Movies like The Happening (2020)
The best movies like The Happening (2020) are Frequencies (2013), Zoe (2018) and Blush (2021). If The Happening hooked you with its science fiction and romance, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAliens (1986)8.0/10 from 11,375 votes
- NewestPeculiar Green (2026)Released 2026
Frequencies (2013)
The story of the forbidden relationship between a 'low born' boy and a 'high born' girl in an alternate reality where every person's relationships and life worth are determined by their innate 'frequencies'.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZoe (2018)
Two colleagues at a revolutionary research lab design technology to improve and perfect romantic relationships. As their work progresses, their discoveries become more profound.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisBlush (2021)
When a horticulturalist-astronaut crashes onto a desolate planet, he encounters an ethereal visitor and discovers the joy of building a new life—realizing the universe has delivered something astonishing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGhost Recon: Alpha (2012)
Ghost Recon: Alpha sees a team led by Ghost Leader infiltrate a trade at a Russian depot between a general and a mysterious other figure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWifelike (2022)
A grieving detective in the near-future hunts down criminals who trade artificial humans on the black market. In the fight to end AI exploitation, an underground resistance attempts to infiltrate him by sabotaging the programming of the artificial human assigned as his companion to behave like his late wife. She begins to question her reality as memories of a past life begin to surface in a world where nothing is as it seems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Kovak Box (2006)
David Norton is used to being in control. As a best-selling author, he decides the fate of his characters, their lives and their deaths. But what happens when his fictional world becomes all too real?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisVoyagers (2021)
With the future of the human race at stake, a group of young men and women -- bred for intelligence and obedience -- embark on an expedition to colonize a distant planet. When they uncover disturbing secrets about the mission, they defy their training and begin to explore their most primitive natures. As life on the ship descends into chaos, they soon become consumed by fear, lust and an insatiable hunger for power.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisF.R.E.D.I. (2018)
An intelligent, lovable robot known as "F.R.E.D.I." is stolen from a secret research facility by the project's lead scientist. The robot is found by a 15 year old teenager, James. Soon the two begin to communicate and create a bond in which F.R.E.D.I. learns about teenage life and James learns about some new values.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once again as the journey of Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle begins.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCode 8 Part II (2024)
In a world where superpowered people are heavily policed by robots, an ex-con teams up with a drug lord he despises to protect a teen from a corrupt cop.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPeter's To-Do List (2019)
On the eve of his departure to Europe, Peter Parker tells Ned Leeds that he has several things to do before they leave.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisX (2011)
A veteran call girl and a runaway prostitute witness a murder which sends them on an out-of-control roller coaster ride through the twilight zone of sex-for-sale.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGemini Man (2019)
Henry Brogan is an elite 51-year-old assassin who's ready to call it quits after completing his 72nd job. His plans get turned upside down when he becomes the target of a mysterious operative who can seemingly predict his every move. To his horror, Brogan soon learns that the man who's trying to kill him is a younger, faster, cloned version of himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAttraction (2001)
A writer/radio advice show host fails to heed his own advice as he stalks his ex-girlfriend and then becomes involved with an actress friend of hers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFinal Flight of the Osiris (2003)
Immediately before the events of The Matrix Reloaded, the crew of the hovercraft Osiris discovers a quarter of a million sentinels drilling through the surface of the earth towards the last human city of Zion. But can the Osiris survive long enough to warn Zion?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAliens (1986)
Ripley, the sole survivor of the Nostromo's deadly encounter with the monstrous Alien, returns to Earth after drifting through space in hypersleep for 57 years. Although her story is initially met with skepticism, she agrees to accompany a team of Colonial Marines back to LV-426.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHarrison Bergeron (1995)
"All men are not created equal. It is the purpose of the Government to make them so." This is the premise of the Showtime film adaption of Kurt Vonnegut's futuristic short story Harrison Bergeron. The film centers around a young man (Harrison) who is smarter than his peers, and is not affected by the usual "Handicapping" which is used to train all Americans so everyone is of equal intelligence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMarvel One-Shot: Agent Carter (2013)
Agent Peggy Carter is relegated to a desk job and frustrated at her male boss and comrades' sexist dismissal of her place in the SSR. Ordered to work late one night, Carter gets an alert that the villain Zodiac has been spotted and decides to take care of it herself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAttack on Titan (2022)
As viable water is depleted on Earth, a mission is sent to Saturn's moon Titan to retrieve sustainable H2O reserves from its alien inhabitants. But just as the humans acquire the precious resource, they are attacked by Titan rebels, who don't trust that the Earthlings will leave in peace.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisStar Trek: Generations (1994)
Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the Enterprise-D find themselves at odds with the renegade scientist Soran who is destroying entire star systems. Only one man can help Picard stop Soran's scheme...and he's been dead for seventy-eight years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Cure to Loneliness (2022)
Netty is feeling lost in life following the abrupt end of her relationship with Liam. Luckily, there's a quick fix found in pill marketed as "the cure to loneliness".
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & romance
French Kiss (2005)
"Deep shit : listen in life chance only comes once, unless you’re lucky : then it can come twice. But for you it will only come once. So, you must chat to Kate the Amercain, where is she ?"
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
A Grand Day Out (1990)
Wallace and Gromit have run out of cheese, and this provides an excellent excuse for the duo to take their holiday to the moon, where, as everyone knows, there is ample cheese.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPeculiar Green (2026)
A middle-aged man with deity-like powers details the creation of his new world. A world characterized by a shade of green.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Newton's Third Law (2024)
On Christmas day, Nico (Max Bourke) discovers he's in a sandwich-initiated time loop - to what extremes will he take this new opportunity?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Do you like Chow Shing Chi? (2017)
Min-kyu, who is separated from his girlfriend, goes to Hong Kong. It's a journey to escape from suffering, but Min-kyu's complex mind is rarely solved. Min-kyu tried to leave the hostel. He met a woman as soon as he opened the door. Unlike Min-kyu, who is embarrassed, the woman enters his hostel. After a strange first encounter, his trip to Hong Kong begins as if it is a coincidence.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Batman Beyond (2014)
This short celebrating 75 years of Batman from artist Darwyn Cooke returns fans to the world of Batman Beyond as Terry McGinnis' futuristic Dark Knight faces his most formidable foe of all - himself.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Apple Tree (2012)
When Gabe and Jonathan fall in love in the 1940s, they decide to spend their life together in secret. But when Jonathan unexpectedly passes away years later, Gabe is faced with the fact that many Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender elders face when they move into retirement homes...he must return into the closet.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
The Safe Zone (2023)
As the world crumbles due to artificial intelligence (AI) taking over the world, siblings Emily, Lucy, and Jake engage in an intense discussion for a spot in the Safe Zone, which is the only place safe from the threat of AI. As only one of member of the family can be admitted in the Safe Zone, the ones left behind are going to die.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Sapabonnded (2019)
Two superheroines face a gangster mob cult, who seek to fulfill the wish of their god.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Like The Happening and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Happening?
The closest matches to The Happening are Frequencies (2013), Zoe (2018) and Blush (2021). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Happening?
Start with Frequencies (2013), the closest match to The Happening.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Happening?
Aliens (1986), rated 8.0/10 by 11,375 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Happening?
Peculiar Green (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like The Happening?
The closest matches are in other languages.
How are movies similar to The Happening chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Happening, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.