(Credits: Netflix)

This year’s Thanksgiving is finally done, but most people look forward to the day after, which always carries its own fun. Everyone still has a warm and full belly, and they end up gathered in the living room doing a quick cadence of everything that happened the previous day. The best part? Hogging the couch and feasting on the leftovers while watching a Netflix movie.

But just because you open Netflix does not mean it will hand you the perfect post-Thanksgiving pick the way your mom hands out pumpkin pie. That is when the real hunt begins. The remote gets passed around because nobody wants to be blamed for choosing a dull film.

You need something that keeps everyone entertained and, more importantly, is a light watch. Something everyone can share a laugh at.

So post-Thanksgiving movies have to match a very specific mood. Warm enough to sit well after yesterday’s meal and light enough to keep the room relaxed. Here are the films that fit that space perfectly. Safe picks that work for everyone in the room and are perfect for a day meant to relax.

Seven must-watch Netflix movies for after Thanksgiving:

Always Be My Maybe (Nahnatchka Khan, 2019)

Always Be My Maybe is the easy start and has been a cult favourite for years. It is the story of Sasha and Marcus, who basically grew up together and then drifted into two completely different lives. Sasha is a famous chef now, always moving around and working nonstop, while Marcus is still in their old neighbourhood, trying to figure out what he wants without really changing much. When they bump into each other again, it is awkward initially, but also like when you know too much about the person standing in front of you, and the movie lets them wander through that mess at a slow pace.

And yes, there is a moment when Keanu freaking Reeves shows up, and that energy is just enough to pull everyone in again. It is a fun watch, and the reactions always hit the right note. A solid opener for the perfect Thanksgiving night.

Holidate (John Whitesell, 2020)

If you want a little more spark after that, Holidate is the movie for you. It starts with two people who are simply done with holiday pressure and want a break from everyone asking annoying questions about their dating lives. So, Sloane and Jackson decide that instead of dealing with all that, they will just show up together for different occasions, which sounds simple enough until they actually have to go through a whole year of events without acting weird.

The film treats their arrangement so casually, which is appropriate enough for two people who are doing it just for the sake of it. And the film knows exactly when to stretch a moment or when to go the other way round. A nice follow-up to Always Be My Maybe that brightens the room immediately.

Love at First Sight (Vanessa Caswill, 2023)

Then, if the room wants to dial things down a bit, Love at First Sight is the pick to take everyone back into a calmer tone. It follows Hadley and Oliver, who meet at an airport in an unexpected kind of way, and they end up talking the entire flight because they just click. The movie does not rush anything just because they are travelling. It lets their conversation flow smoothly, which feels like two strangers opening up because it is easier to talk to someone they will probably never see again.

When they lose each other after landing, the story takes its time showing how that one meeting stays with them. They keep moving through their own messy situations while thinking about each other more than they planned to. It brings the energy back to a smooth middle ground.

Fatherhood (Paul Weitz, 2021)

And if that softer vibe is working for everyone, Fatherhood keeps it going with more focus on character. It follows Matt, a new dad who loses his partner right after their daughter is born, and the film stays close to how he tries to handle everything on his own while pretending he is fine. It shows him trying to balance work, childcare and the pressure of people who think he cannot manage this by himself.

What keeps the movie engaging is how Matt slowly figures things out while raising a daughter who is growing into her own personality. Their relationship forms quietly through routines, mistakes, and the little moments they share, whether he is ready or not.

Tower Heist (Brett Ratner, 2011)

This is where you can lift the energy again without blasting the room. If no one is in the room for rom-coms, the only perfect genre to replace them is heist movies. Tower Heist starts off when a group of employees realise the man running their building basically scammed them, and instead of accepting it, they decide to steal the money back. It is not a perfect plan, but the spirit is what matters. It is messy from the start because none of them truly know what they are doing, and that is what makes the whole thing entertaining.

The best part is nobody becomes a sudden mastermind, and the team keep adjusting as they go. It moves fast, but not in a way that confuses you. It gets everyone back into a lighter headspace without feeling like a complete shift from the earlier films.

Walk. Ride. Rodeo. (Conor Allyn, 2019)

Once the room is upbeat again, Walk. Ride. Rodeo brings the energy down a bit. A woman, Amberley Snyder, after an accident that forces her to rebuild her entire life piece by piece. The film stays close to her point of view, showing the frustration but also the small wins and the long stretches where she has to push herself even when it feels impossible. It does not turn everything into a big motivational speech; it just lets her work through her recovery the way real people do: with a lot of uncertainty.

Her family and friends show up in ways that feel natural, and the story moves forward just the way it should. A good choice when you want the room to feel a bit more real.

His Three Daughters (Azazel Jacobs, 2023)

And to close everything on a warm note, His Three Daughters brings three siblings back into the same space after years of living separate lives, and the movie lets all the old tension and quiet affection come out in an unfiltered way. They talk, argue, and sit in silence the way families do when everything is emotional, but nobody wants to explode first.

This one works well as the final pick because it leaves the room with that satisfied feeling. The characters balance each other nicely, and the story wraps up with a smooth sense of closure. A steady finish to end Thanksgiving perfectly.