Cineciccia Picks: Why films and series help with anxiety, and what to watch
If the fifth rerun of the same sitcom or film reliably calms you down after a rotten day, that is neither a weakness nor a wasted evening. Psychologists have been studying this for fifteen years and the findings are surprisingly specific. We have put together lists of feel good films and series you can reach for straight away.
The lists are updated on an ongoing basis. Last updated: 16 September 2026
In 2009, American psychologist Jaye Derrick, together with Shira Gabriel and Kurt Hugenberg, described what they called the social surrogacy hypothesis. Across four studies, the first of which involved 701 respondents, people turned to a favourite show precisely when they felt lonely, and their sense of isolation dropped while watching. Merely recalling a favourite series also cushioned the drop in mood and self-esteem that follows an experience of rejection. Four years later Derrick added a study with the fitting title Energized by Television: after a mentally draining task, people deliberately sought out familiar fictional worlds, and returning to them genuinely restored their capacity for self-control. The second part of the research was a two-week diary study with 86 participants.
"Look for the smallest things that bring joy. That is where happiness hides." Amélie
What happens in the body while watching is measurable too. A 2023 meta-analysis of intervention studies found that in people watching a comedy, levels of the stress hormone cortisol fell by an average of almost 37 percent. Cardiologist Michael Miller of the University of Maryland demonstrated that half an hour of comedy improves the function of the vascular endothelium, whereas after a stressful scene from Saving Private Ryan the blood vessels constrict by as much as 30 to 50 percent. Half an hour of laughter is therefore demonstrably a different evening for your arteries than half an hour of wartime tension.
"Every disadvantage has its advantage." Rebecca Welton in Ted Lasso
What is interesting is that films that are not remotely cheerful work as well. In 2016, Robin Dunbar's team at Oxford found that viewers of an emotionally powerful drama had a higher pain threshold than the control group, which points to a release of endorphins, along with a stronger sense of connection with the others in the room. In an endurance test they lasted roughly 18 percent longer. Mary Beth Oliver and Arthur Raney add a distinction that makes sense of this whole selection: we watch either for pleasure or for meaning. The second kind of experience triggers moral elevation, that warm feeling at the sight of someone else's kindness, and it is linked to greater wellbeing and a greater willingness to help others.
One honest note. The line between regulating emotions and running away from them is thin, and research into binge-watching describes it quite clearly: the problem is not the person who puts on a familiar series to settle down, but the person using it to cover something that needs to be dealt with elsewhere. This list is the first case, not the second, and it is no substitute for professional help. When anxiety or low mood will not lift, that belongs with a professional, not with the remote control.
"This is Dr. Frasier Crane saying, good day and good mental health." Frasier
Below is a selection of titles that will reliably pull you out of a slump or a bout of unease. We keep adding to the lists, so it is worth coming back!
Series that will pull you out of a slump
For when you need something to come back to for weeks. Self-contained episodes, characters you feel safe with, nothing that will unsettle you at eleven at night.
Films that will pull you out of a slump
For when you have an evening and an hour and a half to spare. From comedies that actually make you laugh to titles that give you a little tension and the release that follows.
Sources: Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, Social Psychological and Personality Science, Royal Society Open Science, Journal of Communication, Communication Research, PLOS One, Heart, Frontiers in Psychiatry, Science