Discover The Best Movies and TV Shows Like Hunt for the Wilderpeople

Ricky Baker, a defiant and maladjusted urban teenager with a troubled history, is placed by child welfare worker Paula in a remote rural foster home in New Zealand. He is taken in by Bella, a warm and eccentric woman who immediately embraces him, and her gruff, reticent husband, Hec. Initially resistant, Ricky tries to run away multiple times, but Bella’s unwavering kindness and a gifted dog named Tupac slowly thaw his hardened exterior. Ricky begins to feel a rare sense of belonging on the farm.Tragedy strikes when Bella suddenly dies of a heart attack. Ricky is devastated, and when Hec reveals his intention to move away and social services announce Ricky will be sent back to juvenile detention, the boy takes matters into his own hands. Fearing the system, Ricky fakes his own death by burning down a barn, runs into the dense New Zealand bush, and waits for Hec to find him. When Hec reluctantly catches up, a twisted ankle and a forest fire prevent their immediate return. Consequently, a massive national manhunt is launched, fueled by Paula’s obsessive pursuit and media sensationalism portraying Hec as a kidnapper and child abuser.For months, the unlikely duo survives deep in the wilderness, learning to rely on each other. Ricky reads adventure books, while Hec teaches him bushcraft and hunting. Along the way, they encounter various colorful outcasts, including a grieving father and a paranoid survivalist named Psycho Sam who shelters them. The bond between the grumpy old man and the imaginative boy deepens into a profound father-son dynamic. However, Hec eventually breaks his ribs, and the harsh winter forces them out of hiding.Cornered by the authorities at a river crossing, Hec surrenders to protect Ricky from the heavy gunfire. Hec is sent to prison, while Ricky is placed back into the care of a kind social worker and finally allowed to attend school. Unwilling to leave Hec behind, Ricky visits him regularly. Once Hec is released, the two reconcile and embark on a new quest into the wild, searching for the mythical Haast’s eagle, proving that Ricky has finally found his true home and family.