Best Business Startup Movies on Netflix in 2025 

These movies offer valuable lessons on business and startups, with stories of success, failure, innovation, and perseverance.

Explore the best bussiness startup movies that showcase the spirit of entrepreneurship and startup culture.

The Social Network

This movie tells the story of how Facebook was created and the legal battles that followed when Mark Zuckerberg, its co-founder, was accused of stealing the idea from his former classmates. It follows Zuckerberg (played by Jesse Eisenberg) as he creates Facebook in 2004 while at Harvard University.

The film also shows the legal issues between Zuckerberg and his former partners, Eduardo Saverin (played by Andrew Garfield) and the Winklevoss twins (played by Armie Hammer and Josh Pence). "The Social Network" was widely praised by critics, a big commercial success, and received multiple awards, including three Academy Awards, such as Best Adapted Screenplay.

Startup.com

Startup.com is a documentary about the rise and fall of the internet startup govWorks.com. It follows co-founders Kaleil Isaza Tuzman and Tom Herman as they try to build and grow their company, which aimed to provide online government services, during the dot-com boom in the late 1990s.

The film shows the challenges they faced, including financial and management problems, and the impact of the dot-com bubble bursting on their business. It also looks at the personal and professional relationship between Tuzman and Herman, and how running the startup affected their friendship.

Startup.com was directed by Jehane Noujaim and Chris Hegedus, which was produced by D.A. Pennebaker. Noujaim was also the cinematographer and Tuzman's Harvard roommate. The film has won 10 awards and has been nominated for 6.

The Founder

"The Founder" is an American biographical drama about Ray Kroc, the man who turned McDonald's from a small family-run restaurant into a global fast-food empire. The film begins with the story of the original founders, Richard and Maurice McDonald, who created a new fast-food system in the 1950s.

It then shows how Ray Kroc, a traveling salesman, saw the potential in their system and convinced the brothers to let him franchise their restaurants. Kroc eventually took control of the company, turning it into a multi-billion dollar business, but his success came at the cost of his relationship with the McDonald brothers and his own values. The movie is directed by John Lee Hancock, and Robert Siegel wrote it.

Generation Startup

Generation Startup follows the challenges and successes of six recent college graduates who risk everything to build startups in Detroit. Filmed over 17 months, the documentary gives an honest, behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to start a business.

Directed by Academy Award winner Cynthia Wade and filmmaker Cheryl Miller Houser, the film highlights risk-taking, urban renewal, and diversity, while stressing the importance of entrepreneurship for the country's economic future.

Joy

Joy is a biographical comedy-drama about Joy Mangano, a self-made millionaire who invented the Miracle Mop. The film follows Joy's journey from childhood to adulthood, showing how she overcomes challenges to build a successful business empire.

Robert De Niro plays her father, Edgar, and Bradley Cooper portrays Neil Walker, a struggling executive who helps Joy start her business. Based on the true story of Joy Mangano, the movie was both a commercial and critical success, with Jennifer Lawrence earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for her role as Joy.

Something Ventured

Something Ventured tells the story of how an industry was created that became a major driver of innovation and economic growth in the 20th century. It features the bold risk-takers who made it happen and includes insights from top entrepreneurs who worked with these venture capitalists to build successful companies like Intel, Apple, Cisco, and Atari.

Job

Jobs is a biographical drama starring Ashton Kutcher as Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple Inc. The movie covers the early years of his career, from dropping out of college to launching the Macintosh computer in 1984.

It follows Jobs as he co-founds Apple with Steve Wozniak (played by Josh Gad) and becomes part of the personal computer revolution. The film also explores his relationships with his business partner, family, and colleagues. While the movie received mixed reviews and was not a commercial hit, Kutcher’s portrayal of Jobs was praised by critics.

The Intern

"The Intern" is a comedy-drama starring Robert De Niro as Ben Whittaker, a 70-year-old widower who becomes an intern at a successful e-commerce company led by Jules Ostin (Anne Hathaway). The movie follows Ben as he adjusts to his new role and forms a friendship with his younger colleagues, including Jules.

Ben offers support and guidance to Jules, who is struggling to manage her career and personal life helping her understand the value of work-life balance. The film was praised for its charming performances and heartwarming portrayal of the relationship between Ben and Jules. It was both a critical and commercial success.

Upstarts

UPSTARTS follows three college roommates—Kapil (Priyanshu Painyuli), Vinay (Shadab Kamal), and Yash (Chandrachoor Rai)—who are brainstorming tech startup ideas. While volunteering in a remote Indian village, Kapil witnesses a man’s death because there was no medication available to save him. This leads to the creation of Karry Karo, an app that allows ordinary people to deliver medications to remote villages.

Kapil convinces Yash and Vinay to join as partners. However, when they take investment from Veer (Rajeev Siddhartha), the son of a wealthy cigarette maker, the startup's mission begins to change. Veer focuses more on making money than on the original purpose, causing tension within the team. Kapil, tempted by success, chooses to follow Veer’s vision but eventually, after being ousted from his leadership role, he regains his principles.

Fyre

This documentary is about the Fyre Festival, a failed music festival that was meant to take place on the Bahamian island of Great Exuma in 2017. The event was promoted as a luxury festival with top artists and upscale accommodations, but it turned into a disaster. When attendees arrived, they found poor organization, with no food, shelter, or basic necessities.

The film, released in 2019, looks at what led to the failure, the aftermath and the legal consequences for the organizers. It includes interviews with former employees, contractors, and festival-goers, along with behind-the-scenes footage of the planning process.

Conclusion

Netflix offers a wide selection of business startup movies that provide valuable insights into entrepreneurship, innovation and the challenges faced by entrepreneurs. As we look ahead to 2025, these films will continue to inspire and educate aspiring business owners by showcasing real-life stories of success, failure, and perseverance.

Whether you are an established entrepreneur or someone looking to start your own business, these movies offer timeless lessons in resilience, creativity and strategic thinking. Keep an eye on Netflix for even more inspiring stories of business startups that will shape the future of entrepreneurship.