Movies like Vs the Real World (2020)
The best movies like Vs the Real World (2020) are Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), Doctor Who: Dark Water / Death in Heaven (2014) and Puncture (2011). If Vs the Real World hooked you with its drama and mystery, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAndrei Rublev (1966)7.9/10 from 994 votes
- NewestSpringsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (2025)Released 2025
Brand Upon the Brain! (2007)
After returning home to his long-estranged mother upon a request from her deathbed, a man raised by his parents in an orphanage has to confront the childhood memories that have long haunted him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDoctor Who: Dark Water / Death in Heaven (2014)
In this epic two-part finale, the Doctor comes face to face with the mysterious Missy, and an impossible choice is looming. With Cybermen on the streets of London, old friends unite against old enemies, and the Doctor takes to the air in a startling new role.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisPuncture (2011)
Based on a true story. Mike Weiss (Chris Evans) is a brilliant but self-destructive Houston attorney whose drug addiction threatens to destroy his career. When he and his law partner Paul Danziger (Mark Kassen) take on a case involving a nurse injured by a contaminated needle, they uncover a $130 billion medical supply monopoly that has been blocking a life-saving safety
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Caveman's Valentine (2001)
Romulus, a misunderstood musician turned recluse hiding from personal demons in a New York City cave, finds the frozen body of a young drifter in a tree. The authorities, including his police officer daughter, claim the death is accidental. Romulus is convinced the man was murdered by a prominent art photographer but how can he prove he's right when everyone thinks he's insane?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisDonovan's Echo (2011)
A series of uncanny déjà vu events force a man to re-examine his tragic past, memory, instinct, and future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn Adventure in Space and Time (2013)
Actor William Hartnell felt trapped by a succession of hard-man roles while wannabe producer Verity Lambert was frustrated by the TV industry's glass ceiling. Both of them were to find unlikely hope and unexpected challenges in the form of a Saturday tea-time drama. Allied with a team of unusual but brilliant people, they went on to create the longest running science fiction series ever made.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNine Days (2021)
A bureaucrat interviews five souls to decide which of them will be given a life on Earth. But he soon faces an existential challenge of his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Zero Theorem (2013)
A computer hacker's goal to discover the reason for human existence continually finds his work interrupted thanks to the Management; this time, they send a teenager and lusty love interest to distract him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMan with No Past (2025)
Waking up in an unfamiliar city, a man with no memory must confront the mysteries of his own identity. However, his desperate search to uncover the past pits him against a powerful enemy, leading to a showdown that ultimately reveals the truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwan Song (2021)
In the near future, Cameron Turner is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Presented with an experimental solution to shield his wife and son from grief, he grapples with altering their fate in this thought-provoking exploration of love, loss, and sacrifice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAll Eyez on Me (2017)
All Eyez on Me chronicles the life and legacy of Tupac Shakur, including his rise to superstardom as a hip-hop artist, actor, poet and activist, as well as his imprisonment and prolific, controversial time at Death Row Records. Against insurmountable odds, Tupac rose to become a cultural icon whose career and persona both continue to grow long after his passing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Experiment (2010)
20 men are chosen to participate in the roles of guards and prisoners in a psychological study that ultimately spirals out of control.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Girl in the Book (2015)
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
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 thisSteve Jobs (2015)
Set backstage at three iconic product launches and ending in 1998 with the unveiling of the iMac, Steve Jobs takes us behind the scenes of the digital revolution to paint an intimate portrait of the brilliant man at its epicenter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAll Day and a Night (2020)
While serving life in prison, a young man looks back at the people, the circumstances and the system that set him on the path toward his crime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFinch (2021)
On a post-apocalyptic Earth, a robot, built to protect the life of his dying creator's beloved dog, learns about life, love, friendship, and what it means to be human.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBirth of the Dragon (2017)
Set against the backdrop of San Francisco’s Chinatown, this cross-cultural biopic chronicles Bruce Lee’s emergence as a martial-arts superstar after his legendary secret showdown with fellow martial artist Wong Jack Man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies 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 thisCinderella Man (2005)
The true story of boxer Jim Braddock who, following his retirement in the 1930s, makes a surprise comeback in order to lift his family out of poverty.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisVideodrome (1983)
As the president of a trashy TV channel, Max Renn is desperate for new programming to attract viewers. When he happens upon "Videodrome," a TV show dedicated to gratuitous torture and punishment, Max sees a potential hit and broadcasts the show on his channel. However, after his girlfriend auditions for the show and never returns, Max investigates the truth behind Videodrome and discovers that the graphic violence may not be as fake as he thought.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKavisamrat (2022)
Biography of Viswandha Satyanarayna. A Telugu Poet who ruled telugu literary world for five decades from 1920 to 1970
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Andrei Rublev (1966)
An expansive Russian drama, this film focuses on the life of revered religious icon painter Andrei Rublev. Drifting from place to place in a tumultuous era, the peace-seeking monk eventually gains a reputation for his art. But after Rublev witnesses a brutal battle and unintentionally becomes involved, he takes a vow of silence and spends time away from his work. As he begins to ease his troubled soul, he takes steps towards becoming a painter once again.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBirdman of Alcatraz (1962)
After killing a prison guard, convict Robert Stroud faces life imprisonment in solitary confinement. Driven nearly mad by loneliness and despair, Stroud's life gains new meaning when he happens upon a helpless baby sparrow in the exercise yard and nurses it back to health. Despite having only a third grade education, Stroud goes on to become a renowned ornithologist and achieves a greater sense of freedom and purpose behind bars than most people find in the outside world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTears of Cem Karaca (2024)
Against a backdrop of political unrest in Turkey, this biopic charts the life of Anatolian rock singer Cem Karaca, focusing on his revolutionary ideals. Heightened emotions and moments of threat reflect the country's rising tensions.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (2025)
Bruce Springsteen, a young musician on the cusp of global superstardom, struggles to reconcile the pressures of success with the ghosts of his past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMiss Hokusai (2015)
A daughter is constantly overshadowed by her famous father, but she is determined to make her own mark in the world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKrotoa (2017)
Krotoa, a feisty, bright, 11-year-old girl is removed from her close-knit Khoi tribe to serve Jan van Riebeeck, her uncle’s trading partner and the first Governor of the Cape Colony. She is brought into the first Fort established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652. There she grows into a visionary young woman who assimilates the Dutch language and culture so well that she rises to become an influential translator but ends up being rejected by her own people as she tries to bridge the gap between the two cultures about to collide.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Last King of Scotland (2006)
Young Scottish doctor, Nicholas Garrigan decides it's time for an adventure after he finishes his formal education, so he decides to try his luck in Uganda, and arrives during the downfall of President Obote. General Idi Amin comes to power and asks Garrigan to become his personal doctor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Vs the Real World?
The closest matches to Vs the Real World are Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), Doctor Who: Dark Water / Death in Heaven (2014) and Puncture (2011). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Vs the Real World?
Start with Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), the closest match to Vs the Real World.
What is the highest-rated movie like Vs the Real World?
Andrei Rublev (1966), rated 7.9/10 by 994 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Vs the Real World?
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Vs the Real World?
Yes: Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), Doctor Who: Dark Water / Death in Heaven (2014) and Puncture (2011).
How are movies similar to Vs the Real World chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Vs the Real World, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.