Movies like The Way It Is (1986)
The best movies like The Way It Is (1986) are Mr. Bones (2001), Louis C.K.: Oh My God (2013) and Chris Rock: Kill the Messenger (2008). If The Way It Is hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLouis C.K.: Oh My God (2013)7.6/10 from 229 votes
- NewestDriver's Ed (2026)Released 2026
Mr. Bones (2001)
A medicine man is sent looking for the son of his tribal king, and brings back an American golfer and a host of goons intent on keeping him in the golf tournament.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLouis C.K.: Oh My God (2013)
Filmed at the Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, AZ on February 15th and 16th, 2013, Oh My God is Louis C.K.'s fifth stand-up special, his first for HBO since 2007's Shameless, and his first since winning a Emmy Award for writing on his acclaimed show on FX, Louie. Performed in the round in front of a live audience, he discusses such topics as the food chain, animals, divorce, strange anecdotes, broken morality, murder and mortality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChris Rock: Kill the Messenger (2008)
An HBO special edited from three performances from Chris Rock's 2008 comedy tour: London (dark suit, dark shirt), Johannesburg (black suit, white shirt) and New York (shiny jacket). Topics include the ongoing presidential campaign, the possibility of a black president, George W. Bush, gas prices, low-paid jobs, ringtones and bottled water, sex, relationships and the correct use of the n-word
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMuch Ado About Nothing (2013)
A modern retelling of Shakespeare's classic comedy about two pairs of lovers with different takes on romance and a way with words.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRicky Gervais: Humanity (2018)
In his first special in seven years, Ricky Gervais slings his trademark snark at celebrity, mortality and a society that takes everything personally.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOne Night at McCool's (2001)
On an ordinary night, in an ordinary part of town, a beautiful young woman walks into a bar. Her name is Jewel, and before long she is chatting to bartender Randy. The pair leave together, but he ends up getting into a tussle with her criminal boyfriend, who she then shoots dead, later persuading Randy to take the rap for her. But this isn't the end of it, as both Randy's cousin Carl and the detective assigned to the murder case also fall for Jewel's charms and find themselves caught up in the ensuing events. It seems that any man who meets Jewel falls instantly in love with her, and she's going to use this fully to her own advantage, leaving a trail of havoc in her wake. It also seems that she is going to get away with it - that is, until Randy decides to hire a hitman...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisPretty Persuasion (2005)
A 15-year-old girl incites chaos among her friends and a media frenzy when she accuses her drama teacher of sexual harassment.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisRicky Gervais: Armageddon (2023)
Ricky Gervais dishes out controversial takes on political correctness and oversensitivity in a taboo-busting comedy special about the end of humanity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWake Up, Ron Burgundy: The Lost Movie (2004)
While Ron Burgundy's rivalry with Veronica Corningstone escalates quickly, a group of unprofessional thieves better known as 'The Alarm Clock' try to make the truth known, whatever that may mean...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThunderstruck (2012)
After NBA star Kevin Durant switches talent with 16 year old Brian, the teenager becomes the star of his high school team, but Durant starts struggling and eventually learns an important lesson.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Trouble with Angels (1966)
Mary and her friend, Rachel, are new students at St. Francis Academy, a boarding school run by the iron fist of Mother Superior. The immature teens grow bored and begin playing pranks on both the unsuspecting nuns and their unpleasant classmates, becoming a constant thorn in Mother Superior's side. However, as the years pass, Mary and Rachel slowly mature and begin to see the nuns in a different light.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRicky Gervais: Mortality (2025)
Ricky Gervais tackles life, death and the state of the world in a brutally honest special that spares no topic, even his own mortality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTaking Care of Business (1990)
An uptight advertising exec has his entire life in a filofax organizer which mistakenly ends up in the hands of a friendly convict who poses as him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDriver's Ed (2026)
A group of teens hit the road in a stolen driver's ed car, racing against time to help a lovesick high school senior track down his college-freshman girlfriend and win her back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013)
86-year-old Irving Zisman is on a journey across America with the most unlikely companion: his 8 year-old grandson, Billy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBabes (2024)
After getting pregnant from a one-night stand, a single woman leans on her married best friend and mother of two to guide her through gestation and beyond.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShane Gillis: Beautiful Dogs (2023)
In a rowdy stand-up set, Shane Gillis riffs on his girlfriend's Navy SEAL ex, touring George Washington's house and being bullied by an Australian Goth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Paper Tigers (2020)
Three middle aged men polish their martial arts skills to avenge their fallen master.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAli Wong: Single Lady (2024)
After a whirlwind couple of years, Ali Wong returns to the stage to dish on the highs, lows and surprises of dating post-divorce.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRicky Gervais: Out of England 2 (2010)
The comic performs at the Chicago Theatre.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA French Cigarette (2022)
Two New York poets talk about art, poetry, and smoke in this French New Wave inspired short.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Streetwalkin' Cowboy (2020)
A delusional man in a modern day city dresses, acts like, and has the mindset of a cowboy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
PINK MOVIE (2025)
A teen is locked in a room with a monitor lizard
Why it matches: Similar story and style
John Zorn's Naked City (1992)
John Zorn's live performance of Naked City's self-titled album at The Marquee Club in New York City, 1992.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Only You (1981)
In this ostensible murder mystery, the genre elements are merely a pretext for the series of haunting (if inconclusive and only mildly erotic) homo-social encounters he stages. Starting with the familiar premise of the absent woman, so popular with Downtown filmmakers, Vogl drains his storytelling of any hints of noir stylization. Instead of nighttime scenes, slick streets, and dark alleys, he shoots documentary-style on the nondescript, sunlit streets of Brooklyn, Manhattan, and City Island in a manner that casually references the art-film angst of Michelangelo Antonioni.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Visiting Desire (1996)
Complete strangers meet in a room to act out their sexual desires.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
SIGH ONYX (TBA)
Two aimless psychics develop a strange relationship as they come to terms with having been groomed for espionage as children in the Gifted and Talented Education program.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Ballad of Sexual Dependency (1985)
Nan Goldin's slide show “The Ballad of Sexual Dependency” converted, mixed and screened as a film by the artist, portraying the American underground culture, the no wave scene, post-Stonewall gay subculture, among others.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Arto Lindsay, Forgive the Beauty: The Love Factory (2004)
In the void created ad hoc to throw us into desperation, fear, shock, the torment of an infinite present, Arto Lindsay sings with words, silences and small gestures of/with/for/about love, a force that is so violent that nothing will ever be the same again.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Way It Is?
The closest matches to The Way It Is are Mr. Bones (2001), Louis C.K.: Oh My God (2013) and Chris Rock: Kill the Messenger (2008). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Way It Is?
Start with Mr. Bones (2001), the closest match to The Way It Is.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Way It Is?
Louis C.K.: Oh My God (2013), rated 7.6/10 by 229 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Way It Is?
Driver's Ed (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Way It Is?
Yes: Mr. Bones (2001), Louis C.K.: Oh My God (2013) and Chris Rock: Kill the Messenger (2008).
How are movies similar to The Way It Is chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Way It Is, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.