12 Best Movies Like It Ends With Us

The following article includes discussions of sexual assault, domestic abuse, and domestic violence.

The 2024 drama film "It Ends With Us" got more press for the feud between director/leading man, Justin Baldoni, and his co-star, Blake Lively, than anything else. Despite Baldoni and Lively's battles in court, though, the movie did well at the box office, and it's easy to understand why. "It Ends With Us" is an adaptation of the book of the same title by Colleen Hoover, which was a BookTok phenomenon. Plus, it has an attractive lead in Lively (who plays the conveniently named florist Lily Bloom) and, not one, but two handsome men in Baldoni as neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid and Brendon Sklenar as restaurateur Atlas Corrigan.

The film deals with the issue of Lily's abuse at the hands of her husband, Ryle. Though their relationship is sweet at first, there are several increasingly horrific incidents of physical and emotional abuse, which are made worse by the resurfacing of Lily's ex-boyfriend, Atlas, in Lily's life. The movies listed below deal with similar themes of violence, domestic abuse, and love triangles. So, if you're looking for something similar to watch, we've got you covered — here are the 12 best movies like "It Ends With Us."

Julia Roberts had just been catapulted to stardom with "Steel Magnolias" and "Pretty Woman" when she decided to make "Sleeping with the Enemy," a domestic abuse saga about a woman named Laura who is brutalized by her husband. After almost four years of marriage to Martin (Patrick Bergin), she falls off a sailboat in the middle of a storm. Though her body is never recovered (because she can't swim, she is presumed dead from drowning), Martin has a funeral for her. But Laura isn't dead. In fact, she had decided that she'd had enough of Martin's abuse and had secretly learned to swim.

Laura moves to Iowa, and there she picks up with a man named Ben. In the meantime, Martin learns about Laura's swimming lessons and suspects she's still alive. "Sleeping with the Enemy" has several obvious parallels with "It Ends With Us," not least of which is the domestic abuse plotline. However, unlike Blake Lively's Lily, Julia Roberts' character has to fake her own death to get away from her abuser. In fact, Laura's husband is so bad that he continues to obsess over her when she's gone and takes things to their most extreme conclusion.

There have been four different versions of "A Star is Born" over the decades (the original came out 1937 and it was remade in 1954, 1976, and again 2018), but the basic story has remained the same: A famous man, who is also an alcoholic, discovers and falls in love with a woman who ultimately eclipses him in their profession. In the 2018 version of the story, Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga are Jackson Maine and Ally Campana, respectively, singer-songwriters who attempt to navigate their challenging relationship as Jackson's struggles with alcohol and drugs grow worse and Ally's star gets bigger and bigger.

While "A Star is Born" doesn't depict domestic abuse like "It Ends With Us" does, there are some close parallels between them. In particular, both films show how a relationship that starts off with hope can turn into a nightmare. While Ally doesn't have to deal with abuse, she does have to deal with bad behavior on Jackson's part, including him wetting himself and passing out on stage at the Grammys when Ally wins best new artist, and she ultimately has to deal with her disappointment over a failed relationship, much as Lily does in "It Ends With Us." And, like "It Ends With Us," "A Star is Born" was a hit at the box office, pulling in over $430 million globally.

"Enough" stars Jennifer Lopez as Slim, a waitress who is swept off her feet by a man named Mitch (Billy Campbell) when he stands up to a man (Noah Wyle) who is trying to get her to sleep with him for a bet. They marry, they have a daughter, and they appear to be living their happily ever after — until Slim discovers that Mitch has been having affairs and he doesn't even feel bad about it. He figures he's the breadwinner, so he gets to do what he wants. He even beats her when she finds out. Slim, though, has a different opinion, and, despite the lack of help from the police, she decides to leave.

With the help of her friends, Slim tries to escape quietly in the middle of the night, but Mitch foils her plan and violently attacks her. However, their daughter wakes up during the assault, and Mitch lets them go so the child doesn't find out about his true nature. While there are many twists and turns in the movie, the thing people may remember it best for is its use of Krav Maga, which Jennifer Lopez trained in. Krav Maga is certainly an unconventional solution to a bad situation, and it's definitely unlike Lily's solution to her dealings with her abusive husband in "It Ends With Us," but it gets the job done.

"Malcolm & Marie" doesn't have an abusive relationship at its core like "It Ends With Us," but it does have a fraught one. The film, produced entirely during the COVID-19 pandemic, takes place over the few hours after writer-director Malcolm's (John David Washington) movie premiere while he's waiting for the first reviews to come out. His girlfriend, Marie (Zendaya), is not pleased because Malcolm didn't acknowledge her in his speech and she believes she was the inspiration for his film. Malcolm insists that this is not true and that his main character is an amalgamation of many girls he knows.

From there they go on to discuss film, sex, and their relationship, and it's a real rollercoaster ride. Just when it seems as though the couple are about to make amends, things flare up again. It's tense, well-acted, and beautifully shot — the film was done in black and white to create a "timelessness," Zendaya said on Good Morning America, adding that it's supposed to evoke classic Hollywood movies. "There was a thought also about reclaiming the narrative of black and white Hollywood and Black actors really having their moment at that time," she explained. By the end of "Malcolm & Marie," you may feel emotionally drained, but there's no denying the talent of the two leads.

The biopic "What's Love Got To Do With It" got a lot of things wrong about the true story of Tina Turner, but it still earned plenty of critical praise. Angela Bassett scored an Oscar nomination for her turn as the iconic singer, and Laurence Fishburne was also nominated for his portrayal of Turner's abusive husband Ike. Despite its failings, the film doesn't shy away from showing how manipulative and violent Ike Turner was during their marriage, and this part of the movie will definitely strike a chord with people looking for something similar to "It Ends With Us."

In the film, their relationship starts when Tina, known by her real name Anna Mae Bullock, gets a shot at singing with Ike's band, Kings of Rhythm. Ike is so impressed, he tells her he will mentor her and produce her albums. Ike changes her name to Tina Turner, and soon the Ike & Tina Turner Revue becomes a national sensation. They get married and move to Los Angeles, but it's soon revealed that Ike has been beating Tina, and, as crowds begin clamoring for her over Ike, the abuse only gets worse. It's a harrowing real-life story that, like "It Ends With Us," centers around a relationship that deteriorates over time.

Based on Jessica Knoll's novel of the same name, "Luckiest Girl Alive" stars Mila Kunis as Ani, a young woman who appears to have it all: She's got a rich fiancé and a job at a glossy women's magazine. But it turns out she survived a gang rape by three boys at her high school and then survived a school shooting targeting the three attackers by her friends Arthur (Thomas Barbusca) and Ben (David Webster), who had also been traumatized by two of the three boys. The movie has several flashbacks to 1999 showing Ani, then going by her full name Tifani (Chiara Aurelia), in high school, but the bulk of it takes place in 2015, when Ani is invited to participate in a documentary about the school shooting.

The documentary forces Ani to confront her trauma as she never has, and she eventually writes an article that is published in The New York Times about her rape. Through this experience she also gains perspective and ultimately leaves her fiancé, acknowledging that she's using him to hide from her past. While "Luckiest Girl Alive," which is based in part on a true story, doesn't feature domestic abuse, it does contain traumatic experiences that, like Lily in "It Ends With Us," Ani has to confront and deal with. It is only once she does this that she starts to feel a new peace in her life. It's a harrowing but ultimately rewarding watch.

Like "It Ends With Us," "Alice, Darling" is about an abusive relationship, but in this relationship, the abuse is emotional rather than physical. Alice (Anna Kendrick) has a boyfriend, Simon (Charlie Carrick), but we see her more with her friends, Tess (Kaniehtiio Horn) and Sophie (Wunmi Mosaku), as she reassesses her relationship. She joins her friends for a trip for Tess' birthday but tells Simon she has to go away for work, showing that Simon has been systematically removing her from her friends. Initially Alice is guarded around Tess and Sophie, but eventually the truth comes out; though Simon has never hit Alice, he has emotionally abused her. That's why she won't eat sugar and pulls out her hair. She figures if she can be perfect, he won't insult her anymore.

"Alice, Darling" is a quiet movie about a big topic. While it's easy to spot physical abuse, it's harder to spot emotional abuse. Even Alice's friends are initially confused at Alice's bizarre behavior until she tells them the truth of what Simon says to her. Ultimately, the movie shows us that we never really know what's going on behind closed doors in a relationship, and that it's easy to misinterpret the behavior of victims. Alice is not immediately likeable for viewers, and that's what Anna Kendrick loved about "Alice, Darling." 

In "Where the Crawdads Sing," a young woman is accused of killing Chase Andrews (Harris Dickinson), the town's popular jock. That woman is Kya Clark (Daisy Edgar-Jones), whose story unfolds after her arrest through a series of flashbacks. She was born to a poor family in the North Carolina marsh, but her father's abuse drives her mother and siblings away until she's the only one left. She tries to make it on her own after her dad abandons her, going to school and attempting to live a normal life, but the kids make fun of her and she becomes known as the "Marsh Girl."

Over time, Kya has romances with Tate Walker (Taylor John Smith) and then, when Tate doesn't come home during college like he promised, with Chase Andrews. But when she discovers Chase is engaged to a girl in town, she rejects him and has to fight off his rape attempt. "Where the Crawdads Sing" is a mixture of courtroom drama and romance that centers on a girl who is terribly lonely and horribly discriminated against. While it's the father who is abusive in "Where the Crawdads Sing," not the husband like in "It Ends With Us," this sets her up for lifelong consequences, especially the anxiety she faces because of Chase's deplorable actions toward her.

"Blue Valentine" follows Michelle Williams as Cindy and Ryan Reynolds as Dean as they start a relationship in one timeline and end it a few years later in another. The relationship begins with all the promise that they could hope for. Even though her ex-boyfriend, Bobby (Mike Vogel), is a problem, Dean is sweet and he and Cindy truly care for one another. But in the later timeline, Cindy is disappointed by Dean. She doesn't like his lack of ambition and is frustrated by his explosive temper.

Although Cindy doesn't suffer from abuse, Cindy and Dean's relationship isn't stable, with Dean exhibiting flashes of rage and drinking and smoking all the time. Cindy's mother was verbally abused by her father, and Cindy doesn't want her daughter growing up with parents who despise each other, too. This is similar to "It Ends With Us," because, like Cindy, Lily makes the decision to leave Ryle at least partially because of her daughter. The critically acclaimed "Blue Valentine" is a sad testament to the way relationships can start brightly but quickly curdle into something else entirely.

"Safe Haven" is based on a 2010 book by Nicholas Sparks, so, if you're familiar with the author, then you'll know what you're getting into if you choose to watch this film. Like "It Ends With Us," the central character (Julianne Hough's Erin, who changes her name to Katie in order to hide) suffers from physical abuse, but, unlike "It Ends With Us," most of the movie takes place after she has escaped from her abuser. The movie starts with her fleeing from her house covered in blood. She decides to settle in the small town of Southport, North Carolina, where she believes she's safe.

She moves into a small house, and though she tries to not form attachments, she ends up getting into a relationship with a local widower named Alex (Josh Duhamel) and becomes like a mother to his two small children. However, it turns out her abusive husband (David Lyons), a police detective who is perpetually drunk, is still looking for her. Ultimately, Alex helps Katie confront her traumatic past and, with his help, she figures out how to move past it. Fair warning: This movie contains a plot twist that arguably goes too far. Some would argue that this makes the story hard to believe, but others would call "Safe Haven" guilty pleasure cinema at its finest.

Based on the 1962 play by Edward Albee, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" is often considered to be one of the best films of all time. It was nominated in all 13 categories it was eligible for at the Oscars, winning five. Like "It Ends With Us," it has an abusive relationship at its center. However, while the abuse in "It Ends With Us" is one-sided, with Ryle abusing Lily, George (Richard Burton) and Martha (Elizabeth Taylor) abuse each other in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"  The story revolves around two couples. Besides George and Martha, there's a younger couple, Nick (George Segal) and Honey (Sandy Dennis), who arrive at George and Martha's home after a cocktail party.

Throughout the night, George and Martha are verbally abusive to one another, playing cruel games at the expense of the other. They slowly bring the other couple into these messy games, especially as they get increasingly intoxicated. George wants to kill Martha, at one point almost succeeding in strangling her to death, and Martha wants to humiliate George to anyone who will listen. In the end, they're both culpable for their toxic marriage. There's a reason viewers couldn't take their eyes off the film back then, and it's still as gripping to watch to this day.

"Fried Green Tomatoes," which is based on the novel "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe" by Fannie Flagg, is a crowd-pleasing film. In it, Ninny Threadgoode (Jessica Tandy), a resident at a nursing home, tells volunteer Evelyn Couch (Kathy Bates) the story of nonconformist Idgie (Mary Stuart Masterson) and straight-laced Ruth (Mary-Louise Parker) as they suffer tragedy and triumph while running the Whistle Stop Cafe in the 1920s. A big part of the movie centers around Idgie rescuing a pregnant Ruth from her abusive husband, much like Lily needs help escaping from Ryle in "It Ends With Us." 

Lily's former partner Atlas from "It Ends With Us" mirrors Idgie in "Fried Green Tomatoes" in some respects, but Idgie does Atlas one better: When Ruth's ex comes to Idgie and Ruth's restaurant because he wants his and Ruth's son for himself, it leads to further consequences for both women. When push comes to shove, Idgie doesn't hesitate to help her friend. It's another example of friendship being the most important thing a woman can have.

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).