A lightweight Node.js + Express proxy server for the TMDB API, designed to securely fetch movie data for React Native, Expo, and web applications without exposing your API key.
Perfect for handling TMDB requests in regions where direct access is limited, e.g: India.

• Fetch popular movies and search for any title
• Securely uses API Key and Bearer Token stored in .env.local
• Easy to deploy on Vercel for serverless hosting
• Prevents exposing your TMDB credentials in client apps

tmdb-proxy/
 ├─ api/
 │   └─ index.js        # Express API routes
 ├─ package.json
 ├─ vercel.json         # Optional route rewrites for clean URLs
 └─ .gitignore

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/ftashmit/tmdb-proxy.git
   cd tmdb-proxy

2. Install dependencies

   npm install

3. Create a .env.local file in the root:

   TMDB_API_KEY=your_api_key_here
   TMDB_BEARER_TOKEN=your_read_access_token_here

4. Run locally

   npm run dev

5. Access Endpoints for testing

   • http://localhost:3000/api/movies/popular
   • http://localhost:3000/api/movies/search?query=Inception
   • http://localhost:3000/api/tmdb/movie/550

1. Push your repo to GitHub
2. Import to Vercel
3. Add the environment variables (TMDB_API_KEY, TMDB_BEARER_TOKEN) in Vercel → Settings → Environment Variables
4. Deploy → Your API will be live at:

https://your-vercel-domain.vercel.app/api/movies/popular

const API_URL = "https://your-vercel-domain.vercel.app";

export const fetchPopularMovies = async () => {
  const response = await fetch(`${API_URL}/api/movies/popular`);
  return response.json();
};

• Never expose your TMDB keys in client-side code
• Use this proxy in production to securely fetch movie data