Credit: Netflix

The Tyler Perry Universe routinely captivates Netflix subscribers each and every week with a new entry, and this time, the buzz is all about Doing Life.

The gritty new urban drama centres on an unlikely, touching bond between a struggling single mother and a reformed ex-convict who once saved her life during a prison riot.

At the heart of the story are the themes of redemption, second chances, and the power of deep human connection explored through unsaid dialogues in the form of heartfelt prison letters, which fans might understandably want in the titles on the post-watch party.

So, if you’re done with Perry’s latest film and still want more, here are five Netflix movies to follow up after Doing Life.

Five Netflix movies to stream after Tyler Perry’s Doing Life

Straw (Tyler Perry, 2025)

If your biggest takeaways from Doing Life are resilience, redemption, and navigating systemic struggles, Tyler Perry’s Straw will hit just the right chord in the post-viewing session. The slow-burning Netflix thriller tells the story of a struggling single mother, Janiyah Wiltkinson, who has one of those days where everything seems to fall apart – she faces eviction, has her child taken into the custody of Child Protective Services over a misunderstanding, and accidentally cuts off an off-duty police officer.

As if that’s not enough, Janiyah returns to her job only to find two armed robbers looting the store. Although she fatally shoots one of them while another escapes, she is confronted with unexpected scrutiny from her unsympathetic boss, who accuses her of scheming a staged robbery. Straw follows Janiyah’s intense unravelling every minute, culminating in her desperately taking a bank hostage. While everyone’s panicked and raises eyebrows, Detective Raymond and bank manager Nicole negotiate with Janiyah, cutting through the impossible feelings of denial, grief, and heartbreak.

All the Bright Places (Brett Haley, 2020)

Based on Jennifer Niven’s novel of the same name, All the Bright Places, like Doing Life, centres on two individuals carrying heavy emotional baggage and past trauma, who find healing and a second chance in their budding relationship. The bittersweet dramedy follows Theodore Finch and Violet Markey, who meet each other on a bridge where the latter’s sister, Eleonor, died in a car crash, as she contemplates suicide while he’s out on a run.

While Finch doesn’t waste time trying to calm the stranger down, ultimately saving her, they both develop a sweet bond amidst their personal struggles with past abuse and survivor’s guilt. As they grow closer after teaming up for a school project to explore the natural wonders around, they travel to several quirky, mundane, and meaningful places across the state. All the Bright Places highlights the power of second chances through two perspectives: Finch’s shrinking inner world and Violet’s expanding worldview.

Concrete Cowboy (Ricky Staub, 2020)

Second chances come in all shapes and forms, making Doing Life so wholesome and surreal. Carrying forward the concept in this movie marathon is Cowboy Concrete. The coming-of-age drama follows Cole, who, after getting into trouble at school in Detroit, is sent by his mother to spend the summer with his estranged father, Harp, in North Philadelphia, where he lives as an urban cowboy and cares for horses at Fletcher Street Stables.

As Cole starts warming up to the stable chores and countryside ways of living, he reconnects with his older cousin Smush, quickly spiralling into the dangerous street life due to his local drug dealing. While the situation creates tension between the father and son, the stables are threatened by rising financial pressure, gentrification, and municipal authorities. Concrete Cowboy centres on the father-son duo as they grapple with animal control and a personal loss, finding healing in one another.

Irreplaceable You (Stephanie Laing, 2018)

Doing Life is all about finding love and light during overwhelming circumstances, and Irreplaceable You mirrors that discovery. The romantic dramedy follows childhood sweethearts Abbie and Sam as their lives are upended in the aftermath of their recent engagement when the former is diagnosed with stage 4 terminal stomach cancer. Having been a control freak her whole life, she embarks on an unlikely mission, desperate to find Sam a new girlfriend to take care of him when she’s not around.

Although the mission is a coping mechanism, upon joining a cancer support group, she learns new ways of coping with mortality by focusing on living. While she doesn’t easily give up making secret dating profiles for Sam, when her health deteriorates, Abbie finally makes peace with the realisation that instead of replacing his future grief, perhaps the only thing that matters is living with him while life lasts.

First Match (Olivia Newman, 2018)

To wrap up the post-watch marathon for Doing Life, we recommend Olivia Newman’s First Match, a story of second chances. Based on Newman’s 2010 short film of the same name, the 2018 drama centres on troubled Brooklyn teenager Monique, who yearns for some familial stability and affection after years of bouncing through the foster care system and inherent neglect. So, when she discovers her ex-con father, a former wrestling champion, has been released, she seeks him out.

Desperate to win her estranged father’s approval, she joins her school’s all-boys wrestling team. And under Coach Castile’s guidance, she soon proves her strength, grit, and skill on the mat. But instead of embracing his long-lost daughter, Monique’s father selfishly exploits her skills, forcing her to compete in dangerous, underground matches that push her to a turning point. First Match revolves around Monique’s determination to break free from the cycle of toxicity and give herself a second chance at life.