Movies Like The Elephant Man

If you liked The Elephant Man (1980), a drama and history movie directed by David Lynch, 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
The Greatest Showman (2017)
★ 7.9/10Also drama
The story of American showman P.T. Barnum, founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.
2
Mask (1985)
★ 7.2/10Also drama
A significantly deformed but highly intelligent teenage boy and his biker gang mother attempt to live as normal a life as possible under the circumstances.
3
Radium Girls (2020)
★ 6.6/10Also drama and history
Young women toiling in a factory are exposed to hazardous material which takes a disastrous toll on their health.
4
Six Minutes to Midnight (2020)
★ 6.2/10Also drama and history
Summer 1939. Influential families in Nazi Germany have sent their daughters to a finishing school in an English seaside town to learn the language and be ambassadors for a future looking National Socialist. A teacher…
5
Oliver Twist (2005)
★ 6.8/10Also drama
An orphan endures a harsh life in a workhouse before fleeing to London, where he falls in with a gang of juvenile pickpockets led by the criminal Fagin, and eventually finds a better life, exposing the cruelties of…
6
Oliver Twist (1948)
★ 7.6/10Also drama
When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin…
7
Awakenings (1990)
★ 7.8/10Also drama
Dr. Malcolm Sayer, a shy research physician, uses an experimental drug to "awaken" the catatonic victims of a rare disease. Leonard is the first patient to receive the controversial treatment. His awakening, filled…
8
I Swear (2025)
★ 8.3/10Also drama and history
Diagnosed with Tourette Syndrome at 15, John Davidson navigates his way against the odds through troubled teenage years and into adulthood, finding inspiration in the kindness of others to discover his true purpose in…
9
Living (2022)
★ 7/10Also drama
London, 1953. Mr. Williams, a veteran civil servant, is an important cog within the city's bureaucracy as it struggles to rebuild in the aftermath of World War II. Buried under paperwork at the office and lonely at…
10
A Woman's Face (1941)
★ 6.8/10Also drama
A female blackmailer with a disfiguring facial scar meets a plastic surgeon who offers her the possibility of looking like a normal woman.
11
Finding Neverland (2004)
★ 7.3/10Also drama
During a writing slump, playwright J.M. Barrie meets a widow and her four children, all young boys—who soon become an important part of Barrie’s life and the inspiration that lead him to create his masterpiece. Peter…
12
Experimenter (2015)
★ 6.5/10Also drama and history
Yale University, 1961. Stanley Milgram designs a psychology experiment that still resonates to this day, in which people think they’re delivering painful electric shocks to an affable stranger strapped into a chair in…
13
Victoria & Abdul (2017)
★ 6.9/10Also drama and history
Queen Victoria strikes up an unlikely friendship with a young Indian clerk named Abdul Karim.
14
The Current War (2018)
★ 6.7/10Also drama and history
Electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse compete to create a sustainable system and market it to the American people.
15
Giant (2026)
★ 6.9/10Also drama and history
Follows Prince Naseem Hamed from his humble beginnings on the tough working-class streets of Sheffield and his discovery by Ingle, himself a steel industry worker turned boxing trainer. Their unlikely partnership…
16
All Is True (2018)
★ 6/10Also drama and history
London, June 29th, 1613. The Globe Theater, ran by the famous playwright William Shakespeare, accidentally burns to ashes. Seriously affected, he stops writing and returns to his hometown, where his wife Anne and…
17
Big Fish (2003)
★ 7.7/10Also drama
Throughout his life Edward Bloom has always been a man of big appetites, enormous passions and tall tales. In his later years, he remains a huge mystery to his son, William. Now, to get to know the real man, Will…
18
Welcome to Marwen (2018)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
When a devastating attack shatters Mark Hogancamp and wipes away all memories, no one expected recovery. Putting together pieces from his old and new life, Mark meticulously creates a wondrous town named Marwen where…
19
Darkest Hour (2017)
★ 7.4/10Also drama and history
In May 1940, the fate of World War II hangs on Winston Churchill, who must decide whether to negotiate with Adolf Hitler or fight on knowing that it could mean the end of the British Empire.
20
Out of My Mind (2024)
★ 7.7/10Also drama
Melody Brooks, a sixth grader with cerebral palsy, has a quick wit and a sharp mind, but because she is non-verbal and uses a wheelchair, she is not given the same opportunities as her classmates. When a young educator…