50 Movies Like The BFG (2016) You Need to Watch Next
Updated August 2026
View The BFG details →If you loved The BFG (2016) by Steven Spielberg, here are 50 movies that share its content DNA. iRankMovies measures real similarity using cosine similarity across eight weighted dimensions — genre (50%), tone (12%), pace (10%), structure (8%), era (7%), theme (6%), audience (4%) and narrative perspective (3%) — not just the rating. The closest matches according to our analysis are The Golden Compass, Legend, Oz the Great and Powerful. Every title is ranked by how closely it matches and backed by the iRank Score, a composite of IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and TMDb across 12,000+ analysed titles.
The Best Movies Similar to The BFG
Selected for their real similarity in content, these are the movies that share the most with The BFG in terms of theme, narrative tone, and cinematic style. Every recommendation goes beyond genre — we evaluate the type of conflict, pacing, dramatic context, and the experience they create for viewers.
The Golden Compass
2007 · Chris Weitz
In a parallel universe, after overhearing a shocking secret, precocious orphan Lyra Belacqua trades her carefree existence roaming the halls of Jordan College for an otherworldly adventure in the far
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Legend
1985 · Ridley Scott
Set in a timeless mythical forest inhabited by fairies, goblins, unicorns and mortals, this fantastic story follows a mystical forest dweller, chosen by fate, to undertake a heroic quest. He must save
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Oz the Great and Powerful
2013 · Sam Raimi
Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus illusionist and con-artist, is whisked from Kansas to the Land of Oz where the inhabitants assume he's the great wizard of prophecy, there to save Oz from the clutches
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Excalibur
1981 · John Boorman
Arthur fulfills his fate by bringing together the Knights of the Round Table at Camelot and unifying the country. However, this flawed monarch faces greater tests ahead in pursuit of love, the Holy Gr
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Dumbo
2019 · Tim Burton
A young elephant, whose oversized ears enable him to fly, helps save a struggling circus, but when the circus plans a new venture, Dumbo and his friends discover dark secrets beneath its shiny veneer.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
2013 · Thor Freudenthal
In their quest to confront the ultimate evil, Percy and his friends battle swarms of mythical creatures to find the mythical Golden Fleece and to stop an ancient evil from rising.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
A Monster Calls
2016 · J. A. Bayona
12-year-old Conor encounters an ancient tree monster who proceeds to help him cope with his mother's terminal illness and being bullied in school.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Pinocchio
2022 · Robert Zemeckis
A wooden puppet embarks on a thrilling adventure to become a real boy.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Peter Pan
2003 · P.J. Hogan
In stifling Edwardian London, Wendy Darling mesmerizes her brothers every night with bedtime tales of swordplay, swashbuckling and the fearsome Captain Hook. But the children become the heroes of an e
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
2001 · Chris Columbus
Harry Potter has lived under the stairs at his aunt and uncle's house his whole life. But on his 11th birthday, he learns he's a powerful wizard—with a place waiting for him at the Hogwarts School of
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
2002 · Chris Columbus
Cars fly, trees fight back, and a mysterious house-elf comes to warn Harry Potter at the start of his second year at Hogwarts. Adventure and danger await when bloody writing on a wall announces: The C
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
2005 · Mike Newell
When his name emerges from the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter becomes a competitor in a grueling battle for glory among three wizarding schools. Signs of Voldemort's return emerge as Harry's friends hel
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
2011 · David Yates
Harry, Ron and Hermione continue their quest to vanquish the evil Voldemort once and for all. Just as things begin to look hopeless for the young wizards, Harry discovers a trio of magical objects tha
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
2007 · David Yates
When a new professor's methods leave Hogwarts unprepared to fight the rising tide of evil, Harry teaches students how to defend against the dark arts.
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
2009 · David Yates
Dumbledore tries to prepare Harry for the final battle with Voldemort while Death Eaters wreak havoc in both Muggle and Wizard worlds.
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Alice in Wonderland
2010 · Tim Burton
Alice, now 19 years old, returns to the whimsical world she first entered as a child and embarks on a journey to discover her true destiny.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
The Wizard of Oz
1939 · Victor Fleming
Young Dorothy finds herself in a magical world where she makes friends with a lion, a scarecrow and a tin man as they make their way along the yellow brick road to talk with the Wizard and ask for the
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
2010 · Chris Columbus
Accident prone teenager, Percy discovers he's actually a demi-God, the son of Poseidon, and he is needed when Zeus' lightning is stolen. Percy must master his new found skills in order to prevent a wa
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
The Jungle Book
2016 · Jon Favreau
After a threat from the tiger Shere Khan, Mowgli, a man-cub fostered by wolves, is forced to flee the jungle, and he embarks on a journey of self-discovery with the help of the panther, Bagheera, and
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
2018 · David Yates
Gellert Grindelwald has escaped imprisonment and has begun gathering followers to his cause—elevating wizards above all non-magical beings. The only one capable of putting a stop to him is the wizard
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Labyrinth
1986 · Jim Henson
Frustrated with babysitting on yet another weekend night, Sarah, a teenager with an active imagination, summons the Goblins to take her baby stepbrother away. When little Toby actually disappears, Sar
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
2016 · David Yates
In 1926, Newt Scamander arrives at the Magical Congress of the United States of America with a magically expanded briefcase, which houses a number of dangerous creatures and their habitats. When the c
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
2022 · David Yates
Professor Albus Dumbledore knows the powerful, dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald is moving to seize control of the wizarding world. Unable to stop him alone, he entrusts magizoologist Newt Scamander to
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Where the Wild Things Are
2009 · Spike Jonze
Max imagines running away from his mom and sailing to a far-off land where large talking beasts—Ira, Carol, Douglas, the Bull, Judith and Alexander—crown him as their king, play rumpus, build forts an
In common: Adventure · Family
The Spiderwick Chronicles
2008 · Mark Waters
Upon moving into the run-down Spiderwick Estate with their mother, twin brothers Jared and Simon Grace, along with their sister Mallory, find themselves pulled into an alternate world full of faeries
In common: Adventure · Family
The Green Knight
2021 · David Lowery
An epic fantasy adventure based on the timeless Arthurian legend, The Green Knight tells the story of Sir Gawain, King Arthur's reckless and headstrong nephew, who embarks on a daring quest to confron
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
2010 · David Yates
Harry, Ron and Hermione walk away from their last year at Hogwarts to find and destroy the remaining Horcruxes, putting an end to Voldemort's bid for immortality. But with Harry's beloved Dumbledore d
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Stardust
2007 · Matthew Vaughn
In a countryside town bordering on a magical land, a young man makes a promise to his beloved that he'll retrieve a fallen star by venturing into the magical realm. His journey takes him into a world
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Ghostbusters: Afterlife
2021 · Jason Reitman
When single mom Callie and her two kids Trevor and Phoebe arrive in a small Oklahoma town, they begin to discover their connection to the original Ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Peter Pan
1953 · Clyde Geronimi
Leaving the safety of their nursery behind, Wendy, Michael and John follow Peter Pan to a magical world where childhood lasts forever. But while in Neverland, the kids must face Captain Hook and foil
In common: Adventure · Family
Conan the Barbarian
1982 · John Milius
A horde of rampaging warriors massacre the parents of young Conan and enslave the young child for years on The Wheel of Pain. As the sole survivor of the childhood massacre, Conan is released from sla
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
The Fall
2006 · Tarsem Singh
In a hospital on the outskirts of 1920s Los Angeles, an injured stuntman begins to tell a fellow patient, a little girl with a broken arm, a fantastic story about 5 mythical heroes. Thanks to his frac
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Anastasia
1997 · Don Bluth
Ten years after she was separated from her family, an eighteen-year-old orphan with vague memories of the past sets out to Paris in hopes of reuniting with her grandmother. She is accompanied by two c
In common: Adventure · Family
Tinker Bell
2008 · Bradley Raymond
Journey into the secret world of Pixie Hollow and hear Tinker Bell speak for the very first time as the astonishing story of Disney's most famous fairy is finally revealed in the all-new motion pictur
In common: Adventure · Family
Asterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra
2002 · Alain Chabat
History's favorite Gauls assist Queen Cleopatra when she wagers that the Egyptian people can build a palace for Julius Caesar in just three months.
In common: Adventure · Family
The NeverEnding Story
1984 · Wolfgang Petersen
While hiding from bullies in his school's attic, a young boy discovers the extraordinary land of Fantasia, through a magical book called The Neverending Story. The book tells the tale of Atreyu, a you
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
The King's Daughter
2022 · Sean McNamara
King Louis XIV's quest for immortality leads him to capture and steal a mermaid's life force, a move that is further complicated by his illegitimate daughter's discovery of the creature.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Bāhubali 2: The Conclusion
2017 · S. S. Rajamouli
When Mahendra, the son of Bāhubali, learns about his heritage, he begins to look for answers. His story is juxtaposed with past events that unfolded in the Mahishmati Kingdom.
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
1954 · Richard Fleischer
A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Ladyhawke
1985 · Richard Donner
Captain Etienne Navarre is a man on whose shoulders lies a cruel curse. Punished for loving each other, Navarre must become a wolf by night whilst his lover, Lady Isabeau, takes the form of a hawk by
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms
2018 · Lasse Hallström
When Clara’s mother leaves her a mysterious gift, she embarks on a journey to four secret realms—where she discovers her greatest strength could change the world.
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1
2011 · Bill Condon
Bella Swan and Edward Cullen's honeymoon phase is abruptly disrupted by betrayals and unforeseen tragedies that endanger their world.
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Aladdin
2019 · Guy Ritchie
A kindhearted street urchin named Aladdin embarks on a magical adventure after finding a lamp that releases a wisecracking genie while a power-hungry Grand Vizier vies for the same lamp that has the p
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
The Little Mermaid
2023 · Rob Marshall
The youngest of King Triton’s daughters, and the most defiant, Ariel longs to find out more about the world beyond the sea, and while visiting the surface, falls for the dashing Prince Eric. With merm
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Wicked: For Good
2025 · Jon M. Chu
As an angry mob rises against the Wicked Witch, Glinda and Elphaba will need to come together one final time. With their singular friendship now the fulcrum of their futures, they will need to truly s
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil
2019 · Joachim Rønning
Maleficent and her goddaughter Aurora begin to question the complex family ties that bind them as they are pulled in different directions by impending nuptials, unexpected allies, and dark new forces
In common: Adventure · Family · Fantasy
Swapped
2026 · Nathan Greno
A small woodland creature and a majestic bird, two natural sworn enemies of the Valley, magically trade places and set off on an adventure of a lifetime to switch back. Their journey soon uncovers a g
In common: Adventure · Family
Mortal Kombat
2021 · Simon McQuoid
Washed-up MMA fighter Cole Young, unaware of his heritage, and hunted by Emperor Shang Tsung's best warrior, Sub-Zero, seeks out and trains with Earth's greatest champions as he prepares to stand agai
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
2001 · Peter Jackson
Young hobbit Frodo Baggins, after inheriting a mysterious ring from his uncle Bilbo, must leave his home in order to keep it from falling into the hands of its evil creator. Along the way, a fellowshi
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
2003 · Gore Verbinski
When wily pirate Captain Barbossa seizes Jack Sparrow’s beloved ship, the Black Pearl, and kidnaps the governor’s daughter, Elizabeth Swann, blacksmith Will Turner reluctantly teams up with the unpred
In common: Adventure · Fantasy
Popular series
Breaking Bad
2008 · Michelle MacLaren
Walter White, a New Mexico chemistry teacher, is diagnosed with Stage III cancer and given a prognosis of only two years left to live. He becomes filled with a sense of fearlessness and an unrelenting
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End
2023 · Kazutaka Yamanaka
After the party of heroes defeated the Demon King, they restored peace to the land and returned to lives of solitude. Generations pass, and the elven mage Frieren comes face to face with humanity’s m
Avatar: The Last Airbender
2005 · Michael Dante DiMartino
In a war-torn world of elemental magic, a young boy reawakens to undertake a dangerous mystic quest to fulfill his destiny as the Avatar, and bring peace to the world.
