Movies like Writing Kung Fu (1979)
The best movies like Writing Kung Fu (1979) are Showdown (1993), Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024) and The Prodigal Son (1981). If Writing Kung Fu hooked you with its action, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedTwilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024)7.0/10 from 501 votes
- NewestGladiator Underground (2025)Released 2025
Showdown (1993)
Ken has just moved from Kansas with his mother. He talks to a girl named Julie, not knowing that her boyfriend Tom is very possessive of her. Tom is learning karate from Lee, a sensei whose brother was killed by a rookie cop named Billy. Billy has since then become the janitor of the school that Ken, Julie and Tom go to. When Ken gets beaten up by Tom for talking to Julie again, Billy helps Ken by teaching him how to defend himself, which eventually leads to a battle between student vs. student, and sensei vs. sensei.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTwilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024)
In 1980s Hong Kong, troubled youth Chan Lok-kwun, a mainland refugee, struggles to survive in the Kowloon Walled City by joining underground fights. Betrayed by crime boss Mr. Big while trying to buy a fake ID, he steals drugs from him and seeks refuge in the Walled City, where he encounters Cyclone, a compassionate yet authoritative crime lord.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Prodigal Son (1981)
A rich man's son believes himself to be the best kung fu fighter in Canton. Unfortunately, his father, anxious for his son's safety, bribes all his opponents to lose. After a humiliating defeat at the hands of an actor in a traveling theatre company, the son resolves to find a better teacher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNever Back Down: Revolt (2021)
An amateur fighter is lured by a trafficking syndicate specializing in elite underground fighting where her brutal captor forces her to fight or face certain death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShootfighter: Fight to the Death (1993)
Nick and Ruben are hoodwinked into a "shootfighter" (no-holds-barred, to the death) martial arts match by the evil Mr. Lee, who has a grudge against world shootfighter champ(and teacher of Nick and Ruben) Shingo.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Legend (1993)
The secret Red Lotus Flower Society is committed to the overthrow of the evil Manchu Emperor and his minions. One of his Governors is sent on a mission to retrieve a list of members of that secret society. Meanwhile, Canton kung fu practitioner Fong Sai-Yuk falls in love with the beautiful daughter of a rich merchant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGladiator Underground (2025)
Two brothers compete in the world's deadliest underground fighting tournament, where they must decide whether to play by the rules or to cast their honor aside and team up to bring down the dark syndicate running the tournament.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLet's Get Harry (1986)
Harry Burck has been kidnapped by South American terrorists, and when the US Government refuses to intervene, Harry's friends decide to take matters into their own hands!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 action
SnoozefestMovies like thisLights Out (2024)
A drifting ex-soldier turns underground fighter with the help of a just-released ex-con, pitting him against corrupt cops and hired killers now gunning for him and all those he cares about.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStreet Fighter: Assassin's Fist The Movie (2014)
If one man changes his path, will he be able to change his destiny...or will he only delay the inevitable? Ryu and Ken are two traditional warriors who find themselves isolated in some corner of Japan to carry out their training as fighters, trying to master an ancient style of fighting, known as "Ansatsuken" (The Killing Fist). There they will begin to learn about the mysterious past of their trainer, Goken, and the tragic and dark legacy that the Ansatsuken style hides. Will they be able to choose their destiny or will history repeat itself once again?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEnter the Fat Dragon (1978)
Ah Lung is a pig farmer and a devoted Bruce Lee fan who is anxious to follow in Lee's footsteps, but only ridiculed for his attempts. He is sent to the city to earn a living working at his uncle's restaurant, but when he arrives, he finds a gang of thugs causing trouble in the restaurant. He takes the chance to prove himself and attacks the thugs, defeating them and saving the restaurant. Soon, he becomes a waiter, and discovers a plot by the same thugs to kidnap a woman he works with. Eventually, he defeats the thugs once again and saves the day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDangerous (2021)
A reformed sociopath heads to a remote island after the death of his brother. Soon after his arrival, the island falls under siege from a deadly gang of mercenaries, and when he discovers their role in his brother’s demise, he sets out on a relentless quest for vengeance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFearless Hyena 2 (1983)
A pair of evil kung-fu artists, Heaven and Earth, are slaughtering the entire Yin-Yang brotherhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisStreet Fighter Alpha: Generations (2005)
When Ryu returns to pay homage to his deceased mentor, Gouken, he is tormented by disturbing memories of his master's killer (Gouki). In a quest to become a true martial arts master, he sets out to hone his street fighting skills and deliver himself from the haunting legacy of the dark hadou.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeckman (2020)
A contract killer, becomes the reverend of a LA church, until a cult leader and his minions kidnap his daughter. Blinded by vengeance, he cuts a bloody path across the city. The only thing that can stop him is his newfound faith.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNew Dragon Gate Inn (1992)
During the Ming Dynasty, power-crazed eunuch Tso Siu Yan rules his desert region of China as if he were Emperor, ruthlessly thwarts plots against him and sets a trap for one of his enemies at the Dragon Gate Inn.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Legend II (1993)
The hero Fong Sai Yuk becomes involved in the secret brotherhood "The Red Flower", who are trying to overthrow the Manchurian emperor and re-establishing the Ming dynasty. The social upheaval is combined with Sai Yuk's personal moral conflict about how to conform to the rigid regime of the brotherhood and on top of that sort out his difficult love life, saddled with two presumptive wives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGame of Death (1978)
A martial arts movie star must fake his death to find the people who are trying to kill him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFearless Hyena (1979)
Lung is a talented fighter but prefers to spend his time loafing around and picking fights, despite orders from his grandfather not to fight. Unknown to him, a brutal general has been slaughtering all the people from his grandfather’s clan. When the general recognizes Lung’s style of kung fu during one of his street fights, he hunts down Lung’s grandfather and kills him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
Like Writing Kung Fu and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Writing Kung Fu?
The closest matches to Writing Kung Fu are Showdown (1993), Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024) and The Prodigal Son (1981). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Writing Kung Fu?
Start with Showdown (1993), the closest match to Writing Kung Fu.
What is the highest-rated movie like Writing Kung Fu?
Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024), rated 7.0/10 by 501 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Writing Kung Fu?
Gladiator Underground (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to Writing Kung Fu chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Writing Kung Fu, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.