Movies like The Time Machine (1960)
The best movies like The Time Machine (1960) are The Saint (1997), 9 (2009) and Chaos Walking (2021). If The Time Machine hooked you with its thriller and adventure, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)8.1/10 from 22,708 votes
- NewestSpace/Time (2025)Released 2025
The Saint (1997)
Simon Templar (The Saint), is a thief for hire, whose latest job to steal the secret process for cold fusion puts him at odds with a traitor bent on toppling the Russian government, as well as the woman who holds its secret.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like this9 (2009)
When 9 first comes to life, he finds himself in a post-apocalyptic world. All humans are gone, and it is only by chance that he discovers a small community of others like him taking refuge from fearsome machines that roam the earth intent on their extinction. Despite being the neophyte of the group, 9 convinces the others that hiding will do them no good.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChaos Walking (2021)
Two unlikely companions embark on a perilous adventure through the badlands of an unexplored planet as they try to escape a dangerous and disorienting reality, where all inner thoughts are seen and heard by everyone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Time Machine (2002)
Hoping to alter the events of the past, a 19th-century inventor instead travels 800,000 years into the future, where he finds mankind divided into two warring races.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMortal Engines (2018)
Many thousands of years in the future, Earth’s cities roam the globe on huge wheels, devouring each other in a struggle for ever diminishing resources. On one of these massive traction cities, the old London, Tom Natsworthy has an unexpected encounter with a mysterious young woman from the wastelands who will change the course of his life forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Dark Tower (2017)
A boy haunted by visions of a parallel world aids its disillusioned guardian in preventing the destruction of the nexus of universes known as the Dark Tower.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisSpace/Time (2025)
After a fatal test shuts down their project, a disgraced team of scientists enters the criminal underworld to rebuild a forbidden space-bending engine that could rescue humanity or annihilate it entirely.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisPaycheck (2003)
Michael Jennings is a genius who's hired – and paid handsomely – by high-tech firms to work on highly sensitive projects, after which his short-term memory is erased so he's incapable of breaching security. But at the end of a three-year job, he's told he isn't getting a paycheck and instead receives a mysterious envelope. In it are clues he must piece together to find out why he wasn't paid – and why he's now in hot water.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTomorrowland (2015)
Bound by a shared destiny, a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor jaded by disillusionment embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secrets of an enigmatic place somewhere in time and space that exists in their collective memory as "Tomorrowland."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDaleks' Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. (1966)
Doctor Who and his companions are hurled into the future and make a horrifying discovery: the Daleks have conquered Earth! The metal fiends have devastated entire continents and turned the survivors into Robomen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
Harry, Ron and Hermione walk away from their last year at Hogwarts to find and destroy the remaining Horcruxes, putting an end to Voldemort's bid for immortality. But with Harry's beloved Dumbledore dead and Voldemort's unscrupulous Death Eaters on the loose, the world is more dangerous than ever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRoboCop (2014)
In RoboCop, the year is 2028 and multinational conglomerate OmniCorp is at the center of robot technology. Overseas, their drones have been used by the military for years, but have been forbidden for law enforcement in America. Now OmniCorp wants to bring their controversial technology to the home front, and they see a golden opportunity to do it. When Alex Murphy – a loving husband, father and good cop doing his best to stem the tide of crime and corruption in Detroit – is critically injured, OmniCorp sees their chance to build a part-man, part-robot police officer. OmniCorp envisions a RoboCop in every city and even more billions for their shareholders, but they never counted on one thing: there is still a man inside the machine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisReady Player One (2018)
When the creator of a popular video game system dies, a virtual contest is created to compete for his fortune.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Thirteenth Floor (1999)
In Los Angeles, a wealthy man, known as Mr. Fuller, discovers a shocking secret about the world he lives in. Fearing for his life, he leaves a desperate message for a friend of his in the most unexpected place.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Host (2013)
A parasitic alien soul is injected into the body of Melanie Stryder. Instead of carrying out her race's mission of taking over the Earth, "Wanda" (as she comes to be called) forms a bond with her host and sets out to aid other free humans.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Electric State (2025)
An orphaned teen hits the road with a mysterious robot to find her long-lost brother, teaming up with a smuggler and his wisecracking sidekick.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCity of Ember (2008)
For generations, the people of the City of Ember have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights. But Ember's once powerful generator is failing and the great lamps that illuminate the city are starting to flicker. Now, two teenagers, in a race against time, must search Ember for clues that will unlock the ancient mystery of the city's existence, before the the lights go out forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDivergent (2014)
In a world divided into factions based on personality types, Tris learns that she's been classified as Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSurrogates (2009)
Set in a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and interact through surrogate robots, a cop is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others' surrogates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAllegiant (2016)
Beatrice Prior and Tobias Eaton venture into the world outside of the fence and are taken into protective custody by a mysterious agency known as the Bureau of Genetic Welfare.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlice in Wonderland (2010)
Alice, now 19 years old, returns to the whimsical world she first entered as a child and embarks on a journey to discover her true destiny.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Stepford Wives (1975)
Joanna Eberhart comes to the town of Stepford, Connecticut with her family, but soon discovers there lies a sinister truth in the all too perfect behavior of the female residents.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
Harry, Ron and Hermione continue their quest to vanquish the evil Voldemort once and for all. Just as things begin to look hopeless for the young wizards, Harry discovers a trio of magical objects that endow him with powers to rival Voldemort's formidable skills.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure & fantasy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSoul Reaper (2024)
A teenager with the ability to enter other people's dreams. When he witnesses a dark spirit taking people's lives in their dreams, he quickly realizes that it's related to the mysterious deaths that are happening in the real world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & thriller
Hollywood Dirt (2017)
Hollywood arrives in force to Quincy, the small town where the secret Crown Cola billionaire's live. They want to film about the billionaire's and how they made their fortunes. Summer Jenkins, who was the town pariah, joins forces with the scout, Ben, and finds filming locations, extras, lessons with the town officials and house owners, etc. When Cole Masten arrives, they hate each other, but sparks fly. Cole is running from a nasty divorce, yet is captivated by Summer. Summer is dying to leave town to get away from the gossip. This is a great story about Southern customs, a Southern girl, and a Hollywood star who finds his lady.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGhost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004)
Cyborg detective Batou is assigned to investigate a series of murders committed by gynoids—doll-like cyborgs, which all malfunctioned, killed, then self-destructed afterwards. The brains of the gynoids initialize in order to protect their manufacturer's software, but in one gynoid, which Batou himself neutralized, one file remains: a voice speaking the phrase "Help me."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMiss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)
London, England, on the eve of World War II. Guinevere Pettigrew, a strict governess who is unable to keep a job, is fired again. Lost in the hostile city, a series of fortunate circumstances lead her to meet Delysia LaFosse, a glamorous and dazzling American jazz singer whose life is a chaos ruled by indecision, a continuous battle between love and fame.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)
Nick cannot stop obsessing over his ex-girlfriend, Tris, until Tris' friend Norah suddenly shows interest in him at a club. Thus begins an odd night filled with ups and downs as the two keep running into Tris and her new boyfriend while searching for Norah's drunken friend, Caroline, with help from Nick's band mates. As the night winds down, the two have to figure out what they want from each other.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Other Boleyn Girl (2008)
A sumptuous and sensual tale of intrigue, romance and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in European history: two beautiful sisters, Anne and Mary Boleyn, driven by their family's blind ambition, compete for the love of the handsome and passionate King Henry VIII.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPathology (2008)
Medical student Ted Grey graduates at the top of his class and quickly joins an elite pathology program, whose top students invite him into their circle. There he uncovers a gruesome secret: They play a game in which one tries to commit the perfect, undetectable murder, then the others compete to determine the victim's cause of death.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Time Machine?
The closest matches to The Time Machine are The Saint (1997), 9 (2009) and Chaos Walking (2021). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Time Machine?
Start with The Saint (1997), the closest match to The Time Machine.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Time Machine?
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011), rated 8.1/10 by 22,708 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Time Machine?
Space/Time (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Time Machine?
Yes: The Saint (1997), 9 (2009) and Chaos Walking (2021).
How are movies similar to The Time Machine chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Time Machine, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.