20 Best Movies About Cheating Wives & Husbands
It seems that there are plenty of different people that enjoy movies that explore the personal lives of different people, as films about infidelity have become quite popular. Whether we like it or not, movies that explore the infidelity of a husband and/or a wife are really big among different people who love to watch movies that can happen in real life and always happens under our noses.
Of course, there are plenty of different movies about cheating wives and husbands, and all of them are quite unique when it comes to their premise. In that regard, let’s look at the best movies about cheating wives and husbands that you may want to watch if you want to enjoy stories that are scandalous and intriguing.
Best Movies About Cheating Wives
Even though some of the most publicized scandals involve cheating husbands, the truth of the matter is that there are also a lot of unfaithful wives who look for partners whenever they feel like their husbands can’t give them what they want. As such, let’s look at some of the best movies about cheating wives.
10. On a Magical Night (2019)
On a Magical Night is a foreign movie that explores the life of a woman who suddenly tries to rethink her life after being in a marriage for a long time. In that regard, while the movie does show her infidelity towards her husband, it is also a film that allows us to see self-growth as the story focuses more on her character development instead of her being unfaithful.
The movie follows the story of Maria, who has been in a marriage for 20 years, suddenly decided to leave her husband and move into room 212 in the hotel across the street so that she could have a view of her apartment, her husband, and the life she used to have. During that time, she began acting like a single woman as she was contemplating whether or not she had made the right decision. However, a lot of people decided to offer their opinions on the matter during a night that proved to be life-changing.
9. Ryan’s Daughter (1970)
Ryan’s Daughter is a 70s film that tells a story that happened during the beginning of the 1900s. As such, it was clear that movies that talk about infidelity were already quite popular during the 70s. And this classic should be something that you might want to catch if you’re into older films.
The movie follows the story of a married woman who lives in a small Irish village during the wake of the 1916 Easter Rising. During that time, she began having an affair with a British soldier that was stationed in Ireland as this isn’t only a movie that explores infidelity but also talks about how two different worlds collide.
8. Swing Shift (1984)
Swing Shift is an 80s movie that follows a story that’s set during a time of war. As such, it should be another movie that you might want to watch if you’re interested in older times when things were simple and when it was also easier to find love in another person when times were lonely.
The movie follows the story of a woman who ends up taking a job at an aircraft plant so that she can support her family while her husband is off fighting a war. However, she finds romance in the very same plant that she was working for.
7. The Aftermath (2019)
The Aftermath is a movie that takes place during post-war times as people were still recovering from the effects of World War II in this movie that is yet again set during a wartime period. However, this is pretty much a complex movie that should be quite intriguing for people who are looking for some drama.
In this film, a woman reunites with her husband after WWII as her husband is a British soldier in charge of rebuilding the shattered city of Hamburg following the devastation of the war. They decided to live in a new home where they had to share the huge house with its previous owner, a German widower. This is where things get out of hand between the two parties, as this becomes a story about passion and betrayal.
6. Queen of Hearts (2019)
Set in modern times, Queen of Hearts takes a look at how infidelity can happen in the confines of a person’s own home and family, as this movie explores a bit of incest. Nevertheless, the infidelity part of this film is still quite intriguing for those who love to watch movies about family drama.
Queen of Hearts follows the story of Anne, an advocacy lawyer who lives a perfect life with her husband Peter, a doctor, and their twin daughters. However, trouble comes knocking on the door when Peter’s estranged teenage son decides to move in with them as an affair between Anne and the teenager. Her desires lead her down a hole that could potentially destroy her seemingly perfect life.
5. A Walk on the Moon (1999)
A Walk on the Moon is a film that’s set against the backdrop of the 1969 Woodstock Festival and the moon landings. As such, it is a movie that allows us to see what a wife went through during that time period.
In this movie, a housewife is married to a television repairman who was in the middle of the busiest time of his life because of the moon landing as plenty of people were looking to have their televisions repaired to see the historic event. In that regard, a young housewife finds love and comfort in a free-spirited blouse salesman as they enter an affair that could potentially turn her life upside down.
4. The Secret (2000)
The Secret follows a story that is similar to a lot of the other movies on this list. That means that this movie follows a story of a woman who has the perfect life but is willing to risk it all because of her desire for another man.
This French movie follows the story of Marie, who lives with a loving and terrific family and has a great job. However, she feels attracted to another man because she doesn’t feel content with the life she has. And she puts her good life on the line just because of her discontent with her husband.
3. The Last Duel (2021)
This movie might be the newest on our list, but this is actually set during the 14th century as the story of this film is based on true events that happened hundreds of years ago. And while this isn’t exactly a movie about a cheating wife, there are some elements that make it a story about infidelity.
The Last Duel follows the story of an ambitious knight who ends up marrying a beautiful lady after promising her a huge dowry. But while he may have been ambitious, the problem was that he wasn’t able to satisfy her. Meanwhile, his best friend, who he believes has been smearing his name to the local lord, starts to fall for his wife and eventually attacks her, as the wife herself seemingly felt pleasure from the encounter.
2. Unfaithful (2002)
As the title of the movie suggests, it is a movie that focuses on the infidelity of a wife. This is actually an erotic film that stars two great actors in the form of Richard Gere and Diane Lane. And it’s a film that is all about passion and the effects of a bad marriage.
In this movie, a New York couple’s marriage turns dangerously sour. Because of the turn of events regarding her marriage, the wife decides to indulge in an adulterous fling that is full of love and passion but is immoral by all rights.
1. Casablanca (1942)
Casablanca is one of the greatest films of all time and is set during the height of the tensions between the US and Germans during World War II. As such, the movie is set against the backdrop of WWII and follows a story that’s all about love and passion in the middle of wartime.
The movie follows the story of an expatriate American nightclub owner in Casablanca who discovers that his old lover is in town with her husband. The husband is a famous rebel and knows that the Germans are on his tail. As such, as he decides to help his former love and her husband get out of the country, he enters a dangerous affair that reignites their passion for one another.
Best Movies About Cheating Husbands
It isn’t rare for husbands to be the ones who are always at the cheating end of a relationship, probably because of how unfaithful husbands are always the ones unfairly publicized. Regardless of what reasons they may have for being unfaithful, there are actually a lot of cheating husbands out there. So, in that regard, let us look at the movies that were able to best portray the story of a cheating husband.
10. What Lies Beneath (2000)
What Lies Beneath is somewhat of a horror movie that is able to deliver a suspenseful and slow-burn kind of experience that doesn’t dwell too much on the infidelity of the husband but allows it to become part and parcel of the entire plot of the movie. In that regard, it should be a good overall experience for those who not only enjoy watching movies about cheating husbands but are also looking for a good scare.
The movie follows Harrison Ford’s character, who literally has an old affair that came back to haunt him. He and his wife noticed that there had been strange things happening in their home, and this leads to the discovery of his infidelity as the one who is possibly haunting their house used to be the woman that he had an affair with. As the movie unfolds, more and more dark secrets are unearthed in this, intriguing and terrifying movie.
9. Fatal Attraction (1987)
One of the best movies that talk about an affair that went wrong is Fatal Attraction, a film that allowed Glenn Close to showcase her acting prowess in an award-winning performance. On top of the fact that Close had a really good performance in this movie, the entire film itself was nominated for the Best Picture award at the Academy Awards.
Fatal Attraction follows Michael Douglas’s character, who is in a happy marriage but ends up having an affair with Alex, Glen Close’s character. However, when the passionate affair was abruptly ended, Alex became so obsessed with him to the point that she exhibited dangerous behavior towards him. And the way that she acted toward him will make any man think twice about having an affair.
8. The Other Woman (2014)
Let’s take a break from the more serious infidelity movies to showcase a lighthearted one that allows you to see what women can do as a collective in a film that isn’t exactly rom-com but provides enough comedy to make it a lot more entertaining than most other movies about cheating husbands.
In The Other Woman, Cameron Diaz stars as a woman who thought that she had just found a good man until she discovered that her boyfriend was actually married. In that regard, she teams up with the man’s wife to try to bring him down as they discover that there is a third woman in the mix. It’s a fun movie that will allow you to see that women don’t need to bring each other down when fighting for one man but could actually help each other out instead.
7. Cape Fear (1991)
Cape Fear is a masterpiece when it comes to the horror-thriller genre because this is a movie that is more grounded in realism than it is in fantasy and the supernatural. And the thing about this movie is that it doesn’t focus too much on infidelity but on the effects of being in an extra-marital affair.
The movie focuses on a lawyer who was able to put a convict in prison. But when the convict escaped, he made it a point to torment the lawyer by using his own infidelity against him as he sought to drive him and his family apart as a way of exacting his revenge. In that regard, the movie allows you to see a truly terrifying villain that can be a reflection of just about anyone in society.
6. Fish Tank (2009)
If you’re looking for a movie that is somewhat under the radar because of how small it is, then Fish Tank should be a good film to watch. Despite the fact that this is a low-budget production, it allows you to see the acting prowess that allowed Michael Fassbender to become a household name in the film industry.
Fish Tank follows the story of a young teenage girl who comes of age and begins to develop an attraction to her mother’s new lover. In that regard, it becomes a complicated relationship that is anchored by terrific performances from all of the names involved in this intense movie that can be quite difficult to watch but is more than worth the time and effort.
5. Brokeback Mountain (2005)
One of the most popular movies of the 2000s is Brokeback Mountain because of how it was able to break the mold in the middle of a time that wasn’t too open to homosexuality. Yes, the movie is all about homosexuality, but it still is about cheating husbands as the two main characters here are married to women. The subject matter was a bit too controversial during its release, but it eventually became iconic due to how it was able to break boundaries.
Brokeback Mountain focuses on two men who worked on a sheep ranch together one summer but ended up feeling free to be who they are to the point that they developed an attraction to one another. They continued this romantic relationship for 20 years despite the fact that they were already married to women.
4. Chloe (2009)
Anchored by powerful performances from household names like Liam Neeson and Julianne Moor, Chloe is a film that allows you to see how far a wife is willing to go just so she can see whether or not her husband will give in to his temptations.
In Chloe, Moore plays the role of a wife of a well-off music professor in a high-end area in Toronto. She suspects that her husband (Neeson) is having an affair with his students, and this leads her to hire a prostitute named Chloe in an attempt to see if her husband is going to take the bait. But when Chloe spills the details of her encounters, things go out of control.
3. Little Children (2006)
A movie that doesn’t necessarily focus on a cheating husband but allows us to see two parties cheating on their own spouses, Little Children is a film that explores how small yet tempting suburban life can be for parents who are yet to accept the fact that they have responsibilities in a marriage.
Little Children follows the story of two different spouses. Sarah is a well-educated woman who hasn’t come to terms with the fact that she is a housewife and a mother. On the other hand, Brad is an aspiring lawyer who spends more time skateboarding than studying. The two met at a playground while looking after their children as a romantic affair develops between them while their spouses are away and their children are napping.
2. Match Point (2005)
Match Point is more of an infidelity movie than it is about a tennis move, despite the title. Nevertheless, this drama showcases the effects of a person’s social status when he attempts to engage in an extra-marital affair.
The movie follows the story of Chris Wilton, a tennis instructor who manages to marry into a rich family after a friend introduces him to his sister. However, he eventually falls for a different woman as the affair threatens his newfound social status.
1. Gone Girl (2014)
One of the most fantastic movies that were able to display a good narrative coupled with amazing acting skills is Gone Girl, which is anchored by the Academy-worthy performance by Rosamund Pike. This movie is a story that will allow you to see how wrong both sides could be in a passionless marriage.
Gone Girl follows the story of Pike’s character named Amy Dunne, a popular writer who went missing and is presumed to be dead. But the truth was that she staged her own disappearance when she discovered that her husband had been cheating on her. As such, she tries to frame her own disappearance on her husband as both of them end up facing the consequences of their own actions in a movie that’s more about a woman’s revenge than it is about a husband’s extra-marital affair.