Sort by Popularity - Most Popular Movies and TV Shows tagged with keyword "appalachia"

1. Wrong Turn (2021)

R | 109 min | Horror, Thriller

Friends hiking the Appalachian Trail are confronted by 'The Foundation', a community of people who have lived in the mountains for hundreds of years.

Director: Mike P. Nelson | Stars: Charlotte Vega, Adain Bradley, Bill Sage, Emma Dumont

Votes: 36,478

2. Cold Mountain (2003)

R | 154 min | Adventure, Drama, Romance

In the waning days of the American Civil War, a wounded soldier embarks on a perilous journey back home to Cold Mountain, North Carolina to reunite with his sweetheart.

Director: Anthony Minghella | Stars: Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Renée Zellweger, Eileen Atkins

Votes: 156,069 | Gross: $95.64M

3. Lawless (2012)

R | 116 min | Biography, Crime, Drama

Set in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a trio of bootlegging brothers are threatened by a new special deputy and other authorities angling for a cut of their profits.

Director: John Hillcoat | Stars: Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Guy Pearce, Jason Clarke

Votes: 253,450 | Gross: $37.40M

4. October Sky (1999)

PG | 108 min | Biography, Drama, Family

The true story of Homer Hickam, a coal miner's son who was inspired by the first Sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his father's wishes.

Director: Joe Johnston | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, Laura Dern, Chris Owen

Votes: 98,035 | Gross: $32.48M

5. Out of the Furnace (2013)

R | 116 min | Action, Crime, Drama

When Rodney Baze mysteriously disappears and law enforcement doesn't follow through fast enough, his older brother Russell takes matters into his own hands to find justice.

Director: Scott Cooper | Stars: Christian Bale, Casey Affleck, Zoe Saldana, Woody Harrelson

Votes: 125,081 | Gross: $11.33M

6. The Silence (II) (2019)

PG-13 | 90 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi

When the world is under attack from terrifying creatures who hunt their human prey by sound, 16-year old Ally Andrews (Kiernan Shipka), who lost her hearing at 13, and her family seek refuge in a remote haven.

Director: John R. Leonetti | Stars: Stanley Tucci, Kiernan Shipka, Miranda Otto, Kate Trotter

Votes: 50,821

7. Them That Follow (2019)

R | 98 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery

Set deep in the wilds of Appalachia, where believers handle death-dealing snakes to prove themselves before God, a pastor's daughter holds a secret that threatens to tear apart her community.

Directors: Britt Poulton, Dan Madison Savage | Stars: Olivia Colman, Kaitlyn Dever, Alice Englert, Jim Gaffigan

Votes: 3,906 | Gross: $0.16M

8. Next of Kin (1989)

R | 108 min | Action, Crime, Drama

Truman, a Chicago cop, sets out to find the killer of his brother. Meanwhile, another of his brothers, Briar (a hillbilly) decides to find the killer himself.

Director: John Irvin | Stars: Patrick Swayze, Liam Neeson, Adam Baldwin, Helen Hunt

Votes: 12,605 | Gross: $15.94M

9. Coal Miner's Daughter (1980)

PG | 124 min | Biography, Drama, Music

The fictionalized life of singer Loretta Lynn, a girl who rose from humble beginnings to become a country music star in the 1960s/70s.

Director: Michael Apted | Stars: Sissy Spacek, Tommy Lee Jones, Levon Helm, Phyllis Boyens

Votes: 20,507 | Gross: $67.18M

10. Fire Down Below (1997)

R | 105 min | Action, Drama, Thriller

A federal agent uncovers lucrative toxic waste dumps in Appalachia and must deal with the locals who want to keep their 'gold mine' secret.

Director: Félix Enríquez Alcalá | Stars: Steven Seagal, Kris Kristofferson, Marg Helgenberger, Stephen Lang

Votes: 19,082 | Gross: $16.23M

11. Sergeant York (1941)

Passed | 134 min | Biography, Drama, History

A Tennessee farmer and marksman is drafted in World War I, and struggles with his pacifist inclinations before becoming one of the most celebrated war heroes.

Director: Howard Hawks | Stars: Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan, Joan Leslie, George Tobias

Votes: 19,789 | Gross: $16.40M

12. Matewan (1987)

PG-13 | 135 min | Drama, History

A labor union organizer comes to an embattled mining community brutally and violently dominated and harassed by the mining company.

Director: John Sayles | Stars: Chris Cooper, James Earl Jones, Mary McDonnell, Will Oldham

Votes: 8,914 | Gross: $1.68M

13. Get Low (2009)

PG-13 | 103 min | Drama, Mystery

A movie spun out of equal parts folk tale, fable and real-life legend about the mysterious, 1930s Tennessee hermit who famously threw his own rollicking funeral party... while he was still alive.

Director: Aaron Schneider | Stars: Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, Sissy Spacek, Lucas Black

Votes: 24,026 | Gross: $9.18M

14. Big Stone Gap (2014)

PG-13 | 103 min | Comedy, Family, Mystery

In a small town nestled in the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia, self-proclaimed spinster Ave Maria Mulligan finds her life shaken up and forever changed after learning a long-buried family secret.

Director: Adriana Trigiani | Stars: Ashley Judd, Patrick Wilson, Whoopi Goldberg, John Benjamin Hickey

Votes: 3,321 | Gross: $1.01M

15. Songcatcher (2000)

PG-13 | 109 min | Drama, Music

After being denied a promotion at the university where she teaches, Doctor Lily Penleric, a brilliant musicologist, impulsively visits her sister, who runs a struggling rural school in ... See full summary »

Director: Maggie Greenwald | Stars: Janet McTeer, Michael Harding, Michael Davis, Michael Goodwin

Votes: 3,684 | Gross: $3.05M

16. Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror (2021)

194 min | Documentary, Horror

A thorough overview and dissection of the subgenre of 'folk horror, ' with contributions from many of the major creators and clips from cinema all over the world.

Director: Kier-La Janisse | Stars: Linda Hayden, Ian Ogilvy, Kevin Kölsch, Sean Hogan

Votes: 1,627

17. Where the Lilies Bloom (1974)

G | 98 min | Drama, Family, Romance

A family of Appalachian children live together in the backwoods so that they can stay together after the death of their widower father.

Director: William A. Graham | Stars: Julie Gholson, Jan Smithers, Matthew Burril, Helen Harmon

Votes: 1,058

18. Chest (2022)

95 min | Crime, Horror, Sci-Fi

While filming a documentary series about Appalachian folklore and mythology, a crew of amateur filmmakers uncover the legend of a mysterious box hidden away deep in a wilderness area known ... See full summary »

Director: Aaron Irons | Stars: Dean Shortland, Ted Welch, Jessejames Locorriere, Henry Haggard

Votes: 254

19. The World Made Straight (2015)

R | 119 min | Drama

In a rural Appalachian community haunted by the legacy of a Civil War massacre, a rebellious young man struggles to escape the violence that would bind him to the past.

Director: David Burris | Stars: Noah Wyle, Jeremy Irvine, Minka Kelly, Adelaide Clemens

Votes: 2,054

20. Blastfighter (1984)

Unrated | 90 min | Action, Crime, Drama

A former policeman sets out to unleash violent vengeance upon deer poachers when they rape and kill his long lost daughter.

Director: Lamberto Bava | Stars: Michael Sopkiw, Valentina Forte, George Eastman, Stefano Mingardo

Votes: 1,471

21. The Evening Hour (2020)

114 min | Drama

Adaptation of Carter Sickels' 2012 novel.

Director: Braden King | Stars: Philip Ettinger, Tess Harper, Archie Lewis, Jessie Noe

Votes: 347

22. Foxfire (1987 TV Movie)

PG | 100 min | Drama

Annie Nations and her husband Hector loved their life together in the Blue Ridge Mountains, but when Hector dies, Annie has to decide if she can handle the wilderness on her own.

Director: Jud Taylor | Stars: Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, John Denver, Gary Grubbs

Votes: 442

23. Paper Clips (2004)

G | 82 min | Documentary, War

As a part of their study of the Holocaust, the children of the Whitwell, TN Middle School try to collect 6 million paper clips representing the 6 million Jews killed by the Nazis, and grows to include millions of others killed.

Directors: Elliot Berlin, Joe Fab | Stars: Sandra Roberts, Dagmar Schroeder-Hildebrand, Tom Bosley, Casey Condra

Votes: 1,786 | Gross: $1.10M

24. A Smoky Mountain Christmas (1986 TV Movie)

TV-PG | 94 min | Fantasy, Music

A country-western singer on a trip through the Tennessee mountains runs into a reclusive backwoodsman and a witch.

Director: Henry Winkler | Stars: Dolly Parton, Lee Majors, Bo Hopkins, Dan Hedaya

Votes: 1,343

25. Before the Fall (I) (2016)

Unrated | 92 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

A re-imagining of Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice" set in modern day, rural Virginia with Elizabeth Bennet as a man. Ben Bennet is an affluent but seemingly arrogant attorney who ... See full summary »

Director: Byrum Geisler | Stars: Ethan Sharrett, Chase Conner, Brandi Price, Jason Mac

Votes: 1,374

26. The Education of Little Tree (1997)

PG | 112 min | Drama

Little Tree is an 8-year-old Cherokee boy who loses his parents during The Great Depression and begins living with his Indian grandparents and learning the Cherokee way of life.

Director: Richard Friedenberg | Stars: James Cromwell, Joseph Ashton, Tantoo Cardinal, Mika Boorem

Votes: 1,823 | Gross: $0.12M

27. Harlan County War (2000 TV Movie)

104 min | Drama

A Kentucky woman whose mine-worker husband is nearly killed in a cave-in, and whose father is slowly dying of black lung disease, joins the picket lines for a long, violent strike.

Director: Tony Bill | Stars: Holly Hunter, Stellan Skarsgård, Ted Levine, Wayne Robson

Votes: 621

28. Spring Night Summer Night (1967)

R | 82 min | Drama

Jessica, the eldest daughter of a coal miner-turned-farmer, has a fling with her half-brother Carl, which complicates things more when she becomes pregnant.

Director: Joseph L. Anderson | Stars: Larue Hall, Ted Heimerdinger, Marjorie Johnson, John Crawford

Votes: 742

29. Hillbilly (II) (2018)

Not Rated | 87 min | Documentary

"hillbilly" is a documentary film that examines the iconic hillbilly image in media and culture. The film explores more than a hundred years of media representation of mountain and rural ... See full summary »

Directors: Sally Rubin, Ashley York | Stars: Michael Apted, Ronny Cox, Sam Gleaves, Crystal Good

Votes: 516

30. Don't Let the Devil In (2016)

89 min | Horror, Thriller

After suffering a miscarriage, Newlyweds John and Samantha Harris relocate from New York City to a small Appalachian town where they become wrapped up in a nightmarish tapestry of evil.

Director: Courtney Fathom Sell | Stars: Anthony J. Anastasio, Constance Archer, Mark Ashby, Mark Baker

Votes: 48

31. American Hollow (1999)

90 min | Documentary

This film tells the tale of a close-knit Appalachian family that has changed little in the last 100 years.

Director: Rory Kennedy | Stars: Bascum Bowling, Clint Bowling, Edgar Bowling, Iree Bowling

Votes: 477

32. Li'l Abner (1971 TV Movie)

60 min | Comedy, Musical

The misadventures of Al Capp's hillbilly characters are given a musical-comedy treatment.

Director: Gordon Wiles | Stars: Ray Young, Nancee Parkinson, Billie Hayes, Billy Bletcher

Votes: 25

33. Roses Are for the Rich (1987 TV Movie)

182 min | Drama

In a small town in Appalachia, Autumn's young husband is killed in a suspicious mine explosion. She vows vengeance on mine owner Douglas Osborne and dedicates her life to destroying him, ... See full summary »

Director: Michael Miller | Stars: Lisa Hartman, Bruce Dern, Joe Penny, Richard Masur

Votes: 180

34. Every Other Animal (2024)

Short, Crime, Horror

Add a Plot

Director: Olia Oparina | Stars: Shane West, Christopher May, Kevin Keppy, Gemma Leopold Needle

35. The Last One (II) (2008)

TV-PG | 58 min | Documentary

In a far corner of Southern Appalachia, moonshiner Popcorn Sutton makes one last batch of true bootleg whiskey. The craft of traditional distillation is revealed along with a lifetime of memories in the trade.

Director: Neal Hutcheson | Stars: Popcorn Sutton, Floyd Sutton, Abigail Moore, Bill Milsap

Votes: 135

36. Angel's Perch (2013)

Not Rated | 96 min | Drama

A young man must return to his small Appalachian hometown to face his grandmother's worsening Alzheimer's disease only to discover that his own painful memories are holding him back in his life.

Director: Charles Haine | Stars: Joyce Van Patten, Ally Walker, Ashley Jones, Ellen Crawford

Votes: 148

37. Molt (2018)

13 min | Short, Drama

The summer sun sets in rural Appalachia as 12-year-old Cadie and her neighbor, Sarah, redefine their friendship on the eve of burgeoning sexuality.

Director: Nathalie Álvarez Mesén | Stars: Ewan Fleck, Cece Kelly, Kinsey Kunkel, Rohan Myers

Votes: 24

38. Impossible Town (2023)

93 min | Documentary

When her father passes, Dr. Ayne Amjad is thrust to the helm of a decades-long struggle to aid a West Virginia town beset by cancer-causing chemicals.

Directors: David Scott Faris, Meg Griffiths

39. The Hills Have Thighs (2008)

78 min | Comedy

Local Hillbilly Icon Daniel Boone Owen has gone missing in Appalachia. He was last seen facedown in his favorite watering hole, Scatterbrain's, and the theories behind his disappearance are... See full summary »

Director: James Bubba Cromer | Stars: Hance Oliver, Dona Ayers, Mona Lisa Johnson, James Bubba Cromer

Votes: 68

40. America's Heart & Soul (2004)

PG | 84 min | Documentary

Filmmaker Louis Schwartzberg hits the road to capture America's people and its natural beauty.

Director: Louie Schwartzberg | Stars: George Woodard, Charles Jimmie Sr., The Vasquez Brothers, Frank Pino

Votes: 720 | Gross: $0.31M

41. Climate of Change (2010)

TV-G | 86 min | Documentary

A documentary focused on the efforts of everyday people all over the world who are making a difference in the fight against global warming.

Director: Brian Hill | Star: Tilda Swinton

Votes: 63

42. Small Town Strong (2023)

84 min | Documentary

Realizing no one is coming to save them from a growing opioid crisis, the people of Portsmouth Ohio, led by Army veteran Dale King, band together to create real change in their small ... See full summary »

Directors: Chase Millsap, Spencer Millsap

Votes: 18

43. Kentucky Woman (1983 TV Movie)

Not Rated | 96 min | Drama

A woman faces harassment and humiliation when she goes to work as a coal miner to support her small son and ailing dad.

Director: Walter Doniger | Stars: Cheryl Ladd, Ned Beatty, Philip Levien, Sandy McPeak

Votes: 91

44. A Good Baby (1999)

Not Rated | 87 min | Drama

A young loner wandering the back roads of North Carolina comes across an abandoned baby. He immediately starts seeking the baby's parents, but starts developing a bond with the child that explores his own isolated roots.

Director: Katherine Dieckmann | Stars: Henry Thomas, David Strathairn, Cara Seymour, Danny Nelson

Votes: 346

45. Hooch (1977)

PG | 96 min | Comedy

In a tiny county in Appalachia, handsome young El Camino-driving Eddie Joe Rodgers excels at brewing "hooch", the traditional moonshine. The Old-Timers begin to stew as Eddie Joe's charm ... See full summary »

Director: Edward Mann | Stars: Gil Gerard, Erika Fox, Melody Rogers, William Hicks

Votes: 48

46. Strange Tales from Appalachia (2017)

Not Rated | 95 min | Action, Horror, Thriller

Appalachian filmmakers join together to produce three horrifying, suspenseful, and strange tales. In "Pretty Girl", a young woman escapes a maniac kidnapper by fleeing into the Appalachian ... See full summary »

Directors: Tim Altonen, Josh Holley | Stars: Cliff D. Andrews, W.F. Bell, Ron Capes III, Sarah Deatherage

Votes: 105

47. The Appalachians (2005– )

180 min | Documentary, Music

Follows the 300 year history of the Appalachian people with interviews by scholars, musicians and writers.

Stars: Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Rosanne Cash, Ricky Skaggs

Votes: 46

48. Li'l Abner (1967 TV Movie)

30 min | Comedy

Unsold sitcom TV pilot about the misadventures of the Yokum clan and their hillbilly neighbors

Director: Coby Ruskin | Stars: Sammy Jackson, Judy Canova, Robert Reed, Jerry Lester

Votes: 19

49. Mountain Justice (1937)

Passed | 83 min | Drama, Romance

Stalwart Appalachian woman finds romance as she struggles to better herself and her people amid prejudice and familial abuse.

Director: Michael Curtiz | Stars: George Brent, Josephine Hutchinson, Guy Kibbee, Mona Barrie

Votes: 292

50. The Return of the Native (2010)

Not Rated | 94 min | Drama

A tale of seduction, obsession and betrayal, set in a depression-era mountain town.

Director: Ben Westbrook | Stars: Phil Amico, Manuel de la Portilla, Matt Furhman, Gladys Gross