10 Movies To Watch After Seeing Netflix’s Work It

Netflix has once again nailed the teen romantic comedy genre with its newest film Work It. The dance-centered romantic comedy stars Sabrina Carpenter (Girl Meets World) as Quinn, an overachieving high school student who must figure out a way to compete in a dance competition in order to diversify her college resume. The only problem is Quinn can’t dance. Determined to make it to the competition finals, Quinn creates a dance crew of her own and enlists the help of a legendary retired dance choreographer Jake Taylor (Jordan Fisher).

Work It is a heartwarming and swoon-worthy story that elevates all the best rom-com tropes by using dance numbers. Here are ten movies and TV shows that are just as great as Work It. 

10 Step Up

Released in 2006, Step Up not only kicked off the Step Up franchise but it also introduced the world to Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan. The film centers around Tyler Gage (Tatum) who finds himself cleaning Maryland School of Arts in order to serve his community service hours. While there, he takes an interest in Nora (Dewan) and after her dance partner suffers an injury, Tyler steps in to help her.

While Step Up is a bit less cheesy than Work It, it still has its fair share of swoon-worthy moments. The film also has tons of dancing involved including an epic final number that’ll leave viewers in awe.

9 World Of Dance

While there have been tons of competition shows that focus on dance competitions, none of them compare to NBC’s reality dance competition show World of Dance. The reality series allows dancers of all ages and backgrounds the chance to compete for a million dollars. The best part is no dance style is off-limits. Not to mention, the series is judged by Jennifer Lopez, Ne-Yo, and Derek Hough.

Competition shows might be tough to binge, especially when they’ve already aired but World of Dance will not disappoint.

8 Feel The Beat

Work It isn’t Netflix’s first dance film, in fact, just a month before Netflix released the family dance comedy Feel the Beat. Sofia Carson (Descendants) plays April, a jaded aspiring Broadway dancer who gets black-balled from Broadway and returns home to teach at a dance studio.

Like Work It, Feel the Beat has fun dance numbers and even has a romantic subplot to it. The main characters are also similar in that they’re both underdogs in their respective worlds but rise to the challenges presented to them.

7 To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You

To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You was the highly anticipated sequel to Netflix’s teen rom-com To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before. The sequel picks off where they first film left off with Lara Jean (Lana Condor) in a real relationship with Peter Kavinsky (Noah Centineo). Things get complicated though when Lara Jean’s childhood crush John Ambrose (Jordan Fisher) moves back into town.

While To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You doesn’t include huge dance numbers it does have on major thing in common with Work It: Jordan Fisher. Just as he does in Work It, Fisher will have viewers swooning over him the moment he enters the frame.

6 Footloose

Released in 1984, Footloose is a true musical film classic. Starring Kevin Bacon as Ren McCormack, the film follows Ren as he attempts to make dancing and rock music accepted in his new hometown which currently has banned both things.

Much like Quinn in Work It, Ren must overcome several obstacles in order to prove to the small town that dancing is a good thing and not something to be feared. Plus, the film features great dance numbers that are reflective of the time period.

5 Another Cinderella Story

After the success of A Cinderella Story with Hilary Duff, the classic Cinderella tale was adapted yet again. This time the film starred Selena Gomez as Mary Santiago, an aspiring dancer who, by some miracle, ends up befriending and falling for Joey Parker (Drew Seeley), a pop star who has returned to his high school to get his diploma like a normal teenager.

A Cinderella Story definitely has enough cheesy rom-com moments to rival Work It. Plus, it also features some amazing, swoon-worthy dance numbers especially when Mary and Joey dance together for the first time.

4 Dirty Dancing

Every other dance film pales in comparison to the iconic classic Dirty Dancing. The film featured Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey as Johnny and “Baby” an unlikely duo who spend the entire summer learning from each other. While Johnny and Baby’s love for each other is iconic, its really the final dance number that makes Dirty Dancing the best.

Dirty Dancing has a lot in common with Work It. In both films, the professional dancer must take on an inexperienced dance partner whom they end up learning to love.

3 Teen Beach Movie

When it comes to Disney Channel Original Movies, viewers know there is going to be an enormous amount of cheesy moments present. Teen Beach Movie definitely does not disappoint. The musical film follows Brady (Ross Lynch) and McKenzie (Maia Mitchell) as they try to figure out how to get back to reality after being transported into a beach party movie.

Not only does Teen Beach Movie feature fun dance numbers and a cute love story, but Jordan Fisher also stars in the film as one of the fake movie characters.

2 Bunheads

There are not a whole lot of shows centered around dance out there but ABC Family did take a stab at it with the original series Bunheads. Created by Amy Sherman-Palladino (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), the series centers on Michelle Simms (Sutton Foster), a former showgirl who has retired to a small town in California and now teaches at her mother-in-law’s dance studio.

While Bunheads is more closely aligned to Netflix’s Feel the Beat, there are some similarities to Work It beyond the fact that it centers on dancers. Like the dancers in Work It, the dancers in Bunheads are insecure and unsure of their talents.

1 Grease Live

Grease is definitely an iconic film that any fan of dance film shows to watch but the story got a bit of a modern update when Fox filmed the Grease Live special which involved a talented cast putting on the stage version of Grease. 

Grease Live aired on Fox in 2016 and became a huge success for the network and the cast. In fact, the special was nominated for ten Emmy Awards, winning five of them. In addition, Grease Live also features Jordan Fisher so its the perfect thing to watch if you’re missing his charismatic stage presence and talent.

About The Author

Danielle Bruncati
(301 Articles Published)

Danielle Bruncati was born and raised in Southern California and has been a story-teller for as long as she can remember. She is currently a freelance writer for ScreenRant and is also pursuing a Master’s Degree in Television Writing and Producing from a top 10 film school. When she’s not writing, Danielle can be found binging the latest sitcom or teen tv series with her dog by her side or walking around Disneyland with a Mickey-shaped snack in hand.

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