What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedSide Effects
Steven Soderbergh · Film · 2013
If you loved Side Effects, start with Maniac (Patrick Somerville, 2018) — a series on the same thread. Below: 4 books, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to Side Effects across media.
You were drawn to the way Side Effects weaponizes mental health and corporate structures to erode your sense of objective reality.
Books on the same thread
Pieces of Her
Karin Slaughter · Book
Shares a thread with Side Effects: psychological thriller.
Like Side Effects, this story uses a domestic crisis as a gateway to unraveling deep-seated secrets, forcing you to question everything you thought you knew about the protagonist's history.
The Silent Patient
Alex Michaelides · Book · 2020
Shares a thread with Side Effects: Psychological Thriller.
This novel mirrors the psychological manipulation found in Side Effects, relying on an unreliable perspective to trap you in a mystery where the truth remains obscured by trauma.
The Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins · Book · 2015
Shares a thread with Side Effects: Psychological Thriller.
If the mental instability in Side Effects kept you guessing, you will appreciate how this narrative uses memory loss and unreliable narration to shatter the protagonist's perceived reality.
Annihilation
Jeff VanderMeer · Book · 2014
Shares a thread with Side Effects: Psychological Thriller.
This picks up on the unsettling atmosphere of Side Effects by blending psychological unraveling with an environment that fundamentally alters the identity and memory of those who enter.
Series on the same thread
Maniac
Patrick Somerville · Series · 2018
Shares a thread with Side Effects: Mental Health.
This series directly explores the pharmaceutical experimentation themes of Side Effects, showing how corporate promises of medical relief can lead to nightmarish consequences for vulnerable individuals seeking stability.
Mr. Robot
Sam Esmail · Series · 2015
Shares 2 threads with Side Effects: Corporate conspiracy, Psychological Thriller.
Just as Side Effects critiques the intersection of corporate power and mental health, this show features a protagonist whose internal struggles drive a dangerous confrontation with institutional control.
Psycho-Pass
Series · 2012
Explores: Moral Ambiguity, Technological Determinism, Social Control.
This series expands on the moral ambiguity of Side Effects, questioning how society uses technology and medical monitoring to police human behavior and dictate individual freedom.
Severance
Dan Erickson · Series · 2022
Shares 2 threads with Side Effects: Psychological Thriller, Corporate Conspiracy.
This show captures the corporate conspiracy elements of Side Effects, utilizing a high-concept premise to explore how institutions can manipulate memory and identity for their own hidden gains.
Podcasts on the same thread
The Truth
The Truth · Podcast · 2026
Explores: human condition, experimental storytelling, moral ambiguity.
The immersive, cinematic nature of these stories mirrors the tension of Side Effects, offering compact narratives that lean into moral ambiguity and the darker side of human conditions.
Sleep With Me
Silver Sleeper Productions LLC · Podcast · 2026
Explores: Insomnia Relief, Mindfulness, Boredom Induction.
While Side Effects induces anxiety through pharmaceutical peril, this podcast offers a functional counter-experience by using guided techniques to alleviate the very stress that drives such thrillers.
Keep exploring
Common questions
What is the primary premise of Side Effects?
Side Effects is a 2013 film directed by Steven Soderbergh. The plot centers on a woman who begins taking prescription medication to manage her severe anxiety regarding her husband's impending release from prison.
Who directed the 2013 movie Side Effects?
The 2013 film Side Effects was directed by Steven Soderbergh. It explores the psychological distress of a woman struggling with the emotional impact of her husband returning home after serving time in prison.
Is Side Effects based on a book?
There is no source material or book adaptation associated with the 2013 movie Side Effects. The film is an original production focused on the story of a woman using prescription drugs to cope with her husband's prison release.
What triggers the events in Side Effects?
The events in Side Effects are triggered by the protagonist's intense anxiety. She turns to prescription medication as a coping mechanism specifically to handle the stress caused by her husband's upcoming release from prison.