Isn’t it amazing how there are so many new movies released every year? It’s like a never-ending buffet of cinematic delights! However, due to the occasional shortage of original ideas, we sometimes get a confusing double release, which looks a lot like one of the movies was planned to be a straight-to-DVD knock-off. You see, some moviemakers follow the trends just to see which blockbuster’s plot would be the easiest to copy. These “fauxbusters” are usually meant to confuse your parents into buying a cheap DVD, thinking it’s that movie everyone’s been talking about. But, other times, similar plots and ideas are a complete accident.
There’s no way to tell if it’s just a knock-off of a more popular movie or the writers just had the same wacky idea. But either way, these nearly identical movies do exist.
1. Deep Impact – Armageddon
Release in the same year almost back-to-back, these movie twins are confusing the viewers to this day. In both flicks, there’s this crew of astronauts sent into space on a mission to blow up a deadly meteor and save Earth. One of them is an action film; the other is more of a suspenseful sci-fi thriller. I’ll let you decide which one is which.
2. Mirror Mirror – Snow White and the Huntsman
In 2012, two movies based on the classic fairytale about Snow White were released. In one of them, the main character is shown to be a strong, independent woman who needs no Huntsman’s help, and the other one – oh, wait, they’re the same. While the stories have their minor differences, these two flicks are essentially the same fruit.
3. It Takes Two – The Parent Trap
If you’re a 90s kid, you probably remember the classic 1998 comedy involving cute twin sisters and their shenanigans aimed at rebuilding their family. But do you also remember that three years prior to the Olsen twins’ career skyrocketing, there was a movie called It Takes Two? It’s almost the same exact plot as the Parent Trap!
4. Antz – A Bug’s Life
When we see similar movies about twins or meteors, that’s one thing. They’re pretty common plots when you really think about it, which makes this pair an absolute mind-bender. Two CGI animated movies about bugs released in the same year? Someone has definitely been spilling the beans to the competition. And thus, even today, the war between Pixar and DreamWorks continues.
5. Dante’s Peak – Volcano
Disaster movies aren’t rare, and there are only so many plots you can use, like, for example, twisters, earthquakes, climate change, tsunamis, and, of course, volcano eruptions. Both Volcano and Dante’s Peak were released in 1997, and neither of them stands out, making it hard for the viewers to remember which part is from which movie.
6. Divergent – The Hunger Games
Movies based on young adult books have been quite popular since the first Hunger Games part came out in 2012. But two years later, we got Divergent – a movie that nobody asked for with lore so confusing not even the fans can tell you what it’s really about. But, it so happens that both have a badass female MC and take place in a dystopian future full of jerks!
7. After Earth – Oblivion
In 2013, we were treated to not one but two post-apocalyptic movies: Oblivion with Tom Cruise and After Earth, starring Will Smith. Both films take place in a distant future where Earth is all but dead after somehow surviving the alien invasion. On paper, they do seem very alike, but these two movies could not be any more different in terms of quality.
8. Willy’s Wonderland – Five Nights at Freddy’s
What do these two horror movies have in common besides cursed animatronics, a decrepit restaurant, and an unfortunate protagonist who has to watch the place at night? Okay, clearly, Nickolas Cage going ham on possessed machines is a bit of an overkill for a casual viewer, but it’s still better than the unremarkable worldwide hit that is Five Nights at Freddy’s. One of those titles is vastly superior, and you all know it!
