Movies like Savages (2012)
The best movies like Savages (2012) are The Counselor (2013), The Line (2009) and Traffic (2000). If Savages hooked you with its crime and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Departed (2006)8.2/10 from 16,909 votes
- NewestKing Ivory (2025)Released 2025
The Counselor (2013)
A lawyer finds himself in far over his head when he attempts to get involved in drug trafficking.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Line (2009)
The story centers around veteran assassin Mark Shields as he tracks down, Pelon, the elusive head of the Salazar Crime Cartel. Through twists of fate, Shields ends up with a local woman, Olivia who is also fighting her own demons for the sake of her daughter. Set in the rich and atmospheric backdrop of Tijuana, Mexico, La Linea (The Line) is full of action and drama.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisTraffic (2000)
An exploration of the United States of America's war on drugs from multiple perspectives. For the new head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the war becomes personal when he discovers his well-educated daughter is abusing cocaine within their comfortable suburban home. In Mexico, a flawed, but noble policeman agrees to testify against a powerful general in league with a cartel, and in San Diego, a drug kingpin's sheltered trophy wife must learn her husband's ruthless business after he is arrested, endangering her luxurious lifestyle.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Mule (2018)
Earl Stone, a man in his eighties, is broke, alone, and facing foreclosure of his business when he is offered a job that simply requires him to drive. Easy enough, but, unbeknownst to Earl, he's just signed on as a drug courier for a Mexican cartel. He does so well that his cargo increases exponentially, and Earl hit the radar of hard-charging DEA agent Colin Bates.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRunning with the Devil (2019)
A leader of a drug cartel sends his two toughest henchmen to investigate why a shipment was botched.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Infiltrator (2016)
A U.S Customs official uncovers a massive money laundering scheme involving Pablo Escobar.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisContraband (2012)
When his brother-in-law runs afoul of a drug lord, family man Chris Farraday turns to a skill he abandoned long ago—smuggling—to repay the debt. But the job goes wrong, and Farraday finds himself wanted by cops, crooks and killers alike.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOut of the Furnace (2013)
Two brothers live in the economically-depressed Rust Belt, when a cruel twist of fate lands one in prison. His brother is then lured into one of the most violent crime rings in the Northeast.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBody Brokers (2021)
Utah and his girlfriend Opal, are drug addicts living on the streets in rural Ohio. After getting recruited by body broker Wood and offered treatment in Los Angeles, Wood takes Utah under his wing and introduces him to treatment center mogul Vin. Wood and Vin bring Utah in on their lucrative and illegal dealings, where saving lives comes second to the bottom line.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Town (2010)
A proficient group of thieves rob a bank and hold the manager hostage. Things begin to get complicated when one of the crew members falls in love with her.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEnd of Watch (2012)
Two young officers are marked for death after confiscating a small cache of money and firearms from the members of a notorious cartel during a routine traffic stop.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKing Ivory (2025)
Based on extensive research involving law enforcement and gang members, a never-before-seen, authentic look inside the underworld of fentanyl trafficking from gangs inside the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester a.k.a. "Big Mac."
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrisis (2021)
Three stories about the world of opioids collide: a drug trafficker arranges a multi-cartel Fentanyl smuggling operation between Canada and the U.S., an architect recovering from an OxyContin addiction tracks down the truth behind her son's involvement with narcotics, and a university professor battles unexpected revelations about his research employer, a drug company with deep government influence bringing a new "non-addictive" painkiller to market.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKilling Them Softly (2012)
Jackie Cogan is an enforcer hired to restore order after three dumb guys rob a Mob protected card game, causing the local criminal economy to collapse.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCriminal Activities (2015)
Four young men make a risky investment together that gets them into trouble with the mob.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisLord of War (2005)
Yuri Orlov is a globetrotting arms dealer and, through some of the deadliest war zones, he struggles to stay one step ahead of a relentless Interpol agent, his business rivals and even some of his customers who include many of the world's most notorious dictators. Finally, he must also face his own conscience.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Most Violent Year (2014)
A thriller set in New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, and centered on the lives of an immigrant and his family trying to expand their business and capitalize on opportunities as the rampant violence, decay, and corruption of the day drag them in and threaten to destroy all they have built.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Departed (2006)
To take down South Boston's Irish Mafia, the police send in one of their own to infiltrate the underworld, not realizing the syndicate has done likewise. While an undercover cop curries favor with the mob kingpin, a career criminal rises through the police ranks. But both sides soon discover there's a mole among them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSicario: Day of the Soldado (2018)
Agent Matt Graver teams up with operative Alejandro Gillick to prevent Mexican drug cartels from smuggling terrorists across the United States border.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Dixie (2023)
Erstwhile Special Forces operative Doc Alexander is asked to broker a truce with the Mexican drug cartel in secrecy. When Oklahoma Governor Richard Jeffs celebrates the execution of a high-ranking cartel member on TV, his Chief of Staff and Doc inform him about the peace he just ended. But it’s too late, as Cuco, the cartel’s hatchet man, has set his vengeful sights on Doc’s daughter Dixie.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisSicario (2015)
An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHell or High Water (2016)
A divorced dad and his ex-con brother resort to a desperate scheme in order to save their family's farm in West Texas.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSpeed Kills (2018)
Speedboat racing champion and multimillionaire Ben Aronoff leads a double life that lands him in trouble with the law and drug lords.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisDeath on the Border (2023)
Two determined women vie to escape their abusive relationships with a dirty Detective at rock bottom, determined to move sex trafficked girls over the Mexican border.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & thriller
Maria Full of Grace (2004)
A pregnant Colombian teenager becomes a drug mule to make some desperately needed money for her family.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCocaine Godmother (2017)
At the age of 17, Griselda Blanco, made her way to the U.S. with a fake passport with her first husband Carlos. Living in Queens with her three sons, Griselda became enticed by the money the drug world offered, and quickly became embroiled with local drug runners. Griselda masterminded the use of beautiful women, the elderly and children as the mules and created false-bottom suitcases to smuggle cocaine from Colombia.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEscobar: Paradise Lost (2014)
For Pablo Escobar family is everything. When young surfer Nick falls for Escobar's niece, Maria, he finds his life on the line when he's pulled into the dangerous world of the family business.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTarget Number One (2020)
Ex heroin junkie, Daniel Léger, gets involved in a drug deal with the wrong people for the wrong reasons. When the deal goes sour, Daniel gets thrown into a Thai prison and slapped with a 100-year sentence. While he tries to survive his Bangkok incarceration, the news of his conviction captures the attention of Globe and Mail journalist Victor Malarek, who decides to go after the shady undercover cops responsible for wrongly accusing Daniel.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlood Money (2017)
Three friends on a wilderness excursion must outrun a white collar criminal hellbent on retrieving his cash, but soon their greed turns them against each other. A modern re-telling of Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948).
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisIllegal Tender (2007)
After the gangsters who killed his father come to settle a score, a teenage boy and his mother turn the tables on the killers - one Latino family's quest for honor and revenge as the hunted become the hunters.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Savages?
The closest matches to Savages are The Counselor (2013), The Line (2009) and Traffic (2000). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Savages?
People who watched Savages most often go on to The Counselor (2013), The Line (2009) and Traffic (2000).
What is the highest-rated movie like Savages?
The Departed (2006), rated 8.2/10 by 16,909 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Savages?
King Ivory (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Savages?
Yes: The Counselor (2013), The Line (2009) and Traffic (2000).
How are movies similar to Savages chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Savages, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.