Movies like The Encounter (2015)
The best movies like The Encounter (2015) are Evidence (2011), Unaware (2013) and Man Vs. (2015). If The Encounter hooked you with its horror and science fiction, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAlien Abduction: Incident in Lake County (1998)7.4/10 from 215 votes
- NewestMan Finds Tape (2025)Released 2025
Evidence (2011)
Ryan is making a documentary on his friend, Brett, about camping for the first time. However, once they begin camping, they discover that there is a mysterious figure that is hunting them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisUnaware (2013)
In July 2010, a vacationing couple discovered something disturbing on a ranch in rural Texas. Armed with a home camcorder, they captured their experience on video.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & horror
Man Vs. (2015)
As host of his own hit TV series, 'MAN VS', Doug Woods is forced to fend for himself for five days in remote locations with no crew, food, or water, only the cameras he carries on his back to film his experiences. Doug's in the remote woods for a routine episode, until he's awoken by an earth-shaking crash. Things get weirder as it becomes clear Doug isn't alone. Someone or something is watching him.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Gracefield Incident (2017)
On August 16, 2013, the Supreme Court mandated the CIA to declassify files that had been kept secret for the past 75 years. Visual records of documented paranormal events were released to the public. The following incident took place in Gracefield, Quebec.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisPhoenix Forgotten (2017)
Twenty years after three teenagers disappeared in the wake of mysterious lights appearing above Phoenix, Arizona, unseen footage from that night has been discovered, chronicling the final hours of their fateful expedition.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFound Footage 3D (2016)
A group of filmmakers sets out to make the first 3D found footage horror movie, but find themselves IN the first 3D found footage horror movie when the evil entity from their film escapes into their behind-the-scenes footage.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Beyond (2018)
Set in 2019, The Beyond chronicles the groundbreaking mission which sent astronauts - modified with advanced robotics, through a newly discovered wormhole known as the Void. When the mission returns unexpectedly, the space agency races to discover what the astronauts encountered on their first of its kind interstellar space journey.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisShadow People (2013)
A radio talk show host unravels a conspiracy about encounters with mysterious beings known as The Shadow People and their role in the unexplained deaths of several hundred victims in the 1980s.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Pyramid (2014)
An archaeological team attempt to unlock the secrets of a lost pyramid only to find themselves hunted by an insidious creature.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Phoenix Incident (2015)
A number of 'missing person' cases are reported in Phoenix, Arizona when an unexplained light appears in the sky one night in 1997.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisThings Unknown (2013)
Three documentary makers, are heading home from Burning Man in their RV and decide to pull off into the desert to camp for the night. Things get creepy. With their 5 RV cams running 24/7, we see everything that happens...even things they don't see.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & horror
Willow Creek (2013)
Looking to make a splash online with his research videos into the existence of Bigfoot, Jim and his girlfriend Kelly take a camping trip to the small town of Willow Creek, California, and the surrounding mountains where the infamous footage of the supposed sasquatch was filmed.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisCold Ground (2017)
1976: Two young journalists leave for the French-Swiss border to investigate a strange case of cattle mutilations and record testimonies for a TV channel. Yet, once they get there, the scientific team they were supposed to meet has gone missing. Escorted by a first-aider, a British biologist and an American forensic investigator, Melissa and David will go looking for the missing team deep into the mountains.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisAlien Abduction (2014)
A vacationing family encounters an alien threat in this pulse-pounding thriller based on the real-life Brown Mountain Lights phenomenon in North Carolina.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisBigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes (2012)
Sean Reynolds, a highly acclaimed investigative journalist (who strongly believed in paranormal phenomena), destroyed his career when the most watched episode of his reality show, based on paranormal phenomena, turned out to be a hoax. Sean saw a news report on a "Bigfoot Hunter" (Carl Drybeck) who claimed to possess the body of a dead Sasquatch. He believes Drybeck is a phony and decides to create a new show that reveals people's paranormal claims as hoaxes. Sean assembles his old film crew and heads to Northern California's "Lost Coast" to meet with and interview Drybeck. Obsessed, Sean is staking his comeback, his life and the lives of his documentary film crew on proving Drybeck's claim to be a hoax.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisAlien Abduction: Incident in Lake County (1998)
After a mysterious blackout, a son goes out to investigate and captures footage of actual aliens. When the aliens follow he and his brothers back to their home all hell breaks lose.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEncounters (2015)
On November 18th 2011 a small Danish film crew disappeared in the woods of northern Sweden without a trace. One year later, their footage was leaked by a hacker group now known as Pandoras. This is the crew's unsettling and disturbing footage.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisBlair Witch (2016)
Students on a camping trip discover something sinister is lurking beyond the trees.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisMan Finds Tape (2025)
Pulled in by a series of strange and unexplainable video clips, a brother and sister team up to investigate the events captured in the footage, only to discover a shocking secret that’s overtaking their small-town Texas community.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisApollo 18 (2011)
Officially, Apollo 17 was the last manned mission to the moon. But a year later in 1973, three American astronauts were sent on a secret mission to the moon funded by the US Department of Defense. What you are about to see is the actual footage which the astronauts captured on that mission. While NASA denies its authenticity, others say it's the real reason we've never gone back to the moon.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisMermaids: The Body Found (2011)
A story that imagines how these real-world phenomena may be related. In this story, startling amateur video and photographic evidence, as well as additional audio recordings, suggests whales weren’t the only creatures affected by the Navy’s sonar. The film follows the two scientists who tracked the whale beachings for years and delivers first-hand, on-camera accounts of what they claim to have discovered in the aftermath of one particular beaching. Their story is nothing less than fantastical: they claim to have found the remains of a mermaid.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction
Skinwalker Ranch (2013)
In 2010 “Skinwalker Ranch” gained media attention after experiencing a wide range of unexplained phenomena. Reports ranged from UFO sightings to livestock mutilation, but maybe most notable was the disappearance of ranch owner Hoyt Miller’s eight-year-old son Cody on November 11, 2010. Close to a year later, Modern Defense Enterprises has sent a team of experts to document and investigate the mysterious occurrences, which only escalate upon their arrival. Tensions rise as the team must decide how far they will go to unlock the mysteries of “Skinwalker Ranch.” The group debates whether the answers are worth risking their lives for, or if they should just call off the investigation and leave the ranch—that is, if leaving is actually an option…
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisEuropa Report (2013)
A crew travels to Europa, Jupiter’s icy moon, to investigate signs of life in its subsurface ocean, but disaster cuts them off from Earth, leading to a tense and dangerous exploration.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSignificant Other (2022)
Ruth and Harry decide to take a romantic backpacking trip through the Pacific Northwest, but amongst the beautiful scenery, Ruth makes an unexpected discovery that sets her off on a strange, frightening new path. The couple aren't alone in the woods, and they might not be the same when they come out...if they come out.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNope (2022)
Residents in a lonely gulch of inland California bear witness to an uncanny, chilling discovery.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDie Alone (2024)
Lost in a world reclaimed by nature and overrun by mysterious creatures, Ethan, a young man with amnesia navigates the dangerous landscape in search of his lost love Emma. His journey takes an unexpected turn when he encounters Mae, a hardened and eccentric survivor. Together, Ethan and Mae face threats both human and otherwise before a fateful encounter with Kai unravels a secret that lies just beyond Ethan's fractured memory.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Return (2020)
After the death of his father, a brilliant college student returns to his family home where he learns that the horrors from his childhood aren't as dead and gone as he once thought.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYear 10 (2024)
After the fall of civilization, the few survivors have been driven to cannibalism. A young man must confront a violent tribe that has murdered his father and stolen the medicine that keeps his girlfriend alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExtinction (2015)
And suddenly, overnight, the world came to a halt. Two men, two survivors, one kid, and hatred that separates them. A place forgotten by everyone, including the creatures that inhabit the Earth... until now.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlien: Romulus (2024)
While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Encounter?
The closest matches to The Encounter are Evidence (2011), Unaware (2013) and Man Vs. (2015). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Encounter?
People who watched The Encounter most often go on to Evidence (2011), Unaware (2013) and Man Vs. (2015).
What is the highest-rated movie like The Encounter?
Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County (1998), rated 7.4/10 by 215 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Encounter?
Man Finds Tape (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Encounter?
Yes: Evidence (2011), Unaware (2013) and Man Vs. (2015).
How are movies similar to The Encounter chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Encounter, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.