Movies like It Happened One Night (1934)
The best movies like It Happened One Night (1934) are The Philadelphia Story (1940), People We Meet on Vacation (2026) and The Heartbreak Kid (1972). If It Happened One Night hooked you with its comedy and romance, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Great Dictator (1940)8.3/10 from 3,872 votes
- NewestYoh! Bestie (2026)Released 2026
The Philadelphia Story (1940)
When a rich woman's ex-husband and a tabloid-type reporter turn up just before her planned remarriage, she begins to learn the truth about herself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPeople We Meet on Vacation (2026)
Poppy's a free spirit. Alex loves a plan. After years of summer vacations, these polar-opposite pals wonder if they could be a perfect romantic match.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Heartbreak Kid (1972)
Three days into his Miami honeymoon with needy and unsophisticated Lila, Lenny meets tall, blonde Kelly. This confirms his fear that he has made a serious mistake and he decides he wants to be with Kelly instead.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShe's Funny That Way (2015)
On the set of a playwright's new project, a love triangle forms between his wife, her ex-lover, and the call girl-turned-actress cast in the production.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisRelationship Goals (2026)
When TV producer Leah Caldwell aims to become the first woman running New York's top morning show, her ex competes for the same role. Leah stays focused on her career, until chemistry with her ex challenges her priorities.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wrong Paris (2025)
Dawn thinks she's joining a dating show in Paris, France, only to land in Paris, Texas. She has an exit plan — until sparks fly with the cowboy bachelor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Touch of Class (1973)
Steve, a happily married American man living in London meets Vicki, an English divorcée and run off to Marbella for a rollicking week of sex. They then return to London to set up a cozy menage, despite the fact that he loves his wife and children, and now realize that he and Vicki have also fallen in love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYoh! Bestie (2026)
Thando is perpetually unlucky in love, but when her bestie returns from his travels with a fiancée in tow, she's forced to face a new emotion — jealousy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove, Weddings & Other Disasters (2020)
A fussy celebrity caterer, a blind woman, a tour-bus guide and an inexperienced wedding planner search for love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrossing Delancey (1988)
Thirty-something Isabelle spends her time going from her tiny, solitary West Side apartment to that of her grandmother on the Lower East Side. While her grandmother plots to find her a romantic match, Isabelle is courted by a married, worldly author, Anton, yet can't seem to shake the down-to-earth appeal of Sam, a pickle vendor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Right Kind of Wrong (2013)
A stubborn idealist spies a bride on her way to her wedding and immediately falls in love with her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisNothing Sacred (1937)
When a small-town girl is incorrectly diagnosed with a rare, deadly disease, an unknowing newspaper columnist turns her into a national heroine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisValentine's Day (2010)
Intertwining couples and singles in Los Angeles break-up and make-up based on the pressures and expectations of Valentine's Day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisWedding Crashers (2005)
John and his buddy Jeremy are emotional criminals who know how to use a woman's hopes and dreams for their own carnal gain. Their modus operandi: crashing weddings. Normally, they meet guests who want to toast the romantic day with a random hook-up. But when John meets Claire, he discovers what true love – and heartache – feels like.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Rebound (2009)
Upon discovering her husband's infidelity, Sandy leaves the suburbs and moves into the city. There, she befriends Aram, a guy whose wife only married him so she could get a green card. Sandy hires Aram to be her nanny, and it isn't long until Aram and Sandy find out they get along wonderfully and start to date. But is their relationship real or is it, in fact, just a rebound for both of them?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnchors Aweigh (1945)
Two sailors on shore leave head out for four days of partying – only to become involved in the affairs of an aspiring singer and her precocious nephew.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Baxter (2005)
Mild mannered tax accountant Elliot Sherman is what he calls a "Baxter": the kind of calm, unexciting fellow who "wears sock garters" and "enjoys raking leaves." Loved by bosses and parents, Elliot is a perfectly nice guy. And that's his problem.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSpeechless (1994)
In the midst of election season in New Mexico, political speechwriters Julia Mann and Kevin Vallick begin a romance, unaware they are working for candidates on opposite sides.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Italy (2018)
Former childhood pals Leo and Nikki are attracted to each other as adults—but will their feuding parents' rival pizzerias put a chill on their sizzling romance?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWalk of Shame (2014)
A reporter's dream of becoming a news anchor is compromised after a one-night stand leaves her stranded in downtown L.A. without a phone, car, ID or money - and only 8 hours to make it to the most important job interview of her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe General (1926)
During America’s Civil War, Union spies steal engineer Johnnie Gray's beloved locomotive, 'The General'—with Johnnie's lady love aboard an attached boxcar—and he single-handedly must do all in his power to both get The General back and to rescue Annabelle.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBringing Up Baby (1938)
David Huxley is waiting to get a bone he needs for his museum collection. Through a series of strange circumstances, he meets Susan Vance, and the duo have a series of misadventures which include a leopard called Baby.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCity Lights (1931)
A tramp falls in love with a beautiful blind flower girl. His on-and-off friendship with a wealthy man allows him to be the girl's benefactor and suitor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHanele (1999)
Based on an autobiographical novella by Ivan Olbracht, the film tells the story of Hanele Safarová, who grows up just after the First World War in a little Ruthenian schtetl which, in true Hassidic fashion, awaits the arrival of the Messiah. But Hanele decides to follow the Zionists instead. She moves to the city to prepare for her departure to the Promised Land, where she meets a successful businessman named Ivo Karadzic, who has renounced Judaism to become a free-thinker. Their love for each other doesn’t only drive Hanele’s parents to distraction, it also threatens to destroy the entire community in the schetl.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Pandora's Box (1929)
The rise and inevitable fall of an amoral but naive young woman whose insouciant eroticism inspires lust and violence in those around her.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Great Dictator (1940)
Dictator Adenoid Hynkel tries to expand his empire while a poor Jewish barber tries to avoid persecution from Hynkel's regime.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Gold Rush (1925)
A gold prospector in Alaska struggles to survive the elements and win the heart of a dance hall girl.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTabu: A Story of the South Seas (1931)
On the South Pacific island of Bora Bora, a young couple's love is threatened when the tribal chief declares the girl a sacred virgin.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChimes at Midnight (1965)
Henry IV usurps the English throne, sets in motion the factious War of the Roses and now faces a rebellion led by Northumberland scion Hotspur. Henry's heir, Prince Hal, is a ne'er-do-well carouser who drinks and causes mischief with his low-class friends, especially his rotund father figure, John Falstaff. To redeem his title, Hal may have to choose between allegiance to his real father and loyalty to his friend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Front Page (1974)
Ruthless Chicago newspaper editor Walter Burns resorts to dubious motives in order to get top reporter Hildy Johnson to cover one more big crime story before retirement.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like It Happened One Night?
The closest matches to It Happened One Night are The Philadelphia Story (1940), People We Meet on Vacation (2026) and The Heartbreak Kid (1972). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after It Happened One Night?
Start with The Philadelphia Story (1940), the closest match to It Happened One Night.
What is the highest-rated movie like It Happened One Night?
The Great Dictator (1940), rated 8.3/10 by 3,872 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like It Happened One Night?
Yoh! Bestie (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like It Happened One Night?
Yes: The Philadelphia Story (1940), People We Meet on Vacation (2026) and The Heartbreak Kid (1972).
How are movies similar to It Happened One Night chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside It Happened One Night, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.