40 great winter movies to warm up with this year
’Tis the season for winter movies. Fa la la la la. Yes, that's a “real” category — just like horror, comedy, and drama — and not much is required to get in it. Basically, winter movies are anything that make you feel cosy: snowy films, festive movies, anything involving a winter sport, be it skiing or snowboarding or ice dancing…you get the picture.
If there's a snowman, a sweater, or mistletoe, yup, you're watching a winter movie. (And if you find yourself playfully tossing flour onto your longtime BFF while you make cupcakes together and suddenly realise you might have chemistry…you're in a winter movie.)
She opens up about the pressure to make a global hit and to measure up to her female popstar contemporaries.
These snow day movies are best viewed during the winter months (duh) when we're craving content that comforts us. The best are definitely of the rom-com variety, like The Holiday and Last Christmas, because they combine seasonal coziness with the universal warmth of love. Yes, I've thought a lot about what makes a good winter movie. This is how I spend my time, and I don't judge how you spend yours, now do I?
So are you ready to dive in? Below, check out our picks for the best winter movies.
© 2025 Netflix, Inc.The Woman In Cabin 10
After a victorious run in Netflix's Black Doves, Keira Knightley is back in thriller movie The Woman In Cabin 10, an adaptation of the novel written by Ruth Ware. Knightley plays a journalist who finds herself on a luxury yacht on assignment, but when she sees a woman thrown overboard, and no one believes her, she suspects something extremely sinister is at play.
Daniel McFadden/LionsgateThe Housemaid
Another book adaptation, The Housemaid, stars Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried and Drop star Brandon Sklenar and tells the story of Millie (Sweeney) who attempts to start her life over by becoming a housemaid for a wealthy couple. But soon, she gets drawn into their dangerous and twisted world.
The Housemaid will be released in cinemas on 26 December.
Atsushi Nishijima/Focus Features. © 2025 All Rights Reserved.Bugonia
The latest offering from director Yorgos Lanthimos stars – of course – Emma Stone, as well as Jesse Plemons and Clueless star Alicia Silverstone, and sees two conspiracy-obsessed men kidnap a female CEO because they are convinced she's an alien who wants to destroy Earth.
Bugonia is available to watch in cinemas now.
©TriStar Pictures/Courtesy Everett CollectionSleepless in Seattle (1993)
Soon you will realise that all Nora Ephron films qualify as winter romance movies. Nora Ephron was as good at respecting the best season of the year as she was at writing and directing.
Buena Vista Pictures/Courtesy Everett CollectionCool Runnings (1993)
No better fish-out-of-water story than Jamaicans out of Jamaica. One of the most popular movies on this list, this beloved comedy tells the true story of the island country's first go at a winter Olympic event. Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme!
Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005)
Easily one of the best movies with snow, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe takes place in a land of eternal winter (but never Christmas!), as the Pevensie children battle the White Witch to finally bring about spring.
Getty ImagesYou’ve Got Mail (1998)
Though the story in You've Got Mail spans months, the holiday shopping season is an essential plot point, and this movie just gives us those cozy feelings we crave when it's cold out.
Courtesy Everett CollectionA Bad Moms Christmas (2017)
They're moms. They're bad moms. They're bad moms, and it's Christmas, and the bad moms' bad moms are coming to town. Quite literally what more do you need?
Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett CollectionEyes Wide Shut (1999)
Listen, a psychosexual drama about infidelity and orgies might not scream “snowflakes and sledding,” but it does take place at Christmas and is a good reminder that the good way to warm up is, well, boinking. A holiday flick for aesthetics.
Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Yes, The Empire Strikes Back falls in the category of winter adventure movies. It's not just the rebels' adventure on the ice planet Hoth: Han and Leia's romance steams up in a decidedly cozy way.
Courtesy of Focus FeaturesPhantom Thread (2017)
The icy temperaments, the candlelit fights, and the draping of fabrics make Phantom Thread a distinctly indoor film, best consumed next to a fire with a glass of red in hand.
Lions Gate/Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Age of Adaline (2015)
She's literally frozen. Blake Lively stars as a woman who stops aging but doesn't stop falling in love. If Harrison Ford isn't enough of a draw, just think of the costumes through the ages!
20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett CollectionAnastasia (1997)
This is one of the best winter movies for kids, but also adults because you probably still remember the words to every. single. song.
Universal/Courtesy Everett CollectionAbout a Boy (2002)
The son of a late Christmas jingle writer doesn't usually like the holidays, but when an almost tragedy provides him with an opportunity to date vulnerable single moms…well, let's just say it's not called About an Upstanding Man.
Copyright © Everett Collection / Everett CollectionI, Tonya (2017)
Yes, this 2017 Oscar darling is on our list for best winter movies ever. Tonya Harding's rough, tough life makes for great drama, but a heart-warming family flick it ain't.
©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett CollectionHome Alone (1990)
Brilliant, incredible, amazing, showstopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before, the one and only original and best family Christmas movie.
©Universal/Courtesy Everett CollectionBridget Jones’s Diary (2001)
Um, that final scene in the snow? Need we say more? The forced-to-see-family holiday blues are an essential plot element here too.
©Weinstein Company/Courtesy Everett CollectionCarol (2015)
There are few things more winter than Carol, the visually stunning 2015 masterpiece in which Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett fall in love in the 1950s.
Paramount/Courtesy Everett CollectionLast Holiday (2006)
Romantic movies are even better when they're set in snow. Exhibit A: Last Holiday, which follows the sparkling Queen Latifah to a swanky European winter resort as she charms and beguiles the 1%.
20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Family Stone (2005)
The only thing colder than a December morning is the icy sting of rejection, and SJP's in for a load of it when she visits her boyfriend's uptight family for the holidays.
Fox Searchlight/Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
You know a Wes Anderson film is going to be visually stunning, and The Grand Budapest Hotel is no exception. It's definitely the snowiest of his films, taking place high in the mountains and featuring some excellent coats.
©Universal/Courtesy Everett CollectionLast Christmas (2019)
True love on the snowy streets of England in Christmas—what could possibly be sweeter? This rom-com is a little clichéd, but sometimes you just want to curl up in a fuzzy blanket with a hot cup of tea and watch pretty people make eyes at each other for 90 minutes, and that is okay. There's a reason we seek out cozy movies.
©Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)
David Fincher's take on a Swedish thriller is of course super muted, colourwise, and the material here — rape, revenge, murder — is equally bone-chilling. Distracting, yes. Warming, no.
©New Line Cinema/Courtesy Everett CollectionElf (2003)
Toggling between the storybook North Pole and a glittering NYC in winter, this beloved family comedy features snowball fights, skating, a talking snowman, and lots of hot cocoa. The perfect December to-do list.
Motion Picture Artwork © 2017 STX Financing, LLC. All Rights Reserved.Molly’s Game (2017)
When an injury ends her skiing career, Molly Bloom becomes a “poker princess” in this true story about greed, addiction, and Hollywood, with a framing device that takes place in wintertime NYC.
©Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett CollectionLittle Women (2019)
Greta Gerwig's reimagining of Louisa May Alcott's classic novel tells the story of four sisters in Civil War–era New England with a modern feminist edge that celebrates the seasons, with many outdoor locations that will transport you to the Northeast in fall and winter.
©Universal/Courtesy Everett CollectionLove Actually (2003)
Some of the storylines have aged better than others. For every “Emma Thompson breaks our hearts” moment there's also a weird fatphobic line. But this classic rom-com is filled with so many stories, there's at least one that'll give you that cozy feeling. And we can all agree that no city looks better in the snow than London, right?
© 2017 Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved..The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (2018)
The Nutcracker and the Four Realms is a whole lot of movie, but it will get you in the mood because of its wintry landscapes and, perhaps most important, Keira Knightley's presence.
Courtesy Everett CollectionThe Twilight Series (2008–2012)
There's something about the Twilight series that feels cold and icy. Maybe it's the franchise's aesthetic, maybe it's the fact they're set in gloomy Washington state, maybe it's the pale complexions of the Cullen vampires. Regardless, these movies are best consumed between October and February.
Courtesy Everett CollectionWhite Christmas (1954)
This holiday musical classic will have Cole Porter tunes stuck in your head for the rest of the season, and that's not a bad thing! It's less of a movie and more of an extended music video, but the vibes were absolutely immaculate. 10/10 cozy.
Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett CollectionWinter's Tale (2014)
Not to be confused with the similarly titled Shakespeare play. Based on a best-selling book, this movie has a plot that's totally convoluted but also more fun the less you know going into it. Suffice it to say there's a flying horse.
Courtesy Everett CollectionHustlers (2019)
The scene in which Jennifer Lopez shelters Constance Wu from the winter cold with her enormous fur coat is worth the watch alone.
Courtesy of Everett CollectionHow The Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
The movie spawned a hundred millennial nightmares and, years later, a thousand Twitter memes. Whoville comes alive in this ambitious adaptation filled with iconic performances and fabulous fashion. We never thought of green fur as a winter staple but…maybe?
Working TitleFargo (1996)
A pregnant detective investigates a murder in the snow in this hit comedy that's probably your cool cousin's favourite movie, which later inspired an anthology TV show.
UniversalThe Huntsman: Winter’s War (2016)
Snow and ice are the primary backdrops of The Huntsman: Winter's War, a sequel to 2012's Snow White and the Huntsman. This movie sees Chris Hemsworth returning as the Huntsman, Charlize Theron as Queen Ravenna, and Emily Blunt as Queen Freya, Ravenna's sister.
NetflixThe Princess Switch Series (2018–2021)
The Princess Switch films are family movies everyone can enjoy. For an added layer of fun, count how many Christmas trees are in every room. The answer is a million.
Warner BrothersCollateral Beauty (2016)
A grieving widower writes letters to the unseen forces controlling his destiny…and then they show up as living, breathing people. It's as insane as it sounds, but then, so is life!
Photo Credit: Kimberley FrenchThe Mountain Between Us (2017)
Surviving a plane crash only to be stranded on a mountain in harsh conditions sounds absolutely terrifying — at least Idris Elba is there to heat things up.
Courtesy of Everett CollectionThe Holiday (2006)
Without a doubt, one of the most romantic winter movies ever, The Holiday basically invented Airbnb and made our collective crush on Jude Law permanent.
©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett CollectionFrozen (2013)
I present to you: winter movies, animated! Frozen is much more than the flick that spawned “Let It Go.” It's also an endearing family story, a potent metaphor for internal struggle, and listen, if you know a kid, that kid loves Olaf more than life itself.
