10 Best Movies and TV Shows to Learn English

There's a reason every English teacher on the planet recommends this show. The vocabulary is simple and everyday, the dialogue is slow enough to follow, and the storylines are easy to understand even if you miss a few words. Most conversations happen in the same two locations (the apartment and the coffee shop), so the context clues are always strong. The humor is physical and exaggerated enough that you'll get the joke even when you miss the punchline.

The mockumentary format means characters often speak directly to the camera in short, clear sentences. Michael Scott's humor relies on misusing words and idioms, which is actually a brilliant way to learn what those expressions really mean. The office setting also gives you tons of workplace vocabulary you'll use in real life.

Forrest speaks in short, grammatically simple sentences. That's literally the character. He narrates the entire movie in plain, direct English, making it one of the easiest Hollywood films to follow. You also get a crash course in American history and cultural references that come up constantly in everyday conversation.

The dialogue is faster than Friends and packed with wordplay, pop culture references, and sarcasm. It's a good step up once you're comfortable with basic conversational English. The characters have distinct speech patterns: Jake is casual and reference-heavy, Holt is formal and deadpan, Rosa barely talks at all. This variety trains your ear to handle different registers.

This show is a goldmine for learning the differences between American and British English. Ted is an American in London, and a lot of the comedy comes from misunderstandings between the two dialects. You'll hear both accents constantly and pick up on vocabulary differences (elevator vs. lift, soccer vs. football) in a natural, funny context.

Aaron Sorkin's script is famous for its rapid-fire dialogue. Characters talk fast, interrupt each other, and use technical and legal vocabulary. It's challenging but incredibly useful if you want to get comfortable with how educated Americans actually speak in professional settings. The story is also familiar enough (the founding of Facebook) that you can follow along even when the dialogue gets dense.

The kids speak in casual, everyday American English, which makes most of the dialogue approachable. But you also get a range of adult characters, some with regional accents, plus 1980s slang that's fun to learn. The plot is gripping enough to keep you watching, which matters more than people think for language learning. If you're bored, you stop watching. Nobody stops watching Stranger Things.

Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock speaks in dense, rapid British English full of complex vocabulary and scientific terminology. The deduction scenes are essentially monologues packed with advanced words delivered at high speed. If you can follow Sherlock's reasoning out loud, your English comprehension is in great shape.

This is formal British English at its most polished. The dialogue is full of political vocabulary, diplomatic language, and the kind of restrained, indirect communication that's central to British culture. Characters rarely say what they mean directly, which teaches you to read between the lines. If you're aiming for a more formal or academic English register, this is your show.

Wes Anderson's dialogue is unusually precise and literary. Every word feels chosen with care, and characters speak in a stylized, almost theatrical way. Ralph Fiennes delivers elaborate sentences at breakneck speed with perfect diction. It's not how real people talk, but it's an incredible workout for your vocabulary and listening skills. You'll encounter words you'd normally only find in novels.