Movies like The Guard (2018)
The best movies like The Guard (2018) are Life Itself (2018), Bloodline (2019) and The Breadwinner (2026). If The Guard hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The Guard
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFatherhood (2021)7.5/10 from 1,585 votes
- NewestThe Breadwinner (2026)Released 2026
Life Itself (2018)
As a young New York couple goes from college romance to marriage and the birth of their first child, the unexpected twists of their journey create reverberations that echo over continents and through lifetimes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBloodline (2019)
Evan values family above all else, and anyone who gets between him, his wife, and newborn son learns that the hard way. But when it comes to violent tendencies, it seems the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Breadwinner (2026)
After his wife Katie lands a once-in-a-lifetime deal on Shark Tank that takes her on a prolonged business trip - lifelong breadwinner Nate Wilcox now has to fend for his family as a first-time stay-at-home dad.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPlaydate (2025)
When out-of-work accountant Brian joins stay-at-home dad Jeff for a playdate with their sons, he expects a laid-back afternoon. Instead, they're chased by mercenaries, and Brian—totally unprepared—must survive one absurd obstacle after another.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Boy Blue (1998)
Living in rural Texas is a dysfunctional family: an abusive dad, a Vietnam vet with a war wound that's left him impotent; a compliant wife and a son of about 20, two small sons who look a lot like their brother. The dad harbors a secret, and he goes to murderous lengths to keep it hidden. The young man, Jimmy, who has suspicions, but little comes out until a Yankee woman comes to town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011)
A suburban father gets trapped in a one-sided incestuous relationship with his abusive son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFatherhood (2021)
A widowed new dad copes with doubts, fears, heartache and dirty diapers as he sets out to raise his daughter on his own. Inspired by a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIn Cold Blood (1967)
After a botched robbery results in the brutal murder of a rural family, two drifters elude police, in the end coming to terms with their own mortality and the repercussions of their vile atrocity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEmbattled (2020)
The eldest son of a ruthlessly tough MMA champion must fight his way out of the abusive cycle his father has continued.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSigns (2002)
A family living on a farm finds mysterious crop circles in their fields which suggests something more frightening to come.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCape Fear (1962)
Sam Bowden witnesses a rape committed by Max Cady and testifies against him. When released after 8 years in prison, Cady begins stalking Bowden and his family but is always clever enough not to violate the law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies 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 thisRaising Arizona (1987)
When a childless couple—an ex-con and an ex-cop—take one of a wealthy family’s quintuplets to raise as their own, their lives grow more complicated than anticipated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Party (2017)
Various individuals think they’re coming together for a party in a private home, but a series of revelations results in a huge crisis that throws their belief systems – and their values – into total disarray.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBed Rest (2023)
After struggling to start a family, Julie Rivers becomes pregnant and moves into a new home with her husband. She's ordered to mandatory bed rest, and begins seeing ghostly happenings throughout the house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBird (2024)
12-year-old Bailey lives with her single dad Bug and brother Hunter in a squat in North Kent. Bug doesn’t have much time for his kids, and Bailey, who is approaching puberty, seeks attention and adventure elsewhere.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this180 (2026)
When an unexpected road rage incident puts his son in critical condition, an enraged father spirals down a dark path of emotional turmoil and vengeance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisLittle Man (2006)
After leaving prison, dwarf criminal Calvin Sims joins his moron brother Percy in stealing an expensive huge diamond from a jewelry store for the mobster Walken. They are chased by the police, and Calvin hides the stone in the purse of executive Vanessa Edwards, whose husband Darryl Edwards wants to have a baby. Percy convinces Calvin to dress like a baby and be left in front of the Edwards' house to get inside the house and retrieve the diamond. Darryl and Vanessa keep Calvin for the weekend and decide to adopt him, while Walken threatens Darryl to get the stone back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Switch (2010)
Kassie is a smart, fun-loving single woman who, despite her neurotic best friend Wally’s objections, decides it’s time to have a baby – even if it means doing it herself… with a little help from a charming sperm donor. But, unbeknownst to her, Kassie’s plans go awry because of a last-minute switch that isn’t discovered until seven years later… when Wally gets acquainted with Kassie’s cute, though slightly neurotic, son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEraserhead (1977)
First-time father Henry Spencer tries to survive his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend, and the unbearable screams of his newly born mutant child.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Guard?
The closest matches to The Guard are Life Itself (2018), Bloodline (2019) and The Breadwinner (2026). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Guard?
Start with Life Itself (2018), the closest match to The Guard.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Guard?
Fatherhood (2021), rated 7.5/10 by 1,585 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Guard?
The Breadwinner (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Guard?
Yes: Life Itself (2018), Bloodline (2019) and The Breadwinner (2026).
How are movies similar to The Guard chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Guard, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.