Movies like Varanus Priscus (2021)
The best movies like Varanus Priscus (2021) are Primeval (2007), Human Lanterns (1982) and The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974). If Varanus Priscus hooked you with its action and horror, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDeep Water (2026)7.4/10 from 717 votes
- NewestDeep Water (2026)Released 2026
- In ChineseHuman Lanterns (1982)Also in Chinese
Primeval (2007)
A news team is sent to Burundi to capture and bring home a legendary 25-foot crocodile. Their difficult task turns potentially deadly when a warlord targets them for death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHuman Lanterns (1982)
A psychotic craftsman pits two rival Kung-Fu masters against each other while designing special lanterns from a disturbing source.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974)
Professor Van Helsing had been asked to help against the tyranny of skeletal creatures that are responsible for terror and death amongst the peasants in rural China. He is the only person qualified to deal with the cause of these phenomena, for the undead are controlled by the most diabolical force of all.... Count Dracula. But he is not alone- to aid him comes a mystical brotherhood of seven martial arts warriors.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisDaylight's End (2016)
Years after a mysterious plague has devastated the planet and turned most of humanity into blood-hungry creatures, a rogue drifter on a vengeful hunt stumbles across a band of survivors in an abandoned police station and reluctantly agrees to try to help them defend themselves and escape to the sanctuary they so desperately need.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Hunt (2020)
Twelve strangers wake up in a clearing. They don't know where they are—or how they got there. In the shadow of a dark internet conspiracy theory, ruthless elitists gather at a remote location to hunt humans for sport. But their master plan is about to be derailed when one of the hunted turns the tables on her pursuers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Driver (2019)
After a plague of the undead decimates human life on Earth, a former hit man (Mark Dacascos), his wife, and daughter live quietly in a survivalist compound. But when their base is attacked, a massive explosion summons a swarm of the undead. They escape and must seek out the Haven, a rumored sanctuary up north, while the father teaches his daughter to shoot, drive, and survive before time runs out.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGrindhouse (2007)
Grindhouse combines Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror, a horror comedy about a group of survivors who battle zombie-like creatures, and Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof, an action thriller about a murderous stuntman who kills young women with modified vehicles. It is presented as a double feature with fictitious exploitation trailers preceding each segment.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBasilisk: The Serpent King (2006)
Two millennia ago, a Lybian king has a basilisk (snake-shaped dragon), which petrifies people, subjected to the same fate with a golden scepter during a solar eclipse. Both these and several victims are dug up by modern archaeologist Harrison 'Harry' McColl's expedition. Despite a cryptic warning from tribal locals, everything goes to his Colorado university's museum. It's all exhibited during another eclipse, which leads to the monster reviving. Harry and some of his friends must try to petrify the monster again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKing of Killers (2023)
Garan is a part of a group of international hitmen who are contracted to take out the most dangerous killer in the world, only to find out that they're the ones being hunted.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDangerous (2021)
A reformed sociopath heads to a remote island after the death of his brother. Soon after his arrival, the island falls under siege from a deadly gang of mercenaries, and when he discovers their role in his brother’s demise, he sets out on a relentless quest for vengeance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHounds of War (2024)
After a mission goes wrong, only one of a group of mercenaries is left alive to avenge his fallen brothers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBureau 749 (2024)
A traumatized young man with physical abnormalities is forced to join a mysterious bureau to confront a disaster spreading across the earth caused by an unknown creature. He embarks on an adventure uncovering mysteries about his life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDust Bunny (2025)
Ten-year-old Aurora asks her hitman neighbor to kill the monster under her bed that she claims ate her family. To protect her, he must battle an onslaught of assassins while accepting that some monsters are real.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeep Water (2026)
A group of international passengers on a flight from Los Angeles to Shanghai is forced to make an emergency landing in shark-infested waters. The terrified group is forced to work together and overcome their differences if they hope to escape their sinking plane and the frenzy of sharks drawn to the wreckage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNightbreed (1990)
A troubled young man is drawn to a mythical place called Midian where a variety of friendly monsters are hiding from humanity. Meanwhile, a sadistic serial killer is looking for a patsy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeep Sea Python (2023)
Fisherman Chen Yue is hired to sail a group of people, including photographer Zhong Ming, to a party on an ocean island. Upon arrival, the island is attacked by a massive deep-sea python, killing anyone it finds. Chen Yue and Zhong Ming must work together to lead the survivors out of danger in a fight for survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEradication (2022)
When an unknown disease wipes out most of the world’s population, a man with unique blood is isolated for study. Fearing for his wife’s safety, he breaks his quarantine – into a world overrun by monstrous Infected and a shadowy agency hunting them down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBabylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers - To Live and Die in Starlight (2002)
After being punished for retreat from combat, Ranger David Martel is given command of the Liandra, a haunted 20-year old Minbari fighting ship. He's escorting ambassadors to a secret archaeological site, the oldest city on record and a clue to a dangerous ancient race.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBorder Hunters (2025)
After his police officer brother is killed by a drug dealer who flees to the protection of his cartel-connected uncle in Mexico, an American man with a diverse law enforcement/military background goes south of the border to get revenge
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeized (2020)
Hiding out with his son Taylor on the Mexican coast, Nero hopes to put his violent Special Forces career behind him. But after Nero’s home is attacked and Taylor is abducted, the mysterious Mzamo orders Nero to slaughter the members of three rival crime syndicates. If he fails, Taylor will die. Now, with bullets flying and bodies dropping as Nero completes his mission, he races to find Mzamo’s hideout and seek revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Varanus Priscus?
The closest matches to Varanus Priscus are Primeval (2007), Human Lanterns (1982) and The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires (1974). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Varanus Priscus?
Start with Primeval (2007), the closest match to Varanus Priscus.
What is the highest-rated movie like Varanus Priscus?
Deep Water (2026), rated 7.4/10 by 717 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Varanus Priscus?
Deep Water (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Chinese movies like Varanus Priscus?
Yes: Human Lanterns (1982), Bureau 749 (2024) and Deep Sea Python (2023).
How are movies similar to Varanus Priscus chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Varanus Priscus, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.