Movies Like The Friend

If you liked The Friend (2023), a movie directed by Robert Thomason, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
Mighty Joe Young (1998)
★ 6.3/10
As a child living in Africa, Jill Young saw her mother killed while protecting wild gorillas from poachers led by Andrei Strasser. Now an adult, Jill cares for an orphaned gorilla named Joe -- who, due to a genetic…
2
Soul (2020)
★ 8.1/10
Joe Gardner is a middle school teacher with a love for jazz music. After a successful audition at the Half Note Club, he suddenly gets into an accident that separates his soul from his body and is transported to the…
3
Rock Dog (2016)
★ 6.3/10
When a radio falls from the sky into the hands of a wide-eyed Tibetan Mastiff, he leaves home to fulfill his dream of becoming a musician, setting into motion a series of completely unexpected events.
4
If Only (2004)
★ 7/10
After his impetuous musician girlfriend, Samantha, dies in an accident shortly after they had a fight (and nearly broke up), Ian Wyndham, a grief-stricken British businessman living in London gets a chance to relive…
5
Clean (2004)
★ 6.4/10
After she ends up in prison and loses custody of her son, a woman struggles to assimilate outside her former life and remain clean long enough to regain custody of her son.
6
Abominable (2019)
★ 7.5/10
A group of misfits encounter a young Yeti named Everest, and they set off to reunite the magical creature with his family on the mountain of his namesake.
7
James and the Giant Peach (1996)
★ 6.6/10
When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.
8
Hummingbird (2013)
★ 6.2/10
Homeless and on the run from a military court martial, a damaged ex-special forces soldier navigating London's criminal underworld seizes an opportunity to assume another man's identity, transforming into an avenging…
9
Forever My Girl (2018)
★ 7.6/10
Years after leaving his fiancée at the altar to pursue fame and fortune, country music star Liam Page returns home hoping to win her back.
10
Almost Famous (2000)
★ 7.5/10
In 1973, a precocious 15-year-old aspiring rock journalist lands a dream assignment from Rolling Stone to tour with a rising rock band, embarking on a coming-of-age journey as he discovers the exhilarating and…
11
Rent (2005)
★ 6.8/10
In New York City's gritty East Village, a group of bohemians strive for success and acceptance while enduring the obstacles of poverty, illness and the AIDS epidemic.
12
Mārama (2026)
★ 6.3/10
1859. When a young Māori woman is summoned from New Zealand to North Yorkshire, she uncovers her horrific colonial heritage and is compelled to confront and destroy the titled Englishman who devastated her family.
13
101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure (2003)
★ 6/10
Being one of 101 takes its toll on Patch, who doesn't feel unique. When he's accidentally left behind on moving day, he meets his idol, Thunderbolt, who enlists him on a publicity campaign.
14
Vicious (2025)
★ 6/10
When Polly receives a mysterious box, it comes with one rule: place inside something she needs, something she hates, and something she loves. If she doesn’t obey, it will consume everything—and everyone—she’s ever known.
15
Bob Marley: One Love (2024)
★ 6.6/10
Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley overcomes adversity to become the most famous reggae musician in the world.
16
Love of Your Life (2026)
★ 6.8/10
After a chance encounter sparks a sweeping romance, Maya's future is suddenly upended, sending her on an unexpected journey to love and live again.
17
Masterplan (2026)
★ 6.9/10
When a legendary thief sets his sights on the Mona Lisa, he recruits two young strangers to help him before revealing they are long-lost siblings… and oh yes, by the way, he is their father. Thrown into a chaotic…
18
The Forgotten (2004)
★ 5.9/10
Telly Paretta is a grieving mother struggling to cope with the loss of her 9-year-old son. She is stunned when her psychiatrist reveals that she has created nine years of memories about a son she never had. But when…
19
Smallfoot (2018)
★ 6.8/10
A bright young yeti finds something he thought didn't exist—a human. News of this “smallfoot” throws the simple yeti community into an uproar over what else might be out there in the big world beyond their snowy village.
20
Baywatch (2017)
★ 6.1/10
Devoted lifeguard Mitch Buchannon butts heads with a brash new recruit. Together, they uncover a local criminal plot that threatens the future of the Bay.