7 Must-Watch Drama Movies on Amazon Prime Video Right Now (May 2025)

Although the behind-the-scenes intrigue regarding All the Money in the World is interesting, the on-screen story is a very compelling dramatization of real events. J. Paul Getty (Christopher Plummer) was a billionaire and one of the richest men alive in 1973 when his grandson, John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer), was kidnapped and held for ransom. Getty’s justification for withholding the ransom wasn’t necessarily wrong, as it would have made his other heirs into targets. But his callous indifference to his grandson’s fate made headlines.

John’s mother, Gail Harris (Michelle Williams) faces a media firestorm as she tries to secure his release. The only help that Getty offers is through his security advisor, James Fletcher Chace (Mark Wahlberg). However, Getty’s continued refusal to pay endagners his grandson as the ordeal goes on.

All the Money in the World is streaming on Prime Video.

Director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Stephen Gaghan successfully juggle three different storylines in Traffic, all of which revolve around the drug trade. Benicio del Toro gives one of his best performances as Javier Rodríguez, a Mexican police officer who initially believes his efforts are making a difference. Javier has to learn the hard way that there’s corruption on both sides of the law.

Similarly, Judge Robert Wakefield (Michael Douglas) has the drug war arrive on his doorstep when he learns his daughter, Caroline (Erika Christensen), is an addict. In Mexico, Helena Ayala (Catherine Zeta-Jones) discovers that her husband, Carlos Ayala (Steven Bauer), is secretly a drug lord. And if Helena wants to protect her family, she has some difficult choices to make.

Traffic is streaming on Prime Video.

Following the passing of Pope Francis, there has been a renewed interest in 2024’s thrilling papal drama, Conclave. This drama takes place behind the closed doors of Vatican City as the College of Cardinals comes together to select a new pope. Cardinal Thomas Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) oversees the election as four frontrunners emerge in the contest to become the next pontiff. 

Each candidate represents a different Catholic philosophy that could reshape the church for generations. However, the candidates have secrets that could not only derail the election, but they could also spark a new scandal in the church that may bring the entire institution to its knees. 

Conclave is streaming on Prime Video.

Stanley Tucci appears in both Conclave and Spotlight, but the latter takes a much dimmer view of the Catholic Church. This Best Picture Oscar-winner tells the true story of The Boston Globe‘s Spotlight team, which is renowned for its investigative reports. The story is set in 2001, as Spotlight editor Walter “Robby” Robinson (Michael Keaton) directs his reporters to begin investigating allegations that the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston covered up the actions of a priest who sexually abused children.

To their horror, they discover that it wasn’t an isolated incident and the church has been protecting child predators for decades. This causes a conflict among the Spotlight reporters as some of them want to run the story early to prevent any further abuse, while others are adamant that they wait until the investigation is complete.

Spotlight is streaming on Prime Video.

Adrien Brody won his first Best Actor Academy Award for his gripping portrayal of Władysław Szpilman in The Pianist. The film is based on Szpilman’s account of living through the Holocaust before and during World War II. As the German forces overtake Warsaw, Szpilman and his family lose everything they had, including each other.

Szpilman is a gifted pianist, but his musical ability can’t save him from near-starvation in the ruins of Warsaw. He does get some unexpected assistance from a German officer, Captain Wilm Hosenfeld (Thomas Kretschmann), but Szpilman’s battle to survive is ultimately his own.

The Pianist is streaming on Prime Video.

Howard Hughes has been dead for nearly five decades, and he’s largely remembered by the general public for his OCD eccentricities rather than his accomplishments as a film producer/director, a pilot and an incredibly successful businessman who became one of the wealthiest men in the world.

Leonardo DiCaprio earned his first Best Actor Oscar nomination for his performance in The Aviator as Howard Hughes during a two-decade period in his life. When Hughes was young, he had a romance with actress Katharine Hepburn (Cate Blanchett), and a longer romance with Ava Gardner (Kate Beckinsale). But as Hughes faces setbacks in his business pursuits, his grasp on his sanity becomes increasingly difficult to hold on to.

The Aviator is streaming on Prime Video.

During the 2000 awards season, The Hurricane was beset by accusations that it had changed too much of the story about Rubin ‘The Hurricane’ Carter. That may be why Denzel Washington was denied an Oscar for Best Actor despite his powerhouse turn as Carter. In the ’60s, Carter seemed poised to be one of the best boxers of his generation, but his entire life was destroyed when he and his friend, John Artis (Garland Whitt), were unjustly imprisoned on murder charges and sentenced to decades in prison.

From behind bars, Carter shares his story and gains allies who help him fight for his freedom. Among them is a teenager named Lesra Martin (Vicellous Reon Shannon) who passionately believes in Carter’s innocence, and he’ll do whatever it takes to make sure he goes free.

The Hurricane is streaming on Prime Video.