Movies like My Son (2021)
The best movies like My Son (2021) are Barron's Cove (2025), Red Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1974 (2009) and The Whisper Man (2026). If My Son hooked you with its thriller and crime, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedChangeling (2008)7.6/10 from 4,666 votes
- NewestThe Whisper Man (2026)Released 2026
Barron's Cove (2025)
When his young son is viciously murdered by a classmate, a grieving father with a history of violence kidnaps the child responsible, igniting a frenzied manhunt fueled by a powerful politician -- the father of the kidnapped boy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRed Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1974 (2009)
Yorkshire, 1974. Fear, mistrust and institutionalised police corruption are running riot. Rookie journalist Eddie Dunford is determined to search for the truth in an increasingly complex maze of lies and deceit surrounding the police investigation into a series of child abductions. When young Clare Kemplay goes missing, Eddie and his colleague, Barry, persuade their editor to let them investigate links with two similar abductions that draw them into a deadly world of secrecy, intimidation, shocking revelations and police brutality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Whisper Man (2026)
When his young son vanishes, a widower enlists help from his estranged father, a retired detective who put away the serial killer now linked to the case.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Good Woman Is Hard to Find (2019)
The recently widowed mother of two, Sarah, is desperate to know who murdered her husband in front of her young son, rendering him mute. Coerced into helping a low-life drug dealer stash narcotics stolen from the local Mr. Big, she's forced into taking drastic action to protect her children, evolving from downtrodden submissive to take-charge vigilante.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRed Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1983 (2009)
Detective Chief Superintendent Maurice Jobson is forced to remember the very similar disappearance of Clare Kemplay, who was found dead in 1974, and the subsequent imprisonment of local boy Michael Myshkin. Washed-up local solicitor John Piggott becomes convinced of Myshkin's innocence and begins to fight on his behalf, unwittingly providing a catalyst for Jobson to start to right some wrongs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStolen (2009)
A detective becomes obsessed with solving a child's 50-year-old murder, uncovering striking similarities between the case and his son's disappearance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisSecret in Their Eyes (2015)
A tight-knit team of FBI investigators, along with their District Attorney supervisor, is suddenly torn apart when they discover that one of their own teenage daughters has been brutally murdered.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChangeling (2008)
Los Angeles, 1928. When single mother Christine Collins leaves for work, her son vanishes without a trace. Five months later, the police reunite mother and son. But when Christine suspects that the boy returned to her isn't her child, her quest for truth exposes a world of corruption.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCalibre (2018)
Two lifelong friends head up to an isolated Scottish Highlands village for a weekend hunting trip that descends into a never-ending nightmare as they attempt to cover up a horrific hunting accident.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Lonely Place to Die (2011)
A group of five mountaineers are hiking and climbing in the Scottish Highlands when they discover a young Serbian girl buried in a small chamber in the wilderness. They become caught up in a terrifying game of cat and mouse with the kidnappers as they try to get the girl to safety.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAngel of Mine (2019)
A woman grieving over the death of her daughter loses grip of reality when she begins to think her girl may still be alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhite Bird in a Blizzard (2014)
In 1988, a teenage girl's life is thrown into chaos when her mother disappears.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this6 Bullets (2012)
An ex-mercenary known for finding missing children is hired by a mixed martial arts fighter whose daughter has been kidnapped.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ritual Killer (2023)
Unable to process the death of his daughter, Detective Boyd embarks on a hunt for a serial killer who murders according to a brutal tribal ritual: Muti. The only person who can help Boyd is Professor Mackles, an anthropologist who hides an unspeakable secret. The line between sanity and madness thins as Boyd goes deeper into the killer’s world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisEvery Secret Thing (2014)
One clear summer day in a Baltimore suburb, a baby goes missing from her front porch. Two young girls serve seven years for the crime and are released into a town that hasn't fully forgiven or forgotten. Soon, another child is missing, and two detectives are called in to investigate the mystery in a community where everyone seems to have a secret.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Village (2004)
When a willful young man tries to venture beyond his sequestered Pennsylvania hamlet, his actions set off a chain of chilling incidents that will alter the community forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrooked House (2017)
A private investigator helps a former flame solve the murder of her wealthy grandfather, who lived in a sprawling estate surrounded by his idiosyncratic family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLast Shoot Out (2021)
Soon after a newlywed learns that her husband had her father shot down, she flees from the Callahan ranch in fear. She's rescued by a gunman who safeguards her at a remote outpost as he staves off her husband's attempts to reclaim his bride.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Clovehitch Killer (2018)
A picture-perfect family is torn apart after Tyler finds a cache of disturbing images in his father's possession. He begins to suspect that the man he trusts most in the world may be responsible for the murder of 13 women ten years prior.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Baker (2023)
A quiet, stoic man, lives a monk-like existence in self-imposed exile. When his estranged son is killed in a drug deal gone bad, he is left to look after a granddaughter he never knew existed, and he is forced back into a life he tried to put behind him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBuying Time (2024)
It is the year 2028 and antibiotics are no longer effective. A corporation called Lifeline has invented a health chip which everyone can get for free via the NHS. You can buy an upgrade which is effective against more infections and diseases. In 2028 computing and processing power is restricted however for someone to have an upgrade some one has to die for the power to be transferred. People are dieing randomly. Lifeline are launching their 2nd upgrade which is expected to earn them billions along with their ministerial backer. Daniel Avery has lost his wife and daughter in such circumstances and recent nightmares and flashbacks have instigated him to investigate. He slowly uncovers the truth with the help of a rebel group of the pull for power and greed that goes right to the top.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Manidhargal (2025)
A Suspense Thriller drama film about six friends who get together for a night of drinking and how, over the next six hours, a small trap they encounter explodes into a big problem. The core idea revolves around the ever-changing human psyche and the emotional rollercoaster it undergoes.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & thriller
Meurtre du tableau (2025)
An artist, surrounded by the mess in her studio, struggles with frustration as she tries to find inspiration for her new painting.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
1 by Two (2014)
Hari and Ravi are identical twins who share a very delicate and special emotional bond. When Hari dies in an accident, Ravi goes into a strange state of psychosis. Yousuf, a cop tries to uncover the mystery involved in the case.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
The Champ (1931)
A broken-down alcoholic prizefighter struggles to keep custody of his adoring son.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFiddler’s Green (2025)
At a rest stop bar in the middle of nowhere, a mysterious proprietor helps a guilt-ridden man reckon with his choices.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Christmas Secret (2014)
While her life is falling apart, single mother Christine finds a magical family heirloom that leads to love and good fortune during Christmas.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTunes of Glory (1960)
Following World War II in peacetime Scotland, brigade headquarters replaces commanding officer Major Jock Sinclair, a boisterous battalion leader, with the strict, temperamental Lieutenant Colonel Basil Barrow. Resentful toward his replacement, Sinclair undermines Barrow's authority and damages his successor's reputation among the soldiers. Barrow faces an uphill battle in regaining the discipline and respect of his battalion.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDuck Butter (2018)
Dissatisfied with the dishonesty they see in dating, strangers Naima and Sergio make a pact to spend 24 straight hours together in an attempt to fast forward their relationship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like My Son?
The closest matches to My Son are Barron's Cove (2025), Red Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1974 (2009) and The Whisper Man (2026). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after My Son?
Start with Barron's Cove (2025), the closest match to My Son.
What is the highest-rated movie like My Son?
Changeling (2008), rated 7.6/10 by 4,666 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like My Son?
The Whisper Man (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like My Son?
Yes: Barron's Cove (2025), Red Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1974 (2009) and The Whisper Man (2026).
How are movies similar to My Son chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside My Son, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.