Join to get exclusive perks & news!

Top 20 Best Movies About Fathers

1-20

Ignacio Weil

Entertainment - May 17th 2025, 17:41 GMT+2

Cropped King Richard 2021 — 20. King Richard (2021)

What happens when a father refuses to let the world define his daughters' future? Enter Richard Williams, the tennis-obsessed dad with a 78-page plan (yes, really), who raised Venus and Serena Williams from Compton courts to global stardom. Will Smith turns in a powerhouse performance – equal parts stubborn, loving, and occasionally infuriating – as a father who might rub people the wrong way but always has his daughters’ best interests in mind. It's less about tennis and more about the obsession, belief, and yes, a bit of delusion that can power a parent through impossible odds. Prepare to oscillate between admiration and exasperation, which might just be the most honest portrait of fatherhood ever put to screen. | © Warner Bros. Pictures

Cropped Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade 1989 — 19. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

You might think of it as an adventure movie, but this third *Indiana Jones* outing is secretly a therapy session in disguise – one filled with booby traps, Nazis, and ancient artifacts. Sean Connery joins the series as Dr. Henry Jones Sr., a bookish, emotionally unavailable father to Harrison Ford’s whip-cracking archaeologist. Their rocky, often hilarious dynamic is the film’s true treasure. Forget the Holy Grail – they’re really searching for mutual respect and a single genuine conversation. Turns out the ultimate danger isn’t snakes or ancient curses – it’s unresolved daddy issues. | © Paramount Pictures

Cropped The Pursuit of Happyness 2006 — 18. The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Will Smith again, but this time with real tears and his real son (Jaden Smith!) in tow. *The Pursuit of Happyness* is a one-two punch of economic anxiety and emotional resilience, chronicling a single dad who’s down so badly he has to sleep in subway bathrooms – yet never stops pushing for a better life for his boy. This is a movie where fatherhood isn’t just present; it’s the engine. The stakes are painfully real, and Smith’s vulnerability turns what could have been a rags-to-riches cliché into a gut-wrenching, deeply human triumph. Bring tissues, and then bring backup tissues. | © Columbia Pictures

Cropped Captain Fantastic 2016 — 17. Captain Fantastic (2016)

Viggo Mortensen, in full off-grid, counterculture mode, plays a father raising his six kids deep in the woods, where they read Noam Chomsky and kill their own dinner. *Captain Fantastic* is like a parenting TED Talk directed by Wes Anderson’s slightly more anarchist cousin. But the real genius of the film is how it challenges its own premise: is rejecting society really best for your kids, or just a way to avoid dealing with it? Mortensen delivers a soulful, nuanced performance as a dad trying to balance idealism with reality, and the result is both charming and quietly devastating. | © Bleecker Street

Cropped Bicycle Thieves 1948 — 16. Bicycle Thieves (1948)

This Italian neorealist classic may be old enough to qualify for social security, but don’t let the black-and-white fool you – it’ll hit your heart like a freight train. In *Bicycle Thieves*, a father’s job, pride, and hope all hinge on one stolen bicycle. As he roams post-war Rome with his son searching for it, the film becomes a haunting meditation on dignity, desperation, and the crushing weight of parental responsibility. Non-professional actors bring raw emotion to every frame, and by the end, you’re not just watching a father – you’re feeling the full burden of what it means to be one. | © Ente Nazionale Industrie Cinematografiche (ENIC)

Cropped The Father 2020 — 15. The Father (2020)

Anthony Hopkins turns in one of the most devastating performances of his career (and that’s saying something) in *The Father*, a film that isn’t just about fatherhood – it immerses you in the terrifying mental fog of aging and dementia. Olivia Colman plays the daughter trying to care for him, but it’s Hopkins’ heartbreaking unraveling that defines the film. It’s not an easy watch, but it’s a necessary one. The father-child bond here is tested, frayed, and ultimately revealed in all its brutal honesty. Also, fair warning: if you’ve ever felt emotionally unstable after watching a Christopher Nolan movie, this timeline-warping drama might just undo you. | © Sony Pictures Classics

Cropped Finding Nemo 2003 — 14. Finding Nemo (2003)

It’s the Pixar underwater epic that turned every parent into a helicopter fish. *Finding Nemo* is less about clownfish hijinks and more about an anxious single dad (voiced perfectly by Albert Brooks) learning to let go – without, you know, letting his kid get eaten. Marlin’s frantic cross-ocean journey to find his son is hilarious, heartwarming, and weirdly educational about sea life. Ellen DeGeneres’s Dory steals scenes with her bubbly forgetfulness, but it’s the father-son bond that anchors the whole adventure. Who knew fatherhood could be so... fishy and feel-good at the same time? | © Walt Disney Pictures / Pixar Animation Studios

Cropped The Lion King 1994 — 13. The Lion King (1994)

Before it was a Broadway sensation or a CGI remake, *The Lion King* was the Disney epic that turned kids everywhere into Shakespearean scholars – well, kind of. Mufasa (voiced with regal thunder by James Earl Jones) is the ultimate lion dad: wise, strong, and heartbreakingly mortal. Simba’s entire arc is driven by his relationship with his father – through loss, legacy, and that iconic cloud pep talk. And don’t pretend you didn’t cry during that wildebeest stampede scene. We all did. This isn’t just about the “circle of life,” it’s about how a father’s influence echoes long after he's gone. | © Walt Disney Pictures

Cropped Beautiful Boy 2018 — 12. Beautiful Boy (2018)

Steve Carell trades in his comedic chops for heart-wrenching drama as a father desperately trying to save his son (played by Timothée Chalamet) from addiction. Based on two real-life memoirs – one from the father, one from the son – *Beautiful Boy* is a raw, unflinching look at how fatherhood doesn’t always come with answers or happy endings. Carell’s performance is restrained and deeply human, while Chalamet delivers yet another gut-punch of a role. If you’ve ever felt helpless while trying to help someone you love, this one will hit you where it hurts. | © Amazon Studios

Cropped Fantastic Mr Fox 2009 — 11. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Wes Anderson’s stop-motion masterpiece may look like a quirky kids’ movie, but beneath the talking animals and corduroy suits lies a deeply felt story about fatherhood, identity, and midlife crisis. George Clooney voices the roguish Mr. Fox, a dad who wants to be wild and free, yet finds himself fumbling through the responsibilities of family life. His relationship with his son Ash (voiced by Jason Schwartzman) is both hilarious and touching – think “dad just doesn’t get me,” but with digging, chickens, and existential crises. It's charming, sly, and sneakily emotional. | © 20th Century Fox

Cropped The Road 2009 — 10. The Road (2009)

Bleak, gray, and emotionally pulverizing – *The Road* is what happens when fatherhood meets the apocalypse. Viggo Mortensen (yes, Aragorn himself) plays a gaunt, desperate dad guiding his young son through a world that’s colder than your ex’s voicemail. There’s no food, no hope, and no real plan, but there is an unshakable fatherly devotion driving every step of their grim trek. It's basically a parenting manual for the end of civilization – minus the diaper changes. There’s love here, buried under ash and fear, and somehow, that love makes it all bearable. | © Dimension Films

Cropped force majeure — 9. Force Majeure (2014)

What’s the price of one selfish moment? In *Force Majeure*, a Swedish dark comedy that somehow turns an avalanche into a marital crisis, we find out. Johannes Bah Kuhnke plays a dad who, faced with a sudden disaster, instinctively runs away – leaving his wife and kids behind. Yikes. The fallout is brutal, hilarious, and painfully honest. This is a fatherhood movie by way of existential cringe, where masculinity, pride, and shame all do battle at a ski resort. It's icy in more ways than one, and you’ll laugh just as much as you squirm. | © TriArt Film

Cropped Kramer vs Kramer 1979 — 8. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

Before there were custody battles on every TV courtroom drama, there was *Kramer vs. Kramer*, a quiet storm of a film that made dust in the eyes a national epidemic. Dustin Hoffman plays a career-focused dad forced to raise his son alone after his wife (played by the sublime Meryl Streep) walks out. What follows is a slow, tender evolution from clueless to committed. Hoffman and Streep both won Oscars, but it’s the father-son moments – burning French toast, bedtime talks, heartbreaking goodbyes – that still hit the hardest. It’s a time capsule of shifting gender roles, yes, but more than that, it’s a dad learning to *show up*. | © Columbia Pictures

Cropped The Wrestler 2008 — 7. The Wrestler (2008)

You know what’s more brutal than a steel chair to the back? Estranged fatherhood. Mickey Rourke delivers a career-resurrecting performance as Randy "The Ram" Robinson, an aging pro wrestler whose body is failing – but who still holds out hope for reconciling with his daughter, played by a quietly devastating Evan Rachel Wood. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, this isn’t just a movie about muscles and mullets – it’s a raw, aching story about a man who’s broken everything except his longing to fix one thing that truly matters. Prepare to feel punched – emotionally, not just in the turnbuckle. | © Fox Searchlight Pictures

Cropped Fences 2016 — 6. Fences (2016)

Adapted from August Wilson’s searing play, *Fences* is less a movie and more a thunderstorm of words, emotion, and generational pain. Denzel Washington directs and stars as Troy Maxson, a man built from equal parts pride, regret, and baseball metaphors. His relationship with his son (played by Jovan Adepo) is tense, layered, and often devastating – especially when that famous “I don’t have to like you” speech drops like a hammer. Viola Davis, in an Oscar-winning performance, reminds us that fatherhood doesn’t exist in a vacuum; it’s part of a family ecosystem, messy and deeply human. | © Paramount Pictures

Cropped Aftersun 2022 — 5. Aftersun (2022)

Paul Mescal quietly breaks your heart in *Aftersun*, a film that unfolds like a sun-drenched memory with a shadow at its edges. He plays Calum, a young, seemingly carefree dad on a vacation with his daughter in Turkey. But underneath the surface – just out of frame – is a gnawing sadness that only grows clearer as the film slowly rewinds through the daughter’s adult recollection. The brilliance of *Aftersun* lies in what it *doesn’t* say out loud. It’s gentle, aching, and so emotionally honest you might not realize how hard it hit you until days later. Fatherhood here is fragile, precious, and deeply human. | © A24

Cropped To Kill a Mockingbird 1962 — 4. To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Is Atticus Finch the original "dad goal"? Probably. Gregory Peck’s quietly commanding performance as the principled lawyer and single father is still the gold standard for moral clarity and parenting with integrity. Seen through the eyes of Scout, his precocious daughter, *To Kill a Mockingbird* blends courtroom drama with a warm, observational portrait of fatherhood during deeply unjust times. Sure, he’s defending justice in a racially divided town – but he’s also reading to his kids and teaching them how to treat people with dignity. Sometimes the most powerful thing a dad can do is just *be good*. | © Universal Pictures

Cropped There Will Be Blood 2007 — 3. There Will Be Blood (2007)

Warning: if you're looking for a warm-and-fuzzy fatherhood story... keep scrolling. Daniel Day-Lewis delivers volcanic intensity as Daniel Plainview, a man who adopts a son mainly for optics – and then spends the rest of the film becoming capitalism incarnate. In *There Will Be Blood*, fatherhood is transactional, manipulative, and eventually explosive (literally and emotionally). And yet, the relationship between Daniel and H.W. remains a jagged, fascinating look at what happens when ambition drowns out affection. Day-Lewis is mesmerizing, terrifying, and unforgettable. It's not love – it's business. | © Paramount Vantage / Miramax Films

Cropped Like Father Like Son 2013 — 2. Like Father, Like Son (2013)

This Japanese drama from Hirokazu Kore-eda doesn’t just tug at your heartstrings – it plucks them with surgical precision. When two families discover that their sons were accidentally switched at birth, *Like Father, Like Son* dives into the question: is fatherhood biological, emotional, or something you grow into? Masaharu Fukuyama plays the career-driven dad forced to reconsider what kind of parent he really is. It’s understated, tender, and morally complex in all the right ways. If you’ve ever doubted the whole “nurture over nature” debate, this will give you plenty to chew on. | © Fuji Television Network / Amuse / GAGA Corporation

Cropped Life is Beautiful 1997 — 1. Life is Beautiful (1997)

Leave it to Roberto Benigni to turn the Holocaust into one of the most touching portrayals of fatherhood ever filmed. In *Life is Beautiful*, he plays Guido, a loving, eccentric father who uses humor and imagination to shield his young son from the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp. It's whimsical. It's heartbreaking. It should not work – and yet, it does. Benigni’s Oscar-winning performance is a masterclass in emotional tightrope-walking, blending slapstick charm with gut-wrenching sacrifice. At its core, this is the story of a father doing whatever it takes to protect his child’s innocence, even in the darkest of times. | © Miramax Films

1-20

Fatherhood isn’t just a role — it’s a journey, a challenge, and often, a transformative experience. In cinema, some of the most compelling stories are those where being a father is not just part of the character, but the core of the narrative. This carefully curated list of the top 20 movies about fatherhood dives into films that explore what it truly means to be a dad — with all the struggles, sacrifices, and emotional depth that come with it. Whether dramatic, heartfelt, or even darkly complex, these films place fatherhood at the heart of the story, offering viewers a profound look into the emotional landscape of being a father.

Facebook X Reddit WhatsApp Copy URL

Fatherhood isn’t just a role — it’s a journey, a challenge, and often, a transformative experience. In cinema, some of the most compelling stories are those where being a father is not just part of the character, but the core of the narrative. This carefully curated list of the top 20 movies about fatherhood dives into films that explore what it truly means to be a dad — with all the struggles, sacrifices, and emotional depth that come with it. Whether dramatic, heartfelt, or even darkly complex, these films place fatherhood at the heart of the story, offering viewers a profound look into the emotional landscape of being a father.