Movies like Backdraft
If Backdraft hooked you with its drama and thriller, these are the films to watch next. Every pick says why it matches.
The Towering Inferno (1974)
At the opening party of a colossal—but poorly constructed—skyscraper, a massive fire breaks out, threatening to destroy the tower and everyone in it.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLadder 49 (2004)
Under the watchful eye of his mentor, Captain Mike Kennedy, probationary firefighter Jack Morrison matures into a seasoned veteran at a Baltimore fire station. However, Jack has reached a crossroads as the sacrifices he's made have put him in harm's way innumerable times and significantly impacted his relationship with his wife and kids.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDaylight (1996)
A group of armed robbers fleeing the police head for the New Jersey Tunnel and run right into trucks transporting toxic waste. The spectacular explosion that follows results in both ends of the tunnel collapsing and the handful of people who survived the explosion are now in peril. Kit Latura is the only man with the skill and knowledge to lead the band of survivors out of the tunnel before the structure collapses.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDante's Peak (1997)
Volcanologist Harry Dalton comes to the sleepy town of Dante's Peak to investigate the recent rumblings of the dormant volcano the burg is named for. Before long, his worst fears are realized when a massive eruption hits, and immediately, Harry, the mayor and the townspeople find themselves fighting for their lives amid a catastrophic nightmare.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGang in Blue (1996)
A black police officer discovers a cell of white supremacist vigilantes within his department.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & action
Hard Rain (1998)
An armored car driver tries to elude a gang of thieves while a flood ravages the countryside.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisTwister (1996)
An unprecedented series of violent tornadoes is sweeping across Oklahoma. Tornado chasers, headed by Dr. Jo Harding, attempt to release a groundbreaking device that will allow them to track them and create a more advanced warning system. They are joined by Jo's soon to be ex-husband Bill, a former tornado chaser himself, and his girlfriend Melissa.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSpeed (1994)
Tensions run high when a crazed bomber rigs a Los Angeles bus with a device that will kill everyone on board if the vehicle's speed dips below fifty miles per hour.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisExecutive Decision (1996)
Terrorists hijack a 747 inbound to Washington D.C., demanding the release of their imprisoned leader. Intelligence expert David Grant suspects another reason and he is soon the reluctant member of a special assault team that is assigned to intercept the plane and hijackers.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGround Control (1998)
An air-traffic controller quits after a plane crash but, years later, goes to help an airport that is in the path of a terrible storm.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisDeepwater Horizon (2016)
A story set on the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDrop Zone (1994)
A daring prison break from an airliner at 30,000 feet leaves U.S. Marshal Pete Nessip mourning a brother and gunning for revenge. After being ordered to turn in his badge, he seeks out Jessie Crossman, a noted skydiver, and offers to sponsor her crew for the annual Independence Day parachuting show in Washington, D.C., if she trains him. Meanwhile, the mastermind behind the mid-air jailbreak is planning a daring computer theft on Independence Day.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisEarthquake (1974)
Various interconnected people struggle to survive when an earthquake of unimaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles, California.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCon Air (1997)
Newly-paroled former US Army ranger Cameron Poe is headed back to his wife, but must fly home aboard a prison transport flight dubbed "Jailbird" taking the “worst of the worst” prisoners, a group described as “pure predators”, to a new super-prison. Poe faces impossible odds when the transport plane is skyjacked mid-flight by the most vicious criminals in the country led by the mastermind — genius serial killer Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, and backed by black militant Diamond Dog and psychopath Billy Bedlam.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUnstoppable (2010)
When a massive, unmanned locomotive roars out of control, the threat is more ominous than just a derailment. The train is laden with toxic chemicals, and an accident would decimate human life and cause an environmental disaster. The only hope of bringing the train to a safe stop is in the hands of veteran engineer Frank Barnes, and young conductor Will Colson, who must risk their lives to save those in the runaway's path. Inspired by true events.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Negotiator (1998)
The police try to arrest expert hostage negotiator Danny Roman, who insists he's being framed for his partner's murder in what he believes is an elaborate conspiracy. Thinking there's evidence in the Internal Affairs offices that might clear him, he takes everyone in the office hostage and demands that another well-known negotiator be brought in to handle the situation and secretly investigate the conspiracy.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Fugitive (1993)
Wrongfully convicted of murdering his wife and sentenced to death, Richard Kimble escapes from the law in an attempt to find the real killer and clear his name.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlown Away (1994)
Blown Away tells the story of Jimmy Dove, who works for the Boston bomb squad. Shortly after Dove leaves the force, his partner is killed by a bomb that Dove thinks might have been made by someone he knows.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisF/X2 (1991)
F/X man Rollie Tyler is now a toymaker. Mike, the ex-husband of his girlfriend Kim, is a cop. He asks Rollie to help catch a killer. The operation goes well until some unknown man kills both the killer and Mike. Mike's boss, Silak says it was the killer who killed Mike but Rollie knows it wasn't. Obviously, Silak is involved with Mike's death, so he calls on Leo McCarthy, the cop from the last movie, who is now a P.I., for help and they discover it's not just Silak they have to worry about.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVolcano (1997)
An earthquake shatters a peaceful Los Angeles morning and opens a fissure deep into the earth, causing lava to start bubbling up. As a volcano begins forming in the La Brea Tar Pits, the director of the city's emergency management service, working with a geologist, must then use every resource in the city to try and stop the volcano from consuming LA.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUnited 93 (2006)
A real-time account of the events on United Flight 93, one of the planes hijacked on 9/11 that crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania when passengers foiled the terrorist plot.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHarley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991)
It's the lawless future, and renegade biker Harley Davidson and his surly cowboy buddy, Marlboro, learn that a corrupt bank is about to foreclose on their friend's bar to further an expanding empire. Harley and Marlboro decide to help by robbing the crooked bank. But when they accidentally filch a drug shipment, they find themselves on the run from criminal financiers and the mob in this rugged action adventure.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTurbulence (1997)
On a flight transporting dangerous convicts, murderer Ryan Weaver manages to break free and cause complete chaos throughout the plane. As various people on board fall victim to Weaver, it is ultimately down to flight attendant Teri Halloran to keep the aircraft from crashing, with on-ground support from an air traffic controller. While Halloran struggles to pilot the plane, Weaver continues to terrorize the surviving members of the crew.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisWorld Trade Center (2006)
Two police officers struggle to survive when they become trapped beneath the rubble of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSan Andreas (2015)
In the aftermath of a massive earthquake in California, a rescue-chopper pilot makes a dangerous journey across the state in order to rescue his estranged daughter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Dog (1998)
An ex-con takes a job driving a truck cross country. What he doesn't know is that the truck is filled with illegal weapons and now he must fight to survive and save his family.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlue Thunder (1983)
Los Angeles, California. Officer Murphy, a veteran Metropolitan Police helicopter pilot suffering from severe trauma due to his harsh experiences during the Vietnam War, and Lymangood, his resourceful new partner, are tasked with testing an advanced and heavily armed experimental chopper known as Blue Thunder.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLife on the Line (2016)
As a huge electrical storm sweeps towards Texas, lineman Beau Ginner is haunted by memories of his brother's death by lightning years earlier. Since that tragic day, he has raised his niece Bailey and risen to foreman of a lineman team. However, there is friction when Bailey's on-off boyfriend Duncan joins the crew, while another new recruit is hiding PTSD symptoms. Beau and his team are soon putting their lives at risk in a race to replace miles of power cables to keep the electrical grid running before the deadly lightning storm strikes. Based on a true story; this film is a tribute to the heroes who risk it all to keep us safe.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Fan (1996)
When the San Francisco Giants pay center-fielder, Bobby Rayburn $40 million to lead their team to the World Series, no one is happier or more supportive than #1 fan, Gil Renard. When Rayburn becomes mired in the worst slump of his career, the obsessed Renard decides to stop at nothing to help his idol regain his former glory—not even murder.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBackdraft 2 (2019)
Years after the original Backdraft, Sean, son of the late Steve "Bull" McCaffrey, is assigned to investigate a deadly fire only to realize it is something much more sinister.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Backdraft?
The closest matches to Backdraft are The Towering Inferno, Ladder 49, Daylight.
How are movies similar to Backdraft chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Backdraft, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.
Are there English movies like Backdraft?
Yes: The Towering Inferno, Ladder 49, Daylight.