One of These Films Will Make You Go Vegan

Documentaries are one of the easiest ways to introduce someone to veganism or plant-based eating. They're a lower commitment than getting some to read a book, and they are also finely tuned to fit in all the necessary information in a short amount of time. There have been so many vegan and plant-based documentaries made over the last couple of decades, and they all bring their own unique perspective.

We're going to cover our top 13 vegan/plant-based documentaries in this article. Some of these are very animal-focused, some lean into the environmental impacts of animal agriculture and some focus on human health, but all of them are very effective. 

It would be amazing if we could just convince everyone to care about animals, but people are motivated by different things. If you're trying to recommend one of these documentaries to a friend, family member or maybe just someone online who's looking for information, please think hard about which of these styles of documentaries would be the most convincing for that individual. Sometimes you only get one shot at changing someone's mind. And with that, let's get into the first recommendation!

Cowspiracy 

Cowspiracy might be one of the most recognizable vegan documentaries out there. It's an American documentary that was released in 2014. It explores the impacts of animal agriculture on the environment and covers things like climate change, greenhouse gases water use, deforestation and ocean dead zones. Cowspiracy's website is pretty useful in general. 

Where to watch Cowspiracy

At the time of this post, you can watch it on Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube and Apple TV.

Who would Cowspiracy be good for?

This is mostly focused on the environmental impacts, but also covers animal welfare issues too. I would recommend showing this to someone who recycles, tries to eat "sustainably" and maybe thinks of themselves as an environmentalist. 

Forks Over Knives

Forks Over Knives is an American documentary filmed that was released in 2011. The film goes through the health benefits of a whole-food plant-based diet, and even argues that this diet could serve as a form of chronic illness intervention. The film became so popular, that it turned into books, recipes, a magazine and a website. At the time of this post, Forks Over Knives has officially wound down its operations, discontinuing its signature meal planner and ceased business operations. Certain assets have been transferred to the Food Revolution Network.

Where to watch Forks Over Knives

As of today, you can watch Forks Over Knives on Tubi, YouTube, Amazon Prime and Apple TV. You can also watch it for free on their website.

Who would Forks Over Knives be good for?

If you have friends or family that are particularly health-focused, maybe trying to optimize or eat for longevity, this would be a great documentary to share with them. It could also be good for someone who is struggling with chronic illnesses, though I would caution selling a whole-food plant-based diet as a magic solution.

Punk Rock Vegan Movie

Punk Rock Vegan Movie was written and directed by Moby and was released in 2023. It's definitely not your average vegan documentary, but that's kind of what makes it my personal favorite of the ones I've watched. Punk Rock Vegan Movie shows the history of some of the vegan punk rock bands and their challenges in the 80s. It is incredibly interesting if you like rock or punk music!

Where to watch Punk Rock Vegan Movie

At the time of this post, you can watch it on Tubi or for free on their website.

Who would Punk Rock Vegan Movie be good for?

This movie will obviously appeal to someone who enjoys punk music or is generally anti-establishment/anti-government propaganda. I think this film is also unique because it subtly introduces you to veganism and the ideas behind it while focusing on the punk rock scene. You'll be shocked by how many vegan musician cameos are in the movie!

The Game Changers

The Game Changers is another pretty popular documentary in vegan, and especially plant-based spaces. It came out in 2018 and focuses on an elite group of world-renowned athletes and scientist to prove that everything we have been taught about protein (specifically animal protein) was a lie. It's presented by James Cameron, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jackie Chan, Lewis Hamilton, Novak Djokovic and Chris Paul.

Where to watch The Game Changers

As of today, you can watch it on Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

Who would The Game Changers be good for? 

This is the perfect film for anyone has ever said you can't build muscle or be strong on a plant-based diet. Or maybe someone that is constantly asking you where you get your protein as a vegan! If you think all vegans are weak and skinny, this documentary will quickly change your perception.

What the Health

What the Health is another pretty popular film, especially in the plant-based space since it focuses mostly on health. It was released in 2017 and is about uncovering possibly the largest health secret of our time and the collusion between industry, government, pharmaceutical and health organizations keeping information from us.

Where to watch What the Health

Right now, you can watch it on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple TV and YouTube.

Who would What the Health be good for?

What the Health would obviously be a great recommendation for someone focused on their health, but it's also a good option for anyone who is a little skeptical about the government and large corporations in general.

Seaspiracy

Seaspiracy is a Netflix-original documentary that made a splash in 2021. This film documents the harm that humans do to marine species and uncovers alarming global corruption. I think Seaspiracy is particularly interesting because a lot of the other vegan documentaries focus more on land animals and this documentary is specifically about aquatic life.

Where to watch Seaspiracy

Right now you can only watch Seaspiracy on Netflix since it's a Netflix original documentary.

Who would Seaspiracy be good for?

I would personally recommend Seaspiracy to anyone concerned about the environment because it covers the environmental piece really well. It would also be a great recommendation for anyone who really loves sea life, like dolphins, turtles, whales, sharks, etc. I don't think most people understand how many sea creatures we kill just to catch the specific fish we want to eat.

I Could Never Go Vegan

I Could Never Go Vegan is a newer UK documentary that just came out in 2024. This film is incredibly well done and goes through virtually every excuse there is to not go vegan and breaks them down one by one.

Where to watch I Could Never Go Vegan

You can currently watch it on Amazon Prime, YouTube, and Apple TV.

Who is I Could Never Go Vegan good for?

I think this one is literally great for anyone. It covers nearly all the topics around why veganism and a plant-based diet are a good choice - the animal exploitation piece, environmental reasons, health, etc. It would be a particularly good documentary for someone who offers up endless excuses to not go vegan.

The Invisible Vegan

The Invisible Vegan was released in 2019. It explores the problem of unhealthy dietary patterns in the Black community, focusing on the health and wellness possibilities of a plant-based diet. It covers a lot of other reasons to go vegan as well.

Where to watch The Invisible Vegan

Currently, you can watch it on Amazon Prime, Tubi, YouTube and Apple TV.

Who would The Invisible Vegan be good for?

I would recommend this to anyone, because it does cover a large span of reasons to go vegan. It has some fun cameos like Cedric the Entertainer, and gives historical context to the vegan movement as it relates to the Black community which was really interesting as well.

Food, Inc

Food, Inc. was released in 2008 and covers basically how large corporations and the government are kind of evil because they are profiting off of the country's poor health.

Where to watch Food, Inc

At the time of this blog post, you can watch Food, Inc on YouTube, Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

Who would Food, Inc be good for?

This documentary is great for anyone concerned about their health and knowing the truth about where their food comes from and if it's good for them. I would also recommend it to anyone who is skeptical of the government or takes issue with the Health Care industry in the US.

Eating Animals

The documentary Eating Animals was released in 2017, and is based off of the book Eating Animals, which is actually the book that turned me vegan. This film dispels the myth that the meat you get in the grocery store is from small "humane" farms. It's focused a little more on animal treatment and welfare than on the overall issues with animal exploitation, but is still a good documentary (and book). Fun Fact - this film is produced and narrated by Natalie Portman!

Where to watch Eating Animals

Right now, you can watch it on Amazon Prime, YouTube and Apple TV. 

Who would Eating Animals be good for?

I think this is the perfect documentary for anyone that says that they only buy "humane", "cage-free", etc. This film does a great job of showing how the vast majority of farms in the US are run. I personally think the book Eating Animals (by Jonathan Safran Foer) is a lot better than the documentary, so if you can get someone to read a book, that is always my recommendation. 

Vegucated 

Vegucated was released in 2011, and we actually learned about this during our Podcast episode with Stu Giddens (it's his favorite vegan documentary). After watching, it became one of our favorites too! Vegucated follows three meat and cheese loving New Yorkers who agree to adopt a vegan diet for six weeks. They learn about the animal agriculture industry and how it impacts the animals, environment and human health. 

Where to watch Vegucated

You can currently only watch Vegucated on Amazon Prime.

Who would Vegucated be good for?

I think this is a great beginner film for everyone. It's actually probably the most entertaining of the documentaries in this article because it's more of an early 2010s Vlog style. It covers so many reasons to go vegan, and, in a very approachable way. It would probably be our top recommendation for documentaries that should work for anyone.

Earthlings

Earthlings was released in 2005, and is narrated by Joaquin Phoenix. The documentary uses hidden cameras and features never-before-seen footage. Earthlings chronicles the day-to-day practices of the largest industries in the world, all of which rely entirely on animals for profit.

Where to watch Earthlings

Right now you can watch Earthlings on Amazon Prime and for free on their website.

Who would Earthlings be good for?

Earthlings is extremely graphic, so I personally have not watched it. I think this would be a good recommendation for someone who doesn't believe how bad the animal agriculture industry and literally needs to see it for themselves. 

Dominion

Dominion was released in 2018 and is narrated by Joaquin Phoenix, Rooney Mara, Sia, Sadie Sink and Kat Von D. This documentary uses drones, and hidden and handheld cameras to expose the dark underbelly of modern animal agriculture, questioning the morality and validity of humankind's dominion over the animal kingdom.

Where to watch Dominion

You can watch it for free on their website or on YouTube.

Who would Dominion be good for?

Dominion is an extremely graphic documentary and one you will frequently see being recommended in vegan spaces. I have personally not watched Dominion. This would be good for someone who will never believe what is happening in animal agriculture unless they witness it for themselves.

Hopefully this list of vegan documentaries was helpful. If there are any that you'd like to see added to this blog post, let me know! :)