What to read, watch, and listen to if you lovedThe Girl on the Train
Paula Hawkins · Book · 2015
If you loved The Girl on the Train, start with The Girl on the Train (Tate Taylor, 2016) — a film from the same story. Below: 2 films, 4 series and 2 podcasts, each matched to The Girl on the Train across media.
If you loved the voyeuristic obsession and unreliable perspectives in The Girl on the Train, these dark stories will keep you guessing.
Start with the source
Adaptation
The Girl on the Train
Tate Taylor · Film · 2016
Films on the same thread
Gone Girl
David Fincher · Film · 2014
Shares 3 threads with The Girl on the Train: Unreliable Narrator, Gaslighting, Psychological Thriller.
Like The Girl on the Train, this film captures the suffocating tension of a fractured marriage where media scrutiny and shifting narratives force you to question every character's innocence.
The Housemaid
Paul Feig · Film · 2025
Shares 3 threads with The Girl on the Train: Gaslighting, Obsession, Domestic Thriller.
Fans of The Girl on the Train will recognize the unsettling power dynamics and dangerous secrets that emerge when an outsider infiltrates the seemingly perfect lives of the wealthy.
Series on the same thread
The Haunting of Hill House
Mike Flanagan · Series · 2018
Explores: Trauma, Family Secrets, Mental Illness.
The Girl on the Train centers on trauma and memory, much like this series, which masterfully uses haunting past experiences to distort the reality of its fractured, grieving protagonists.
The Beast in Me
Gabe Rotter · Series · 2025
Shares 3 threads with The Girl on the Train: Obsession, Gaslighting, Unreliable Narrator.
This show mirrors the obsessive scrutiny found in The Girl on the Train, trapping you in a twisted game where a neighborly facade hides a potentially murderous, dark reality.
You
Greg Berlanti · Series · 2018
Shares 3 threads with The Girl on the Train: Obsession, Unreliable Narrator, Psychological Thriller.
If the unsettling voyeurism of The Girl on the Train hooked you, this series offers a deeper dive into the dangerous, obsessive fixation of an unreliable, stalking protagonist.
The Night Of
Richard Price · Series · 2016
Shares a thread with The Girl on the Train: Psychological Thriller.
Much like the protagonist of The Girl on the Train, the lead here faces a nightmare scenario where memory loss and moral ambiguity collide with a high-stakes criminal investigation.
Podcasts on the same thread
Crime Junkie
Audiochuck · Podcast · 2026
Shares 2 threads with The Girl on the Train: obsession, mystery.
If your obsession with the mystery in The Girl on the Train left you craving more investigations, this podcast provides the same investigative intensity and focus on real-world secrets.
The Truth
The Truth · Podcast · 2026
Explores: human condition, experimental storytelling, moral ambiguity.
The Girl on the Train thrives on atmospheric tension, and these cinematic stories deliver that same feeling of suspense through intimate, bite-sized narratives that explore the darker human condition.
Keep exploring
Common questions
Is The Girl on the Train book different from the movie?
The 2015 book The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins is the original source material for the 2016 movie adaptation. While both follow the same psychological thriller narrative centered on Rachel's observations during her daily commute, they are separate mediums that tell the same core story.
When was The Girl on the Train book released?
The Girl on the Train was released in 2015. It is a debut psychological thriller written by Paula Hawkins that explores the lives of people seen from a commuter train. The story focuses on Rachel, who becomes obsessed with a couple she watches from the train tracks every morning.
Should I read The Girl on the Train before watching the 2016 movie?
Reading the 2015 book The Girl on the Train before watching the 2016 movie adaptation allows you to experience the original story as written by Paula Hawkins. Both versions depict the same psychological thriller plot, so the order depends on your preference for reading or viewing the story first.
Is The Girl on the Train a debut novel?
Yes, The Girl on the Train is a debut psychological thriller written by Paula Hawkins and published in 2015. The story follows Rachel, a commuter who watches a couple breakfasting on their deck daily, which leads to a life-changing experience for the characters involved in the narrative.