From spooky favorites like Sinister to multiverse-hopping hits like Doctor Strange, director Scott Derrickson is no stranger to horror and sci-fi. In The Gorge, he combines the best of both genres and delivers a sci-fi horror thriller with a forbidden love story at its center.
After months of guarding opposite sides of a giant gorge, elite snipers Levi Kane (Miles Teller) and Drasa (Anya Taylor-Joy) break one of the site’s biggest rules: no contact. What follows is a forbidden love story further complicated by sci-fi horrors and dark secrets. While replicating this particular breed of sci-fi romance is tricky, other movies come pretty close. Some feature romance prevailing among sci-fi scares or heinous horror, while others delve in similar themes of survival and corruption. If that sounds like a watch night treat, here are the 10 best movies to check out next if you consider yourself a fan of Apple TV's The Gorge.
#Alive (2020)
Directed by Cho II-hyung, #Alive is more horror than sci-fi. However, its resemblance to The Gorge is uncanny, at least in plot and theme. After a zombie apocalypse traps Oh Joon-woo (Yoo Ah-in) in his apartment, he befriends Kim Yoo-bin, a young woman (Park Shin-hye) in the apartment across from him. Much like The Gorge, the two begin communication from afar before deciding to make contact.
If you like the idea of two strangers connecting across distances as high-stakes horror plays out around them, #Alive deserves the next spot on your watch list. Just know the movie keeps Oh Joon-woo and Kim Yoo-bin's relationship platonic. While that's surely disappointing news for romance fans, horror heads who dig zombie action will find a competent story about survival and friendship in this Korean Netflix staple.
Spring (2014)
After the death of his mother, Evan (Lou Taylor Pucci) goes soul-searching in Italy. Little does he know that Louise (Nadia Hilker), the woman he catches feelings for, harbors a dark, monstrous secret. Considered a romantic body horror movie by all accounts, Spring's monster plot will appeal to fans of Warm Bodies and Only Lovers Left Alive, given the similar themes.
However, it is also perfect for viewers who enjoyed The Gorge's softer love story moments. At its core, Spring tells the story of two people who choose each other, even with the odds stacked against them. If The Gorge's romance is what you came for, then Spring makes a wonderful follow-up film.
Arrival (2016)
Arrival collected a plethora of Oscar nominations and critical praise upon its release in 2016, and when you consider the director, it's no surprise as to why. Going on to direct sci-fi favorites like Blade Runner 2049, Dune, and Dune: Part Two, Denis Villeneuve knows how to blend science fiction, atmospheric visuals, and character-driven stories into a satisfying concoction.
In Arrival, he delivers a unique tale about a linguistics professor (Amy Adams) sent to initiate communication with aliens. However, her relationship with a physicist (Jeremy Renner) leads to romance and unexpected developments. While romance isn't the main focal point of Arrival's extraterrestrial plot, it adds depth and emotional weight to its leads. If you don't mind the romance playing out in the background, Arrival is a sure hit for fans of The Gorge or Villeneuve's trademark style.
10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
At first glance, 10 Cloverfield Lane doesn't appear to have much in common with The Gorge, but both excel at putting characters in isolating situations that encourage trust among people. Here, Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) finds herself stuck in an underground bunker with two men (John Goodman and John Gallagher Jr.) after an extraterrestrial attack allegedly leaves the Earth's surface uninhabitable. However, to say anything more would be an injustice to the plot.
If The Gorge's mystery kept you engrossed, 10 Cloverfield Lane will keep you glued to the screen with shocking reveals. An early win for Dan Trachtenberg, anyone familiar with the director's later work (Prey, Predator: Badlands, and episodes of Black Mirror) will recognize his talent for blending sci-fi action with character-driven plots. Although technically part of the Cloverfield franchise, 10 Cloverfield Lane ditches its predecessor's found footage vibe for a third-person, standalone entry sure to engross sci-fi horror fans.
The Cabin in the Woods (2011)
The Cabin in the Woods sits more firmly in the horror genre, as it follows a group of college students whose vacation at a remote cabin gets upended by monsters. Like The Gorge, there is more to the events than meets the eye, and the movie delves into a larger conspiracy plotline that spotlights just how nefarious people can be.
Sci-fi mainstay Sigourney Weaver also plays a small role in The Cabin in the Woods, delivering a performance and character on par with her villainous covert in The Gorge. If The Gorge's buried secrets suited your fancy, The Cabin in the Woods is all about well-kept secrets and sinister government agendas.
The Mist (2007)
Based on a Stephen King novella, The Mist has one of the most infamous endings in cinema history—seriously. The film follows a ragtag group of people trapped in a supermarket after a peculiar mist descends on the town. Much like Levi and Drasa's descent into the gorge, The Mist's motley crew of survivors find themselves at a significant disadvantage, with cosmic creatures lurking in obscured surroundings.
Largely considered a sci-fi horror classic, The Mist is for anyone craving more monstrous scares. With extraterrestrials lurking in the titular mist, tension ramps up similarly to The Gorge's foggy creature encounters, just with a much different setting.
A Quiet Place (2018)
In A Quiet Place, deadly aliens with acute hearing have invaded Earth, and as the Abbott family quickly learns, one wrong sound could mean death. While A Quiet Place is much more apocalyptic than The Gorge, both movies conjure similar feelings of isolation, suspense, and terror.
As a bonus, A Quiet Place tosses in a little romance between Evelyn (Emily Blunt) and Lee Abbott (John Krasinski). As an established married couple before the start of the apocalypse, the duo's love for each other translates through tender moments and subtle gestures as opposed to clichéd gestures of grandeur. You get to know these people, making their battle for survival all the more terror-inducing.
Prey (2022)
Part of the massive Predator franchise, Prey pits a young Comanche woman named Naru (Amber Midthunder) against the series' titular alien. Set in 1719, Prey's historical setting adds uniqueness to the usual "human vs. creature" genre fare—a trend that continues in Dan Trachtenberg's later Predator installments.
Similar to The Gorge, one of Naru's biggest obstacles is facing an unknown enemy out in the wilderness. It's tense, scary, and also wildly fun. If sci-fi horror is your thing, Prey is a must-watch. And if you consider yourself a Predator fan, Prey blows the other movies out of the water. Honestly, Predator (1987) might be second best.
The Hunger Games (2012)
The Hunger Games franchise revolves around a televised event that forces adolescents to fight to the death until only one winner remains. While 24 contestants enter, 2012's The Hunger Games primarily focuses on Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), two friends who are pushed even closer together given the dire circumstances—and yes, we get some romance here.
Despite its dystopian label, The Hunger Games shares thematic DNA with The Gorge. Both movies provide ample commentary on government corruption while using the love and devotion between two people to anchor their stories in humanity. If you like sci-fi, romance, and movies with something to say, The Hunger Games remains one of the best dystopian stories of all time.
Ex Machina (2014)
You might know him as the writer of the horror classic 28 Days Later, but Alex Garland's directorial debut delves headfirst into the sci-fi genre. Ex Machina sends Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson) to the luxurious but isolated mansion of Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac) with the mission of studying Bateman's humanoid robot Ava (Alicia Vikander). What initially appears as an unusual love story soon unravels into twisty chaos.
Plot-wise, Ex Machina and The Gorge have little in common. In fact, Ex Machina's AI-centered story might disappoint anyone looking for more creature feature goodness similar to The Gorge. However, both movies excel at sci-fi with enough juicy psychological depth to their characters to engross fans less familiar with the genre.
