The X-Files

50 Movies Like The X-Files (1998) You Need to Watch Next

1998·Rob BowmaniRank67
MysteryScience FictionThriller

Mulder and Scully, now taken off the FBI's X Files cases, must find a way to fight the shadowy elements of the government to find out the truth about a conspiracy that might mean the alien colonizatio

Updated June 2026

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If you loved The X-Files (1998) by Rob Bowman, 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 Limitless, Cube, Transcendence. 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.

50 Movies Similar to The X-Files

Limitless

Limitless

100

2011 · Neil Burger

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

The life of an unsuccessful writer is transformed by a top-secret 'smart drug' that allows him to use 100% of his brain and become a perfect version of himself. His enhanced abilities soon attract sha

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Cube

Cube

100

1998 · Vincenzo Natali

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

A group of strangers find themselves trapped in a maze-like prison. It soon becomes clear that each of them possesses the peculiar skills necessary to escape, if they don't wind up dead first.

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Transcendence

Transcendence

88

2014 · Wally Pfister

MovieDramaMysteryScience Fiction

Two leading computer scientists work toward their goal of Technological Singularity, as a radical anti-technology organization fights to prevent them from creating a world where computers can transce

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

Hypnotic

Hypnotic

87

2023 · Robert Rodriguez

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

A detective becomes entangled in a mystery involving his missing daughter and a secret government program while investigating a string of reality-bending crimes.

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Super 8

Super 8

86

2011 · J.J. Abrams

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

In late 1970s Ohio, a group of friends filming a homemade zombie movie witness a devastating train derailment. Soon after, their quiet town is gripped by unexplained disappearances, strange phenomena,

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Source Code

Source Code

85

2011 · Duncan Jones

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

When decorated soldier Captain Colter Stevens wakes up in the body of an unknown man, he discovers he's part of a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train.

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Odd Thomas

Odd Thomas

82

2013 · Stephen Sommers

MovieMysteryThriller

In a California desert town, a short-order cook with clairvoyant abilities encounters a mysterious man with a link to dark, threatening forces.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Angels & Demons

Angels & Demons

82

2009 · Ron Howard

MovieMysteryThriller

Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is recruited by the Vatican to investigate the apparent return of the Illuminati – a secret, underground organization – after four cardinals are kidnapped on the nig

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Sunshine

Sunshine

82

2007 · Danny Boyle

MovieScience FictionThriller

Fifty years into the future, the sun is dying, and Earth is threatened by arctic temperatures. A team of astronauts is sent to revive the Sun — but the mission fails. Seven years later, a new team is

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Happening

The Happening

82

2008 · M. Night Shyamalan

MovieScience FictionThriller

When a deadly airborne virus threatens to wipe out the northeastern United States, teacher Elliot Moore and his wife Alma flee from contaminated cities into the countryside in a fight to discover the

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

Brick

Brick

82

2025 · Philip Koch

MovieScience FictionThriller

When a mysterious brick wall encloses their apartment building overnight, Tim and Olivia must unite with their wary neighbors to get out alive.

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code

80

2006 · Ron Howard

MovieMysteryThriller

A murder in Paris’ Louvre Museum and cryptic clues in some of Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous paintings lead to the discovery of a religious mystery. For 2,000 years a secret society closely guards in

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Enemy

Enemy

80

2014 · Denis Villeneuve

MovieMysteryThriller

A mild-mannered college professor discovers a look-alike actor and delves into the other man's private affairs.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Fourth Kind

The Fourth Kind

77

2009 · Olatunde Osunsanmi

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

Since the 1960s, a disproportionate number of the population in and around Nome, Alaska, have gone missing. Despite FBI investigations, the disappearances remain a mystery. Dr. Abigail Tyler, a psycho

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Knowing

Knowing

77

2009 · Alex Proyas

MovieActionMysteryScience Fiction

A teacher opens a time capsule that has been dug up at his son's elementary school; in it are some chilling predictions -- some that have already occurred and others that are about to -- that lead him

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

The Invasion

The Invasion

77

2007 · Oliver Hirschbiegel

MovieHorrorMysteryScience Fiction

Washington, D.C. psychologist Carol Bennell and her colleague Dr. Ben Driscoll are the only two people on Earth who are aware of an epidemic running rampant through the city. They discover an alien vi

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner

77

2014 · Wes Ball

MovieActionMysteryScience Fiction

A teenager with no memory of his past finds himself among a group of boys living in a walled enclosure surrounded by a massive, ever-changing maze. As he struggles to adapt to their rules and society,

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

What Happened to Monday

What Happened to Monday

77

2017 · Tommy Wirkola

MovieActionMysteryScience Fiction

In a world where families are limited to one child due to overpopulation, a set of identical septuplets must avoid being put to a long sleep by the government and dangerous infighting while investigat

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

Don't Worry Darling

Don't Worry Darling

75

2022 · Olivia Wilde

MovieHorrorMysteryScience Fiction

Alice and Jack are lucky to be living in the idealized community of Victory, the experimental company town housing the men who work for the top-secret Victory Project and their families. But when crac

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

Fire in the Sky

Fire in the Sky

73

1993 · Rob Lieberman

MovieDramaMysteryScience Fiction

After clearing brush for the government, a group of men return to town claiming their friend was abducted. Despite no apparent motive or evidence of foul play, no-one believes their story and his disa

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

Pandorum

Pandorum

69

2009 · Christian Alvart

MovieActionHorrorMystery

Two crew members wake up on an abandoned spacecraft with no idea who they are, how long they've been asleep, or what their mission is. The two soon discover they're actually not alone – and the realit

In common: Mystery

Gosford Park

Gosford Park

68

2001 · Robert Altman

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

In 1930s England, a group of pretentious rich and famous gather together for a weekend of relaxation at a hunting resort. But when a murder occurs, each one of these interesting characters becomes a s

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Disturbia

Disturbia

68

2007 · D.J. Caruso

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

Kale has a life most teenagers would envy. He spends his days endlessly playing video games, surfing the net, eating junk food and watching cable. He has complete free reign of the house, and a beauti

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Circle

The Circle

68

2017 · James Ponsoldt

MovieDramaScience FictionThriller

A young tech worker takes a job at a powerful Internet corporation, quickly rises up the company's ranks, and soon finds herself in a perilous situation concerning privacy, surveillance and freedom. S

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Village

The Village

68

2004 · M. Night Shyamalan

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

When a willful young man tries to venture beyond his sequestered Pennsylvania hamlet, his actions set off a chain of chilling incidents that will alter the community forever.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Replicas

Replicas

68

2018 · Jeffrey Nachmanoff

MovieDramaScience FictionThriller

A scientist becomes obsessed with returning his family to normalcy after a terrible accident.

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

Chloe

Chloe

68

2010 · Atom Egoyan

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

Catherine and David Stewart are a well-to-do couple living in a posh area of Toronto, but all is not well in paradise. Catherine suspects that David is cheating on her, so she hires an escort named Ch

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Prestige

The Prestige

68

2006 · Christopher Nolan

MovieDramaMysteryScience Fiction

A mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy -- full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

Contact

Contact

68

1997 · Robert Zemeckis

MovieDramaMysteryScience Fiction

A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction

Twelve Monkeys

Twelve Monkeys

68

1995 · Terry Gilliam

MovieMysteryScience FictionThriller

In the year 2035, convict James Cole reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to discover the origin of a deadly virus that wiped out nearly all of the earth's population and forced the survivor

In common: Mystery · Science Fiction · Thriller

Red Sparrow

Red Sparrow

68

2018 · Francis Lawrence

MovieMysteryThriller

Prima ballerina Dominika Egorova faces a bleak and uncertain future after she suffers an injury that ends her career. She soon turns to Sparrow School, a secret intelligence service that trains except

In common: Mystery · Thriller

A Perfect Getaway

A Perfect Getaway

68

2009 · David Twohy

MovieAdventureMysteryThriller

For their honeymoon, newlyweds Cliff and Cydney head to the tropical islands of Hawaii. While journeying through the paradisaical countryside the couple encounters Kale and Cleo, two disgruntled hitch

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Eyes Wide Shut

Eyes Wide Shut

68

1999 · Stanley Kubrick

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

After Dr. Bill Harford's wife, Alice, admits to having sexual fantasies about a man she met, Bill becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter. He discovers an underground sexual group and attends

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Invisible Guest

The Invisible Guest

68

2017 · Oriol Paulo

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

Barcelona, Spain. Adrián Doria, a young and successful businessman accused of murder, meets one night with Virginia Goodman, an expert interrogation lawyer, in order to devise a defense strategy.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Rear Window

Rear Window

68

1954 · Alfred Hitchcock

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

A wheelchair-bound photographer spies on his neighbors from his apartment window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Monster

Monster

68

2023 · Hirokazu Kore-eda

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

After an outburst at school involving her son, a concerned single mother demands answers, triggering a sequence of deepening suspicion and turmoil.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Game

The Game

68

1997 · David Fincher

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

In honor of his birthday, San Francisco banker Nicholas Van Orton, a financial genius and a cold-hearted loner, receives an unusual present from his younger brother, Conrad: a gift certificate to play

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Wild Things

Wild Things

68

1998 · John McNaughton

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

When teen-socialite Kelly Van Ryan and troubled bad girl Suzie Toller accuse guidance counselor Sam Lombardo of rape, he's suspended by the school, rejected by the town, and fighting to get his life b

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

68

2017 · Yorgos Lanthimos

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

Dr. Steven Murphy is a renowned cardiovascular surgeon who presides over a spotless household with his wife and two children. Lurking at the margins of his idyllic suburban existence is Martin, a fath

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Name of the Rose

The Name of the Rose

68

1986 · Jean-Jacques Annaud

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

14th-century Franciscan monk William of Baskerville and his young novice arrive at a conference to find that several monks have been murdered under mysterious circumstances. To solve the crimes, Willi

In common: Mystery · Thriller

The Firm

The Firm

68

1993 · Sydney Pollack

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

Mitch McDeere is a young man with a promising future in Law. About to sit his Bar exam, he is approached by 'The Firm' and made an offer he doesn't refuse. Seduced by the money and gifts showered on h

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Murder on the Orient Express

Murder on the Orient Express

68

1974 · Sidney Lumet

MovieDramaMysteryThriller

In 1935, when his train is stopped by deep snow, detective Hercule Poirot is called on to solve a murder that occurred in his car the night before.

In common: Mystery · Thriller

Greenland 2: Migration

Greenland 2: Migration

68

2026 · Ric Roman Waugh

MovieAdventureScience FictionThriller

Having found the safety of the Greenland bunker after the comet Clarke decimated the Earth, the Garrity family must now risk everything to embark on a perilous journey across the wasteland of Europe t

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

Jurassic World Dominion

Jurassic World Dominion

68

2022 · Colin Trevorrow

MovieAdventureScience FictionThriller

Four years after Isla Nublar was destroyed, dinosaurs now live—and hunt—alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

68

2018 · J. A. Bayona

MovieAdventureScience FictionThriller

Three years after Jurassic World was destroyed, Isla Nublar now sits abandoned. When the island's dormant volcano begins roaring to life, Owen and Claire mount a campaign to rescue the remaining dinos

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Day After Tomorrow

The Day After Tomorrow

68

2004 · Roland Emmerich

MovieAdventureScience FictionThriller

After paleoclimatologist Jack Hall is largely ignored by UN officials when presenting his environmental concerns about the beginning of a new Ice Age, his research proves true when a superstorm develo

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

Contagion

Contagion

68

2011 · Steven Soderbergh

MovieDramaScience FictionThriller

As an epidemic of a lethal airborne virus - that kills within days - rapidly grows, the worldwide medical community races to find a cure and control the panic that spreads faster than the virus itself

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Abyss

The Abyss

68

1989 · James Cameron

MovieAdventureScience FictionThriller

A civilian oil rig crew is recruited to conduct a search and rescue effort when a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks. One diver soon finds himself on a spectacular odyssey 25,000 feet below the ocea

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Platform

The Platform

68

2019 · Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia

MovieDramaScience FictionThriller

A slab of food descends down a vertical facility. The residents above eat heartily, leaving those below starving and desperate. A rebellion is imminent.

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller

The Core

The Core

68

2003 · Jon Amiel

MovieAdventureScience FictionThriller

Geophysicist Dr. Josh Keyes discovers that an unknown force has caused the earth's inner core to stop rotating. With the planet's magnetic field rapidly deteriorating, our atmosphere literally starts

In common: Science Fiction · Thriller