave responds to the unimaginable tragedy of having his church, located on the grounds of the local university, burned down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Birth of a Nation (2016)
Nat Turner, a former slave in America, leads a liberation movement in 1831 to free African-Americans in Virginia that results in a violent retaliation from whites.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Hill (2023)
The story of Rickey Hill, who overcomes his physical disability and repairs his relationship with his father in a quest to become a major league baseball (MLB) player.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Starling Girl (2023)
17-year-old Jem Starling struggles with her place within her Christian fundamentalist community. But everything changes when her magnetic youth pastor Owen returns to their church.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNurse Betty (2000)
What happens when a person decides that life is merely a state of mind? If you're Betty, a small-town waitress and soap opera fan from Fair Oaks, Kansas, you refuse to believe that you can't be with the love of your life just because he doesn't really exist. After all, life is no excuse for not living. Traumatized by a savage event, Betty enters into a fugue state that allows -- even encourages -- her to keep functioning... in a kind of alternate reality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWann ist der Mensch betrunken? (1957)
In order to determine the ability to drive after drinking alcohol, three men take various tests when sober and when drunk.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Prey (2025)
Young ecologist demonstraters travel to the countryside to confront hunters. But one of them is willing to do anything to stop them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
License to Drive (1988)
Teenager Les Anderson thinks his life can't get any worse after he flunks his driver's exam, but he's wrong. Even though he didn't receive his license, Les refuses to break his date with the cool Mercedes Lane, and he decides to lift his family's prize luxury car for the occasion. Unfortunately, Mercedes sneaks some booze along and passes out drunk, and a confused Les makes the bad decision of enlisting his rebellious friend, Dean, to help.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Greer Case (1957)
When a rich woman dies without signing her new will, all kinds of problems ensue.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
No Time at All (1958)
An airliner flying nonstop at night from Miami to New York fails to check in, then disappears from radar. We see how its disappearance affects people on the ground.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night (1967)
Peter Schermann is angry at the world after his children move him into a nursing home. Still physically and mentally strong, he searches for a meaning to his life in a new and uncompromising world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Old Man (1958)
In the South, convicts get a temporary release to help during a flood.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Hit and Run (2009)
A young woman tries to cover up a deadly hit and run accident, only to have the supposedly dead victim come back to terrorize her.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
SnoozefestMovies like thisYour Chance to Live: Heat Wave (1973)
The film highlights the dangers of extreme heat and the importance of staying hydrated and cool. It portrays a conversation between two friends, one of whom insists on playing basketball despite the oppressive heat. The narrative emphasizes that heat-related illnesses can be avoided by recognizing the body's signals and taking necessary precautions, such as drinking water and staying indoors. The film concludes with a report of record-breaking temperatures, underscoring the seriousness of heat exposure.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Let Us Prey (2014)
Rachel, a rookie cop, is about to begin her first night shift in a neglected police station in a Scottish, backwater town. The kind of place where the tide has gone out and stranded a motley bunch of the aimless, the forgotten, the bitter-and-twisted who all think that, really, they deserve to be somewhere else. They all think they're there by accident and that, with a little luck, life is going to get better. Wrong, on both counts. Six is about to arrive - and All Hell Will Break Loose!
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Pay the Piper?
The closest matches to Pay the Piper are Tender Mercies (1983), The Apostle (1997) and Wise Blood (1979). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Pay the Piper?
Start with Tender Mercies (1983), the closest match to Pay the Piper.
What is the highest-rated movie like Pay the Piper?
Ordinary Angels (2024), rated 7.7/10 by 451 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Pay the Piper?
Prey (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Pay the Piper?
Yes: Tender Mercies (1983), The Apostle (1997) and Wise Blood (1979).
How are movies similar to Pay the Piper chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Pay the Piper, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.