Movies like The Philosopher King (2015)
The best movies like The Philosopher King (2015) are American Flyers (1985), The Cannonball Run (1981) and A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025). If The Philosopher King hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Straight Story (1999)7.7/10 from 1,920 votes
- NewestA Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025)Released 2025
American Flyers (1985)
When Dr. Marcus Sommers realizes that he and his troubled, estranged brother David may be prone a fatal brain disease that runs in their family, he decides to make peace with his sibling, and invites him on a trip to the Rockies. There, the brothers bond over their shared enthusiasm for cycling and decide to enter a grueling bike race through the mountains. However, Marcus' health soon begins to fail, and David must compete without his brother at his side.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Cannonball Run (1981)
A cross-country road race is based on an actual event, the Cannonball Baker Sea to Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, organized by Brock Yates to protest the 55 mph speed limit then in effect in the U.S. The Cannonball was named for Erwin G. "Cannonball" Baker, who in the roaring 20's rode his motorcycle across the country. Many of the characters are based on ruses developed by real Cannonball racers over the several years that the event was run.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025)
Sarah and David are single strangers who meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and soon, through a surprising twist of fate, find themselves on a funny, fantastical, sweeping adventure together where they get to re-live important moments from their respective pasts, illuminating how they got to where they are in the present... and possibly getting a chance to alter their futures.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Girl in the Spider's Web (2018)
After being enlisted to recover a dangerous computer program, hacker Lisbeth Salander and journalist Mikael Blomkvist find themselves caught in a web of spies, cybercriminals and corrupt government officials.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013)
86-year-old Irving Zisman is on a journey across America with the most unlikely companion: his 8 year-old grandson, Billy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStewie Griffin: The Untold Story (2005)
The maniacal baby of the Griffin family, Stewie, meets his future self. In doing this he discovers that his future image is not what he has anticipated because of a near death experience.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCall of the Wild (2009)
Self-centered and status-conscious, ten year old Ryann Hale journeys to Montana to visit her down-to-earth grandpa, Bill Hale. Ryann bonds with a wolf-dog, Buck, and schemes to save him from a cruel dogsledder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisDuck Duck Goose (2018)
After he’s grounded by an injury, a high-flying bachelor is saddled with two wide-eyed orphans as they come face-to-face with the dangers and beauty of the outside world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThree Wise Men and a Baby (2022)
Three brothers get the surprise of their lives when they are forced to work together to care for a baby over the holidays. As they slowly get the hang of things, they find themselves on unexpected journeys of self-discovery and begin to rebuild their relationships as brothers, as well as the damaged romantic and professional relationships in their respective lives…all while rediscovering their love of Christmas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Jetsons & WWE: Robo-WrestleMania (2017)
Blast off to adventure in this animated feature where our favorite space-age family, The Jetsons, meet the superstars of WWE! When George unearths WWE’s Big Show, who has been frozen for 100 years, the futuristic face-off begins! Once thawed, Big Show wastes no time in taking the WWE belt from the current robot champ as well as taking total control of Orbit City. It’s up to The Jetsons to travel back in time and enlist help from WWE’s brightest stars: Sheamus, Alicia Fox, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and the Uso brothers. Can this cosmic tag-team prevail and set this twisted time-warp straight? Tune in and see with The Jetsons and WWE!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStockholm Bloodbath (2024)
In 1520, the notorious and power-hungry Danish King Christian II is determined to seize the Swedish crown from Sten Sture, no matter what it takes. Meanwhile, sisters Freja and Anne make a solemn promise to seek revenge on the men who brutally murdered their family. Everything comes to a head in the heart of Stockholm, where the sisters are drawn into a ruthless political struggle between Sweden and Denmark that culminates in a mass execution, presided over by the mad King "Christian the Tyrant," known as the Stockholm Bloodbath.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKodachrome (2017)
Matt Ryder is convinced to drive his estranged and dying father Benjamin Ryder cross country to deliver four old rolls of Kodachrome film to the last lab in the world that can develop them before it shuts down for good. Along with Ben's nurse Zooey, the three navigate a world changing from analogue to digital while trying to put the past behind them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAna (2020)
Ana meets Rafa in a chance encounter and they embark on a road trip to try and save him from bankruptcy, or worse.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Odd Life of Timothy Green (2012)
A childless couple bury a box in their backyard, containing all of their wishes for an infant. Soon, a child is born, though Timothy Green is not all that he appears.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Sure Thing (1985)
Gib, a beer-guzzling slob, and Alison, an uptight Ivy-Leaguer, are an unlikely duo stuck together on a cross-country trip during Christmas break. At first they get on each other's nerves but, as time passes, they find their divergent natures complement each other. Now they need to realize what they've already found before it's too late.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Straight Story (1999)
Retired farmer and widower Alvin Straight learns one day that his estranged brother Lyle has suffered a severe stroke. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver's license. He then has the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Boss Baby: Christmas Bonus (2022)
Christmas Eve takes a twisty turn when the Boss Baby accidentally swaps places with one of Santa's elves and gets stranded at the North Pole.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Prince and the Pauper (1977)
Tom Canty is a poor English boy who bears a remarkable resemblance to Edward, Prince of Wales and son of King Henry VIII. The two boys meet and decide to play a joke on the court by dressing in each other's clothes, but the plan goes awry when they're separated and each must live the other's life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPippi Longstocking (1997)
Pippi Longstocking is an extraordinary little girl who lives alone in her house, while her father sails the seven seas. Pippi's irrepressibly fun nature makes her easy to befriend, as neighbors Tommy and Annika find, but can also earn ire, especially from social worker Mrs. Prysselius.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Vikings (1958)
Einar, brutal son of the viking Ragnar and future heir to his throne, tangles with clever slave Eric, for the hand of a beautiful English maiden.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSay That You Love Me (2006)
Fatou is a teenager yearning for attention and love in Sweden's suburbs. When she is gang raped by some class mates her whole world starts falling apart.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Starship Invasions (1977)
Captain Rameses and his Legion of the Winged Serpent brigade are out to claim Earth for their dying race. Out to save Earth is an alien guard patrol located in the Bermuda Triangle, the League of Races. LOR leaders warn Rameses that he's breaking galactic treaty rules. The alien villain responds by launching an invasion which telepathically drives Earthlings to suicide. The LOR implore UFO expert Professor Duncan to help them. Eventually, the two alien forces battle. Will the Earth be saved?
Why it matches: Similar story and style
First Stripes (2018)
As they undergo 12 weeks of intensive training, a group of young civilians is gradually moulded into soldiers. The Basic Training, a prerequisite for joining the Canadian Armed Forces, becomes the gateway to exploring the inner workings of a world governed by its own rules and values.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Broken Palace (2014)
A short documentary about the rapidly disappearing era of heritage movie palaces and the film going experience once offered within those hallowed walls.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Misty Green Sky (2016)
A young girl on a far off planet in another solar system discovers that all she has been told is not true, her search for truth and love is an adventurous and cautionary tale.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Fröken Julia jubilerar (1938)
Julia works as a cashier at a piano factory in Stockholm. She and a couple friend go on a ski vacation to northern Sweden, while her boss at the piano factory notices there a money missing in cash register. He suspects Julia who have to prove her innocence.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Sextuplets (1942)
A local newspaper editor in northern Sweden starts to spread a rumor that sextuplets has been born. In reality it turns out that it's only two sets of twins.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Counterfeit Traitor (1962)
Blacklisted in modern day WW2, a Swedish oil trader opts to assist British Allies, by means of infiltrating and surveying Nazi Germany.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Art of the Possible (1978)
This feature documentary offers a behind-the-scenes look at political decision-making in Ontario, the most populated Canadian province. A candid study of Ontario Premier Bill Davis and his Cabinet profiles the political process—a daily round of committee meetings, budget tabling, and media relations initiatives. Born into a political dynasty, Davis has the power and resources of the “big blue machine” behind him as he initiates political manoeuvres that tackle everything from unemployment to provincial-federal relations. The film reveals key aspects of Davis's political philosophy, one that kept the Conservatives in power in Ontario for 36 consecutive years.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Jay Du Temple: La Tournée Canadienne (2025)
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Philosopher King?
The closest matches to The Philosopher King are American Flyers (1985), The Cannonball Run (1981) and A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Philosopher King?
Start with American Flyers (1985), the closest match to The Philosopher King.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Philosopher King?
The Straight Story (1999), rated 7.7/10 by 1,920 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Philosopher King?
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Philosopher King?
Yes: American Flyers (1985), The Cannonball Run (1981) and A Big Bold Beautiful Journey (2025).
How are movies similar to The Philosopher King chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Philosopher King, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.