If you are reading this, chances are, you are a fan of the Harry Potter film series. Now that you've binge-watched all the movies, you are probably looking for movies like Harry Potter. Here's the list of 10 movies in no particular order!





10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

This story has already become classic. The story of a boy who once learns that he is the son of two wizards and that he isn’t just an ordinary boy but a wizard too. When arriving at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he finally finds his true friends and his life becomes full of magical adventures…

If you haven’t watched it already, it’s a must-watch for you. But in case you did, you are probably a Potter fan! Well, I bet you wore out all the HP DVDs and re-read all the Potter books. Am I right? So, now you may wonder what else you can do. Maybe you are looking for magical movies like Harry Potter. Then you should give these movies a go. Here are my picks for similar movies.





1. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Harry Potter Spinoff Series

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them produced and written by J. K. Rowling | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

Fantastic Beasts takes place 70 years before the story of Harry Potter started. New York City, 1926. Newton, a famed Magizoologist and fictional author of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, comes to America and gets in trouble with the secretive North American wizarding government. An outsider, he walks into a society he doesn’t really understand…

If you are a fan of the Harry Potter series or Rowling’s writing overall, then you definitely don't want to miss this movie! First of all, Rowling used her own book of the same name, from which she pitched an idea for the movie. Second, Fantastic Beasts are directed by David Yates, who directed four movies from the Harry Potter series.

2. Percy Jackson Series

Percy Jackson movie series based on "Percy Jackson & the Olympians" novel series by Rick Riordan | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

Tell me what movie series main character fits this description: a young boy who learns that he has superpowers and is destined to be a hero enters a new school where he makes friends with a brainy girl and a geeky boy, makes enemies with an entire section of the school and excels at their unique sport. Your answer for this question would be Harry Potter, right? And here’s one more movie series out there that can remind you of the 11-year-old boy with a lightning scar on his forehead.

Percy Jackson may not have a lightning scar but does set out on a quest to return a lightning bolt in the first movie. He is the son of one of the Greek gods – Poseidon. So yes, there are no wizards as in HP series and yes, the world of Percy Jackson movie brings Greek mythology into the modern world. All the heroes, gods, goddesses, monsters are very real. And when a god or goddess has children with a mortal, the child is born a demigod (half god, half mortal). It reminds us of the half-bloods in the HP series, right? Instead of Hogwarts, there’s the Camp Half-Blood, where all the other half-bloods and demigods come to and learn about all their ancestry and they also train so that they can carry out all these Greek quests. But don’t be afraid of too many similarities: though it sounds very much like HP, the movie has its own unique plot and its own vibrant characters.

3. The Spiderwick Chronicles

The Spiderwick Chronicles is based on "The Spiderwick Chronicles" book series by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

Here comes one more big-screen adaptation of the best-selling books. The Spiderwick Chronicles is a fantasy adventure that will entertain kids or even be a great choice as a family movie.

The movie revolves around twin brothers Jared and Simon, their sister Mallory and mother as they leave New York and move into their great, great uncle Arthur Spiderwick’s old house. It’s when strange things start happening, and the family blames Jared. In order to find what stays behind all these disturbances and prove his innocence, Jared takes action and meets all the magical creatures that inhabit the house…with the help of his siblings, of course.

4. The Chronicles of Narnia Series

The Chronicles of Narnia Series is based on a series of seven fantasy novels by C. S. Lewis | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

Prepare to enter another magical world. The Chronicles of Narnia is one more clean family movie series, classic to watch with children. And again, it’s one more series of films based on the timeless and beloved series of novels! The story revolves around the adventures of four siblings that enter a magical world inhabited by beasts, centaurs, fauns, giants and other magical creatures. This is the world of Narnia, guided by a powerful lion that is its true king.

5. Shadowhunters (TV Series)

Shadowhunters Tv Series is loosely based on a book series "The Mortal Instruments" written by Cassandra Clare | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

Shadowhunters (also known as Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments) is different from movies listed above. First of all, this one isn’t a standalone movie but a TV series. The previous movies from this list were based on the novels; this one is also an adaptation (Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments), but the show covers more mature subjects than the book series does.

The show follows 18-year-old teenager Clary Fray, who discovers one day that she comes from a line of Shadowhunters; humans with angelic blood who hunt down demons. When her mother disappears, the girl teams up with other Shadowhunters to find her mother and learn more about her past and decide what her future will be like. So, as in the previous movies from the list, we immerse into the dark world of werewolves, vampires, demons (to name a few) and we see the quest that the main character is going through.

There are many interesting fantasy worlds out there, but this one appeals especially to a teen target audience. Also, you should know that the romance is a large focus in the series. So, if you want to binge-watch some TV show and like the review to this one, give it a shot!

If you liked this show, you might also like The Hunger Games movies. It is a dystopian science fiction movie series that is based on the novels of the same name written by Suzanne Collins.The story follows two main characters - a boy and a girl from one district who are forced to fight to death in an annual national televised event "The Hunger Games". Though there IS violence in this movie series, its purpose is to tell the story of revolution and not to show the cruel scenes. Today's main character of the book is known not less than Harry Potter, so you may want to check this out.

6/7. The Hobbit | The Lord of the Rings Series

The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings movies are based on the novels by J. R. R. with large portions of the trilogy inspired by the appendices to The Return of the King, and new material and characters added | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

The Hobbit consists of three films based on the novel, as you may have already guessed (The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien). Though some new material and characters were written especially for the films. These films act as a prequel to The Lord of the Rings film trilogy: An Unexpected Journey, The Desolation Smaug and The Battle of the Five Armies are followed by The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King.

Set in the fictional world, the Hobbit films take place sixty years before the beginning of TLRS series and follow hobbit Bilbo, who is convinced to embark on a quest to reclaim the Lonely Mountain from the dragon Smaug. The LTRS films follow the hobbit Frodo and his quest to destroy the one Ring and his maker.

These movies are fairy-tale of myth and fantasy. The author of the novels dedicated a great part of his life developing the continent’s mythology and origins, languages, cultures… So, whether you have read the books or not, if you are looking for a magical movie series, you should give it a go.

8. The Golden Compass

The Golden Compass is based on the first story in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

The Golden Compass will be the second movie from this list that stars a girl. It’s no surprise that this movie is also based on a bestselling and award-winning novel (the first story in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy). Lyra, a 12-year-old girl, journeys to the far North to rescue her friend and other kidnapped children from a mysterious organization. If you are looking for a visually great inspiring movie that has a lot to say, check out this one!

9. Bridge to Terabithia

Bridge to Terabithia is based on the Katherine Paterson's "Bridge to Terabithia" novel | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

You will not be surprised if I say this movie is also based on the novel. Bridge to Terabithia is based on the Katherine Paterson novel of the same name. The movie follows Jess and Leslie – the two twelve-year-old outsiders that quickly become friends and create a fantasy world called Terabithia. They decide they need their own special place, so they construct their magical land. Spending most of the time together in an abandoned tree house, they create a secret kingdom full of fantastical creatures, beautiful forests and palaces only they can see.

This is the story of the powerful imagination that brings to life the magical world; the story that includes themes about loneliness, family relationships, class differences and a lot of other mature themes. Bridge to Terabithia is entertaining for the whole family but and for anyone who wants to get lost in a magical movie for a little while.

10. The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep

The screenplay of The Water Horse is an adaptation of Dick King-Smith’s children’s novel | 10 Magical Movies Like Harry Potter

This is one more movie that tells the story of a 12-year-old boy. The boy finds an interesting egg on the beach and decides to bring it home. He protects the mysterious egg, not realizing the Loch Ness Monster («Water Horse») will soon hatch out of it. The boy cares for the water horse; they grow a strong relationship together, but it gets more difficult to hide the mythical Scottish creature as it grows bigger and bigger every single day…

And as all the previous movies from these magical movies list, this one is also an adaptation. The screenplay of The Water Horse is an adaptation of Dick King-Smith’s children’s novel of the same name. If you are looking for a magical movie with great story, effects, characters and drama, check out this great kids classic.

© 2018 Diana

adonis on May 26, 2020:

its been long but harry potter i like you movie can you add one more

gurvinder on May 28, 2019:

actually i have seen all the above stated series

so could you name some other if it please

i dont have a name on December 26, 2018:

shadowhunters sucks! there are no more seasons coming out and the last episode was clary dissapearing ......dissapointing ending so yah

StealthNinjalol on December 04, 2018:

Jonathan fk you for spoiling for everyone!

Jonathan on November 04, 2018:

Bridge to tara, was a strange & bad movie. The trailer makes it look deciant, then i watched it & was dumb founded by the movie. The girl in the movie dieing at the end, and seemed out of place & was just a bad ending.

Tucker Ramseur on June 15, 2018:

Just to clarify, I do not dislike you Diana. I mean how could I. I do not know you. I have never met you in real life and this is the first article I've ever read from you. However; I still write this rant with vigor, because I hate PJM. With a passion.

The Percy Jackson Movies are a horrendous train-wreak comparable

to Eragon and The Last Airbender. If the Percy Jackson Movies

were to be re-released into theaters today, I believe that the "film" Show Dogs directed by Raja Gosnell would topple it in the box office. Show Dogs is garbage. Trash. Filth. However, somehow it would prevail and make at least one half-penny more than the Percy Jackson Movies. Comparing PJM's to the holocaust would be in poor taste. A more accurate comparison would be a biblical plague. Something akin to Sodom and Gomorrah. A creation so vile and horrific that the Judaeo Christian GOD himself struck it from the world. If Odysseus, after searching for his love Penelope for countless grief-stricken years, had returned home to find the dvd box set of PJM, he would have thrown himself into the Aegean sea. If the ancient city-state Uruk was replaced with the film set of PJM, I don't believe the great God-king Gilgamesh would shed a tear at it's destruction by the bull of heaven, otherwise known as the great beast of Ishtar. To be as blunt, candid, direct, forthright, and plain-spoken as I could possibly be...Fuck PJM.

On a more pleasant note, your profile picture is both striking and memorable. Thumbs up.

Deborah Minter from U.S, California on January 20, 2018:

Good list! The Peter Pan adaptations would count as well.

Louise Powles from Norfolk, England on January 20, 2018:

I've read all the Chronicles of Narnia books, and really enjoyed them. I've not seen any of them on TV though, but I should do really. =)