The Best Movies About Magic

Updated January 7, 2021 6.5k votes 2.3k voters 214.3k views43 items

List RulesVote up your favorite movies that prominently feature magic or magicians

The best movies about magic include some of the most riveting and fascinating films ever made. From the bravado and intrigue of magic movies like The Prestige and The Illusionist, to the hilarity of The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, the films about magic listed here are worth a watch (or two, and watch very carefully). These movies feature some of the best fictional magicians of all time, too. What's your favorite movie about magic? Definitely rerank this list in any order you want to try your own hand at misdirection.

Not all magic movies are lighthearted. Some, like Richard Attenborough's 1978 movie Magic (starring Anthony Hopkins), are actually quite creepy. The life of a magician isn't always a happy one. Making a living selling illusions to the world can lead to madness, and deadly competition.

Some of the films on this list are fictional accounts of the lives of some of the world's greatest and most famous magicians, especially Harry Houdini. In the 1953 classic biographical film Houdini, Tony Curtis plays the late, great escapologist and Janet Leigh plays his wife, Bess Houdini. If you're interested in movies about magic, this one is a must see.

In 2013, the thriller movie Now You See Me, about a group of thieving illusionists, was released. The film featured an all-star cast: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Woody Harrelson, Isla Fisher, Michael Caine, and Morgan Freeman, among them. Year after year, movies about illusionists and magic continue to capture audiences' imaginations.

If you like these films, be sure to check out our list of the best sorcerer movies.

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The Prestige
Scarlett Johansson, David Bowie
Released: 2006
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
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Harry Potter Franchise
Danielle Radcliffe, Rupert Grint
Released: 2001 - 2011
Directed by: Chris Columbus, Alfonso Cuarón, Mike Newell, David Yates
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The Illusionist
Jessica Biel, Edward Norton
Released: 2006
Directed by: Neil Burger
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Now You See Me
Morgan Freeman, Isla Fisher
Released: 2013
Directed by: Louis Leterrier
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95
32
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, with Katherine Waterston
Released: 2016
Directed by: David Yates
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Practical Magic
Nicole Kidman, Sandra Bullock
Released: 1998
Directed by: Griffin Dunne
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Aladdin
Robin Williams, Gilbert Gottfried
Released: 1992
Directed by: Ron Clements, John Musker
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Mary Poppins
Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke
Released: 1964
Directed by: Robert Stevenson
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42
Aladdin
Mena Massoud, Naomi Scott
Released: 2019
Directed by: Guy Ritchie
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Houdini
Janet Leigh, Tony Curtis
Released: 1953
Directed by: George Marshall
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Magic
Anthony Hopkins, Ann-Margret
Released: 1978
Directed by: Richard Attenborough
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8
0
Stardust
Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro
Released: 2007
Directed by: Matthew Vaughn
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Now You See Me 2
Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo
Released: 2016
Directed by: Jon M. Chu
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39
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Mary Poppins Returns
Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda
Released: 2018
Directed by: Rob Marshall
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2
Abigail
Tinatin Dalakishvili, Gleb Bochkov
Released: 2019
Directed by: Aleksandr Boguslavsky
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The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
Olivia Wilde, Jim Carrey
Released: 2013
Directed by: Don Scardino
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The Mad Magician
Vincent Price, Eva Gabor
Released: 1954
Directed by: John Brahm
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Eternally Yours
David Niven, Loretta Young
Released: 1939
Directed by: Tay Garnett, Charles Kerr
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The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Nicolas Cage, Monica Bellucci
Released: 2010
Directed by: Jon Turteltaub
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Next
Jessica Biel, Nicolas Cage
Released: 2007
Directed by: Lee Tamahori
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Magic Camp
Adam DeVine, Jeffrey Tambor
Released: 2020
Directed by: Mark Waters
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Enchanted
Amy Adams, Susan Sarandon
Released: 2007
Directed by: Kevin Lima
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Magic in the Moonlight
Emma Stone, Colin Firth
Released: 2014
Directed by: Woody Allen
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The Raven
Jack Nicholson, Vincent Price
Released: 1963
Directed by: Roger Corman
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Lord of Illusions
Famke Janssen, Scott Bakula
Released: 1995
Directed by: Clive Barker

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