Movies like Why (2016)
The best movies like Why (2016) are Mad Dog and Glory (1993), Series 7 (2001) and All Too Well: The Short Film (2021). If Why hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMichael Jackson's Thriller (1983)8.2/10 from 811 votes
- NewestEleanor the Great (2025)Released 2025
Mad Dog and Glory (1993)
Wayne Dobie is a shy cop whose low-key demeanor has earned him the affectionate nickname "Mad Dog." After Mad Dog saves the life of Frank Milo, a crime boss and aspiring stand-up comedian, he's offered the company of an attractive young waitress named Glory for a week. At first both are uneasy about the arrangement, but they eventually fall in love. However, the situation becomes complicated when Milo demands Glory back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeries 7 (2001)
A reality TV program selects six contestants to participate in a free-for-all, no holds barred deathmatch, where they must skillfully outwit and kill each other in order to be the last person alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAll Too Well: The Short Film (2021)
Short film featuring the extended version of the song “All Too Well” by Taylor Swift. A troubled couple's romance blossoms before it eventually falls apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAftersun (2022)
Sophie reflects on the shared joy and private melancholy of a holiday she took with her father twenty years earlier. Memories fill the gaps between camcorder footages as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the troubled man she didn't.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEleanor the Great (2025)
94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein tries to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGoodnight Mommy (2022)
When twin brothers arrive home to find their mother’s demeanor altered and face covered in surgical bandages, they begin to suspect the woman beneath the gauze might not be their mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOldboy (2013)
A man has only three and a half days and limited resources to discover why he was imprisoned in a nondescript room for 20 years without any explanation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like this42 Up (1999)
Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSaw (2003)
David, an orderly at a hospital, tells his horrific story of being kidnapped and forced to play a vile game of survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBuck Privates (1941)
Petty con artists Slicker Smith and Herbie Brown mistakenly join the Army evading the cops. The cop chasing them winds up as their drill instructor. A rich young man and his former working class chauffeur are not only in the same unit, they're vying for a pretty girl who seems attracted to both.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Widow (1987)
Federal agent Alexandra Barnes believes that Catherine Petersen is a serial killer who marries rich men and then murders them for their money. But since Catherine is seemingly a master of disguise and has multiple identities, Alexandra can't prove anything with conventional detective work. With no other option, she goes undercover, pursuing the same man as Catherine, and hoping that Catherine will slip up and reveal her true identity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHot Shots! (1991)
The gang that created Airplane! and The Naked Gun sets its sights on Top Gun in this spoof. Topper Harley is a talented but unstable fighter pilot with an axe to grind: clearing the family name. His mission is to avenge his father and save a mission sabotaged by greedy weapons manufacturers. He also gets involved in a relationship with Ramada Thompson, a woman with an unusually talented stomach. Hot Shots! makes fun of a variety of other films, from Dances with Wolves to The Fabulous Baker Boys.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Deep End of the Ocean (1999)
A three-year-old boy disappears during his mother's high school reunion. Nine years later, by chance, he turns up in the town in which the family has just relocated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarold and Maude (1971)
A deadpan young man obsessed with death meets an eccentric septuagenarian who teaches him to live life to the fullest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCurve (2016)
Clinging to a smooth, curved surface high above a sentient abyss, a woman tries to cover the few feet back to safety without losing purchase and falling to her death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKevin Hart: What Now? (2016)
Comedian Kevin Hart performs in front of a crowd of 50,000 people at Philadelphia's outdoor venue, Lincoln Financial Field.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGhosts (1997)
In the town of Normal Valley, an eccentric magician named Maestro entertains the local children every day in his spooky mansion. One stormy night, the town's mayor leads a group of angry citizens to the mansion in an attempt to run Maestro out of town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisPsych 2: Lassie Come Home (2020)
After Santa Barbara Police Chief Carlton Lassiter is ambushed and left for dead, Shawn and Gus return to help him and find themselves embroiled in a case involving the personal, the professional – and even the supernatural.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBaby Mama (2008)
A successful, single businesswoman who dreams of having a baby discovers she is infertile and hires a working class woman to be her unlikely surrogate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMichael Jackson's Thriller (1983)
A night at the movies turns terrifying when Michael and his date are attacked by zombies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Why?
The closest matches to Why are Mad Dog and Glory (1993), Series 7 (2001) and All Too Well: The Short Film (2021). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Why?
Start with Mad Dog and Glory (1993), the closest match to Why.
What is the highest-rated movie like Why?
Michael Jackson's Thriller (1983), rated 8.2/10 by 811 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Why?
Eleanor the Great (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Why?
Yes: Mad Dog and Glory (1993), Series 7 (2001) and All Too Well: The Short Film (2021).
How are movies similar to Why chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Why, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.