7 best movies like After on Netflix, Hulu and Max
After chronicles the tumultuous relationship between college freshman Tessa Young (Josephine Langford) and the rogueish Hardin Scott (Hero Fiennes Tiffin), and quickly became a veritable tween phenomenon upon its release in 2019.
Despite a mostly negative critical reception — its Rotten Tomatoes score is a mere 18% — After still earned itself a legion of fans and multiple sequels too. But if you’re looking for something to watch after After, then you’ve come to the right place.
Below you’ll find a collection of seven movies that will also get your heart racing. Some of these picks are a little more light-hearted than the non-stop drama you'll find in the After movies, but all of them are seriously swoon-worthy. Plus, they can be watched via some of the best streaming services including Netflix, Hulu and Max.
After We Collided (2020)
The most logical follow-up to After is of course its direct sequel, After We Collided. Set a month after the dramatic climax of its predecessor, Tessa is spending the summer as an intern at a publishing company while Hardin works on reigning in his controlling behavior to prove himself capable of maintaining a normal relationship. But can the perennial boy bad really change his ways, or will his jealousy of Tessa’s new co-worker Trevor (Dylan Sprouse) cause a further rift in their relationship?
After We Collided packs all the same steamy romance and dramatic squabbles that you enjoyed in After, and it also delves further into the characters of both Tessa and Hardin. It was similarly successful to the first movie spawning two further sequels: After We Fell and After Ever Happy. Plus, the next installment in the franchise, After Everything, arrives in September.
Watch on Netflix
The Kissing Booth (2018)
Released a year before After, The Kissing Booth is a Netflix rom-com that stars Joey King as Elle Evans, a higher school making her way through life with her best friend since childhood Lee (Joel Courtney) by her side. There’s just a slight issue, Elle has struck up a spark with brooding senior Noah (Jacob Elordi), who just so happens to be Lee’s older brother. Awkward.
Much like several of the films on this list, The Kissing Booth focuses on a relationship between two people who might not seem initially compatible but quickly form a strong connection. And similar to After, this movie also spawned a larger franchise with The Kissing Booth 2 arriving in 2020 followed by The Kissing Booth 3 a year later in 2021. Persistent rumors of a fourth movie have swirled over the last two years but Netflix hasn’t confirmed one is in development as of yet.
Watch on Netflix
Twilight (2008)
The Twilight Saga needs no introduction, but if you somehow managed to avoid this pop culture juggernaut over the last decade and a half, it’s a fantasy romance franchise based on the best-selling novels by American author Stephenie Meyer.
The first Twilight movie introduces us to Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart), an introverted high schooler who moves from sunny Phoenix, Arizona to rainy Forks, Washington. While settling into her new surrounding, she meets the mysterious Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), and the duo quickly become irrevocably attracted to each other.
The twist is that Edward and his family are secretly vampires, and the pair's budding relationship puts Bella’s very life in danger from a rival coven of blood-suckers who want to make her their next meal.
Watch on Hulu
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018)
Another Netflix original rom-com that became the first part of a larger franchise that now includes two sequels and a spin-off TV show (called XO, Kitty), To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is a sparkling high school comedy that explores what happens when somebody's most intimate feelings are exposed to the whole world.
Lara Jean Covey (Lana Condor) has a habit of writing heartful letters to her crushes before locking them away in secret. Her latest one is addressed to her childhood friend Josh (Israel Broussard), who happens to also be her older sister’s ex-boyfriend. When these seriously private letters are leaked, Lara’s life is thrown into chaos as her crushes confront her demanding an explanation for the letters and she hastily hatches a plan with another of her former crushes, Peter (Noah Centineo), to make Josh jealous.
Watch on Netflix
The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
Get the tissues ready because The Fault in Our Stars is a real tearjerker. Based on the John Green novel of the same name, it stars Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort alongside a strong supporting cast that includes Laura Dern, Nat Wolff and Willem Dafoe.
The film centers on a 16-year-old cancer patient, Hazel Grace Lancaster (Woodley), who is encouraged to attend a support group by her well-meaning but overbearing parents and there meets Augustus “Gus” Waters (Elgort), a former bone cancer patient now in remission. Hazel’s cynical worldview is challenged by Gus and you won’t be surprised to hear that romance blossoms between the pair. But seriously, have a pack of tissues ready for the emotional finale.
Watch on Max
Blue Valentine (2010)
Consider Blue Valentine almost like the grownup version of After, it offers an unflinching portrayal of a passionate but ultimately doomed relationship between a high-school dropout and an aspiring doctor. Starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, it’s a devastatingly true-to-life romantic drama.
The film is presented in a nonlinear fashion with scenes regularly jumping between the beginning and the end of the central relationship between Dean (Gosling) and Cindy (Williams). This serves only to heighten the drama, and when scenes of their rocky marriage crumbling are interspersed with moments that showcase their happy early courtship the emotional impact is devastating. Just make sure you’re in the right frame of mind ahead because Blue Valentine is a heavy watch.
Watch on Max
The Spectacular Now (2013)
The Spectacular Now is a criminally under-watched coming-of-age drama that focuses on the unlikely relationship between two high-school seniors, charismatic slacker Sutter Keely (Miles Teller) and the bright but shy Aimee Finecky (Shailene Woodley). The duo does not seem like a match on paper, but opposites attract and after a chance encounter they strike up a friendship that quickly develops into something more romantic.
The chemistry between Teller and Woodley is what really helps keep The Spectacular Now engrossing even when the plot strays into predictable territory. There’s a side plot about Sutter’s estranged father that adds some family drama to the mix, but again it’s rather formulaic. Fortunately, the two leading performances are so good you’ll likely fall in love with this little indie movie regardless of its very routine story beats.
Watch on Max
