Movies like The Thing from Back Issues (1956)
The best movies like The Thing from Back Issues (1956) are Strange Brew (1983), Deadlier Than the Male (1967) and Sorry to Bother You (2018). If The Thing from Back Issues hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The Thing from Back Issues
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBlade Runner (1982)7.9/10 from 15,616 votes
- NewestBugonia (2025)Released 2025
Strange Brew (1983)
Something is rotten at the Elsinore Brewery. Bob and Doug McKenzie (as seen on SCTV) help the orphan Pam regain the brewery founded by her recently-deceased father. But to do so, they must confront the suspicious Brewmeister Smith and two teams of vicious hockey players.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeadlier Than the Male (1967)
British agent Bulldog Drummond is assigned to stop a master criminal who uses beautiful women to do his killings.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisSorry to Bother You (2018)
In an alternate present-day version of Oakland, black telemarketer Cassius Green discovers a magical key to professional success – which propels him into a macabre universe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlade Runner 2049 (2017)
Thirty years after the events of the first film, a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K, unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what's left of society into chaos. K's discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard, a former LAPD blade runner who has been missing for 30 years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHeart and Souls (1993)
A fateful night in 1959, four people die when the bus they are riding crashes. They continue as ghosts; their souls become eternally entwined to the life of a child born at the moment of their deaths as his guardians. Baby Thomas grows up to be a businessman who has memories of his playmates, but assumes they are products of his youthful imagination. When the ghosts realize they need Thomas' help to move on to the afterlife, they decide to make an appearance once more.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisInvasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
The residents of San Francisco are becoming drone-like shadows of their former selves, and as the phenomenon spreads, two Department of Health workers uncover the horrifying truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBugonia (2025)
Two conspiracy obsessed young men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPaycheck (2003)
Michael Jennings is a genius who's hired – and paid handsomely – by high-tech firms to work on highly sensitive projects, after which his short-term memory is erased so he's incapable of breaching security. But at the end of a three-year job, he's told he isn't getting a paycheck and instead receives a mysterious envelope. In it are clues he must piece together to find out why he wasn't paid – and why he's now in hot water.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDinner in America (2022)
An on-the-lam punk rocker and a young woman obsessed with a local band go on an unexpected and epic journey together through the decaying suburbs of the American Midwest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHow High (2001)
Jamal and Silas, two ordinary guys who smoke something magical, pass their college entrance exams with flying colors and end up at Harvard. Ivy League ways are strange but Silas and Jamal take it in a stride -- until their supply of supernatural smoke runs dry. That's when they have to start living by their wits and rely on their natural resources to make the grade.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTaking Care of Business (1990)
An uptight advertising exec has his entire life in a filofax organizer which mistakenly ends up in the hands of a friendly convict who poses as him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlade Runner (1982)
In the smog-choked dystopian Los Angeles of 2019, blade runner Rick Deckard is called out of retirement to terminate a quartet of replicants who have escaped to Earth seeking their creator for a way to extend their short life spans.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSuperintelligence (2020)
When an all-powerful Superintelligence chooses to study the most average person on Earth, Carol Peters, the fate of the world hangs in the balance. As the A.I. decides to enslave, save or destroy humanity, it’s up to Carol to prove that people are worth saving.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisInfinite (2021)
Evan McCauley has skills he never learned and memories of places he has never visited. Self-medicated and on the brink of a mental breakdown, a secret group that call themselves “Infinites” come to his rescue, revealing that his memories are real.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Glass Bottom Boat (1966)
Bruce, the owner of an aerospace company, is infatuated with Jennifer and hires her to be his biographer so that he can be near her and win her affections. Is she actually a Russian spy trying to obtain aerospace secrets?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this80 for Brady (2023)
Four lifelong friends set out on an unforgettable journey to see their hero Tom Brady play in Super Bowl LI and witness one of the greatest comebacks in sports history, discovering that it's never too late to live life to the fullest. Inspired by a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Silencers (1966)
Matt Helm is called out of retirement to stop the evil Big O organization who plan to explode an atomic bomb over Alamagordo, NM, and start WW III.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAirplane! (1980)
An ex-fighter pilot is forced to take over the controls of an airliner when the flight crew succumbs to food poisoning.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisImpostor (2001)
A top-secret government weapons designer is arrested by a clandestine government organization on suspicion of being a clone created by the hostile alien race wanting to take over Earth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTopper Returns (1941)
Topper is once again tormented by a fun-loving spirit. This time, it's Gail Richards, accidentally murdered while vacationing at the home of her wealthy friend, Ann Carrington, the intended victim. With Topper's help, Gail sets out to find her killer with the expected zany results.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Thing from Back Issues?
The closest matches to The Thing from Back Issues are Strange Brew (1983), Deadlier Than the Male (1967) and Sorry to Bother You (2018). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Thing from Back Issues?
Start with Strange Brew (1983), the closest match to The Thing from Back Issues.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Thing from Back Issues?
Blade Runner (1982), rated 7.9/10 by 15,616 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Thing from Back Issues?
Bugonia (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Thing from Back Issues?
Yes: Strange Brew (1983), Deadlier Than the Male (1967) and Sorry to Bother You (2018).
How are movies similar to The Thing from Back Issues chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Thing from Back Issues, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.