Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    EmmysSuperheroes GuideSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideBest Of 2025 So FarDisability Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
Copy

Drug, Prohibition, & Addiction Fiction

by legaliseequality-dot-com • Created 2 years ago • Modified 15 hours ago
Film, music video, and TV dramatizations of stories involving drugs (including tobacco, alcohol, caffeine), prohibition, or addiction in some meaningful way. Most are total fiction, some are based on true events.
List activity
790 views
• 1 this week
Create a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
  • 1 - 250
  • 1785 titles
  • Al Pacino in Scarface (1983)

    1. Scarface

    19832h 50mR65Metascore
    8.3 (975K)
    In the 1980s, a determined criminal-minded Cuban immigrant becomes the biggest drug smuggler in Miami, and is eventually undone by his own drug addiction.
    DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsAl PacinoMichelle PfeifferSteven Bauer
    Kingpin rise and fall, cocaine
  • Christian Bale and Taye Diggs in Equilibrium (2002)

    2. Equilibrium

    20021h 47mR33Metascore
    7.3 (356K)
    In an oppressive future where all forms of feeling are illegal, a man in charge of enforcing the law rises to overthrow the system and state.
    DirectorKurt WimmerStarsChristian BaleSean BeanEmily Watson
    cartel takedown, compulsory medication, fictional drug
  • Bryan Cranston in Breaking Bad (2008)

    3. Breaking Bad

    2008–201362 epsTV-MATV Series
    9.5 (2.4M)
    A chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine with a former student to secure his family's future.
    CreatorVince GilliganStarsBryan CranstonAaron PaulAnna Gunn
    Kingpin rise and fall, methamphetamine
  • Ryan George, Brandon Calder, and Samuel Brisson in Campus Law (2017)

    4. Campus Law

    Episode: 

    Quill Plus

    (2017)
    2017TV-MATV Episode
    9.3 (7)
    Fox and Gilroy convince Truman that in order to stop the selling of a powerful new mystery drug on campus, they must create and distribute a more powerful substance.
    DirectorChris OsbrinkStarsWesley ArmstrongSamuel BrissonBrandon Calder
    fictional drug
  • Charles Bronson in Death Wish 4: The Crackdown (1987)

    5. Death Wish 4: The Crackdown

    19871h 39mR46Metascore
    5.5 (12K)
    Architect/vigilante Paul Kersey takes on the members of a vicious Los Angeles drug cartel to stop the flow of drugs after his girlfriend's daughter dies from an overdose.
    DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonStarsCharles BronsonKay LenzJohn P. Ryan
    cartel takedown
  • Black Dynamite (2009)

    6. Black Dynamite

    20091h 24mR65Metascore
    7.4 (54K)
    Black Dynamite is the greatest African-American action star of the 1970s. When his only brother is killed by The Man, it's up to him to find justice.
    DirectorScott SandersStarsMichael Jai WhiteArsenio HallTommy Davidson
    cartel takedown
  • Rick Hearst in Brain Damage (1988)

    7. Brain Damage

    19881h 24mR61Metascore
    6.5 (14K)
    One morning, a young man wakes to find that a small, disgusting creature has attached itself to the base of his brain stem. The creature gives him a euphoric state of happiness but demands human victims in return.
    DirectorFrank HenenlotterStarsRick HearstGordon MacDonaldJennifer Lowry
    Addiction, fictional drug
  • Bruce Lee, Ahna Capri, Jim Kelly, John Saxon, Shih Kien, and Robert Wall in Enter the Dragon (1973)

    8. Enter the Dragon

    19731h 42mR83Metascore
    7.6 (118K)
    A Shaolin martial artist travels to an island fortress to spy on an opium lord - who is also a former monk from his temple - under the guise of attending a fighting tournament.
    DirectorRobert ClouseStarsBruce LeeJohn SaxonJim Kelly
  • Jason Statham in Crank (2006)

    9. Crank

    20061h 28mR57Metascore
    6.9 (273K)
    Professional assassin Chev Chelios learns his rival has injected him with a poison that will kill him if his heart rate drops.
    DirectorsMark NeveldineBrian TaylorStarsJason StathamAmy SmartCarlos Sanz
  • Antonio Banderas in Desperado (1995)

    10. Desperado

    19951h 44mR55Metascore
    7.1 (204K)
    Former musician and gunslinger El Mariachi arrives at a small Mexican border town after being away for a long time. His past quickly catches up with him and he soon gets entangled with the local drug kingpin Bucho and his gang.
    DirectorRobert RodriguezStarsAntonio BanderasSalma HayekJoaquim de Almeida
  • Michael Ironside in Scanners (1981)

    11. Scanners

    19811h 43mR60Metascore
    6.7 (65K)
    A scientist trains a man with an advanced telepathic ability called "scanning" to stop a dangerous Scanner with extraordinary psychic powers from waging war against non scanners.
    DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsJennifer O'NeillStephen LackPatrick McGoohan
  • Emma Roberts, 50 Cent, and Chace Crawford in Twelve (2010)

    12. Twelve

    20101h 33mR22Metascore
    5.6 (13K)
    A young drug dealer watches as his high-rolling life is dismantled in the wake of his cousin's murder, which sees his best friend arrested for the crime.
    DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsChace CrawfordEmma RobertsRory Culkin
    fictional drug
  • Scanners II: The New Order (1991)

    13. Scanners II: The New Order

    19911h 44mR
    5.3 (4K)
    A scanner discovers a plot by renegade elements in the city government to take power with the help of evil scanners.
    DirectorChristian DuguayStarsDavid HewlettDeborah RaffinYvan Ponton
  • Scanners III: The Takeover (1991)

    14. Scanners III: The Takeover

    19911h 41mR
    4.5 (2.8K)
    A young female scanner turns from a sweet young thing into a murderous, power-crazed villain after she takes an experimental drug developed by her father. Her brother, who is also a scanner, is the only one powerful enough to stop her.
    DirectorChristian DuguayStarsLiliana KomorowskaValérie ValoisSteve Parrish
  • A Field in England (2013)

    15. A Field in England

    20131h 30mNot Rated73Metascore
    6.2 (15K)
    Amid the Civil War in 17th-century England, a group of deserters flee from battle through an overgrown field. Captured by an alchemist, the men are forced to help him search to find a hidden treasure that he believes is buried in the field.
    DirectorBen WheatleyStarsJulian BarrattPeter FerdinandoRichard Glover
  • A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)

    16. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night

    20141h 41mNot Rated81Metascore
    6.9 (40K)
    In the Iranian ghost-town Bad City, a place that reeks of death and loneliness, the townspeople are unaware they are being stalked by a lonesome vampire.
    DirectorAna Lily AmirpourStarsSheila VandArash MarandiMarshall Manesh
  • Jane Levy in Evil Dead (2013)

    17. Evil Dead

    20131h 31mR57Metascore
    6.5 (207K)
    Five friends head to a remote cabin, where the discovery of a Book of the Dead leads them to unwittingly summon up demons living in the nearby woods.
    DirectorFede AlvarezStarsJane LevyShiloh FernandezJessica Lucas
  • Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele in Keanu (2016)

    18. Keanu

    20161h 40mR63Metascore
    6.2 (54K)
    When the adorable kitten of an L.A. crime kingpin unexpectedly enters the life of two cousins, they will have to go through tough gangs, pitiless hit-men, and ruthless drug dealers who all claim him, to get him back. How hard can it be?
    DirectorPeter AtencioStarsKeegan-Michael KeyJordan PeeleTiffany Haddish
  • The Endless (2017)

    19. The Endless

    20171h 51mNot Rated80Metascore
    6.5 (54K)
    As kids, they escaped a UFO death cult. Now, two adult brothers seek answers after an old videotape surfaces and brings them back to where they began.
    DirectorsJustin BensonAaron MoorheadStarsAaron MoorheadJustin BensonCallie Hernandez
  • Leonardo DiCaprio, Chris Kerson, and Jonah Hill in The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

    20. The Wolf of Wall Street

    20133hR75Metascore
    8.2 (1.7M)
    Based on the true story of Jordan Belfort, from his rise to a wealthy stock-broker living the high life to his fall involving crime, corruption and the federal government.
    DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioJonah HillMargot Robbie
  • Jessica De Gouw in OtherLife (2017)

    21. OtherLife

    20171h 36mTV-MA
    6.2 (17K)
    After inventing a drug that induces time-compressed virtual realities, young Ren grapples with partner Sam over how to use their powerful creation.
    DirectorBen C. LucasStarsJessica De GouwLiam GrahamFiona Press
  • From Beyond (1986)

    22. From Beyond

    19861h 25mR60Metascore
    6.6 (33K)
    A group of scientists have developed the Resonator, a machine which allows whoever is within range to see beyond normal perceptible reality. But when the experiment succeeds, they are immediately attacked by terrible life forms.
    DirectorStuart GordonStarsJeffrey CombsBarbara CramptonTed Sorel
  • Elijah Wood, Josh Hartnett, Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Laura Harris, and Usher in The Faculty (1998)

    23. The Faculty

    19981h 44mR61Metascore
    6.6 (143K)
    When Casey Connor, Herrington High School's newspaper photographer, witnesses the murder of a nurse and sees her alive again, he decides to investigate the bizarre happenings.
    DirectorRobert RodriguezStarsJordana BrewsterClea DuVallLaura Harris
  • James Franco, Seth Rogen, and Danny McBride in Pineapple Express (2008)

    24. Pineapple Express

    20081h 51mR64Metascore
    6.9 (367K)
    A process server and his marijuana dealer wind up on the run from hitmen and a corrupt police officer after he witnesses his dealer's boss murder a competitor while trying to serve papers on him.
    DirectorDavid Gordon GreenStarsSeth RogenJames FrancoGary Cole
    cannabis
  • Nicolas Cage, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Chloë Grace Moretz, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse in Kick-Ass (2010)

    25. Kick-Ass

    20101h 57mR66Metascore
    7.6 (611K)
    Dave Lizewski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan who one day decides to become a superhero, even though he has no powers, training or meaningful reason to do so.
    DirectorMatthew VaughnStarsAaron Taylor-JohnsonNicolas CageChloë Grace Moretz

More to explore

Recently viewed

Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
Get the IMDb App
Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
Follow IMDb on social
Get the IMDb App
For Android and iOS
Get the IMDb App
  • Help
  • Site Index
  • IMDbPro
  • Box Office Mojo
  • License IMDb Data
  • Press Room
  • Advertising
  • Jobs
  • Conditions of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Ads Privacy Choices
IMDb, an Amazon company

© 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.