These days, Netflix original movies come in all forms and span so many genres, including many that have tragic or sad endings. It can be difficult to pull off an ending like that, as it’s tough to send the viewer away in a dour mood. However, it can also lead to some memorable climaxes.
Some of the best Netflix original films have sad conclusions. These are films that received widespread critical acclaim, some are among the platform’s most popular international hits, a few are hidden gems, and there are even Academy Award contenders among them. If you need a good cry, these movies can get you there.
Jay Kelly (2025)
The most recent film on this list is Jay Kelly. Written and directed by Noah Baumbach, the film stars George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern, and more in a tale about a famous actor (Clooney) traveling through Europe with his team as he reflects on his life before accepting a major award.
Clooney and the rest of the cast are stellar, with him and Sandler both landing Golden Globe nominations. Part of the story reflecting on Jay’s past involves his strained relationships with his two daughters, as he’s typically put his career ahead of them.
The final scene sees Jay receive his award, showing a montage of his career. However, he ultimately sees footage of his children putting on a performance for him that he mostly ignored. At the end, a tearful Jay looks at the camera and asks, “Can I go again? I’d like another one,” as he realizes what he missed out on.
The Call (2020)
Netflix is littered with so many hidden gem movies that arrive on the streaming service and get overlooked by far too many people. That’s especially true with international films that don’t get Oscars buzz, which is where The Call lies.
The South Korean movie follows Seo-yeon and Young-sook, two women who form a bond over phone calls that are happening at different points in time. It seems like Seo-yeon is helping a tortured Young-sook, only to learn that Young-sook is actually an incredibly dangerous murderer.
The two end up clashing and it seems like Seo-yeon has made it out safely. However, the mid-credits scene reveals that things from Seo-yeon’s life were erased and she’s actually tied to a chair as a prisoner of Young-sook to be tortured. It ends a twisty film on a devastating note.
All Quiet On The Western Front (2022)
Both based on a novel and a remake of two movies from the past, we knew what to expect from All Quiet on the Western Front when it arrived in 2022. That said, it doesn’t make the film’s climax any easier to stomach.
The film follows Paul Bäumer, a young and idealistic German soldier who enlists in the army with his friends to fight in World War I. The film lays out that Paul was not prepared for the harsh reality of it all. The troops eventually learn that the armistice to end the war will go into effect at 11:00 AM.
Soon after, Paul’s friend Kat dies in his arms and their General orders them to do another attack at 10:45 AM purely out of hatred and spite. In this unnecessary battle, Paul is ultimately killed, mere seconds before the clock strikes 11:00 AM, bringing a sad movie to a crushing conclusion.
His Three Daughters (2024)
Once you see the main cast members of His Three Daughters, it should be clear that this was going to be a powerful movie with great acting. The titular siblings are portrayed by Elizabeth Olsen, Carrie Coon, and Natasha Lyonne.
In His Three Daughters, we center on estranged sisters who come together to take care of their dying father. It puts all of their strained relationships front and center, allowing the characters to deal with major issues. In the end, their father rips off his medical equipment and sits with his daughters to talk to them.
He delivers a lengthy monologue about his love for each of them, including individual specifics tailored for them. It moves the siblings to tears but becomes truly heartbreaking when it’s revealed that he never got to say any of that and actually died in the chair in front of them.
To The Bone (2017)
Long before she became known as the titular character from Emily in Paris, Lily Collins delivered the most powerful performance of her career in To the Bone. The movie revolves around her character, Ellen, a woman struggling with anorexia and rejecting help to get better.
The main focus of the film comes from Ellen finally agreeing to join a group home for youths, where, though she still struggles, she begins to get better. However, just when you think you might get a happy ending, Ellen relapses, escapes the center, and heads back home.
While home, Ellen gets fed through a bottle by her mother, like she did when she was a baby. It’s tragic to see her continue to fail over and over, yet it also shows the harsh reality that getting past an eating disorder like anorexia is extremely difficult and her ultimate fate is left uncertain.
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (2020)
When Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom arrived on Netflix, it was a pretty big hit. The film received Academy Award recognition and featured a cast that included the unbelievably talented Viola Davis, as well as the recently deceased Chadwick Boseman in his final movie role.
The film depicts an intense and chaotic recording session of the titular blues singer and her band. That includes Levee Green (Boseman), who wants to impress a producer to get a solo deal. They like his music and offer to buy the songs, but they can’t sign another Black singer, causing Levee to break down.
This breakdown leads to Levee stabbing his fellow bandmate fatally. As he cries over the corpse, it cuts to sometime later, where one of Levee’s songs is performed by a white band. It shows how the Black community was oppressed and ends in nothing but tragedy.
All The Bright Places (2020)
The premise of All the Bright Places is relatively simple and that’s part of why it works. Based on the novel of the same name, the story centers on Theodore Finch (Justice Smith) and Violet Markey (Elle Fanning), two teens who form a bond while living unhappily in Indiana.
Violet is struggling with survivor’s guilt after her sister Eleanor died in a car accident. She contemplates suicide when she meets Theodore and the two ultimately traverse through Indiana, forging a relationship that seems to help Violet greatly.
However, the film throws you for a loop when Theodore disappears and Violet discovers that he took his own life, drowning at a swimming hole where they spent time together. It seems to come from out of nowhere, but looking back, it’s clear Theodore was struggling with his own demons.
Tick, Tick…Boom! (2021)
While sad endings are always tough to get through as a viewer, there’s an added level of devastation when it comes in a true story. That’s the case with Tick, Tick…Boom!, which tells the story of playwright Jonathan Larson as he rises to find success on Broadway.
Andrew Garfield delivered the best performance of his career as Larson, so the audience is incredibly hooked as we watch him struggle over and over before finally finding success. Going into the movie, many knew that Larson was the man behind Rent, one of the longest-running shows in Broadway history.
A lot of people were unaware of Larson’s death though, as he passed away from a sudden aortic dissection just one night before Rent premiered. It’s crushing to see him fight so hard for something, only to learn that he never got to see how successful it ended up being.
If Anything Happens I Love You (2020)
The only short film listed here, If Anything Happens I Love You, was met with widespread acclaim when it came out and for good reason. In fact, it went on to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film at the 93rd Oscars.
Although it’s barely longer than 10 minutes, If Anything Happens I Love You completely grips you and never lets go. We follow two parents, growing distant after the loss of their daughter, with shadows watching over them who express their true emotions. Flashbacks reveal them experiencing their daughter growing up.
In the final flashback, the daughter leaves to attend school as the shadows frantically try to stop her. Since it’s a flashback, they can’t and the daughter is ultimately killed during a school shooting, with her final text to her parents being the title of the film. It’s as heartbreaking as it gets.
20th Century Girl (2022)
On paper, 20th Century Girl doesn’t seem like a movie that will culminate with a sad ending. The film tells the story of high school student Na Bo-ra, who, when her best friend Yeon-du has to leave the country for a time, agrees to keep an eye on the boy Yeon-du has fallen for.
While Yeon-du is away, Bo-ra starts to fall in love with him herself, complicating things when Yeon-du returns. However, in a true act of friendship, Yeon-du understands what happens and supports her friend’s newfound feelings. The two end up together but the boy eventually stops contacting Bo-ra.
She assumes he lost interest in her and she moves on. However, the film jumps ahead in time to reveal an adult Bo-ra as she learns that the boy tragically passed away, which explains what happened to their bond. It comes from out of nowhere and hits like a ton of bricks.