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One of the best thriller movies of the decade so far is on TV tonight

Published 11:55 19 Jun 2025 BST

Updated 18:23 19 Jun 2025 BST

Stephen Porzio
One of the best thriller movies of the decade so far is on TV tonight

Homemovies & tv

The film also has one of the best final scenes in recent memory.

Our TV movie pick for tonight (Thursday, 19 June) is Nightmare Alley, the excellent 2021 neo-noir psychological thriller co-written and directed by Guillermo del Toro (Crimson Peak, The Shape of Water).

It is based on the William Lindsay Gresham novel of the same name, which was previously made into another great film in the 1940s starring Tyrone Power.

The new version of the story, however, sees Bradley Cooper play the charismatic but down-on-his-luck Stanton Carlisle, who gets a job working at a travelling carnival in the '40s.

Becoming skilled at performing as a mentalist, Stanton eventually ditches the carnival with his kind wife, Molly (Rooney Mara), and uses his newly acquired knowledge to grift the wealthy elite of New York society.

He eventually sets out to pull off his most ambitious con yet, targeting a dangerous tycoon (Richard Jenkins) with the help of the mysterious psychiatrist, Dr. Lilith Ritter (Cate Blanchett), the latter of whom might be Stanton's "most formidable opponent yet".

Nightmare Alley boasts a large ensemble cast that also includes David Strathairn, Holt McCallany, Mary Steenburgen, Ron Perlman, Toni Collette and Willem Dafoe.

Thanks to its tremendous period production design, its dark and foreboding twist on the notion of the American dream and its knockout final scene that puts a perfectly twisted bow on everything that came before, the movie was nominated for four Oscars, including Best Picture.

Nightmare Alley is on TV tonight on Film4 at 10.55pm. It's also available to stream on Disney+ and should also be available to watch on Channel 4's website after it airs.

Here are the other movies on TV tonight:

Legion - Film4 - 9pm

The very fun, cult action movie starring Paul Bettany as a machine gun-toting archangel Michael.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers - Sky Arts - 9pm

The classic '50s sci-fi horror about aliens quietly invading a Californian town.

Just Go With It - Comedy Central - 9pm

An Adam Sandler/Jennifer Aniston rom-com.

Wrath of the Titans / Taken 3 - ITV4 - 9pm / 11pm

It's a Liam Neeson sequel double bill.

Extreme Prejudice - Legend Xtra - 9pm

An ’80s action thriller gem we’ve recommended before.

Inside Out - Legend - 9pm

Not the Pixar animated child-friendly classic, but a 2011 crime thriller starring the wrestler Triple H.

The Wedding Singer - RTÉ2 - 9.35pm

This classic ’90s comedy tells the story of a down-on-his-luck wedding singer (Adam Sandler) who falls in love with an already engaged waitress (Drew Barrymore).

The Piano - BBC Four - 10pm

This Oscar-winning historical drama from writer-director Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog) is about a mute Scottish woman who travels to a remote part of New Zealand with her young daughter after her arranged marriage to a settler (Sam Neill). Harvey Keitel co-stars.

They Live - Legend - 10.55pm

John Carpenter’s iconic 1985 sci-fi action horror stars wrestler Roddy Piper, who discovers a pair of sunglasses that allow him to see the world as it truly is.

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One of the best thriller movies of the decade is on TV tonight