Movies like Joy & Hope (2020)
The best movies like Joy & Hope (2020) are A California Christmas: City Lights (2021), Chéri (2009) and A California Christmas (2020). If Joy & Hope hooked you with its romance and comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Longest Ride (2015)7.6/10 from 3,393 votes
- NewestRedwood Diaries (2026)Released 2026
A California Christmas: City Lights (2021)
Follows Callie and Joseph one year after they fell in love, now running a dairy farm and winery, but their romance is threatened when business and family obligations call Joseph back to the city.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChéri (2009)
The son of a courtesan retreats into a fantasy world after being forced to end his relationship with the older woman who educated him in the ways of love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA California Christmas (2020)
With his carefree lifestyle on the line, a wealthy charmer poses as a ranch hand to get a hardworking farmer to sell her family’s land before Christmas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhich Brings Me to You (2023)
Two romantic burnouts, Jane and Will, are immediately drawn to each other at a mutual friend’s wedding. After a disastrous hookup in the coatroom, the two spend the next 24 hours together, trading candid confessions of messy histories and heartbreak, on the off chance that this fling might be the real thing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFather of the Bride (2022)
A father comes to grips with his daughter’s upcoming wedding through the prism of multiple relationships within a big, sprawling Cuban-American family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCatch and Release (2006)
For a grieving fiancée, learning to love again requires the help of her late love's three best friends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisL.A. Without a Map (1999)
An aspiring Hollywood actress, on a visit to a charming North England town, has a brief fling with the town undertaker, who also writes obituaries for the local paper. Returning home, where she works as a waitress at a Japanese restaurant, she tells everyone about the handsome "writer" she met on her trip. Unfortunately, he decides to follow her back to Hollywood, setting up the expected light romantic comedy with asides as the newcomer gains experience about the goings on in Hollywood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisBronco Billy (1980)
An idealistic, modern-day cowboy struggles to keep his Wild West show afloat in the face of hard luck and waning interest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Met a Girl (2020)
An aspiring musician struggling with schizophrenia falls for a mysterious woman who may be all in his head. When she suddenly vanishes, he takes off on a cross-country journey across Australia to find her, forcing his long-suffering brother to chase after him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHappiness for Beginners (2023)
At a crossroads after her divorce, a schoolteacher ventures toward a fresh start in life — and love — when she signs up for a grueling group hiking trip.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFar from the Madding Crowd (2015)
In Victorian England, the independent and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak, a hardworking young sheep farmer; Frank Troy, a handsome and reckless Sergeant; and William Boldwood, a prosperous and mature bachelor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSpeechless (1994)
In the midst of election season in New Mexico, political speechwriters Julia Mann and Kevin Vallick begin a romance, unaware they are working for candidates on opposite sides.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlind (2017)
A novelist is blinded in a car crash that killed his wife and several years later rediscovers his passion for life and writing when he embarks on an affair with the neglected wife of an indicted businessman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Right Kind of Wrong (2013)
A stubborn idealist spies a bride on her way to her wedding and immediately falls in love with her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisFar from the Madding Crowd (1967)
Bathsheba Everdine, a willful and flirtatious young woman, unexpectedly inherits a large farm and becomes romantically involved with three widely divergent men.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCharlie & Boots (2009)
After a family tragedy, Charlie and his estranged son, Boots, try to put their differences aside and head off on the road trip of a lifetime - from regional Victoria to the Cape York Peninsula - they overcome many challenges to reach their dream - to fish off the northernmost tip of Australia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Perfect Pairing (2022)
To land a major client, an LA wine exec travels to an Australian sheep station, where she signs on as a ranch hand and hits it off with a rugged local.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Longest Ride (2015)
The lives of a young couple intertwine with a much older man as he reflects back on a lost love while he's trapped in an automobile crash.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNobody Has to Know (2022)
After a stroke and no memories from his past, Phil encounters Millie who inhabits a desert part of Isle of Lewis. She will shortly entrust him with his deepest secret : they were in love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Still Believe (2020)
The true-life story of Christian music star Jeremy Camp and his journey of love and loss that looks to prove there is always hope.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Novel Romance (2015)
Romance novelist Liam Bradley (Dylan Bruce) has already found massive success with three books written under the pen name Gabriel August, but he's mysteriously unknown to his legions of readers. With his first book written as a way to heal after a broken relationship, Liam has slowly become disheartened with writing strictly for romantic fantasy, something evident to a sweet, but honest, journalist who reviews books, Sophie Atkinson (Amy Acker), whom he meets by chance on a plane. The two begin a tentative relationship in Sophie’s home town of Portland, Oregon, where Liam has come to find inspiration for his newest entry. Liam’s agent puts him on the spot with a long-planned reveal of Gabriel August’s true identity, but Sophie doesn’t know of his public persona. The longer Liam avoids telling her the truth, the deeper a hole he digs for himself. Will their romance survive once his true identity comes to light?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRedwood Diaries (2026)
When strange entries begin appearing in her diary written in handwriting that isn't hers, new student Evie Quinn is pulled into a chilling mystery as the messages reveal secrets, predict impossible events, and point toward a truth someone has desperately tried to bury.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & comedy
The Owl and the Pussycat (1970)
Meek, owlish Felix and strident, catty Doris live in the same apartment building. His incessant typing bothers her; her gentlemen callers bother him. Felix informs the landlord of her activities, so Doris moves in on Felix. When they both get thrown out, they move in with Barney... until they drive him out! That's when Felix and Doris finally decide to put theory into practice. But do opposites attract?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFalling for the Manny (2023)
When single mom Alice finds herself up for partner at her firm, there's just one obstacle - the annual partners 'family' retreat. Alice hires her sister's manny, Jacob, to help look after her 9-year-old daughter while they're away.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance & comedy
Old Gringo (1989)
A writer forms a triangle with a schoolmarm and a Mexican general on the run.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisRoma (2004)
Joaquín Góñez, a novelist in his sixties recalls his emotions, his wild years in Buenos Aires, the memories of old friends, the meaning of loyalty and the intimate relationship with his mother, Roma.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Mistletoe in Montana (2021)
Merry, who owns the ranch, has been unlucky in love, but that's about to change when a single father, Mark, and his two kids book the ranch for Christmas week. Adventure is on the menu, the holiday spirit is everywhere, and love is in the air.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
The Camp (2021)
Grieving a recent tragedy, a young woman and her friends take a camping trip deep in the woods, where they encounter a malevolent force more ancient than the forest itself.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dissonance (2023)
A young boy must relearn piano in order to rekindle the broken relationship between him and his mother.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Vela (2023)
Young Xime hopes to restore her grieving family by arranging a Día de Los Muertos altar...meanwhile a looming presence closes in.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Joy & Hope?
The closest matches to Joy & Hope are A California Christmas: City Lights (2021), Chéri (2009) and A California Christmas (2020). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Joy & Hope?
Start with A California Christmas: City Lights (2021), the closest match to Joy & Hope.
What is the highest-rated movie like Joy & Hope?
The Longest Ride (2015), rated 7.6/10 by 3,393 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Joy & Hope?
Redwood Diaries (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Joy & Hope?
Yes: A California Christmas: City Lights (2021), Chéri (2009) and A California Christmas (2020).
How are movies similar to Joy & Hope chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Joy & Hope, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.