5 Movies To Watch If You Like Ben Affleck's Animals

Ben Affleck's sixth feature-length directorial work, "Animals," has dropped on Netflix. Affleck also stars as Mark Kimball, an independent Los Angeles mayoral candidate who already has a lot on his mind before a fateful Halloween night where someone tries kidnapping his son. This event not only further strains his relationship with his wife Abigail (Kerry Washington), but also requires them to reach out for the aid of fixer Dayle Burton (Gillian Anderson). Secrets between the Kimball couple are about to come spilling out, while their child's life hangs in the balance.

Reviews for "Animals" have proven mixed, which means some viewers will finish this Netflix feature hankering for a better take on similar material. Others, though, may find "Animals" satisfactory, but also yearn for more features on a similar wavelength. In either case, we have five prime examples of movies to watch if you liked "Animals," with each of them connecting to the new film in different ways. Some share cast members with "Animals" (like Affleck or Steven Yeun). Others draw from similar cinematic influences, or are also noticeable forays into the crime movie genre.

However they feel relevant to "Animals," these five movies, which otherwise would never be put in the same room together, are bound to be perfect follow-up viewing.

Surprisingly, "Animals" shares a lot of storytelling DNA with Akira Kurosawa's 1963 masterpiece "High and Low" (which was based on Ed McBain's 1959 novel "King's Ransom"). Both involve high-profile, rich men with everything on the line when somebody attempts to kidnap their son ... only for the kidnappers to snag the son of the wealthy guy's most valuable employee (a chauffeur in "High and Low," a maid in "Animals") instead. Given the similarities between "Animals" and one of the best Akira Kurosawa movies ever, another take on "High and Low" immediately comes to mind.

That would be 2025's "Highest 2 Lowest," an American modern-day remake from director Spike Lee. Here, the project focuses on music legend David King (Denzel Washington), who must deal with a ransom threat targeted at him but involving the son of his driver, Paul Christopher (Jeffrey Wright). This is a Lee/Washington collaboration, so of course "Highest 2 Lowest" is richly entertaining. An exhilarating set piece where King navigates a money exchange on a subway train is an enthralling reminder of why Lee remains a filmmaking legend like no other.

What's also sublime, though, is that "Highest 2 Lowest" isn't afraid to establish its own personality even when working from the outline of a mid-20th century masterpiece. That includes giving A$ap Rocky room to deliver an incredible performance. "Highest 2 Lowest" is a remake, sure, but it's no disposable retread of the past.

When audiences see "Animals," in which Ben Affleck plays a wealthy guy living in suburban America whose life gets tossed upside down when a loved one goes missing, they're bound to think of "Gone Girl," another movie with a similar concept. However, both films couldn't be more different. In this case, "Gone Girl" concerns not a missing child, but Nick Dunne's (Affleck) wife, Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike) seemingly slipping off the face of the Earth. This adaptation of the Gillian Flynn novel of the same name (Flynn also adapted the screenplay) keeps the juicy twists and turns coming under the direction of David Fincher.

For those who found "Animals" ultimately too tidy for its own good, "Gone Girl" should satisfy one's hunger for something more salacious. Considered one of the best mystery movies of the 21st century, "Gone Girl" is packed with entertaining surprises, including Pike's go-for-broke performance as the unpredictable Amy. Her big mid-movie monologue alone is worth any price of admission. Meanwhile, Affleck's performance here is quite solid and cheekily plays on the public's own real-life strained relationship to the performer.

Toss in a fantastic Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross score, plus plenty of evocative imagery, and "Gone Girl" is easily the superior movie where Ben Affleck deals with someone in his life going AWOL.

Long before "Animals" was a tinkle in anyone's eye, Affleck's career was on life support after flops like "Surviving Christmas" and "Gigli." Audience toxicity towards Affleck was so high at one point that it looked like all that post-"Good Will Hunting" hype had finally evaporated. Maybe he'd just be associated with cinematic turkeys for the rest of his days. Then, just as things looked bleakest, his first directorial effort, "Gone Baby Gone," debuted. The only one of his filmmaking exploits to not feature Ben Affleck in any acting capacity, this bleak mystery thriller brought Affleck's career roaring back to life.

Like "Animals," "Gone Baby Gone" was a story about kidnapped children. Here, those horrors are filtered through the eyes of investigator Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck), who uncovers wider conspiracies tied into a missing little girl. The ensuing plot is rife with compelling and harrowing twists, while the stacked ensemble cast (including prominent turns from Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris) ensure there's no shortage of unforgettable performances. All of these elements build towards a gut-punch ending that refuses to leave audiences with easy answers or tidy catharsis.

It may not quite be as good as the 11 best directorial debuts by actors turned directors, but "Gone Baby Gone" marked a significant turning point for Ben Affleck's artistic career. In some ways, it's still his best and most impactful directorial effort.

The biggest Ben Affleck movies of all time offer evidence of Affleck's significant draw for many audience members. However, even this guy knew when it was time for a breather. Thus, in the mid-2000s, Affleck vanished for a little bit. When he came back to acting in 2009, he wasn't the number one person on the call sheet. Affleck shrewdly took on supporting roles in ensemble pieces like "Extract" and "He's Just Not That Into You" that allowed him to show off both his range and willingness to not be the driving force behind a title's existence. One other example of this acting detour in 2009 was "State of Play," an American movie adaptation of the British TV show of the same name.

Anchoring this project was Russell Crowe, who played journalist Cal McAffrey, who works with colleague Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) to uncover what really went on with a murder connected to Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck). Like "Animals," "State of Play" saw Affleck portraying a political figure who gets caught up in a salacious crime. "State of Play" clearly harkened back to some unmissable movies about journalism, but this was no hallow pastiche of yesteryear. This feature delivered lots of compelling suspense, and Affleck proved solid in a role that didn't overshadow the other "State of Play" players, or weigh down the entire movie.

Somehow, "Animals" is the second 2026 Netflix movie starring Ben Affleck that Steven Yeun plays a key supporting role in, following "The Rip." What you don't know about Steven Yeun is that his filmography includes working under directors like Lee Isaac Chung, Bong Joon-ho, Stephen Karam, Boots Riley, and Jordan Peele, among others. One of his most prolific performances, though, came through him working with legendary filmmaker Lee Chang-dong on the 2018 masterpiece "Burning."

"Burning" sees through the eyes of Lee Jong-su (Yoo Ah-in), who, after being reunited with adolescent pal Shin Hae-mi (Jeon Jong-seo), begins nurturing a crush on her. Then she starts hanging out with Ben (Yeun), a perfect dude that Lee becomes even more resentful towards once Shin goes missing. Many glorious artistic elements inform the quality of "Burning," but Yeun's multi-layered performance is key to the production clicking together. His acting always keeps viewers guessing as to what Ben's underlying intent really is. Was that gesture innocuous? Was that expression a glimpse into his dark soul? It's a masterful display of ambiguous acting, one that Yeun pulls off effortlessly. 

Lee Chang-dong's usual visual command in his works is also discernible throughout this gripping film. His rich, often haunting images provide a perfect tableau for Steven Yeun's greatest performance to date. "Burning" is the kind of movie you can't get off your mind as you ponder what exactly you saw and which characters (if any) were in the right.