Movies like The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou (1971)
The best movies like The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou (1971) are Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980), Johnny Tsunami (1999) and An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009). If The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou hooked you with its drama and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLittle Lord Fauntleroy (1980)7.3/10 from 326 votes
- NewestHeritage (2024)Released 2024
Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980)
Young Cedric Errol and his widowed mother live in genteel poverty in 1880s Brooklyn after the death of his father. Cedric's grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt, has long ago disowned his son for marrying an American. But after the death of the Earl's remaining son, he decides to accept Cedric as his heir.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJohnny Tsunami (1999)
A Hawaiian teenage surfer shows off his skills when he takes to the snow slopes in Vermont.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009)
A fourth grader and her friends deal with bullying from a more popular girl in their class.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDouble Teamed! (2002)
Heather and Heidi play volleyball for their school team, when their family decides that they need to go to a bigger school so that they will have a better chance for scholarships. But at the new school, the twins are discovered by the basketball coach. Inspired by the true story of Heather and Heidi Burge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTwitches Too (2007)
Reunited witch twins Camryn and Alex adjust to their new life as supernatural beings while at the same time trying to maintain a normal existence in this sequel to the magical Disney Channel original movie Twitches. But they soon find themselves going head to head with the forces of darkness that threaten to destroy their world. Luckily, their birth mother, the powerful Miranda, is on hand to help out.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnne of Green Gables (2016)
Anne Shirley, an orphan, is fostered by farmer Matthew Cuthbert and his sister Marilla, who were expecting a boy to be sent them to help with their farm work. They accept Anne, who quickly endears herself to them and to the local villagers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Wrinkle in Time (2003)
Meg and Charles Wallace are aided by Calvin and three interesting women in the search for their father who disappeared during a government experiment. Their travels take them around the universe to a place unlike any other.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTru Confessions (2002)
Trudy Walker hated her life. She thought it was totally messed up until she found out about a contest that could change everything...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhere the Red Fern Grows (2003)
Set in the Ozark Mountains during the Great Depression, Billy Coleman works hard and saves his earnings for 2 years to achieve his dream of buying two coonhound pups. He develops a new trust in God as he faces overwhelming challenges in adventure and tragedy roaming the river bottoms of Cherokee country with "Old Dan" and "Little Ann."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDragons: Rescue Riders: Hunt for the Golden Dragon (2020)
It's the treasure hunt of a lifetime for the Rescue Riders, who must race to find a precious golden dragon egg and protect it from evil pirates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhere the Red Fern Grows (1974)
Billy Coleman works hard and saves his earnings for two years to achieve his dream of buying two red-bone coonhound pups. He develops a new trust in life as he faces overwhelming challenges in adventure and tragedy roaming the river bottoms of Cherokee country with his dogs, Old Dan and Little Ann.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDragons: Rescue Riders: Secrets of the Songwing (2020)
When a musical dragon with a beautiful voice hypnotizes the dragons and people of Huttsgalor, the Rescue Riders have to find a way to break the spell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Lion Guard: Return of the Roar (2016)
Set in the African savannah, the film follows Kion as he assembles the members of the 'Lion Guard'. Throughout the film, the diverse team of young animals will learn how to utilize each of their unique abilities to solve problems and accomplish tasks to maintain balance within the Circle of Life, while also introducing viewers to the vast array of animals that populate the prodigious African landscape.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wind in the Willows (1983)
One spring, Mole decides that he can ignore the spring cleaning for a little longer, and begins a series of adventures with his new friend Rat. They go for a picnic on the riverbank, on a caravan expedition with Toad, until Toad switches allegiance to his new car and his reckless driving makes Mole and Rat search out Badger for help in curbing Toad's profligate habits. But Toad gets away from them and gets a 20-year sentence from the magistrate for theft, reckless driving, and Gross Impertinence. While Toad works his wiles on the jailer's daughter and escapes jail dressed as a washer woman, Badger tries to guard Toad Hall from the machinations of the Weasels and is badly beaten. And it requires a plan of attack and all four comrades to regain Toad Hall.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRedemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story (2004)
Redemption tells the story of Stan "Tookie" Williams, founder of the Crips L.A. street gang. Story follows his fall into gang-banging, his prison term, and his work writing children's novels encouraging peace and anti-violence resolutions which earned him multiple Nobel Peace Prize nominations. After exhausting all forms of appeal, Tookie was executed by lethal injection.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCurious George: Go West, Go Wild (2020)
While farm-sitting, George accidentally lets the farm animals escape. Ted, George and wannabe cowboy Emmett must round 'em up, accounting for every animal -- and emerging with some new skills, to boot.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFlicka (2006)
Katy McLaughlin desires to work on her family's mountainside horse ranch, although her father insists she finish boarding school. Katy finds a mustang in the hills near her ranch. The headstrong 16 year old then sets her mind to tame a mustang and prove to her father she can run the ranch. But when tragedy happens, it will take all the love and strength the family can muster to restore hope.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Believe (2019)
A 9 year old boy experiences God's power in a supernatural way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)
Isolated in the bell tower of Notre Dame, Quasimodo longs to experience the world beyond the cathedral walls, despite the wishes of his stern guardian, the Judge of Paris Claude Frollo. His first venture into the city leads him to Esmeralda, a fearless Romani woman whose defiance of Frollo's tyranny draws her—and Quasimodo—into his dangerous obsession.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Count of Monte-Cristo (1975)
Young sailor Edmond Dantès is wrongfully imprisoned, escapes, finds treasure, and reinvents himself as the wealthy Count of Monte Cristo to exact revenge on those who betrayed him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNora Roberts' Midnight Bayou (2009)
The new owner of a supposedly haunted New Orleans plantation manor uncovers a shocking secret that has been hidden for over 100 years.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Heritage (2024)
A teenager, disinterested in her Louisiana Creole heritage, finds herself having to entertain a visitor who only speaks what sounds like French. She’ll discover how magical it can be to connect with one's heritage.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & family
Tigerland (2000)
A group of recruits go through Advanced Infantry Training at Fort Polk, Louisiana's infamous Tigerland, last stop before Vietnam for tens of thousands of young men in 1971.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBelizaire the Cajun (1986)
In 19th-century Louisiana's Cajun country, Belizaire is the informal spokesman for his citizens, who don't see eye to eye with local racists who wish to eradicate all Cajuns. Complicating matters is that Belizaire's former flame is now married to his biggest rival, an affluent landowner's son. Before he knows it, Belizaire is caught up in a web of murder, lies, and prejudice.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Steel Magnolias (1989)
A young beautician, newly arrived in a small Louisiana town, finds work at the local salon, where a small group of women share a close bond of friendship and welcome her into the fold.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Defiant Ones (1958)
Two convicts—one white, one black—escape while chained to each other.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Soldier's Story (1984)
In a rural town in Louisiana, a black Master Sergeant is found shot to death just outside the local Army Base. Military lawyer, Captain Davenport—also a black man—is sent from Washington to conduct an investigation. Facing an uncooperative chain of command and fearful black troops, Davenport must battle with deceit and prejudice in order to find out exactly who really did kill the Master Sergeant.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNo Mercy (1986)
An unconventional undercover Chicago cop and his partner are recruited to commit the murder of a New Orleans criminal kingpin.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisShrek in the Swamp Karaoke Dance Party (2001)
Shrek and his friends enjoy themselves with some Karaoke partying.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Louisiana Hussy (1959)
Cajun newlyweds must deal with the jealousy of his brother, who also loved her, and the arrival of a mysterious seductress in their bayou backwater.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou?
The closest matches to The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou are Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980), Johnny Tsunami (1999) and An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou?
Start with Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980), the closest match to The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou?
Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980), rated 7.3/10 by 326 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou?
Heritage (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou?
Yes: Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980), Johnny Tsunami (1999) and An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009).
How are movies similar to The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.