Best Movies like The Hunger Games (2012)

Battle Royale and The Hunger Games each depict a dystopian society forcing young people into deadly combat for the entertainment or control of the elite. Both stories center on survival within a brutal, state-sanctioned game, exploring the consequences of pitting peers against each other under authoritarian rule.

In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill each other under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act. Battle Royale is a movie from Japan in Japanese, with a total 1h 53m runtime, released in 2000 with an average rating of 7.3 by 3,896 people. The movie made an estimated total of $30,600,000 in the box office.

The Maze Runner features a group of young people trapped in an enclosed, hazardous environment where survival hinges on teamwork and resourcefulness, mirroring the life-or-death stakes and youth-centric cast found in The Hunger Games, all set against a mysterious and oppressive system.

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, he begins to uncover clues that may lead to escape and the truth behind their confinement. The Maze Runner is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 53m runtime, released in 2014 with an average rating of 7.2 by 18,308 people. The movie made an estimated total of $348,319,861 in the box office.

In The Running Man, participants are forced into a televised fight for survival by a totalitarian regime, sharing with The Hunger Games a spectacle of violence and government control, where entertainment and punishment intersect within a dystopian framework.

By 2017, the global economy has collapsed and U.S. society has become a totalitarian police state, censoring all cultural activity. The government pacifies the populace by broadcasting a number of game shows in which convicted criminals fight for their lives, including the gladiator-style The Running Man, hosted by the ruthless Damon Killian, where “runners” attempt to evade “stalkers” and certain death for a chance to be pardoned and set free. The Running Man is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 41m runtime, released in 1987 with an average rating of 6.5 by 2,906 people. The movie made an estimated total of $38,122,105 in the box office.

Snowpiercer explores life under an authoritarian society, with strict divisions enforced by a powerful elite on a confined train. Themes of rebellion against systemic oppression and survival in a stratified dystopia echo core aspects of The Hunger Games.

In a future where a failed global-warming experiment kills off most life on the planet, a class system evolves aboard the Snowpiercer; a train that travels around the globe via a perpetual-motion engine. Snowpiercer is a movie from South Korea in Korean, with a total 2h 7m runtime, released in 2013 with an average rating of 6.9 by 10,549 people. The movie made an estimated total of $86,758,912 in the box office.

The Condemned involves captives being coerced to fight to the death as entertainment for a viewing audience, tying it directly to the competition-for-survival premise and societal critique found in The Hunger Games’ deadly televised event.

Jack Conrad is awaiting the death penalty in a corrupt Central American prison. He is "purchased" by a wealthy television producer and taken to a desolate island where he must fight to the death against nine other condemned killers from all corners of the world, with freedom going to the sole survivor. The Condemned is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 54m runtime, released in 2007 with an average rating of 6.1 by 894 people. The movie made an estimated total of $8,600,000 in the box office.

Like The Hunger Games, The Belko Experiment thrusts individuals into a brutal contest for survival orchestrated by unseen authorities, using the forced competition to dissect human behavior under extreme pressure and control.

A group of eighty American workers are locked in their office and ordered by an unknown voice to participate in a twisted game. The Belko Experiment is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 29m runtime, released in 2017 with an average rating of 6.2 by 1,695 people. The movie made an estimated total of $11,792,942 in the box office.

Death Race centers on prisoners forced to participate in a deadly competition for the amusement of others, paralleling the theme of involuntary contestants caught in a lethal game controlled by those in power, as found in The Hunger Games.

Terminal Island, New York: 2020. Overcrowding in the US penal system has reached a breaking point. Prisons have been turned over to a monolithic Weyland Corporation, which sees jails full of thugs as an opportunity for televised sport. Adrenalized inmates, a global audience hungry for violence and a spectacular, enclosed arena come together to form the 'Death Race', the biggest, most brutal event. Death Race is a movie from United Kingdom in English, with a total 1h 45m runtime, released in 2008 with an average rating of 6.3 by 4,207 people. The movie made an estimated total of $76,000,000 in the box office.

Lord of the Flies features a group of young people isolated and left to their own devices, exploring survival, group dynamics, and violence, offering a classic narrative of youth pushed to extremes that aligns with The Hunger Games’ focus.

Following a plane crash a group of schoolboys find themselves on a deserted island. They appoint a leader and attempt to create an organized society for the sake of their survival. Democracy and order soon begin to crumble when a breakaway faction regresses to savagery with horrifying consequences. Lord of the Flies is a movie from United Kingdom in English, with a total 1h 32m runtime, released in 1963 with an average rating of 6.7 by 585 people.

The Giver, like The Hunger Games, is set in a controlled dystopian society where the protagonist discovers the dark truths behind their community’s stability, prompting resistance and personal awakening amid themes of loss and manufactured order.

In a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world. The Giver is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 37m runtime, released in 2014 with an average rating of 6.6 by 4,674 people. The movie made an estimated total of $66,980,456 in the box office.

Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials follows young survivors navigating a dangerous dystopian world designed to challenge and test them, much like The Hunger Games’ continued exploration of alliances, threats, and authoritarian oversight of youth.

Thomas and his fellow Gladers face their greatest challenge yet: searching for clues about the mysterious and powerful organization known as WCKD. Their journey takes them to the Scorch, a desolate landscape filled with unimaginable obstacles. Teaming up with resistance fighters, the Gladers take on WCKD’s vastly superior forces and uncover its shocking plans for them all. Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 2h 11m runtime, released in 2015 with an average rating of 6.7 by 11,157 people. The movie made an estimated total of $312,296,056 in the box office.

Ender's Game involves young protagonists trained and manipulated by a militaristic regime in a future society, echoing The Hunger Games’ thematic focus on youth thrust into life-or-death scenarios for the benefit of their rulers.

Based on the classic novel by Orson Scott Card, Ender's Game is the story of the Earth's most gifted children training to defend their homeplanet in the space wars of the future. Ender's Game is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 54m runtime, released in 2013 with an average rating of 6.6 by 6,345 people. The movie made an estimated total of $125,537,191 in the box office.

TRON: Legacy tackles the concept of individuals forced into perilous games within an artificial, oppressive system, resonating with the structure and stakes of The Hunger Games’ televised arena of survival.

Sam Flynn, the tech-savvy and daring son of Kevin Flynn, investigates his father's disappearance and is pulled into The Grid. With the help of a mysterious program named Quorra, Sam quests to stop evil dictator Clu from crossing into the real world. TRON: Legacy is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 2h 6m runtime, released in 2010 with an average rating of 6.5 by 8,048 people. The movie made an estimated total of $409,912,892 in the box office.

Divergent presents a dystopian society demanding conformity, where a young woman must survive dangerous, state-imposed trials, paralleling The Hunger Games’ narrative about challenging societal divisions and oppressive control.

In a world divided into factions based on personality types, Tris learns that she's been classified as Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late. Divergent is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 2h 20m runtime, released in 2014 with an average rating of 6.9 by 13,605 people. The movie made an estimated total of $288,885,818 in the box office.

In Ready or Not, a protagonist is hunted as part of a deadly ritual organized by a privileged group. This premise of an unwilling participant in a game of survival draws thematic parallels to the forced competitions in The Hunger Games.

A young bride's wedding night turns into her worst nightmare when her ridiculously rich in-laws force her to play a gruesome game of hide-and-seek. Ready or Not is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 36m runtime, released in 2019 with an average rating of 7.1 by 5,720 people. The movie made an estimated total of $57,615,777 in the box office.

The Circle delves into surveillance, public scrutiny, and societal pressure within a dominant system, linking it thematically to The Hunger Games’ depiction of public spectacle, manipulation, and the erosion of privacy for the sake of control.

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. She comes to learn that her decisions and actions will determine the future of humanity. The Circle is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 50m runtime, released in 2017 with an average rating of 5.5 by 4,614 people. The movie made an estimated total of $40,651,864 in the box office.

The 5th Wave places its young heroine in a world ravaged by successive calamities, where adapting to constant threats and overcoming a hostile environment highlight themes of survival and resistance found in The Hunger Games.

16-year-old Cassie Sullivan tries to survive in a world devastated by the waves of an alien invasion that has already decimated the population and knocked mankind back to the Stone Age. The 5th Wave is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 52m runtime, released in 2016 with an average rating of 5.9 by 6,097 people. The movie made an estimated total of $109,906,372 in the box office.

Equilibrium unpacks life in a hyper-controlled, emotionless dystopian society where rebellion is met with violence, overlapping with The Hunger Games’ portrayal of oppression, individual agency, and state-imposed conformity.

In a dystopian future, a totalitarian regime maintains peace by subduing the populace with a drug, and displays of emotion are punishable by death. A man in charge of enforcing the law rises to overthrow the system. Equilibrium is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 47m runtime, released in 2002 with an average rating of 7.1 by 5,115 people. The movie made an estimated total of $5,400,000 in the box office.

The Purge introduces a society where lethal lawlessness is sanctioned annually, scrutinizing the morality and implications of state-approved violence—concepts that resonate with The Hunger Games’ organized brutality for authoritarian ends.

Given the country's overcrowded prisons, the U.S. government begins to allow 12-hour periods of time in which all illegal activity is legal. During one of these free-for-alls, a family must protect themselves from a home invasion. The Purge is a movie from France in English, with a total 1h 25m runtime, released in 2013 with an average rating of 6.2 by 8,922 people. The movie made an estimated total of $91,266,581 in the box office.

Surviving the Game follows a protagonist hunted for sport by a predatory elite, reflecting the dynamic in The Hunger Games where individuals are forced to endure and outwit life-threatening dangers for others’ entertainment.

A homeless man is hired as a survival guide for a group of wealthy businessmen on a hunting trip in the mountains, unaware that they are killers who hunt humans for sport, and that he is their new prey. Surviving the Game is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 36m runtime, released in 1994 with an average rating of 6.1 by 221 people. The movie made an estimated total of $7,690,013 in the box office.

Escape Room features characters placed in a series of traps by unknown organizers, sharing The Hunger Games’ themes of manipulated survival scenarios and the use of deadly games as a tool for testing or controlling participants.

Six strangers find themselves in circumstances beyond their control, and must use their wits to survive. Escape Room is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 39m runtime, released in 2019 with an average rating of 6.5 by 5,117 people. The movie made an estimated total of $155,712,077 in the box office.

Nerve centers on a high-stakes, audience-driven game where players risk their safety for public consumption, tying into The Hunger Games’ critical take on spectacle, consent, and the consequences of performance under social pressure.

Industrious high school senior Vee Delmonico has had it with living life on the sidelines. When pressured by friends to join the popular online game Nerve, Vee decides to sign up for just one dare in what seems like harmless fun. But as she finds herself caught up in the thrill of the adrenaline-fueled competition partnered with a mysterious stranger, the game begins to take a sinister turn with increasingly dangerous acts, leading her into a high stakes finale that will determine her entire future. Nerve is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 36m runtime, released in 2016 with an average rating of 7.0 by 7,064 people. The movie made an estimated total of $85,241,496 in the box office.

Rollerball depicts a future in which a violent sport, controlled by powerful interests, serves as entertainment and social distraction, paralleling The Hunger Games’ regime-sanctioned deathmatches designed to enforce submission and maintain order.

In a corporate-controlled future, an ultra-violent sport known as Rollerball represents the world, and one of its powerful athletes is out to defy those who want him out of the game. Rollerball is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 2h 5m runtime, released in 1975 with an average rating of 6.3 by 625 people. The movie made an estimated total of $30,000,000 in the box office.

Logan's Run presents a society that eliminates its citizens at a prescribed age to maintain control, echoing The Hunger Games’ focus on systemic population management and youth caught in the machinery of a dystopian society.

In the 23rd century, inhabitants of a domed city freely experience all of life's pleasures — but no one is allowed to live past 30. Citizens can try for a chance at being "renewed" in a civic ceremony on their 30th birthday. Escape is the only other option. Logan's Run is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 58m runtime, released in 1976 with an average rating of 6.6 by 1,056 people. The movie made an estimated total of $25,000,000 in the box office.

Cube isolates a group of strangers in a deadly, puzzle-filled structure where survival demands cooperation and ingenuity, sharing The Hunger Games’ enclosed setting and the psychological tension produced by artificial constraints and mortal peril.

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. Cube is a movie from Canada in English, with a total 1h 30m runtime, released in 1998 with an average rating of 6.8 by 5,314 people. The movie made an estimated total of $8,969,065 in the box office.

They Shoot Horses, Don't They? stages characters competing in an endurance contest during difficult times, drawing a parallel to The Hunger Games’ critique of competitive spectacle and the exploitation of personal struggle for public entertainment.

In the midst of the Great Depression, manipulative emcee Rocky enlists contestants for a dance marathon offering a $1,500 cash prize. Among them are a failed actress, a middle-aged sailor, a delusional blonde and a pregnant girl. They Shoot Horses, Don't They? is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 2h 0m runtime, released in 1969 with an average rating of 7.6 by 375 people.

Fahrenheit 451 sets its story in an authoritarian society dictating knowledge and expression, aligning with The Hunger Games’ exploration of resistance to state control and the perils of enforced conformity in a stratified dystopia.

In the future, the government maintains control of public opinion by outlawing literature and maintaining a group of enforcers, known as “firemen,” to perform the necessary book burnings. Fireman Montag begins to question the morality of his vocation… Fahrenheit 451 is a movie from United Kingdom in English, with a total 1h 53m runtime, released in 1966 with an average rating of 7.1 by 1,090 people. The movie made an estimated total of $2,000,000 in the box office.

Dogville shows an isolated community where an outsider becomes a subject of collective judgment and cruelty, sharing The Hunger Games’ exploration of social dynamics, power imbalances, and the consequences of group-enforced morality.

A woman on the run from the mob is reluctantly accepted in a small Colorado community in exchange for labor, but when a search visits the town, she learns that their support has a price. Dogville is a movie from Denmark in English, with a total 2h 58m runtime, released in 2003 with an average rating of 7.8 by 2,728 people. The movie made an estimated total of $16,690,617 in the box office.

V for Vendetta highlights rebellion against a suppressive regime in a future society, paralleling The Hunger Games’ themes of defiance, personal sacrifice, and the fight against despotic control exercised through fear and spectacle.

In a world in which Great Britain has become a fascist state, a masked vigilante known only as “V” conducts guerrilla warfare against the oppressive British government. When V rescues a young woman from the secret police, he finds in her an ally with whom he can continue his fight to free the people of Britain. V for Vendetta is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 2h 12m runtime, released in 2006 with an average rating of 7.9 by 15,760 people. The movie made an estimated total of $134,686,457 in the box office.

Never Let Me Go explores young people discovering the grim reality of their existence within a tightly controlled system, mirroring The Hunger Games’ focus on innocence lost and the impact of discovering the manipulations of authority.

As children, Kathy, Ruth, and Tommy spend their childhood at an idyllic and secluded English boarding school. As they grow into adults, they must come to terms with the complexity and strength of their love for one another while also preparing for the haunting reality awaiting them. Never Let Me Go is a movie from United Kingdom in English, with a total 1h 44m runtime, released in 2010 with an average rating of 6.9 by 2,509 people. The movie made an estimated total of $9,918,093 in the box office.

Death Race 2000 features a government-organized, televised competition pitting participants against each other in lethal circumstances, echoing The Hunger Games’ premise of spectacle-driven violence under authoritarian oversight.

In a boorish future, the government sponsors a popular, but bloody, cross-country race in which points are scored by mowing down pedestrians. Five teams, each comprised of a male and female, compete using cars equipped with deadly weapons. Frankenstein, the mysterious returning champion, has become America's hero, but this time he has a passenger from the underground resistance. Death Race 2000 is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 20m runtime, released in 1975 with an average rating of 6.2 by 580 people. The movie made an estimated total of $8,000,000 in the box office.

The Signal involves characters confronting the hidden manipulations of a mysterious system, touching on The Hunger Games’ themes of control, false realities, and the unraveling of larger conspiracies by young protagonists.

On a road trip, Nic and two friends are drawn to an isolated area by a computer genius. When everything suddenly goes dark, Nic regains consciousness – only to find himself in a waking nightmare. The Signal is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 37m runtime, released in 2014 with an average rating of 6.0 by 1,877 people. The movie made an estimated total of $2,665,322 in the box office.

Circle places individuals in a room and forces them to make decisions determining who survives, directly engaging with themes of arbitrary selection, psychological conflict, and societal scrutiny similar to The Hunger Games’ set-up.

In a massive, mysterious chamber, fifty strangers awaken to find themselves trapped with no memory of how they got there. Organized in an inward-facing circle and unable to move, they quickly learn that every two minutes, one of them must die…executed by a strange device in the center of the room. Circle is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 26m runtime, released in 2015 with an average rating of 6.0 by 2,152 people.

The Wild Boys features a youthful cast navigating surreal and dangerous circumstances, examining identity and survival in an extreme environment, themes that also underpin the narrative structure of The Hunger Games.

Island of La Réunion, in the beginning of the 20th century. Five teenagers commit a savage crime. As punishment, a Dutch captain takes them to a supernatural island with luxuriant vegetation and bewitching powers. The Wild Boys is a movie from France in French, with a total 1h 51m runtime, released in 2017 with an average rating of 6.5 by 172 people.

The Platform sets its story in a vertical prison where resources are forcibly redistributed from top to bottom, critiquing systemic inequality and forced competition, resonating with The Hunger Games’ dystopian structure and survival-driven conflict.

A slab of food descends down a vertical facility. The residents above eat heartily, leaving those below starving and desperate. A rebellion is imminent. The Platform is a movie from Spain in Spanish, with a total 1h 35m runtime, released in 2019 with an average rating of 7.0 by 7,919 people. The movie made an estimated total of $1,090,116 in the box office.

The Most Dangerous Game revolves around a person being hunted for sport by a wealthy antagonist, paralleling the unnatural contest and entertainment value extracted from human suffering present in The Hunger Games’ central spectacle.

When legendary hunter Bob Rainsford is shipwrecked on the perilous reefs surrounding a mysterious island, he finds himself the guest of the reclusive and eccentric Count Zaroff. While he is very gracious at first, Zaroff eventually forces Rainsford and two other shipwreck survivors, brother and sister Eve and Martin Towbridge, to participate in a sadistic game of cat and mouse in which they are the prey and he is the hunter. The Most Dangerous Game is a movie from United States of America in English, with a total 1h 3m runtime, released in 1932 with an average rating of 6.9 by 318 people. The movie made an estimated total of $443,000 in the box office.