Movies like The Way of the World (2016)
The best movies like The Way of the World (2016) are X (2011), Holiday Date (2019) and Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy (2019). If The Way of the World hooked you with its romance, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The Way of the World
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Handmaiden (2016)8.2/10 from 4,590 votes
- NewestMaid's Obsession (2026)Released 2026
X (2011)
A veteran call girl and a runaway prostitute witness a murder which sends them on an out-of-control roller coaster ride through the twilight zone of sex-for-sale.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHoliday Date (2019)
When Brooke’s boyfriend, Ethan, breaks up with her just before the holidays, she agrees to go home with Joel, an actor who will pose as her boyfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChristmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy (2019)
A skeptical writer shows up in Evergreen to get the scoop on the town's famed passion for Christmas during a search for a long-lost time capsule.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Matchmaker's Playbook (2018)
After a career-ending accident, former NFL recruit Ian Hunter is back on campus, and he's putting his extensive skills with women to work as one of the masterminds behind a successful and secretive dating service. But when Blake Olson requests the services of Wingmen, Inc., Ian may have landed his most hopeless client yet. As Blake begins the transformation from hot mess to smokin' hot, Ian realizes he's in danger of breaking his cardinal rule....
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisParis, Wine & Romance (2019)
Isabella is the ambitious new owner of her family’s Oregon winery whose dream of becoming world-renowned takes a big step forward when she enters a prestigious wine competition in Paris. Upon arrival, Isabella meets her biggest competitor, Jacques, from one of the world’s foremost winemaking families. Impressed by Isabella and her expertise in wine, a budding romance develops between them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChateau Christmas (2020)
Margot, a world-renowned pianist, returns to Chateau Newhaus to spend the holidays with her family and is reunited with an ex who helps her rediscover her passion for music.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Christmas Kiss II (2014)
At a Christmastime event, Jenna shares an impromptu, unforgettable kiss with the dashing billionaire, Cooper Montgomery. Unaware of his intentions and fearful of getting hurt in another relationship, Jenna vows to resist his charms, but begins to realize his affection is real as the two spend more time together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisChristmas On My Mind (2019)
When Lucy wakes up with a wedding dress in hand, she believes that she is late to her wedding with her ex-boyfriend Zac. However, she has no recollection of the past 2 years, including the fact that she is engaged to another man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt Was Always You (2021)
Elizabeth's engagement plans are thrown into disarray when her fiancée's free-spirited brother David returns home. David's unexpected influence prompts Elizabeth to question her life decisions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGabriel's Rapture: Part III (2022)
In the sixth installment of the Gabriel's Inferno series, Julia deals with the aftermath of Gabriel's departure, while Gabriel goes on a journey of self-discovery. Will they reunite and be able to repair what is broken?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisA Glenbrooke Christmas (2020)
As Christmas nears, heiress Jessica Morgan seizes what seems like her last chance to experience a relaxed Christmas and heads off to the small town of Glenbrooke, where she meets a handsome fireman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFive Star Christmas (2020)
After moving back to her hometown, Lisa (Lenz) plots with her siblings and grandparents to help her father's bed and breakfast get a five-star review from an incognito travel critic (Webster), but ends up falling for him, not knowing he is the real critic.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChristmas Under the Stars (2019)
When Nick is fired from his high-powered investment firm at Christmastime, he takes a job at a Christmas tree lot. There, he meets Julie, an astronomy teacher who’s always looked to the stars for hope. As the Christmas spirit washes over him—and he begins falling for Julie—the once self-centered Nick discovers the joy of helping others.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOn the 12th Date of Christmas (2020)
Two seemingly incompatible game designers team up to create a romantic, city-wide scavenger hunt themed for the "12 Days of Christmas."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Sweetest Christmas (2017)
After breaking up with her long-term boyfriend just before the holidays, passionate baker Kylie reconnects with her high school sweetheart, Nick. Thanks to their newly rekindled friendship, Kylie uses Nick’s restaurant to prepare for a gingerbread baking competition with a large cash prize that would help her open her own bakery.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Perfect Christmas Present (2017)
Tom Jacobs is Mr Christmas! He's built an entire business around helping clients find the perfect gift. But what happens when he falls for one lucky recipient?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGabriel's Rapture: Part I (2021)
In the fourth instalment of the Gabriel's Inferno series, Professor Gabriel Emerson has embarked on a passionate, yet clandestine affair with his former student Julia Mitchell, but when they return from their romantic holiday in Italy, their happiness is threatened. Will Gabriel succumb to Dante's fate?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPoinsettias for Christmas (2018)
It’s just weeks before Christmas when Ellie gets a call to return home to help her father on the family’s poinsettia farm. The family business is on the line to deliver tens of thousands of plants for the town’s annual parade. The problem is — the poinsettias have yet to turn red! As Ellie searches for the solution, she is reminded of where her heart truly lies as she falls in love with both her roots and a local botanist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Timeless Christmas (2020)
Charles Whitley travels from 1903 to 2020 where he meets Megan Turner, a tour guide at his historic mansion, and experiences a 21st Century Christmas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChristmas Next Door (2017)
Eric Randall, an author of bachelor lifestyle books, is left in charge of his young niece and nephew for the holidays. Eric turns to his neighbor April, a lover of all things Christmas, for help.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Thought of Ecstasy (2018)
August 2019. Frank recognizes his own story of twenty years ago in a recently published book. He remembers Marie, with whom he had a relationship before she moved to the United States and disappeared from his life. Frank sets out in search of her and finds himself in a USA petrified by a heat wave and lost in suspicion and political paranoia. He heads into the desert in pursuit of Marie.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
The Night Porter (1974)
A concentration camp survivor discovers her former torturer and lover working as a porter at a hotel in postwar Vienna. When the couple attempt to re-create their sadomasochistic relationship, his former SS comrades begin to stalk them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Handmaiden (2016)
1930s Korea, in the period of Japanese occupation, a new girl, Sook-hee, is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, Hideko, who lives a secluded life on a large countryside estate with her domineering Uncle Kouzuki. But the maid has a secret. She is a pickpocket recruited by a swindler posing as a Japanese Count to help him seduce the Lady to steal her fortune.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisScarlet Innocence (2014)
A university professor gradually succumbing to blindness is entranced by an obsessive love, in this modern-day adaptation of a classic Korean fairy tale.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA French Gigolo (2008)
Marco leads a double life. As Marco, he is a construction worker but rich ladies craving sexual excitation know him as Patrick. As Marco he is married to Fanny, an ambitious young woman who has opened her own hairdressing salon in partnership with her friend Rosalie. Marco/Patrick is not a male prostitute at heart: in fact he does the job in order to support his wife's business. Which doesn't prevent Judith, an elegant tele-shopping presenter who buys his services, from falling in love with him. But when Fanny learns what Marco does and with whom, she first gets mad but soon starts interfering in their affair.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Center of the World (2001)
A couple checks into a suite in Las Vegas. In flashbacks we see that he's a computer whiz on the verge of becoming a dot.com millionaire, she's a lap dancer at a club. He's depressed, withdrawing from work, missing meetings with investors. He wants a connection, so he offers her $10,000 to spend three nights with him in Vegas, and she accepts with conditions. Is mutual attraction stirring?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisFirst Name: Carmen (1983)
A woman involved with a terrorist group becomes dangerously close to the police officer guarding the bank they plan to rob.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCarnal Knowledge (1971)
Two lifelong friends navigate complex sexual encounters and emotional entanglements, wrestling with societal norms and personal desires.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEcstasy of the Angels (1972)
A militant revolutionary group is torn apart by betrayal as its members descend into paranoia and sexual decadence.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Maid's Obsession (2026)
Martha, a longtime helper, fears losing her job when a new maid arrives. Rivalry turns to closeness as secrets and desire blur boundaries, forcing both to choose between security and temptation.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Way of the World?
The closest matches to The Way of the World are X (2011), Holiday Date (2019) and Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Way of the World?
Start with X (2011), the closest match to The Way of the World.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Way of the World?
The Handmaiden (2016), rated 8.2/10 by 4,590 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Way of the World?
Maid's Obsession (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Way of the World?
Yes: X (2011), Holiday Date (2019) and Christmas in Evergreen: Tidings of Joy (2019).
How are movies similar to The Way of the World chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Way of the World, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.