Movies like Equilibrium
The best movies like Equilibrium (2002) are Æon Flux (2005), The Island (2005) and Escape from New York (1981). If Equilibrium hooked you with its action and science fiction, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Matrix (1999)8.3/10 from 29,175 votes
- NewestBeast Race (2026)Released 2026
Æon Flux (2005)
400 years into the future, disease has wiped out the majority of the world's population, except one walled city, Bregna, ruled by a congress of scientists. When Æon Flux, the top operative in the underground 'Monican' rebellion, is sent on a mission to kill a government leader, she uncovers a world of secrets.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Island (2005)
In 2019, Lincoln Six-Echo is a resident of a seemingly "Utopian" but contained facility. Like all of the inhabitants of this carefully-controlled environment, Lincoln hopes to be chosen to go to The Island — reportedly the last uncontaminated location on the planet. But Lincoln soon discovers that everything about his existence is a lie.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEscape from New York (1981)
In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam free. After the US president crash-lands inside, war hero Snake Plissken has 24 hours to bring him back.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIn Time (2011)
In the not-too-distant future, the aging gene has been switched off. To avoid overpopulation, time has become the currency and the way people pay for luxuries and necessities. The rich can live forever, while the rest struggle to negotiate for their immortality. A poor young man who suddenly comes into a fortune of time finds himself on the run from a corrupt police force known as the "time keepers".
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Matrix (1999)
Set in the 22nd century, The Matrix tells the story of a computer hacker who joins a group of underground insurgents fighting the vast and powerful computers who now rule the earth.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisV for Vendetta (2006)
In a world in which Great Britain has become a fascist state, a masked vigilante known only as “V” conducts guerrilla warfare against the oppressive British government. When V rescues a young woman from the secret police, he finds in her an ally with whom he can continue his fight to free the people of Britain.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisEscape from L.A. (1996)
Into the 9.6-quaked Los Angeles of 2013 comes Snake Plissken. His job: wade through L.A.'s ruined landmarks to retrieve a doomsday device.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisMinority Report (2002)
John Anderton is a top 'Precrime' cop in the late-21st century, when technology can predict crimes before they're committed. But Anderton becomes the quarry when another investigator targets him for a murder charge.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisElysium (2013)
In the year 2159, two classes of people exist: the very wealthy who live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium, and the rest, who live on an overpopulated, ruined Earth. Secretary Rhodes, a hard line government official, will stop at nothing to enforce anti-immigration laws and preserve the luxurious lifestyle of the citizens of Elysium. That doesn’t stop the people of Earth from trying to get in, by any means they can. When unlucky Max is backed into a corner, he agrees to take on a daunting mission that, if successful, will not only save his life, but could bring equality to these polarized worlds.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUltraviolet (2006)
In the late 21st century, a subculture of humans have emerged who have been modified genetically by a vampire-like disease, giving them enhanced speed, incredible stamina and acute intelligence. As they are set apart from "normal" and "healthy" humans, the world is pushed to the brink of worldwide civil war aimed at the destruction of the "diseased" population. In the middle of this crossed-fire is - an infected woman - Ultraviolet, who finds herself protecting a nine-year-old boy who has been marked for death by the human government as he is believed to be a threat to humans.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & action
SnoozefestMovies like thisDistrict B13 (2004)
Set in the ghettos of Paris in 2010, an undercover cop and ex-thug try to infiltrate a gang in order to defuse a neutron bomb.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChildren of Men (2006)
In 2027, in a chaotic world in which humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child's birth may help scientists save the future of humankind.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRepo Men (2010)
In the future, medical technology has advanced to the point where people can buy artificial organs to extend their lives. But if they default on payments, an organization known as the Union sends agents to repossess the organs. Remy is one of the best agents in the business, but when he becomes the recipient of an artificial heart, he finds himself in the same dire straits as his many victims.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDredd (2012)
In the future, America is a dystopian wasteland. The latest scourge is Ma-Ma, a prostitute-turned-drug pusher with a dangerous new drug and aims to take over the city. The only possibility of stopping her is an elite group of urban police called Judges, who combine the duties of judge, jury and executioner to deliver a brutal brand of swift justice. But even the top-ranking Judge, Dredd, discovers that taking down Ma-Ma isn’t as easy as it seems in this explosive adaptation of the hugely popular comic series.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSurrogates (2009)
Set in a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and interact through surrogate robots, a cop is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others' surrogates.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTekken (2010)
In the year of 2039, after World Wars destroy much of the civilization as we know it, territories are no longer run by governments, but by corporations; the mightiest of which is the Mishima Zaibatsu. In order to placate the seething masses of this dystopia, Mishima sponsors Tekken, a tournament in which fighters battle until only one is left standing.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisBeast Race (2026)
In future Rio de Janeiro, a young leader of the resistance must enter a deadly parkour-inspired competition in order to save his sister's life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRoboCop (1987)
In a violent, near-apocalyptic Detroit, evil corporation Omni Consumer Products wins a contract from the city government to privatize the police force. To test their crime-eradicating cyborgs, the company leads street cop Alex Murphy into an armed confrontation with crime lord Boddicker so they can use his body to support their untested RoboCop prototype. But when RoboCop learns of the company's nefarious plans, he turns on his masters.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Hunger Games (2012)
In a dystopian society where the Capitol forces each district to send two young tributes to fight to the death in a televised spectacle, a girl volunteers to take her sister’s place, setting the stage for a struggle of survival and defiance.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNineteen Eighty-Four (1984)
Winston Smith is a government employee whose job involves the rewriting of history in a manner that casts his fictional country's leaders in a charitable light. His trysts with Julia provide his only measure of enjoyment, but lawmakers frown on the relationship -- and in this closely monitored society, there is no escape from Big Brother.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLooper (2012)
In the year 2044, time travel has not yet been invented but in 30 years it will have been. When the mob wants to get rid of someone, they will send their target into the past where a looper, a hired gun, like Joe is waiting to mop up. Joe is getting rich and life is good until the day the mob decides to close the loop, sending back Joe's future self for assassination.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGamer (2009)
Mind-control technology has taken society by a storm, a multiplayer on-line game called "Slayers" allows players to control human prisoners in mass-scale. Simon controls Kable, the online champion of the game. Kable's ultimate challenge becomes regaining his identity and independence by defeating the game's mastermind.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisLogan's Run (1976)
In the 23rd century, inhabitants of a domed city freely experience all of life's pleasures — but no one is allowed to live past 30. Citizens can try for a chance at being "renewed" in a civic ceremony on their 30th birthday. Escape is the only other option.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUpgrade (2018)
A brutal mugging leaves Grey Trace paralyzed in the hospital and his beloved wife dead. A billionaire inventor soon offers Trace a cure — an artificial intelligence implant called STEM that will enhance his body. Now able to walk, Grey finds that he also has superhuman strength and agility — skills he uses to seek revenge against the thugs who destroyed his life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Giver (2014)
In a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGattaca (1997)
Vincent is an all-too-human man who dares to defy a system obsessed with genetic perfection. He is an "In-Valid" who assumes the identity of a member of the genetic elite to pursue his goal of traveling into space with the Gattaca Aerospace Corporation.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Maze Runner (2014)
A teenager with no memory of his past finds himself among a group of boys living in a walled enclosure surrounded by a massive, ever-changing maze. As he struggles to adapt to their rules and society, he begins to uncover clues that may lead to escape and the truth behind their confinement.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDeath Race (2008)
Terminal Island, New York: 2020. Overcrowding in the US penal system has reached a breaking point. Prisons have been turned over to a monolithic Weyland Corporation, which sees jails full of thugs as an opportunity for televised sport. Adrenalized inmates, a global audience hungry for violence and a spectacular, enclosed arena come together to form the 'Death Race', the biggest, most brutal event.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCode 46 (2003)
In a dystopian future, insurance fraud investigator William Gold arrives in Shanghai to investigate a forgery ring for "papelles", futuristic passports that record people's identities and genetics. Gold falls for Maria Gonzalez, the woman in charge of the forgeries. After a passionate affair, Gold returns home, having named a coworker as the culprit. But when one of Gonzalez's customers is found dead, Gold is sent back to Shanghai to complete the investigation.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both science fiction & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSnowpiercer (2013)
In a future where a failed global-warming experiment kills off most life on the planet, a class system evolves aboard the Snowpiercer; a train that travels around the globe via a perpetual-motion engine.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Equilibrium?
The closest matches to Equilibrium are Æon Flux (2005), The Island (2005) and Escape from New York (1981). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Equilibrium?
People who watched Equilibrium most often go on to Æon Flux (2005), The Island (2005) and Escape from New York (1981).
What is the highest-rated movie like Equilibrium?
The Matrix (1999), rated 8.3/10 by 29,175 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Equilibrium?
Beast Race (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Equilibrium?
Yes: Æon Flux (2005), The Island (2005) and Escape from New York (1981).
How are movies similar to Equilibrium chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Equilibrium, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.