Movies like Nightbooks (2021)
The best movies like Nightbooks (2021) are Mostly Ghostly 3: One Night in Doom House (2016), The Witches (1990) and Coraline (2009). If Nightbooks hooked you with its fantasy and horror, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedCoraline (2009)8.0/10 from 9,750 votes
- NewestHalloWiebe: Overdrive (2026)Released 2026
Mostly Ghostly 3: One Night in Doom House (2016)
Just one enchanted jewel stands between earth and an army of evil spirits led by the devious ghoul, Phears. With the help of his new girlfriend and ghost pals, Max Doyle races to find the crystal and save the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Witches (1990)
While staying at a hotel in England with his grandmother, Helga, a young boy named Luke inadvertently spies on a convention of witches. The Grand High Witch reveals a plan to turn all children into mice via a magical formula. When they discover the eavesdropper, the witches test the formula on him. Now, with the help of Helga and hotel manager Mr Stringer, Luke the mouse must fight back against the witches.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCoraline (2009)
Wandering her rambling old house in her boring new town, 11-year-old Coraline discovers a hidden door to a strangely idealized version of her life. In order to stay in the fantasy, she must make a frighteningly real sacrifice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949)
A concise adaptation of Kenneth Grahame's "The Wind in the Willows" about Mr. Toad's motor mania, followed by a short retelling of Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" concerning schoolmaster Ichabod Crane.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSomething Wicked This Way Comes (1983)
In a small American town, a diabolical circus arrives, granting wishes for the townsfolk, but twisted as only the esteemed Mr. Dark can make them. Can two young boys overcome the worst the devil himself can deal out?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Black Cauldron (1985)
Taran is an assistant pigkeeper with boyish dreams of becoming a great warrior. However, he has to put the daydreaming aside when his charge, an oracular pig named Hen Wen, is kidnapped by an evil lord known as the Horned King. The villain hopes Hen will show him the way to The Black Cauldron, which has the power to create a giant army of unstoppable soldiers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Haunting Hour: Don't Think About It (2007)
Cassie, a 13 year old Gothic girl, is trying to fit in at her new school. To entertain herself, she plays a series of pranks on the popular kids and her younger brother, Max. When she goes to a Halloween store looking for new tricks, she finds a little book called "The Evil Thing"
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOz the Great and Powerful (2013)
Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus illusionist and con-artist, is whisked from Kansas to the Land of Oz where the inhabitants assume he's the great wizard of prophecy, there to save Oz from the clutches of evil.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisAnastasia: Once Upon a Time (2020)
Anastasia Romanov escapes through a portal when her family is threatened by Vladimir Lenin, and she finds herself in the year 1988, befriended by a young American girl.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
SnoozefestMovies like thisBedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)
Three children evacuated from London during World War II are forced to stay with an eccentric spinster. The children's initial fears disappear when they find out she is in fact a trainee witch.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMr. Boogedy (1986)
A novelty-salesman moves his family into a new house. Initially dismissing incidents as more of their father's practical jokes, the family soon learns that the house is haunted by people who lived in the house 300 years previously.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Monster Calls (2016)
12-year-old Conor encounters an ancient tree monster who proceeds to help him cope with his mother's terminal illness and being bullied in school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMonster High: Haunted (2015)
Lurk what's waiting for the Monster High ghouls when they bring their killer fashion to the howlways of the spooktacular Haunted High! When the ghouls of Monster High follow Spectra Vondergeist one day, they discover a creeperiffic Ghost World with an all-spirit school. But their scary-cute student bodies are hardly welcome with the very strict Principal Revenant, and she punishes Spectra with frightful detention chains that prevent her from re-joining Monster High. Now, it's up to the imperfectly perfect friends to take on ghostly forms in order to save one of their own from disappearing forever!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Legend of Ochi (2025)
In a remote village on the island of Carpathia, a shy farm girl named Yuri is raised to fear an elusive animal species known as ochi. But when Yuri discovers a wounded baby ochi has been left behind, she escapes on a quest to bring him home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFour Kids and It (2020)
A group of kids on holiday in Cornwall meet a magical creature on the beach with the power to grant wishes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInkheart (2008)
The adventures of a father and his young daughter, in their search for a long lost book that will help reunite a missing, close relative.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sword in the Stone (1963)
Wart is a young boy who aspires to be a knight's squire. On a hunting trip he falls in on Merlin, a powerful but amnesiac wizard who has plans for him beyond mere squiredom. He starts by trying to give him an education, believing that once one has an education, one can go anywhere. Needless to say, it doesn't quite work out that way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWish Upon a Unicorn (2020)
Two children discover that their mother is gone. The youngest of the pair, adventurer and upcomming singer, Long Johnson forces his older sister, Lily Johnson, to hunt down a unicorn with magical blood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Witches' Ball (2017)
Every year the Witching World gathers to celebrate the newly inducted witches into their world. Beatrix (12) is eager to become part of this world, but when her pending magical status is jeopardized she needs the help of her furry best friend Muggs (voiced by Joey Fatone) to solve some magical riddles before the big event. Will Beatrix sink or soar on the night of the Witches' Ball?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Tooth Fairy Tale (2025)
Van, the brave son of a tooth fairy leader, meets the goblins girl Gemma on his first mission. Despite the myths about ancient disputes between fairies and goblins, they share common values. When the greedy Spider Queen threatens both tribes, they must work together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Cat in the Hat (2003)
During a rainy day, and while their mother is out, Conrad and Sally, and their pet fish, are visited by the mischievous Cat in the Hat. Fun soon turns to mayhem, and the siblings must figure out how to rid themselves of the maniacal Cat.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Haunted Mansion (2003)
Workaholic Jim Evers and his wife/business partner Sara get a call one night from a mansion owner, Edward Gracey, who wants to sell his house. Once the Evers family arrive at the mansion, a torrential thunderstorm of mysterious origin strands them with the brooding, eccentric Gracey, his mysterious butler, and a variety of residents both seen and unseen.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisDescendants (2015)
A present-day idyllic kingdom where the benevolent teenage son of King Adam and Queen Belle offers a chance of redemption for the troublemaking offspring of Disney's classic villains: Cruella De Vil (Carlos), Maleficent (Mal), the Evil Queen (Evie) and Jafar (Jay).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly Pumpkin King of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning in his place. But, as the holiday approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend Sally tries to foil his well-meaning yet misguided plans.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & family
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHalloWiebe: Overdrive (2026)
When Wiebe and his team of security guards have to stop a thief from stealing an amusement park's most valuable attraction, they quickly learn this new villain is stronger than they could have imagined.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Monster High 2 (2023)
As they enter sophomore year at Monster High, Clawdeen Wolf, Draculaura and Frankie Stein face new students, new powers, and an even bigger threat that could not only tear their friendship apart but could change the world forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Addams Family (1991)
When a man claiming to be long-lost Uncle Fester reappears after 25 years lost, the family plans a celebration to wake the dead. But the kids barely have time to warm up the electric chair before Morticia begins to suspect Fester is fraud when he can't recall any of the details of Fester's life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChild's Play (1988)
After being shot in a toy store, a serial killer transfers his soul into a Good Guy doll. A mother then gifts it to her six-year-old son Andy, which unleashes terror upon the city.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHalloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
After a terrified toy salesman is mysteriously attacked and brought to the hospital clutching the year's most popular Halloween mask, Dr. Daniel Challis sets out to investigate the strange events and finds himself thrust into a nightmarish conspiracy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisDarkness Falls (2003)
A vengeful spirit has taken the form of the Tooth Fairy to exact vengeance on the town that lynched her 150 years earlier. Her only opposition is the only child, now grown up, who has survived her before.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Nightbooks?
The closest matches to Nightbooks are Mostly Ghostly 3: One Night in Doom House (2016), The Witches (1990) and Coraline (2009). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Nightbooks?
Start with Mostly Ghostly 3: One Night in Doom House (2016), the closest match to Nightbooks.
What is the highest-rated movie like Nightbooks?
Coraline (2009), rated 8.0/10 by 9,750 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Nightbooks?
HalloWiebe: Overdrive (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Nightbooks?
Yes: Mostly Ghostly 3: One Night in Doom House (2016), The Witches (1990) and Coraline (2009).
How are movies similar to Nightbooks chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Nightbooks, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.