12 Movies Like After You Need to Watch

Craving the best movies like After? Explore 12 drama, romance, and comedy picks, including My Fault: London, The Spectacular Now, and My Oxford Year.

12 Movies Like After You Need to Watch

If you’re searching for movies like After, you probably want tense chemistry, messy choices, and romance that feels equal parts sweet and stormy. This list brings together 12 picks that lean into drama, romance, and a little comedy, so you can find something that matches your mood. Start with After (2019) if you want the original spark, then move to My Fault: London (2025) for a newer, high-energy relationship story. From there, The Spectacular Now (2013), Hala (2019), and Endings, Beginnings (2019) offer more grounded emotional turns, while LOL (2012), Life Itself (2018), and My Oxford Year (2025) keep the mix varied and binge-friendly.

  1. 01

    My Fault: London

    ★ 6.22025Movie

    drama · romance

    18-year-old Noah moves from America to London, with her mother who's recently fallen in love with William, a wealthy British businessman. Noah meets William’s son, bad-boy Nick, and soon discovers there is an attraction between them neither can avoid. As Noah spends the summer adjusting to her new life, her devastating past will catch up with her while falling in love for the first time.

    Directed by Charlotte Fassler, Dani GirdwoodCast Asha Banks, Matthew Broome, Eve Macklin, Ray Fearon, Enva Lewis
    Amazon Prime VideoFreevee
  2. 02

    LOL

    ★ 4.42012Movie

    comedy · drama · romance

    In a world connected by YouTube, iTunes, and Facebook, Lola and her friends navigate the peer pressures of high school romance and friendship while dodging their sometimes overbearing and confused parents. When Lola's mom, Anne, "accidentally" reads her teenage daughter's racy journal, she realizes just how wide their communication gap has grown.

    Directed by Lisa AzuelosCast Jean-Luc Bilodeau, Douglas Booth, Vivian Le Borgne, Bridget Brown, Jim Carrane
    Peacock PremiumFreevee
  3. 03

    The Spectacular Now

    ★ 72013Movie

    drama · romance

    Sutter, a popular party animal, unexpectedly meets the introverted Aimee after waking up on a stranger's lawn. As Sutter deals with the problems in his life and Aimee plans for her future beyond school, an unexpected romance blossoms between them.

    Directed by James PonsoldtCast Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Brie Larson, Masam Holden, Dayo Okeniyi
    Max
  4. 04

    Hala

    ★ 6.32019Movie

    drama

    Seventeen-year-old Pakistani American teenager Hala struggles to balance desire with her family, cultural, and religious obligations. As she comes into her own, she grapples with a secret that threatens to unravel her family.

    Directed by Minhal BaigCast Geraldine Viswanathan, Jack Kilmer, Gabriel Luna, Purbi Joshi, Azad Khan
    Apple TV Plus
  5. 05

    My Oxford Year

    ★ 5.92025Movie

    comedy · drama · romance

    An ambitious American fulfilling her dream of studying at Oxford falls for a charming Brit hiding a secret that may upend her perfectly planned life.

    Directed by Iain MorrisCast Sofia Carson, Corey Mylchreest, Dougray Scott, Catherine McCormack, Harry Trevaldwyn
    Netflix
  6. 06

    Endings, Beginnings

    ★ 5.62019Movie

    drama · romance

    A 30-something woman navigating through love and heartbreak over the course of one year. During that time, she will unlock the secrets to her life in a sudden turn of events and in the most surprising of places.

    Directed by Drake DoremusCast Shailene Woodley, Jamie Dornan, Sebastian Stan, Matthew Gray Gubler, Lindsay Sloane
    HuluAMC+
  7. 07

    Life Itself

    ★ 6.92018Movie

    drama · romance

    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.

    Directed by Dan FogelmanCast Oscar Isaac, Olivia Wilde, Annette Bening, Mandy Patinkin, Jean Smart
    Amazon Prime VideoFreevee
  8. 08

    Good Trouble

    ★ 7.52019TV Series

    comedy · drama · romance

    After moving to The Coterie in Downtown Los Angeles, Callie and Mariana Foster realize that living on their own is not all that it’s cracked up to be.

    Directed by Peter Paige, Bradley Bredeweg, Michael Medico, Laura Nisbet-Peters, Troian BellisarioCast Cierra Ramirez, Zuri Adele, Sherry Cola, Emma Hunton, Tommy Martinez
    Hulu
  9. 09

    Shithouse

    ★ 6.92020Movie

    comedy · drama · romance

    Lonely college freshman Alex has closed himself off from his peers, who all appear to have this whole "college thing" figured out. But everything changes one night when Alex takes a leap and attends a party at Shithouse - a legendary party fraternity - where he forges a strong connection with Maggie.

    Directed by Cooper RaiffCast Cooper Raiff, Dylan Gelula, Amy Landecker, Logan Miller, Olivia Scott Welch
    AMC+
  10. 10

    The Lifeguard

    ★ 5.62013Movie

    drama · romance

    A former valedictorian quits her reporter job in New York and returns to the place she last felt happy: her childhood home in Connecticut. She gets work as a lifeguard and starts a dangerous relationship with a troubled teenager.

    Directed by Liz W. GarciaCast Kristen Bell, Mamie Gummer, Martin Starr, Alex Shaffer, Joshua Harto
    Freevee
  11. 11

    Queen Bees

    ★ 6.42021Movie

    comedy · drama · romance

    Helen is an independent widow who moves into the Pine Grove Senior Community and discovers it’s just like high school – full of cliques and flirtatious suitors. What she initially avoids leads her to exactly what she has been missing: new friendships and a chance at love again with newcomer Dan.

    Directed by Michael LembeckCast Ellen Burstyn, Jane Curtin, Loretta Devine, Ann-Margret, Christopher Lloyd
    Paramount Plus
  12. 12

    Regretting You

    ★ 62025Movie

    drama · romance

    Morgan Grant and her daughter Clara explore what's left behind after a devastating accident reveals a shocking betrayal and forces them to confront family secrets, redefine love, and rediscover each other.

    Directed by Josh BooneCast Allison Williams, Mckenna Grace, Dave Franco, Mason Thames, Scott Eastwood
    Amazon Prime VideoParamount Plus

Wrapping Up

Whether you want swoony tension, awkward first love, or a more thoughtful coming-of-age story, this lineup gives you plenty of options beyond one familiar favorite. You can jump between newer releases and older standouts, then compare which ones capture the same intensity and which take a softer route. Bookmark this page and come back when you want a fresh recommendation, because it’s updated regularly as new titles arrive. That way, you’ll always have a current shortlist ready whenever you want another emotional watch.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes these movies similar to After?

These picks were matched by tone, themes, and story style using a similarity model trained on plot synopses, genres, and cast — not just shared genre tags — so the connection runs deeper than a simple category match.

Last updated: September 12, 2026