Movies Like 42 (2013)

42 is a 2013 drama film from Brian Helgeland with a MovieMagicScore of 7.2/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with A Raisin in the Sun and Remember the Titans.

Drama

A Raisin in the Sun

1961

Walter Lee Younger is a young man struggling with his station in life. Sharing a tiny apartment with his wife, son, sister and mother, he seems like an imprisoned man. Until, that is, the family gets an unexpected financial windfall.

7.7

MagicScore

Remember the Titans

2000

After leading his football team to 15 winning seasons, coach Bill Yoast is demoted and replaced by Herman Boone – tough, opinionated and as different from the beloved Yoast as he could be. The two men learn to overcome their differences and turn a group of hostile young men into champions.

7.6

MagicScore

Freedom Writers

2007

A young teacher inspires her class of at-risk students to learn tolerance, apply themselves, and pursue education beyond high school.

7.9

MagicScore

Tick... Tick... Tick...

1970

Racial tensions threaten to explode when a black man is elected sheriff of a small, racially divided town in the Deep South.

6.5

MagicScore

A League of Their Own

1992

As America's stock of athletic young men is depleted during World War II, a professional all-female baseball league springs up in the Midwest, funded by publicity-hungry candy maker Walter Harvey. Competitive sisters Dottie Hinson and Kit Keller spar with each other, scout Ernie Capadino and grumpy has-been coach Jimmy Dugan on their way to fame.

7.2

MagicScore

In the Heat of the Night

1967

African-American Philadelphia police detective Virgil Tibbs is arrested on suspicion of murder by Bill Gillespie, the racist police chief of tiny Sparta, Mississippi. After Tibbs proves not only his own innocence but that of another man, he joins forces with Gillespie to track down the real killer. Their investigation takes them through every social level of the town, with Tibbs making enemies as well as unlikely friends as he hunts for the truth.

7.6

MagicScore

The Intruder

1962

A man in a gleaming white suit comes to a small Southern town on the eve of integration. He calls himself a social reformer. But what he does is stir up trouble--trouble he soon finds he can't control.

7.1

MagicScore

The Pride of the Yankees

1942

The story of the life and career of the baseball hall of famer, Lou Gehrig.

7.4

MagicScore

Cobb

1994

Al Stump is a famous sports-writer chosen by Ty Cobb to co-write his official, authorized 'autobiography' before his death. Cobb, widely feared and despised, feels misunderstood and wants to set the record straight about 'the greatest ball-player ever,' in his words.

5.9

MagicScore

#10

Facing Nolan

2022

In the world of Major League Baseball no one has created a mythology like Nolan Ryan. Told from the point of view of the hitters who faced him and the teammates who revered him, Facing Nolan is the definitive documentary of a Texas legend.

7.4

MagicScore

#11

No No: A Dockumentary

2014

Dock Ellis pitched a no-hitter on LSD, then worked for decades counseling drug abusers. Dock's soulful style defined 1970s baseball as he kept hitters honest and embarrassed the establishment. An ensemble cast of teammates, friends, and family investigate his life on the field, in the media, and out of the spotlight.

6.9

MagicScore

#12

Driving Miss Daisy

1989

The story of an old Jewish widow named Daisy Werthan and her relationship with her black chauffeur, Hoke. From an initial mere work relationship grew in 25 years a strong friendship between the two very different characters, in a time when those types of relationships were shunned.

7.2

MagicScore

#13

Gladiator

1992

Tommy Riley has moved with his dad to Chicago from a 'nice place'. He keeps to himself, goes to school. However, after a street fight he is noticed and quickly falls into the world of illegal underground boxing - where punches can kill.

7.6

MagicScore

#14

Something the Lord Made

2004

A dramatization of the relationship between heart surgery pioneers Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas.

7.8

MagicScore

#15

White Men Can't Jump

1992

Two street basketball hustlers try to con each other, then team up for a bigger score.

6.6

MagicScore

#16

No Crossover: The Trial of Allen Iverson

2010

Director Steve James returns to his home town of Hampton, Virginia to tell the story of how the trial of a young basketball star left a city divided.

7.0

MagicScore

#17

Hidden Figures

2016

The untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson – brilliant African-American women working at NASA and serving as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history – the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.

8.1

MagicScore

#18

The Great Escape

1963

The Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to sit out the remainder of the war. Undaunted, the prisoners plan one of the most ambitious escape attempts of World War II. Based on a true story.

7.9

MagicScore

#19

Moneyball

2011

The story of Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane's successful attempt to put together a baseball team on a budget, by employing computer-generated analysis to draft his players.

7.3

MagicScore

#20

You Gotta Believe

2024

After dedicating the season to a teammate’s ailing father, a group of underestimated Ft. Worth youth baseball players takes its Cinderella run all the way to the 2002 Little League World Series—culminating in a record-breaking showdown that became an instant ESPN classic.

7.2

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like 42?

The top films similar to 42 by MovieMagicScore are A Raisin in the Sun (7.7), Remember the Titans (7.6), Freedom Writers (7.9). Each shares drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is 42 worth watching?

42 holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.2/10 from 1,892 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is 42?

42 (2013) is a drama film directed by Brian Helgeland, starring Chadwick Boseman, Harrison Ford, Nicole Beharie.

Where can I find more recommendations like 42?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more drama recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like A Raisin in the Sun Movies like Remember the Titans Movies like Freedom Writers Movies like Tick... Tick... Tick...Movies like A League of Their Own Movies like In the Heat of the Night

About movies like 42

This ranked list pairs 42 (2013), a drama film from Brian Helgeland, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Chadwick Boseman take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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