Movies like The Before Time (2014)
The best movies like The Before Time (2014) are The Empty Man (2020), Older Gods (2023) and The Night Stalker (1972). If The Before Time hooked you with its thriller and horror, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Forever Purge (2021)6.8/10 from 2,782 votes
- NewestStrange Harvest (2025)Released 2025
The Empty Man (2020)
On the trail of a missing girl, an ex-cop comes across a secretive group attempting to summon a terrifying supernatural entity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOlder Gods (2023)
After the disappearance of his troubled friend, American Chris Rivers travels to the remote Welsh countryside to investigate what happened – leading him to a dark apocalyptic cult.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Night Stalker (1972)
Wisecracking reporter Carl Kolchak investigates a string of murders in Las Vegas and suspects the culprit is a vampire. His editor thinks he's crazy and the police think he's a nuisance, so Kolchak takes matters into his own hands.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Taking of Deborah Logan (2014)
What starts as a poignant medical documentary about Deborah Logan's descent into Alzheimer's disease and her daughter's struggles as caregiver degenerates into a maddening portrayal of dementia at its most frightening, as hair-raising events begin to plague the family and crew and an unspeakable malevolence threatens to tear the very fabric of sanity from them all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies 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: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSavageland (2015)
When a small town near the Arizona-Mexico border is wiped out overnight, suspicion falls on the lone survivor. But a roll of photos the survivor took that night tells a different story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCurse of the Blair Witch (1999)
A mockumentary exploring the legend of the Blair Witch and the case of the three missing student filmmakers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWinchester (2018)
San Jose, California, 1906. Isolated in her labyrinthine mansion, eccentric firearm heiress Sarah Winchester believes that she is being haunted by the souls of those killed by the guns manufactured by her company.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Hitcher (2007)
While driving through the New Mexico Desert during a rainy night, college students Jim Halsey and his girlfriend Grace Andrews give a ride to a hitchhiker. While in their car, the stranger proves to be a psychopath threatening the young couple with a knife, but Jim successfully throws him out of the car. This sets off a chain of events that will change all of their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Sacrament (2014)
Two journalists set out to document their friend's journey to reunite with his estranged sister. They track her to an undisclosed location where they are welcomed into the remote world of "Eden Parish," a self-sustained rural utopia composed of nearly two hundred members and overseen by a mysterious leader known only as "Father." It quickly becomes evident to the newcomers that this paradise may not be as it seems. Eden Parish harbors a twisted secret. What started as just another documentary shoot soon becomes a fight for survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Ring (2002)
Journalist Rachel Keller investigates a strange videotape that may be behind the untimely deaths of four teenagers. There is an urban legend about this tape: the viewer will die seven days after watching it. Rachel tracks down the video... and watches it. Now she has just seven days to unravel the mystery of the Ring in order to save herself and her son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Bay (2012)
Chaos breaks out in a small Maryland town after an ecological disaster occurs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Forever Purge (2021)
All the rules are broken as a sect of lawless marauders decides that the annual Purge does not stop at daybreak and instead should never end as they chase a group of immigrants who they want to punish because of their harsh historical past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGrave Encounters (2011)
A crew from a paranormal reality television show lock themselves in a haunted psychiatric hospital. They search for evidence of paranormal activity as they shoot what ends up becoming their final episode.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStrange Harvest (2025)
Detectives are thrust into a chilling hunt for a sadistic serial killer from the past whose return marks the beginning of a new wave of grotesque, otherworldly crimes tied to a cosmic force.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Night Strangler (1973)
After being run out of Las Vegas, reporter Carl Kolchak heads for Seattle and another reporting job with the local paper. It's not long before he’s on the trail of another string of bizarre murders. It seems that every 21 years, for the past century, a killer murders a certain number of people, drains them of their blood, and then disappears into the night. Kolchak is on his trail, but can he stop him?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Conspiracy (2012)
A documentary about conspiracy theories takes a horrific turn after the filmmakers uncover an ancient and dangerous secret society.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisLast of the Dogmen (1995)
A Montana bounty hunter is sent into the wilderness to track three escaped prisoners. Instead he sees something that puzzles him. Later with a female Native Indian history professor, he returns to find some answers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParanormal Activity (2009)
After a young, middle-class couple moves into what seems like a typical suburban house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be demonic, but is certainly the most active in the middle of the night.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuper 8 (2011)
In late 1970s Ohio, a group of friends filming a homemade zombie movie witness a devastating train derailment. Soon after, their quiet town is gripped by unexplained disappearances, strange phenomena, and a growing sense of fear, as they uncover that something terrifying has been set loose.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUnfriended (2014)
While video chatting one night, six high school friends receive a Skype message from a classmate who killed herself exactly one year ago. At first they think it's a prank, but when the girl starts revealing the friends' darkest secrets, they realize they are dealing with something out of this world, something that wants them dead.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Midnight Swim (2015)
Spirit Lake is unusually deep. No diver has ever managed to find the bottom. When Dr. Amelia Brooks disappears during a deep-water dive, her three daughters travel home. They find themselves unable to let go and become drawn into the mysteries of the lake.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery & horror
SnoozefestMovies like this7th Revelation (2020)
A slow slide into insanity as a group of distance workers discover their work-from-home mandate is part of dark and deceptive conspiracy meant to dwindle the numbers of middle class workers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & mystery
The Poltergeist Diaries (2021)
After moving to an isolated cabin, Jacob Taylor vanishes without a trace. With the help of footage he leaves behind, his family members, friends, and a detective try to find answers to the strange events that are centered around him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & mystery
The Legend of Six Fingers (2014)
Following a rash of slaughtered and missing persons, two would-be documentary filmmakers set off into the woods in search of a bloodthirsty legendary creature.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & thriller
Behind The Sightings (2021)
Behind the Sightings follows Todd and Jessica Smith, two filmmakers from Raleigh in North Carolina, who set out to produce a documentary exploring the highly publicized, creepy clown sighting epidemic, which was investigated by local law enforcement. As the young married couple venture into Peachtree Way, Nash County, in search of clowns, what they found was far from funny.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & horror
Followers (2017)
A couple who document their whole life on social media decide to go on a camping trip and share their every move with their followers. What they don't know is that someone is going to prove how easy it is to stalk someone in the digital age. Arriving at the camp site, their followers are close by and are ready to go to extreme and deadly lengths to prove their point.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
Alone in the Dark (2005)
Edward Carnby is a private investigator specializing in unexplainable supernatural phenomena. His cases delve into the dark corners of the world, searching for truth in the occult remnants of ancient civilizations. Now, the greatest mystery of his past is about to become the most dangerous case he has ever faced.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Hills Have Eyes (1977)
Taking an ill-advised detour en-route to California, the Carter family soon run into trouble when their RV breaks down in the middle of the desert. Stranded, they find themselves at the mercy of monstrous cannibals lurking in the surrounding hills.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Haunting on Brockway Street (2019)
In 2007, the Braley Family decided to rescue an abandoned and dilapidated Civil War Era home in historic Saginaw, Michigan. Despite the overwhelming need for repair, the Braley's saw nothing but potential; a 6,000 square foot blank canvas to which the large family could pain a future of their own. Sparing no expense, contractors were deployed to the stately and iconic manor, with the mission to preserve its original 19th century colonial architecture. Almost immediately, strange occurrences began taking place within the home; tools coming up missing, disembodied voices and footsteps, and the shocking appearance of a semitranslucent apparition of a young child. Following several weeks of escalating activity, the bewildered family took it upon themselves to find out who or what was haunting their home. That is when they made the unfortunate mistake of turning to a spirit board for answers...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Before Time?
The closest matches to The Before Time are The Empty Man (2020), Older Gods (2023) and The Night Stalker (1972). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Before Time?
Start with The Empty Man (2020), the closest match to The Before Time.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Before Time?
The Forever Purge (2021), rated 6.8/10 by 2,782 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Before Time?
Strange Harvest (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Before Time?
Yes: The Empty Man (2020), Older Gods (2023) and The Night Stalker (1972).
How are movies similar to The Before Time chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Before Time, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.