Movies like Half of a Yellow Sun (2013)
The best movies like Half of a Yellow Sun (2013) are Newness (2017), Time Is Up (2021) and Petulia (1968). If Half of a Yellow Sun hooked you with its romance and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBelow Her Mouth (2017)6.8/10 from 1,335 votes
- NewestLove of Your Life (2026)Released 2026
Newness (2017)
In contemporary Los Angeles, two millennials navigating a social media–driven hookup culture begin a relationship that pushes both emotional and physical boundaries.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTime Is Up (2021)
Vivien, an accomplished student with a passion for physics, and Roy, a troubled young man, are involved in an accident that forces them to reclaim their lives one minute at the time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPetulia (1968)
Dr. Archie Bollen is having a midlife crisis. He's just divorced his wife and is establishing a new life for himself. One night, he catches the eye of Petulia Danner, a charming, free-spirited young woman. Petulia's vibrant personality hides her fear of her abusive husband, David, whose father is a powerful society figure. As Petulia and Archie's feelings for each other grow, they must decide what it is they truly want.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLondon (2005)
London is a drug laden adventure that centers on a party in a New York loft where a young man is trying to win back his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Time I Saw Paris (1954)
Reporter Charles Wills, in Paris to cover the end of World War II, falls for the beautiful Helen Ellswirth following a brief flirtation with her sister, Marion. After he and Helen marry, Charles pursues his novelistic ambition while supporting his new bride with a deadening job at a newspaper wire service. But when an old investment suddenly makes the family wealthy, their marriage begins to unravel — until a sudden tragedy changes everything.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFifty Shades Freed (2018)
Believing they have left behind shadowy figures from their past, newlyweds Christian and Ana fully embrace an inextricable connection and shared life of luxury. But just as she steps into her role as Mrs. Grey and he relaxes into an unfamiliar stability, new threats could jeopardize their happy ending before it even begins.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonday (2021)
A spark on a Friday can lead to a sizzling weekend fling, but what happens when you get to the inevitable Monday?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Duke of Burgundy (2015)
Day in and day out, lovers Cynthia and Evelyn enact an elaborate sadomasochistic fantasy as mistress and maid. But as their ritual of domination and submission begins to turn stale, Cynthia yearns for something more conventional, while Evelyn tries to push their taboos even further.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAsylum (2005)
A woman becomes very curious about one of her psychiatrist husband's inmates, a man who was found guilty in the murder and disfigurement of his former wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove of Your Life (2026)
After a chance encounter sparks a sweeping romance, Maya's future is suddenly upended, sending her on an unexpected journey to love and live again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLilith (1964)
Vincent Bruce, a war veteran, begins working as an occupational therapist at Poplar Lodge, a private psychiatric facility for wealthy people where he meets Lilith Arthur, a charming young woman suffering from schizophrenia, whose fragile beauty captivates all who meet her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBelow Her Mouth (2017)
An unexpected affair quickly escalates into a heart-stopping reality for two women whose passionate connection changes their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)
In this story-within-a-story, Anna is an actress starring opposite Mike in a period piece about the forbidden love between their respective characters, Sarah and Charles. Both actors are involved in serious relationships, but the passionate nature of the script leads to an off-camera love affair as well. While attempting to maintain their composure and professionalism, Anna and Mike struggle to come to terms with their infidelity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOriginal Sin (2001)
A young man is plunged into a life of subterfuge, deceit and mistaken identity in pursuit of a femme fatale whose heart is never quite within his grasp.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUnfaithful (2002)
A New York suburban couple's marriage goes dangerously awry when the wife indulges in an adulterous fling.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPimp (2018)
An urban love story set on the hard streets of the Bronx. A struggling female pimp, named Wednesday, grows up learning the game from her dad. Once he's gone she's left to look out for her prostitute mother and girlfriend Nikki.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuburbia (1984)
When household tensions and a sense of worthlessness overcome Evan, he finds escape when he clings with the orphans of a throw-away society. The runaways hold on to each other like a family until a tragedy tears them apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMexicali (2026)
A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJawbone (2017)
A former youth boxing champion, Jimmy McCabe is a man in search of hope but looking in all the wrong places. When he hits rock bottom he turns to his childhood boxing club and the only family he has left: gym owner Bill corner man Eddie and promoter Joe. Back in training, years after anyone thought he was a contender, he risks his life, as he tries to stand tall and regain his place in the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisConvict (2014)
Set in the dark and old Parramatta prison built by the original convicts our lead character Ray a war veteran finds himself serving 18 months for manslaughter after defending his fiance. He soon realizes that the prison boss has it in for him and does everything possible to break Ray even going after his fiance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDazzling Mirage (2014)
An adaptation of Yinka Egbokhare's novel. The story of a young sickle-cell patient and the various social and emotional challenges she's faced with.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
JAPA (2025)
Two young lovers, Emeka and Fola, who dream of leaving Nigeria for a better life abroad. Their parents have warned them not to share their plans with anyone, including each other, for spiritual reasons. Both keep their intentions hidden.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Hope (2014)
Deep in the Sahara desert, as they try to get to Europe, Leonard, a young man from Cameroon, rescues Hope, a Nigerian woman. In a fiercely hostile world where safety requires staying with one's own people, these two try to find their way together, and to love each other.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Ijé: The Journey (2010)
Anya's dream turned into a nightmare when she was accused of killing 3 men. For her to regain her freedom she had to share her secret with world. With help of her sister Chioma and an inexperienced attorney Ijé tells the story in a riveting way with an unexpected climatic ending. It's a story that conveys the fusion of the African culture with the American culture in a court room like no other.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Journey Mercies (2023)
A short drama about a library cleaner who plans a final return to Nigeria, his birth country.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Joy (2019)
Close to paying off her debts, a Nigerian sex worker in Austria coaches a reluctant novice, and assesses the risks of taking a faster path to freedom.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisTrue Affection (2025)
Sewa, a young woman living in Lagos who is constantly interrogated by her friends and family about her prolonged lack of romantic relationships, seems to find a suitable admirer, but a strange presence in her dreams complicates the matter.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Leaving Ikorodu In 1999 (2024)
During a road trip to the airport, Fade questions whether her niece’s departure from Nigeria is truly for the best.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Yam and Egg (TBA)
On the anniversary of his sister's death during a protest against a corrupt police unit in Nigeria, an immigrant now living in London, battles survivor's guilt.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Sanders of the River (1935)
A British District Officer in Nigeria in the 1930s rules his area strictly but justly. He struggles with gun-runners and slavers with the aid of a loyal native chief.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like Half of a Yellow Sun and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Half of a Yellow Sun?
The closest matches to Half of a Yellow Sun are Newness (2017), Time Is Up (2021) and Petulia (1968). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Half of a Yellow Sun?
Start with Newness (2017), the closest match to Half of a Yellow Sun.
What is the highest-rated movie like Half of a Yellow Sun?
Below Her Mouth (2017), rated 6.8/10 by 1,335 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Half of a Yellow Sun?
Love of Your Life (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Half of a Yellow Sun?
Yes: Newness (2017), Time Is Up (2021) and Petulia (1968).
How are movies similar to Half of a Yellow Sun chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Half of a Yellow Sun, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.