What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedHappiness
Film · 1998
If you loved Happiness, start with Happiness (Han Sang-un, 2021) — a series from the same story. Below: 4 books, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to Happiness across media.
You appreciate how Happiness exposes the unsettling desperation and moral bankruptcy hidden just beneath the surface of everyday human existence.
Start with the source
Adaptation
Happiness
Han Sang-un · Series · 2021
Books on the same thread
The Ones who Walk Away from Omelas
Ursula K. Le Guin · Book · 1993
Explores: Utilitarianism, Moral compromise, Social responsibility.
Like Happiness, this story forces you to confront the disturbing moral compromises individuals accept to maintain their personal comfort, highlighting the collective guilt inherent in societal structures.
Dubliners
James Joyce · Book · 1992
Explores: Paralysis, Epiphany, Irish Identity.
Much like the characters in Happiness, these figures are trapped in a state of paralysis, revealing the quiet, crushing desperation of urban lives that lack genuine human connection.
Blindness
José Saramago · Book · 1999
Explores: Social Breakdown, Loss of Sight, Humanity in Crisis.
This narrative mirrors the descent into depravity seen in Happiness, exploring how quickly social order collapses when humans are stripped of their dignity and forced into extreme circumstances.
The Stranger
Albert Camus · Book · 1993
Explores: Existential crisis, Moral indifference, Alienation.
If the moral ambiguity of Happiness resonated with you, you will appreciate this exploration of existential detachment and the impossibility of finding objective meaning in a chaotic world.
Series on the same thread
Euphoria
Sam Levinson · Series · 2019
Shares a thread with Happiness: Dark Drama.
This show shares the raw, unflinching look at dysfunctional relationships found in Happiness, capturing the same desperate search for intimacy amidst a landscape of trauma and personal chaos.
Serial Experiments Lain
Series · 1998
Explores: Existentialism, Identity Crisis, Technological Singularity.
This series captures the deep social alienation present in Happiness, pushing the boundaries of identity until the characters lose themselves in a fragmented, psychologically taxing search for meaning.
Pluribus
Vince Gilligan · Series · 2025
Explores: Existential dread, The cost of happiness, Reluctant hero.
This satirical take on the cost of joy echoes the dark comedy of Happiness, questioning the validity of human fulfillment through a lens of profound existential dread.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Series · 2005
Shares a thread with Happiness: Black Comedy.
The sociopathic behavior and moral bankruptcy of these characters provide a comedic, yet equally unsettling mirror to the dysfunctional dynamics that define the ensemble in Happiness.
Podcasts on the same thread
Happier with Gretchen Rubin
Gretchen Rubin / The Onward Project · Podcast · 2026
Explores: Well-being, Behavioral Change, Mindful Living.
This serves as a clinical counterpoint to Happiness, offering a structural look at the same obsession with well-being that drives the characters in the film to such extremes.
MANUAL DO DESESPERO
Podcast
Explores: Existentialism, Modern Life, Social Commentary.
This podcast shares the bleak, dark humor found in Happiness, guiding listeners toward the same precipice of reality where modern life feels like a constant, desperate existential struggle.
Keep exploring
Common questions
Is the 2021 TV show Happiness related to the 1998 movie Happiness?
No, the 2021 TV show Happiness and the 1998 movie Happiness are separate productions. They share the same title but are distinct works with different creative teams and narratives rather than being adaptations of one another.
What is the 1998 movie Happiness about?
The 1998 movie Happiness follows the lives of several individuals as they intertwine. The characters engage in acts that society may find disturbing while they pursue a desperate search for human connection in their own unique ways.
Should I watch the 2021 TV show if I enjoyed the 1998 movie Happiness?
Watching the 2021 TV show Happiness depends on your interest in different media formats. While they share a title, they are not narratively linked, so the 2021 series does not serve as a continuation or adaptation of the 1998 film.
Is Happiness a series or a movie?
Happiness exists as both a 1998 movie and a 2021 TV show. These are two separate projects. The 1998 movie focuses on individuals searching for connection, while the 2021 TV show is a distinct production under the same name.