List of films set around Thanksgiving

This is a list of films set on or around the American Thanksgiving holiday. It does not include Thanksgiving television specials.

Action

 * Below Utopia (aka Body Count), a 1997 film starring Justin Theroux, Alyssa Milano, and Ice-T
 * Spider-Man, a 2002 film directed by Sam Raimi

Animated

 * B.C.: The First Thanksgiving, a 1973 cartoon special based on B.C.
 * A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, a 1973 cartoon special based on Peanuts
 * A Doonesbury Special, a 1977 cartoon special based on Doonesbury
 * Do or Diet a 1953 cartoon featuring Casper the Friendly Ghost
 * Feedin' the Kiddie, a 1957 cartoon short featuring Tom and Jerry
 * Free Birds, a 2013 film directed by Jimmy Hayward
 * Holiday for Drumsticks, a 1949 Merrie Melodies cartoon short featuring Daffy Duck
 * Jerky Turkey, a 1945 MGM Tex Avery cartoon short
 * The Little Orphan, a 1949 MGM cartoon short featuring Tom and Jerry
 * Pilgrim Popeye, a 1951 Famous Studios cartoon short featuring Popeye
 * Pilgrim Porky, a 1940 Looney Tunes cartoon short featuring Porky Pig
 * Soup's On, a 1948 Walt Disney cartoon short featuring Donald Duck with Huey, Dewey, and Louie
 * Tom Turk and Daffy, a 1944 Looney Tunes cartoon short featuring Daffy Duck and Porky Pig
 * The Voice of the Turkey, a 1950 Noveltoons cartoon short

Comedy

 * Addams Family Values, a 1993 film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld
 * Alice's Restaurant, a 1969 film directed by Arthur Penn
 * An Ache in Every Stake, a Three Stooges short film
 * Awkward Thanksgiving, a 2014 film written and directed Henrique Couto
 * Beethoven, a 1992 film directed by Brian Levant
 * The Big Chill, a 1983 film directed by Lawrence Kasdan
 * Broadway Danny Rose, a 1984 film written and directed by Woody Allen
 * Diary of a Mad Housewife, a 1970 film directed by Frank Perry
 * Down and Out in Beverly Hills, a 1986 film written and directed by Paul Mazursky
 * Dutch, a 1991 film written by John Hughes and directed by Peter Faiman
 * For Your Consideration, a 2006 film written and directed by Christopher Guest
 * Friendsgiving, a 2018 film written and directed by Nicol Paone
 * Funny People, a 2009 film cowritten and directed by Judd Apatow
 * The Gold Rush, a 1925 film written by, directed by, and starring Charlie Chaplin
 * Gone Fishin' (film), a film directed by Christopher Cain and written by J. J. Abrams and Jill Mazursky.
 * Grumpy Old Men, a 1993 film directed by Donald Petrie
 * Hanging Up, a 2000 film directed by and starring Diane Keaton
 * Hannah and Her Sisters, a 1986 film written and directed by Woody Allen
 * Home for the Holidays, a 1995 film directed by Jodie Foster
 * The House of Yes, a 1997 film directed by Mark Waters
 * Instant Family, a 2018 American comedy-drama directed by Sean Anders
 * Jack and Jill, a 2011 film directed by Dennis Dugan
 * Mistress America, a 2015 film directed by Noah Baumbach
 * My Blue Heaven, a 1990 film directed by Herbert Ross
 * National Lampoon's Thanksgiving Family Reunion, a 2003 television film directed by Neal Israel
 * Nobody's Fool, a 1994 film directed by Robert Benton
 * Not Cool, a 2014 film directed by Shane Dawson
 * The Oath, a 2018 film directed by Ike Barinholtz
 * The Object of My Affection, a 1998 film directed by Nicholas Hytner
 * The Other Sister, a 1999 film directed by Garry Marshall
 * Palo Alto, a 2007 film directed by Brad Leong
 * Paul Blart Mall Cop, a 2009 film directed by Steve Carr
 * Pieces of April, a 2003 film written and directed by Peter Hedges
 * Planes, Trains and Automobiles, a 1987 film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes
 * Primary Colors, a 1998 film directed by Mike Nichols
 * The Prince & Me, a 2004 film directed by Martha Coolidge
 * She's Gotta Have It, a 1986 film written and directed by Spike Lee
 * Smart People, a 2008 film written by Mark Poirier and directed by Noam Murro
 * Somebody Killed Her Husband, a 1978 film directed by Lamont Johnson
 * Son in Law, a 1993 film directed by Steve Rash
 * The Star-Crossed Romance of Josephine Cosnowski, a 1985 television film written by Jean Shepherd and directed by Fred Barzyk
 * Starting Over, a 1979 film directed by Alan J. Pakula
 * Sweet Hearts Dance, a 1988 film directed by Robert Greenwald
 * Tadpole, a 2002 American film directed by Gary Winick
 * Thanksgiving, a 2014 film directed by Adam Newport-Berra
 * Thanksgiving Day, a 1990 television film directed by Gino Tanasescu
 * Tower Heist, a 2011 film directed by Brett Ratner
 * The Turkey Bowl, a 2019 film directed by Greg Coolidge
 * Turkey Drop, a 2019 TV film directed by Jerry Ciccoritti
 * What's Cooking?, a 2000 film directed by Gurinder Chadha
 * Youth in Revolt, a 2009 film directed by Miguel Arteta
 * You've Got Mail, a 1998 film written and directed by Nora Ephron

Documentary

 * The Last Waltz, a 1978 documentary film directed by Martin Scorsese about The Band's farewell concert, which took place on Thanksgiving Day in 1976


 * American Movie, a 1999 documentary film directed by Chris Smith.

Drama

 * American Gangster, a 2007 film directed by Ridley Scott
 * American Son, a 2008 film directed by Neil Abramson
 * Antwone Fisher, a 2002 film directed by and starring Denzel Washington
 * Avalon, a 1990 film directed by Barry Levinson
 * The Blind Side, a 2009 film directed by John Lee Hancock
 * Brokeback Mountain, a 2005 film directed by Ang Lee
 * Cast Away, a 2000 film directed by Robert Zemeckis
 * A Child Is Waiting, a 1963 film directed by Abby Mann
 * The Daytrippers, a 1996 film directed by Greg Mottola
 * The Doors, a 1991 biopic about Jim Morrison starring Val Kilmer
 * Four Brothers, a 2005 film directed by John Singleton
 * Giant, a 1956 film directed by George Stevens
 * Home of the Brave, a 2006 film directed by Irwin Winkler
 * The Humans, a 2021 film written and directed by Stephen Karam
 * The Ice Storm, a 1997 film directed by Ang Lee
 * Maestro, a 2023 film directed by and starring Bradley Cooper
 * The Morning After, a 1986 film directed by Sidney Lumet
 * The Myth of Fingerprints, a 1997 film directed by Bart Freundlich
 * One Special Night, a 1999 television film directed by Roger Young
 * One True Thing, a 1998 film directed by Carl Franklin
 * Palo Alto, a 2007 film written and directed by Brad Leong
 * Plymouth Adventure, a 1952 film directed by Clarence Brown
 * Prisoners, a 2013 film directed by Denis Villeneuve
 * Repeat Performance, a 1947 film directed by Alfred L. Werker
 * Rescue Dawn, a 2006 film directed by Werner Herzog
 * Rocky, a 1976 film directed by John G. Avildsen, written by and starring Sylvester Stallone
 * Rocky II, a 1979 film written and directed by and starring Sylvester Stallone
 * Scent of a Woman, a 1992 film directed by Martin Brest
 * Stepmom, a 1998 film directed by Chris Columbus
 * Still Alice, a 2014 film directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland
 * Stuck in Love, a 2012 film written and directed by Josh Boone
 * Sweet November, a 2001 film directed by Pat O'Connor
 * Thanksgiving, a 2004 short film directed by Tom Donahue
 * A Time to Remember, a 2003 television film directed by William Sims Myers
 * Unfaithful, a 2002 film directed by Adrian Lyne
 * Unhook the Stars, a 1996 film directed by Nick Cassavetes
 * The Vicious Kind, a 2009 film directed by Lee Toland Krieger
 * The War at Home, a 1996 film directed by and starring Emilio Estevez

Family

 * A Family Thanksgiving, a 2010 Hallmark Channel Original Movie directed by Neill Fearnley
 * Holiday Engagement, a 2011 Hallmark Channel Original Movie starring Bonnie Somerville and Shelley Long
 * The Hoboken Chicken Emergency, a 1984 Television Movie based on the 1977 book
 * Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade, a 2012 Hallmark Channel Original Movie
 * Miracle on 34th Street, a 1947 comedy-fantasy spanning from Thanksgiving to Christmas; remade for television in 1973 and theatrically in 1994
 * Molly's Pilgrim, a 1985 Oscar-winning short film
 * The National Tree, a 2009 Hallmark Channel Original Movie starring Andrew McCarthy
 * An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving, a 2008 Hallmark Channel Original Movie based on a short story by Louisa May Alcott
 * The Santa Clause, a 1994 fantasy-comedy from Disney film spanning a year, with a scene in the latter half of the film set during Thanksgiving which helps kick off the film's final act
 * Squanto: A Warrior's Tale, a 1994 Disney film based on the life of Squanto, featuring the first Thanksgiving in the final scene
 * The Thanksgiving House, a 2013 Hallmark Channel Original Movie starring Emily Rose
 * The Thanksgiving Promise, a 1986 TV film starring Beau Bridges
 * The Thanksgiving Treasure, a 1973 sequel to the critically acclaimed The House Without a Christmas Tree in which young protagonist Addie Mills befriends a cranky elderly man after she falls in love with his horse. Stars Lisa Lucas as Addie, Jason Robards, Mildred Natwick, and Barnard Hughes as Walter Rhenquist.
 * The Thanksgiving Visitor, a 1967 TV adaptation of the story by Truman Capote
 * Turkey Hollow, a 2015 film from Jim Henson Productions

Horror

 * Alien Abduction: Incident in Lake County (1998), a family is terrorized by extraterrestrial creatures while celebrating Thanksgiving
 * Blood Rage (1987), a psychopath goes on a homicidal rampage after the twin brother he framed for murder years earlier escapes on Thanksgiving
 * Boogeyman (2005), around Thanksgiving, a man is stalked by the entity that haunted his childhood
 * Christmas Evil (1980), a mentally unbalanced man believes himself to be Santa Claus, giving presents to children and punishing the "naughty" through violence; part of the film takes place at Thanksgiving
 * Derelicts (2017), a dysfunctional family's Thanksgiving is interrupted when their home is invaded by a gang of sadistic drifters
 * Escape Room (2019), a withdrawn student is challenged by a professor to do something that scares her over Thanksgiving break
 * Ghost Note (2017), the ghost of a blues musician terrorizes childhood friends who have reunited over Thanksgiving weekend
 * Home Movie (2008), home video footage documents a family's descent into violence and madness; includes scenes of various holidays including Thanksgiving
 * Home Sweet Home (1981), an escaped mental patient embarks on a killing spree over Thanksgiving weekend
 * Intensity (1997), a young woman encounters a serial killer while visiting a friend's family for Thanksgiving, then follows him to try and rescue a teenager he's abducted
 * Kristy (2014), a college girl who is alone on campus over the Thanksgiving break is targeted by a group of outcasts
 * The Last Thanksgiving (2020), a family of cannibals kill people who don't celebrate Thanksgiving
 * Séance (2006), a group of college students left alone in their dorm over Thanksgiving weekend decide to hold a séance
 * Thanksgiving (2006; short film), two couples are taken captive and tortured by a sadist during Thanksgiving dinner
 * Thanksgiving (2007; short film), an insane, turkey-obsessed pilgrim commits a series of random murders on Thanksgiving; directed by Eli Roth
 * Thanksgiving (2023), a full-length feature film version of the above short film, also directed by Roth
 * ThanksKilling (2009), a group of students are hunted by a demonic turkey during Thanksgiving break
 * ThanksKilling 3, a 2012 film sequel to ThanksKilling
 * ThanXgiving (2006), a college film student, Spectre, who takes his film crew to a deserted campground to finish his thesis film over Thanksgiving break, gets terrorized by cannibal serial killers

Musical

 * By the Light of the Silvery Moon, a 1953 film directed by David Butler
 * Holiday Inn, a 1942 film directed by Mark Sandrich
 * The Wiz, a 1978 film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Diana Ross

Thriller

 * The Morning After, a 1986 film directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Jane Fonda
 * Don't Say a Word, a 2001 film directed by Gary Fleder
 * Prisoners, a 2013 film directed by Denis Villeneuve
 * Traitor, a 2008 film directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff about a terrorist attack planned for Thanksgiving Day
 * Unknown, a 2011 film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra