Movies like The River (2018)
The best movies like The River (2018) are Hands of Stone (2016), The Padre (2018) and The Nest (2020). If The River hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedPrayers for the Stolen (2021)7.6/10 from 202 votes
- NewestThe Cut (2025)Released 2025
- In SpanishEnemigos (2025)Also in Spanish
Hands of Stone (2016)
The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Padre (2018)
American retired Judge Randall Nemes and his hired gun, Gaspar, track down a con man posing as a priest in a small Colombian town only to be thrown off-course by a scrappy 16-year-old girl intent on reuniting with her sister in the United States.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Nest (2020)
Rory is an ambitious entrepreneur who brings his American wife and kids to his native country, England, to explore new business opportunities. After abandoning the sanctuary of their safe American suburban surroundings, the family is plunged into the despair of an archaic '80s Britain and their unaffordable new life in an English manor house threatens to destroy the family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEnemigos (2025)
Chimo turns 18 years and comes from a humble and supportive family. Since childhood he was bullied and even today, while working multiple jobs and dreaming of starting his own business, he continues to face his bully: El Rubio. When Chimo has the opportunity for revenge, he never imagines what begins as an act of retaliation could turn into an unexpected friendship that'll change both their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe House of Flowers: The Movie (2021)
The De La Mora siblings concoct a mischievous plan to break into their old family home to retrieve a hidden treasure of significant importance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSergio (2020)
A sweeping drama set in the chaotic aftermath of the US invasion of Iraq, where the life of top UN diplomat Brazilian Sérgio Vieira de Mello hangs in the balance during the most treacherous mission of his career.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe 7th Day (2004)
Isabel Jimenez is a teenager witnessing a horrible feud between her own family and the Fuentes family, a feud involving broken hearts, property disputes and a mysterious fire that destroyed the Fuentes house. Isabel's uncle is murdered by Jeronimo Fuentes, who later tries to stab her father. After Jeronimo dies in jail, Isabel must look outside of her family for the truth, learning from the village idiot that her father may have set fire to the Fuentes home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBarron's Cove (2025)
When his young son is viciously murdered by a classmate, a grieving father with a history of violence kidnaps the child responsible, igniting a frenzied manhunt fueled by a powerful politician -- the father of the kidnapped boy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Good Neighbor (2022)
A nightmarish evening unfolds for neighbors David and Robert when they accidentally hit a woman on her bike and flee the scene. While David is increasingly plagued by feelings of guilt, Robert shows no remorse and becomes overbearing and possessive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBastard Out of Carolina (1996)
A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as her last chance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStaring at Strangers (2022)
Carpenter Sergio runs away and hides in a closet after his boss fired him. When the closet arrives at its buyer's house, he decides to stay there, hiding in his new home living with an unknown family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Cut (2025)
A retired boxer intends to return to the ring for one last shot at the title, but first he must make the weight. Holed up in a room in Las Vegas with an unscrupulous trainer, he embarks on an intensive and illegal weight-cutting program.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisImperial Dreams (2014)
A 21-year-old reformed gangster's devotion to his family and his future is put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his old stomping grounds in Watts, Los Angeles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSky High (2020)
A commentary on Spanish society dressed as a thriller about the misadventures of a gang of young petty criminals after the real estate crash.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Safety of Objects (2002)
In a suburban landscape, the lives of several families interlace with loss, despair and personal crisis. Esther Gold has lost focus on all but caring for her comatose son, Paul, and neglects her daughter and husband. Lawyer Jim Train is devoted to his career, not his family. Helen Christianson wants to find a new spark in life, while Annette Jennings tries to rebuild hers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJungleland (2020)
Stanley manages his boxer brother Lion but when a devastating loss in the ring leaves the pair in debt, an opportunity to recoup the cash leads to a series of misadventures that threaten to break the bond between them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSalomé (2013)
After the lewd and frenetic Dance of the Seven Veils, and with the solemn pledge from the very lips of Herod himself that she could have whatever her heart desires up to half his kingdom, wanton and proud young Salomé comes before her king with an unreasonable demand. Beguiled by John the Baptist, and then scorned for the sake of his god, lascivious Salomé—encouraged by her mother, the vindictive, Herodias—commands that John be executed and his head delivered on a silver platter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPrayers for the Stolen (2021)
Ana and her two best friends, Maria and Paula, navigate life in their oppressive countryside village. Whilst their families struggle in the poppy fields harvesting opium, the girls try to grow alongside the creeping terror of their cartel oppressors.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFast Charlie (2023)
When his aging mob boss is whacked, Charlie Swift, a loyal friend and hired gun, will stop at nothing to destroy the upcoming crew that took him out.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSin Nombre (2009)
Sayra, an Indigenous Latina American teenage girl from Honduras, Central America, hungers for a better life. Her chance for one comes when she is reunited with her long-estranged father, who intends to emigrate to Mexico and then enter the United States. Sayra's life collides with a pair of Indigenous Latino American gang members from Mexico, North America who have boarded the same USA-bound train.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
As the west rapidly becomes civilized, a pair of outlaws in 1890s Wyoming find themselves pursued by a posse and decide to flee to South America in hopes of evading the law.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCielo (2025)
Santa, an eight-year-old girl from the desolate Bolivian Altiplano, embarks on a rollercoaster journey to take her mother from a life of misery into paradise. The two of them made a pact: when her mother passes, the girl would follow the stars and carry her body across the desert toward heaven, a place they are certain is physically real. Crossing the wilderness, Santa encounters a group of female wrestlers that help her on her way. Also, a gruff policeman who arrests Santa but soon suspects she has magical powers. He decides that to achieve his own salvation he must join Santa on her quest beyond the horizon.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Undertow (2004)
The Munns, father John and sons Chris and Tim, recede to the woods of rural Georgia. Their life together is forever changed with the arrival of Uncle Deel, though the tragedy that follows forces troubled Chris to become a man.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSummer Days with Coo (2007)
A small, lone Kappa miraculously survives over 200 years into modern day Japan, when he is found by young Koichi. Coo, who is secretly adopted by Koichi's family, searches with his new human friend for unpopulated places in hopes of finding any remaining of his kind.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe First Murder (1972)
Based on the novel "Šta bi učinio Zobec?" (What Would Zobec Do?) by Svetozar Vlajković. It's a short movie about a young man who is afraid of being turned down by a girl.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Black Water (2008)
Based on true events, Grace, her boyfriend Adam, and her younger sister, Lee, are on holiday in Northern Australia when they decide to take a tour down a river. As they drift into a swamp, their boat suddenly capsizes. Stranded in the flooded swamp, the three tourists must figure out what to do to survive as they realize they are being watched through the black water.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe River (1960)
This films tells four different stories, all connected by the banks of a river.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dark River (1990)
An angry father sets out to get revenge for the death of his daughter in a toxic waste accident.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The River?
The closest matches to The River are Hands of Stone (2016), The Padre (2018) and The Nest (2020). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The River?
Start with Hands of Stone (2016), the closest match to The River.
What is the highest-rated movie like The River?
Prayers for the Stolen (2021), rated 7.6/10 by 202 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The River?
The Cut (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like The River?
Yes: Enemigos (2025), The House of Flowers: The Movie (2021) and The 7th Day (2004).
How are movies similar to The River chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The River, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.