Movies like Nova (2019)
The best movies like Nova (2019) are Awakenings (1990), Innerspace (1987) and Knowing (2009). If Nova hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAwakenings (1990)7.8/10 from 3,010 votes
- NewestAftermath (2024)Released 2024
Awakenings (1990)
Dr. Malcolm Sayer, a shy research physician, uses an experimental drug to "awaken" the catatonic victims of a rare disease. Leonard is the first patient to receive the controversial treatment. His awakening, filled with awe and enthusiasm, proves a rebirth for Sayer too, as the exuberant patient reveals life's simple but unutterably sweet pleasures to the introverted doctor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisInnerspace (1987)
Test pilot Tuck Pendleton volunteers to test a special vessel for a miniaturization experiment. Accidentally injected into a neurotic hypochondriac, Jack Putter, Tuck must convince Jack to find his ex-girlfriend, Lydia Maxwell, to help him extract Tuck and his ship and re-enlarge them before his oxygen runs out.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKnowing (2009)
A teacher opens a time capsule that has been dug up at his son's elementary school; in it are some chilling predictions -- some that have already occurred and others that are about to -- that lead him to believe his family plays a role in the events that are about to unfold.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwan Song (2021)
In the near future, Cameron Turner is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Presented with an experimental solution to shield his wife and son from grief, he grapples with altering their fate in this thought-provoking exploration of love, loss, and sacrifice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Andromeda Strain (1971)
When virtually all of the residents of Piedmont, New Mexico are found dead after the return to Earth of a space satellite, the head of the US Air Force's Project Scoop declares an emergency. A group of eminent scientists led by Dr. Jeremy Stone scrambles to a secure laboratory and tries first to isolate the life form while determining why two people from Piedmont - an old alcoholic and a six-month-old baby - survived. The scientists methodically study the alien life form, unaware that it has already mutated and presents a far greater danger in the lab, which is equipped with a nuclear self-destruct device designed to prevent the escape of dangerous biological agents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this2012 (2009)
Dr. Adrian Helmsley, part of a worldwide geophysical team investigating the effect on the earth of radiation from unprecedented solar storms, learns that the earth's core is heating up. He warns U.S. President Thomas Wilson that the crust of the earth is becoming unstable and that without proper preparations for saving a fraction of the world's population, the entire race is doomed. Meanwhile, writer Jackson Curtis stumbles on the same information. While the world's leaders race to build "arks" to escape the impending cataclysm, Curtis struggles to find a way to save his family. Meanwhile, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes of unprecedented strength wreak havoc around the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Core (2003)
Geophysicist Dr. Josh Keyes discovers that an unknown force has caused the earth's inner core to stop rotating. With the planet's magnetic field rapidly deteriorating, our atmosphere literally starts to come apart at the seams with catastrophic consequences. To resolve the crisis, Keyes, along with a team of the world's most gifted scientists, travel into the earth's core. Their mission: detonate a device that will reactivate the core.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisAftermath (2024)
A returning war veteran, stricken with PTSD, gets trapped with his teenage sister on Boston's Tobin Memorial Bridge when a heavily armed group of ex-military revolutionaries take everyone hostage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisContagion (2011)
As an epidemic of a lethal airborne virus - that kills within days - rapidly grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLaboratory Conditions (2018)
A physician investigating a missing body disrupts an unlawful experiment.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPanic in Year Zero! (1962)
While on a fishing trip, Harry Baldwin and his family hear an explosion and realize that Los Angeles has been leveled by a nuclear attack. Looters and killers are everywhere. Escaping to the hills with his family, he sets about the business of surviving in a world where, he knows, the old ideals of humanity will be the first casualties.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThirteen (2003)
When 13-year-old Tracy befriends Evie, the most popular girl in school, her life is turned upside down as Evie introduces her to a world of sex, drugs, and money. But it isn’t long before Tracy’s new lifestyle begins to take a heavy toll on her and her family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDarkman (1990)
Dr. Peyton Westlake is on the verge of realizing a major breakthrough in synthetic skin when his laboratory is destroyed by gangsters. Having been burned beyond recognition and forever altered by an experimental medical procedure, Westlake becomes known as Darkman, assuming alternate identities in his quest for revenge and a new life with a former love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHard Luck (1921)
A down on his luck young man makes several attempts at committing suicide but fails them too. He then finds himself becoming more confident through a series of petty adventures, to such an extent that this becomes his undoing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHelp! (1965)
An obscure Eastern cult that practices human sacrifice pursues Ringo after he unknowingly puts on a ceremonial ring (that, of course, won't come off). On top of that, a pair of mad scientists, members of Scotland Yard, and a beautiful but dead-eyed assassin all have their own plans for the Fab Four.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRichard Jewell (2019)
Richard Jewell thinks quick, works fast, and saves hundreds, perhaps thousands, of lives after a domestic terrorist plants several pipe bombs and they explode during a concert, only to be falsely suspected of the crime by sloppy FBI work and sensational media coverage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStranger on the Third Floor (1940)
Newspaper reporter Michael Ward plunges into a nightmare of guilt, fearing that his "evidence" has sentenced the wrong man to death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Incredible Hulk (1977)
An accidental overdose of gamma radiation causes a mutation in scientist David Banner's DNA: now whenever he becomes angry, he metamorphoses into a seven-foot-tall, 330-pound, mindless muscular green creature.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStar Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)
When the sinister Sith unveil a thousand-year-old plot to rule the galaxy, the Republic crumbles and from its ashes rises the evil Galactic Empire. Jedi hero Anakin Skywalker must choose a side.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMaster of the World (1961)
A mad genius tries to bomb the world into peace.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Nova?
The closest matches to Nova are Awakenings (1990), Innerspace (1987) and Knowing (2009). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Nova?
Start with Awakenings (1990), the closest match to Nova.
What is the highest-rated movie like Nova?
Awakenings (1990), rated 7.8/10 by 3,010 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Nova?
Aftermath (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Nova?
Yes: Awakenings (1990), Innerspace (1987) and Knowing (2009).
How are movies similar to Nova chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Nova, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.