Movies like This Is Not What I Expected (2017)
The best movies like This Is Not What I Expected (2017) are Love Is in the Air (2023), The Royal Treatment (2022) and Let's Make Love (1960). If This Is Not What I Expected 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 Royal Treatment (2022)6.7/10 from 809 votes
- NewestChampagne Problems (2025)Released 2025
- In ChineseFinding Mr. Right (2013)Also in Chinese
Love Is in the Air (2023)
A fiercely independent pilot fighting to keep her family business afloat starts to fall for the man sent by corporate to ground her operation forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Royal Treatment (2022)
Isabella runs her own salon and isn’t afraid to speak her mind, while Prince Thomas runs his own country and is about to marry for duty rather than love. When Izzy and her fellow stylists get the opportunity of a lifetime to do the hair for the royal wedding, she and Prince Thomas learn that taking control of their own destiny requires following their hearts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLet's Make Love (1960)
When billionaire Jean-Marc Clement learns that he is to be satirized in an off-Broadway revue, he passes himself off as an actor playing him in order to get closer to the beautiful star of the show, Amanda Dell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEasy Virtue (2008)
A young Englishman marries a glamorous American. When he brings her home to meet the parents, she arrives like a blast from the future - blowing their entrenched British stuffiness out the window.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Prince & Me 4: The Elephant Adventure (2010)
One year after their royal wedding, King Edvard and Queen Paige of Denmark receive an invitation to attend the wedding of Princess Myra of Sangyoon. Upon their arrival, Paige finds Myra is unhappy with her arranged marriage to the brooding and sinister Kah and is secretly in love with a young elephant handler named Alu.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Love You Again (1940)
Boring businessman Larry Wilson recovers from amnesia and discovers he's really a con man...and loves his soon-to-be-ex wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWatching the Detectives (2007)
Neil, a self-proclaimed film geek and owner of Gumshoe video, has always been content to live vicariously through his favorite films noir. But when he meets Violet, a real-life femme fatale, his mundane world gets turned upside down and the line between reality and the movies quickly begins to blur.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChampagne Problems (2025)
A driven American exec heads to Paris determined to acquire a champagne brand by Christmas — and accidentally falls for the heir to the bubbly empire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGirl on a Bicycle (2013)
Paolo, an Italian tour bus driver living in Paris, has just summoned up the courage to propose marriage to his German girlfriend Greta. However, a chance encounter with a French woman on a bicycle the very next day turns Paolo's life upside down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisWhat a Way to Go! (1964)
A four-time widow discusses her four marriages, in which all of her husbands became incredibly rich and died prematurely because of their drive to be rich.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThat Touch of Mink (1962)
Cathy Timberlake is en route to a job interview when a car transporting businessman Philip Shayne covers her in mud. He sends his assistant, Roger, to apologize, but upon meeting Cathy, Roger knows that she would be a suitable match for his boss. Despite their mutual attraction, Cathy and Philip want different things. Philip wants a fling, while Cathy wants a marriage. As they travel to exotic locales, their differing motivations are put to the test.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhisky Galore (2016)
The story of the inhabitants of the isolated Scottish island of Todday, in the Outer Hebrides, where gloom sets in as their wartime rationing of whisky runs out. When cargo ship the SS Cabinet Minister runs aground the shrewd islanders run rings around the buffoonish English Home Guard commander Captain Waggett and conspire to hide away cases of the precious amber nectar.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisChristmas with You (2022)
Feeling career burnout, pop star Angelina escapes to grant a young fan's wish in small-town New York, where she not only finds the inspiration to revitalize her career but also a shot at true love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisFinding Mr. Right (2013)
When Jiajia, a young woman in Beijing who lives a luxurious life provided by her wealthy boyfriend, gets pregnant, she goes to the United States, hoping that the baby will be born an American citizen. There she meets Frank who offers help and makes her think twice about who her Mr. Right really is.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Other End of the Line (2007)
An employee at an Indian call-center travels to San Francisco to be with a guy she falls for over the phone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThis Little Love of Mine (2021)
Laura Price is a successful San Francisco lawyer on the cusp of promotion – a far cry from her childhood growing up on a tropical island with best friends Chip and Gem. When the firm’s biggest client – Chip’s grandfather – asks Laura to travel to the island and deliver a contract to make Chip his heir, she leaves behind her practice and fiancé Owen to convince her childhood friend to sign a contract that will make him a billionaire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCooking with Love (2018)
Optimistic and cheerful TV producer, Kelly, doesn’t have time for love. Bad boy celebrity chef, Stephen, doesn’t have time for anything besides cooking. Fun with a side of love ensues as Kelly and Stephen are paired on a children's cooking show.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Thrill of It All (1963)
A housewife's sudden rise to fame as a soap spokesperson leads to chaos in her home life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhat's Love Got to Do with It? (2023)
Two childhood friends now in their thirties must decide whether to follow their heads or their hearts once the man decides to follow his parents' advice and enter into an arranged marriage in Pakistan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFalling for Christmas (2022)
An engaged, spoiled hotel heiress finds herself in the care of a handsome, blue-collar lodge owner and his precocious daughter after getting amnesia in a skiing accident.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGetting to Know You (2020)
When his drunken ex-girlfriend won't leave him alone, a man asks a married woman staying at the same hotel to pretend to be his wife. What could go wrong? It's not like two strangers spending a weekend in a small town could possibly fall in love - Getting To Know You is a delightful love story for grownups starring Natasha Little, Rupert Penry-Jones and Rachel Blanchard.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Palace (1996)
While three brothers, heirs of a hotel owner, want to restore the glamour of yesteryear to the establishment, a Health Department official tries to find a way to close it down for good.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Golden Apron (2025)
A mockumentary that follows the 5 main contestants of The Golden Apron contest, a competition in search of "the greatest home chef in America", being held by a nefarious food manufacturing company with their own corporate agenda.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Affairs of Jimmy Valentine (1942)
A New York radio personality travels to the small town of Fernville to oversee a contest to identify retired safecracker Jimmy Valentine, believed to be living there under an assumed name. The close-knit town of upstanding citizens is understandably upset by this venture, all the moreso when some of its citizens begin to be murdered. The radio personality and the local newspaper's young daughter collaborate on solving the murders while revealing Valentine, who has become one of the suspects.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Porky's Hotel (1939)
Porky runs a small-town hotel. An old goat with gout checks in for a rest, but a talkative goose child will prevent him from getting it.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Ring Thing (2017)
When Sarah accidentally proposes to her girlfriend in Provincetown, the mixup turns their loving relationship into a minefield of marital exploration.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Hanele (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
Ilona & Kurti (1991)
Kurt Schneider is a superficial and funloving character. Instigated by his mother he swindles his way into the legacy of a house and some money. Both Kurti and his mother are certain there are no legal heirs to the property. Great is their surprise when Ilona appears, who is the legal heiress coming from a remote part of Yugoslavia. Several attempts to get rid of that "Tschusch" prove unsuccessful. Once Mama Schneider gets to know that Ilona is also the beneficiary of a sizable life assurance contract, she destines her son to marry Ilona. While trying to double-cross Ilona, Kurti actually falls in love with her. Now it is Ilona's turn to take vengeance on mother Schneider and to prompt Kurti to take a clear-cut decision...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Best Little Whorehouse in Rochdale (2013)
After the untimely death of her husband, shy Joan (a part-time cleaner) has to make money fast to keep from losing her home. She asks Fred, her sleazy boss, if she can work more hours - but instead, he takes on sexy air-head, Sharon and fires Joan. Now, she's forced to resort to extreme measures to avoid her home being repossessed. Aided by Sharon, and her two friends/former work-mates (65 year-old eccentric Enid, and desperate Mavis), Joan becomes the Madame of a do-it-yourself co-operative brothel... A brothel with no sex!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like This Is Not What I Expected?
The closest matches to This Is Not What I Expected are Love Is in the Air (2023), The Royal Treatment (2022) and Let's Make Love (1960). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after This Is Not What I Expected?
Start with Love Is in the Air (2023), the closest match to This Is Not What I Expected.
What is the highest-rated movie like This Is Not What I Expected?
The Royal Treatment (2022), rated 6.7/10 by 809 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like This Is Not What I Expected?
Champagne Problems (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Chinese movies like This Is Not What I Expected?
Yes: Finding Mr. Right (2013).
How are movies similar to This Is Not What I Expected chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside This Is Not What I Expected, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.