Movies and TV series about historical fiction

The 47 best titles about historical fiction, ranked by the iRank Score — our composite of IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and TMDb. Every page includes cast, where to watch and similar recommendations.

Schindler's List
iRank93
1993 · Steven Spielberg
MovieDramaHistoryWar
The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.
Lawrence of Arabia
iRank89
1962 · David Lean
MovieAdventureHistoryWar
During World War I, English officer Thomas Edward 'T.E.' Lawrence sets out to unite and lead the diverse, often warring, Arab tribes to fight the Turks.
Ran
iRank89
1985 · Akira Kurosawa
MovieActionDramaHistory
Shakespeare's King Lear is reimagined as a singular historical epic set in sixteenth-century Japan where an aging warlord divides his kingdom between his three sons.
Spotlight
iRank87
2015 · Tom McCarthy
MovieDramaHistory
The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core.
Guardian: The Lonely and Great God
iRank86
2016 · Yoon Ha-lim
SeriesComedyDramaSci-Fi & Fantasy
In his quest for a bride to break his immortal curse, a 939-year-old guardian of souls meets a grim reaper and a sprightly student with a tragic past.
The Social Network
iRank86
2010 · David Fincher
MovieDrama
In 2003, Harvard undergrad and computer programmer Mark Zuckerberg begins work on a new concept that eventually turns into the global social network known as Facebook. Six years later, Mark is one of
Alchemy of Souls
iRank86
2022 · Jang Jung-do
SeriesAction & AdventureDramaMystery
A powerful sorceress in a blind woman's body encounters a man from a prestigious family, who wants her help to change his destiny.
Scarlet Heart: Ryeo
iRank85
2016
SeriesDramaSci-Fi & FantasyWar-politics
A story of a 25-year-old Go Hajin who is transported back in time to the Goryeo Dynasty. She then wakes up in the body of Lady Hae Soo and finds herself amongst the ruling princes of the Wang Family.
The King's Speech
iRank85
2010 · Tom Hooper
MovieDramaHistory
The King's Speech tells the story of the man who became King George VI, the father of Queen Elizabeth II. After his brother abdicates, George ('Bertie') reluctantly assumes the throne. Plagued by a dr
Princess Mononoke
iRank85
1997 · Hayao Miyazaki
MovieAdventureAnimationFantasy
Ashitaka, a prince of the disappearing Emishi people, is cursed by a demonized boar god and must journey to the west to find a cure. Along the way, he encounters San, a young human woman fighting to p
Dunkirk
iRank85
2017 · Christopher Nolan
MovieActionDramaWar
The story of the miraculous evacuation of Allied soldiers from Belgium, Britain, Canada and France, who were cut off and surrounded by the German army from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk between M
Ben-Hur
iRank84
1959 · William Wyler
MovieAdventureDramaHistory
In ancient Judea, a Jewish aristocrat opposing Roman occupation of his homeland reunites with his childhood friend, now a Roman commander — setting in motion a saga of betrayal, adventure, tragedy, re
Record of Ragnarok
iRank84
2021
SeriesAction & AdventureAnimationSci-Fi & Fantasy
Before eradicating humankind from the world, the gods give them one last chance to prove themselves worthy of survival. Let the Ragnarok battles begin.
Spartacus
iRank84
1960 · Stanley Kubrick
MovieAdventureDramaHistory
The rebellious Thracian Spartacus, born and raised a slave, is sold to Gladiator trainer Batiatus. After weeks of being trained to kill for the arena, Spartacus turns on his owners and leads the other
RRR
iRank84
2022 · S. S. Rajamouli
MovieActionAdventureDrama
A fictional history of two legendary revolutionaries' journey away from home before they began fighting for their country in the 1920s.
The Last Kingdom
iRank83
2015 · Martha Hillier
SeriesAction & AdventureDramaWar-politics
A show of heroic deeds and epic battles with a thematic depth that embraces politics, religion, warfare, courage, love, loyalty and our universal search for identity. Combining real historical figures
The King: Eternal Monarch
iRank83
2020 · Jinnie Choi
SeriesDramaSci-Fi & Fantasy
Korean emperor Lee Gon tries to close the doors to a parallel world which was opened by demons; a detective tries to protect the people and the one she loves.
Hamnet
iRank82
2025 · Chloé Zhao
MovieDramaHistoryRomance
The powerful story of love and loss that inspired the creation of Shakespeare's timeless masterpiece, Hamlet.
Hidden Figures
iRank82
2016 · Theodore Melfi
MovieDramaHistory
The untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson – brilliant African-American women working at NASA and serving as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history
Titanic
iRank81
1997 · James Cameron
MovieDramaRomance
101-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater tells the story of her life aboard the Titanic, 84 years later. A young Rose boards the ship with her mother and fiancé. Meanwhile, Jack Dawson and Fabrizio De Rossi w
The Big Short
iRank81
2015 · Adam McKay
MovieComedyDrama
The men who made millions from a global economic meltdown.
Vikings
iRank81
2013 · Michael Hirst
SeriesAction & AdventureDramaWar-politics
The adventures of Ragnar Lothbrok, the greatest hero of his age. The series tells the sagas of Ragnar's band of Viking brothers and his family, as he rises to become King of the Viking tribes. As well
Reign
iRank81
2013
SeriesDrama
Mary, Queen of Scots, faces political and sexual intrigue in the treacherous world of the French court.
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood
iRank80
2019 · Quentin Tarantino
MovieComedyDramaThriller
Los Angeles, 1969. TV star Rick Dalton, a struggling actor specializing in westerns, and stuntman Cliff Booth, his best friend, try to survive in a constantly changing movie industry. Dalton is the ne
Boardwalk Empire
iRank80
2010 · Howard Korder
SeriesCrimeDrama
Atlantic City at the dawn of Prohibition is a place where the rules don't apply. And the man who runs things -- legally and otherwise -- is the town's treasurer, Enoch "Nucky" Thompson, who is equal p
Gladiator
iRank80
2000 · Ridley Scott
MovieActionAdventureDrama
After the death of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, his devious son takes power and demotes Maximus, one of Rome's most capable generals who Marcus preferred. Eventually, Maximus is forced to become a gladiat
Lincoln
iRank80
2012 · Steven Spielberg
MovieDramaHistory
The revealing story of the 16th US President's tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war,
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
iRank79
2003 · Peter Weir
MovieAdventureDramaWar
After an abrupt and violent encounter with a French warship inflicts severe damage upon his ship, a captain of the British Royal Navy begins a chase over two oceans to capture or destroy the enemy, th
The Longest Day
iRank78
1962 · Ken Annakin
MovieActionDramaWar
The retelling of June 6, 1944, from the perspectives of the Germans, US, British, Canadians, and the Free French. Marshall Erwin Rommel, touring the defenses being established as part of the Reich's A
Trading Places
iRank77
1983 · John Landis
MovieComedy
A snobbish investor and a wily street con-artist find their positions reversed as part of a bet by two callous millionaires.
The Impossible
iRank76
2012 · J. A. Bayona
MovieDramaHistoryThriller
In December 2004, close-knit family Maria, Henry and their three sons begin their winter vacation in Thailand. But the day after Christmas, the idyllic holiday turns into an incomprehensible nightmare
Black Sails
iRank76
2014 · Michael Bay
SeriesAction & AdventureDrama
The pirate adventures of Captain Flint and his men twenty years prior to Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic “Treasure Island.” Flint, the most brilliant and most feared pirate captain of his day, takes
The Twelve Tasks of Asterix
iRank76
1976 · René Goscinny
MovieAdventureAnimationComedy
Asterix and Obelix depart on an adventure to complete twelve impossible tasks to prove to Caesar that they are as strong as the Gods. You'll roar with laughter as they outwit, outrun, and generally ou
The Alienist
iRank75
2018 · Ben Rosenblatt
SeriesCrimeDramaMystery
New York, 1896. Police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt brings together criminal psychologist Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, newspaper illustrator John Moore and secretary Sara Howard to investigate several murd
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
iRank74
2008 · David Fincher
MovieDramaFantasyRomance
Born under unusual circumstances, Benjamin Button springs into being as an elderly man in a New Orleans nursing home and ages in reverse. Twelve years after his birth, he meets Daisy, a child who flit
The King
iRank70
2019 · David Michôd
MovieDramaHistoryWar
England, 15th century. Hal, a capricious prince who lives among the populace far from court, is forced by circumstances to reluctantly accept the throne and become Henry V.
The Danish Girl
iRank69
2015 · Tom Hooper
MovieDrama
When Gerda Wegener asks her husband Einar to fill in as a portrait model, Einar discovers the person she's meant to be and begins living her life as Lili Elbe. Having realized her true self and with G
Alienoid
iRank68
2022 · Choi Dong-hoon
MovieActionAdventureFantasy
Gurus in the late Goryeo dynasty try to obtain a fabled, holy sword, and humans in 2022 hunt down an alien prisoner that is locked in a human's body. The two parties cross paths when a time-traveling
The Patriot
iRank68
2000 · Roland Emmerich
MovieActionDramaHistory
After proving himself on the field of battle in the French and Indian War, Benjamin Martin wants nothing more to do with such things, preferring the simple life of a farmer. But when his son Gabriel e
Troy
iRank64
2004 · Wolfgang Petersen
MovieWarActionHistory
In year 1250 B.C. during the late Bronze age, two emerging nations begin to clash. Paris, the Trojan prince, convinces Helen, Queen of Sparta, to leave her husband Menelaus, and sail with him back to
The Other Boleyn Girl
iRank57
2008 · Justin Chadwick
MovieDramaHistoryRomance
A sumptuous and sensual tale of intrigue, romance and betrayal set against the backdrop of a defining moment in European history: two beautiful sisters, Anne and Mary Boleyn, driven by their family's
Robin Hood
iRank57
2010 · Ridley Scott
MovieActionAdventureDrama
When soldier Robin happens upon the dying Robert of Loxley, he promises to return the man's sword to his family in Nottingham. There, he assumes Robert's identity; romances his widow, Marion; and draw
Midway
iRank57
2019 · Roland Emmerich
MovieActionHistoryWar
The story of the Battle of Midway, and the leaders and soldiers who used their instincts, fortitude and bravery to overcome massive odds.
The 13th Warrior
iRank53
1999 · John McTiernan
MovieAdventureHistoryAction
A Muslim ambassador exiled from his homeland joins a group of Vikings, initially offended by their behavior but growing to respect them. As they travel together, they learn of a legendary evil closing
The Brothers Grimm
iRank52
2005 · Terry Gilliam
MovieActionAdventureComedy
Folklore collectors and con artists, Jake and Will Grimm, travel from village to village pretending to protect townsfolk from enchanted creatures and performing exorcisms. However, they are put to the
The Great Wall
iRank49
2016 · Zhang Yimou
MovieActionAdventureFantasy
European mercenaries searching for black powder become embroiled in the defense of the Great Wall of China against a horde of monstrous creatures.
The Three Musketeers
iRank45
2011 · Paul W. S. Anderson
MovieActionAdventureThriller
The hot-headed young D'Artagnan along with three former legendary but now down on their luck Musketeers must unite and defeat a beautiful double agent and her villainous employer from seizing the Fren