52 Murder Mystery Movies You Can Stream—and Solve—Right Now
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Murder mystery movies, like detective movies or thrillers, feel almost participatory when you watch them. There's an overwhelming urge to figure out the puzzle of the crime, and when you get to the reveal, it's exciting (or possibly disappointing) when you learn if any of your guesses were right. Add in comedy or romance, and even horror (looking at you, Scream) for a little flair, and you've got a perfect way to spend 2-3 hours on a weeknight or weekend when you have nothing else to do.
A wide array of films fit under the umbrella of murder mystery. In our list, we're counting missing people, as those movies are pretty similar to murder mysteries, with investigations, multiple suspects, and twist endings. They have more hopeful endings when characters can find the missing person alive, but the journey to the end is still fraught with nail-biting thrills and mystery. Fans of Gone Girl or a A Simple Favor can feel vindicated; they're both worthy additions to the list, even without a dead body for investigators to ponder over.
So to save your scrolling through every single streaming service out there and falling into a rabbit hole of recommendations and algorithms, we've got 52 murder mysteries you can watch right now, and we have exactly where you can watch them. Whether you're a newcomer to the genre and have only seen Knives Out or a classic film junkie and love The Maltese Falcon, there's a movie here to suit everyone.
Gone Girl
This memorable film is based on Gillian Flynn's novel of the same name. When a man's wife goes missing, he quickly becomes a suspect in her disappearance. To prove his innocence, he investigates her vanishing on his own, only to find his wife had way more secrets than he could have ever imagined.
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Memento
A man with short term memory loss searches for his wife's killer while struggling to discern between lies and the truth.
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Happy Death Day
Horror can have murder mysteries too! When a college student dies, she wakes up and finds the day of her death repeating itself. To stop the loop, she has to find her killer.
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Knives Out
One of the most popular whodunits in recent years, Knives Out boasts a stellar cast (including Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Chris Evans) as a wealthy family whose patriarch dies suddenly, which makes everyone is a suspect.
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Clue
A murder mystery based, yes, on the famous board game, Clue is a film with unexpected twists and turns. Six people are invited to a secluded mansion and given codenames (Mr. Green, Professor Plum, etc), then told their darkest secrets and illegal activities will all be revealed. When the lights go out and a body is found, the remaining guests decide to solve the shocking murder.
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The Lovebirds
Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae star in this comedy about a couple who have to go on the run after they witness a murder.
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The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
A journalist and a hacker team up to solve the disappearance of a girl 40 years ago. Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig star alongside each other in this award-winning film based on the acclaimed book of the same name.
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Bad Times at the El Royale
This mystery film features a talented cast including Chris Hemsworth, Jeff Bridges, and Dakota Johnson. Six strangers and an employee of the El Royale hotel all have to face their dark secrets on a fateful night in this neo-noir.
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Scream
This horror classic stars Neve Campbell as Sidney Prescott, a high school student who discovers she's being targeted by a masked serial killer with a love of horror movies.
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Murder on the Orient Express
Agatha Christie's famous detective Poirot is played by Kenneth Branaugh in this modern adaptation of the literary character's exploits. When a passenger on a train is found murdered, Poirot is tasked with finding the killer before the train reaches its destination.
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Sherlock Holmes
Robert Downey Jr. plays another famous literary detective in Sherlock Holmes, alongside Jude Law as Dr. Watson. Here Holmes is tasked with finding a missing man, and preventing three deaths as prophesied by a murderer about to be hanged.
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Who Framed Roger Rabbit
This mystery mixes cartoons and live-action to make a memorable crime flick. A detective teams up with a cartoon to clear his name when another cartoon ends up dead.
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The Maltese Falcon
Based on the Dashiell Hammett novel of the same name, The Maltese Falcon stars Humphrey Bogart as Detective Sam Spade, who gets roped into a scheme to obtain an expensive statuette.
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Fargo
Frances McDormand stars in this dark comedy about a Minnesota police officer who investigates mysterious roadside homicides. The movie is so acclaimed, it launched a popular spin-off television series of the same name.
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The Nice Guys
Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling star in this buddy cop film. An enforcer and a private eye team up to investigate the disappearance of a teenage girl.
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Rear Window
No one does a murder mystery like the great Alfred Hitchcock. Fans of classic cinema will love this film starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly. While healing from an injury, a photographer is confined to his apartment and overhears what he believes is a woman being murdered.
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Charade
Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant star in this rom-com mystery about a woman whose husband is murdered and before he died, hid a large amount of gold three criminals are desperate to get a hold of.
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L.A. Confidential
A group of Los Angeles detectives take on corruption in this neo-noir crime film.
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A Simple Favor
Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively star opposite each other in this thrilling film about a vlogger who tries to uncover the truth around her friend's disappearance.
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Brick
Joseph Gordon Levitt stars in Rian Johnson's directorial debut Brick, about a high schooler who investigates his ex-girlfriend's murder. Fans of detective films will enjoy many of the callbacks to hardboiled fiction in this film.
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The Girl on the Train
Based on Paula Hawkins' debut novel, The Girl on the Train follows a woman who becomes obsessed with her next door neighbors and eventually gets wrapped up in a missing persons case.
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Dark Places
No one does mysteries quite like writer Gillian Flynn, which means her film adaptations are must-sees for books and movie fans alike. Based on a book of the same name, a woman must uncover the truth when she suspects her brother isn't the murderer she thought he was.
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The Fugitive
Harrison Ford stars as Dr. Richard Kimble, a man falsely accused of killing his wife. He sets out to clear his name, and find her real killer. Stick around for Tommy Lee Jones' Oscar-winning turn as the Marshal hunting him down.
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Primal Fear
A Chicago defense attorney (Richard Gere) believes his altar boy client is innocent of murdering a Catholic archbishop. Laura Linney, Frances McDormand, also star alongside Gere and Edward Norton, who was making his film debut—and earned an Oscar nomination for his work.
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Murder Mystery
On a billionaire's yacht, a couple is drawn into a murder investigation in this comedy mystery starring Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler.
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The Night Clerk
A hotel night clerk becomes the subject of a murder investigation in this Netflix crime thriller. Tye Sheridan and Ana de Armas star.
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Gosford Park
This black comedy mystery follows a murder investigation at a fancy dinner party at an English estate. Helen Mirren, Maggie Smith, Charles Dance, and more star in this award-winning film.
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Gone Baby Gone
Ben Affleck's directorial debut follows two investigators looking for a missing girl. The film also garnered actress Amy Ryan an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
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Black Dahlia
Based on a James Ellroy novel inspired by the real life Black Dahlia murder, director Brian de Palma's neo-noir film stars Josh Hartnett as an investigator who becomes obsessed with discovering Elizabeth Short's killer.
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Zodiac
Detectives and reporters work to try and uncover the identity of the Zodiac killer in this crime thriller directed by David Fincher and starring Mark Ruffalo, Jake Gyllenhaal and Robert Downey Jr.
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Tenebrae
Dario Argento directs this Italian mystery about an American author who becomes involved in the hunt for a serial killer who may have found inspiration from his novels.
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Blow Out
John Travolta stars in this neo-noir as a sound effects technician on a movie set who records audio of a political assassination.
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Wind River
Taylor Sheridan (of Yellowstone fame) directs this neo-Western murder mystery starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tracker and an FBI agent team up to solve a murder on the Wind River Indian Reservation.
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The Conversation
This Francis Ford Coppola film follows a surveillance expert who hears what he believes is a conspiracy to commit a violent crime and struggles with what to do.
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Se7en
Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt star in this David Fincher mystery about two detectives looking to find a serial killer whose murders are inspired by the seven deadly sins.
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The Usual Suspects
This Academy award-winning film follows the interrogation of a con man as detectives look for a mysterious criminal boss named Keyser Soze.
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Jack Reacher
When an ex-U.S. sniper is accused of murder, he calls on Jack Reacher, an ex-military Police Corps investigator. Reacher tries to uncover the truth, while also trying to keep himself alive.
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The Ghost Writer
Ewan McGregor stars in this political thriller about a ghost writer who uncovers a political conspiracy while chronicling the life of a former Prime Minister.
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The Woman in the Window
Amy Adams stars in this mystery about a woman who witnesses a murder and due to her agoraphobia, she tries to solve the crime from her home. It's not a good movie, but if you're looking for a mystery, you're looking for a mystery!
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Prisoners
A man kidnaps the person he suspects of taking his daughter and her best friend in this thriller by Denis Villeneuve (now also of Dune fame).
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The Hateful Eight
This thriller becomes a murder mystery when a bounty hunter and a criminal he collars are forced to shelter in a lodge along with other mysterious characters. Waiting out the storm proves to be a violent, unforgettable night.
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See How They Run
Saoirse Ronan and Edward Norton star as a veteran detective and his eager newbie partner investigating a murder at an Agatha Christie play. The comedy is a play on the classic murder mystery, filled with a talented cast.
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Murder Mystery
Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler star in this Netflix comedy about a cop who takes his wife on a long-needed vacation, only to end up involved in a murder investigation on a billionaire's yacht.
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The Long Goodbye
Elliot Gould stars in this '70s reimagining of Raymond Chandler's 1953 novel. Private detective Philip Marlowe lets a friend stay on his couch for a night, only to become enmeshed in a murder investigation when his friend's wife ends up dead.
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Suspicion
Cary Grant and Joan Fontaine star in this Hitchcockian thriller about an inexperienced woman who falls in love with a playboy. When she marries him, she begins to suspect he's planning to murder her. Fontaine won an Oscar for her performance
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Searching
John Cho stars as a determined father desperate to find his missing teenage daughter in this mystery film. Set entirely on laptops and phones, the film is a contemporary look at how technology has impacted what it means to search for someone when everyone is online.
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Shimmer Lake
Benjamin Walker, Wyatt Russell, and Rainn Wilson star in this 2017 Netflix about a small-town sheriff investigating a robbery and a dead judge. The story is told in reverse, letting the viewers unravel the mystery as backwards.
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Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
Frances McDormand stars as a mother dedicated to finding her daughter's killer in this drama. When the police have let the case on her daughter go cold, a mother makes her displeasure known to everyone in town.
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The Pink Panther
Despite its negative critical reviews, audiences loved Steve Martin's portrayal of Inspector Closeau, a bumbling detective who sets out to catch a jewel thief and solve the murder of a soccer coach.
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North by Northwest
This Hitchcockian classic stars Cary Grant as an advertising exec who is framed for murder, and must go on the run and find a way to prove his innocence.
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Charade
Cary Grant stars opposite Audrey Hepburn in this romantic comedy about a woman whose husband ends up dead right as she plans to divorce him. She teams up with a charming American man to get to the bottom of the strange case. Fans of Hitchcock will enjoy this one.
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The Fugitive
Harrison Ford stars as a man framed of his wife's murder. When he escapes custody from the police, he has to go on the run and prove his innocence...or else be condemned to death.
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