Movies like Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng (2026)
The best movies like Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng (2026) are Adventures in Public School (2018), The Gumball Rally (1976) and Duplex (2003). If Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedWork It (2020)7.5/10 from 1,235 votes
- NewestA Very Jonas Christmas Movie (2025)Released 2025
Adventures in Public School (2018)
A socially-awkward, home-schooled kid forces his way into public school against his suffocating, but loving, mother's wishes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Gumball Rally (1976)
A group of people from different backgrounds have one thing in common: when they hear the world "gumball" whispered by one of the others, they know that it's time for the Gumball Rally: a no-holds barred, secret, winner-take-all rally across the USA.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDuplex (2003)
When a young couple buys their dream home, they have no idea what the sweet little old lady upstairs is going to put them through!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBack to the Beach (1987)
A former beach boy and his wife go to California to visit their daughter and become part of the new beach scene.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisAccepted (2006)
A high school slacker who's rejected by every school he applies to opts to create his own institution of higher learning, the South Harmon Institute of Technology, on a rundown piece of property near his hometown.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMuch Ado About Nothing (2013)
A modern retelling of Shakespeare's classic comedy about two pairs of lovers with different takes on romance and a way with words.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Perfect Score (2004)
Six high school seniors decide to break into the Princeton Testing Center so they can steal the answers to their upcoming SAT tests and all get perfect scores.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisNo Deposit, No Return (1976)
Two rich children devise a way to escape their grandfather and visit their mother. Unfortunately for two hapless safe crackers, they become part of the plan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisImpractical Jokers: The Movie (2020)
The story of a humiliating high school mishap from 1992 that sends the Impractical Jokers on the road competing in hidden-camera challenges for the chance to turn back the clock and redeem three of the four Jokers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCadet Kelly (2002)
Hyperactive teenager Kelly is enrolled into a military school when her new stepfather becomes the Commandant. At first she has problems fitting in and taking orders until she tries out for the drill team.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWork It (2020)
A brilliant but clumsy high school senior vows to get into her late father's alma mater by transforming herself and a misfit squad into dance champions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAmerican Dreamer (2022)
In this winsome comedy, an entitled Economics professor pursues a tactic to buy an ailing widow’s mansion for nothing, but he quickly realizes that his seemingly foolproof strategy won’t be as easy as he thought.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThunderstruck (2012)
After NBA star Kevin Durant switches talent with 16 year old Brian, the teenager becomes the star of his high school team, but Durant starts struggling and eventually learns an important lesson.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOh, God! (1977)
When God appears to an assistant grocery manager as a good natured old man, the Almighty selects him as his messenger for the modern world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLEGO Marvel Avengers: Mission Demolition (2024)
A young, aspiring hero and superhero fan inadvertently unleashes a powerful new villain looking to rid the world of the Avengers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwitched (2020)
Tired of being bullied, Cassandra Evans prays that her nemesis, Katie Sharp, the queen bee of social media, would know what it’s like to walk a day in her shoes. Her prayer is answered in an unexpected way when they get switched.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Air Up There (1994)
Jimmy Dolan is a college basketball coach who wants a big promotion. To get it, he needs to make a dramatic find. He ends up deep in Africa, hoping to recruit Saleh, a huge basketball prodigy Jimmy glimpsed in a home movie. But Saleh is the chief's son and has responsibilities at home, since the tribe's land is threatened by a mining company with its own hotshot basketball team.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisClass Rank (2017)
Two high school misfits join forces in an attempt to overtake the local school board. Guided by their families, they enter the perilous word of politics and, in the process, learn a thing or two about love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Very Jonas Christmas Movie (2025)
Kevin, Nick, and Joe Jonas face a series of escalating obstacles as they struggle to make it from London to New York in time to spend Christmas with their families.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLEGO DC: Shazam! Magic and Monsters (2020)
It’s high time the Justice League took notice of Shazam, but joining the world’s greatest team of superheroes is a lot harder when they’ve all been turned into kids.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBathing Beauty (1944)
After breaking up with her fiancé, a gym teacher returns to work at a women's college, but a legal loophole allows him to enroll as one of her students.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Adventures of El Frenetico and Go Girl (1993)
A drunken superhero and his kung-fu fighting girlfriend battle a local evil snack food king when he kidnaps a lady reporter.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Três Colegas de Batina (1961)
The project of urbanization of a shantytown is endangered by lack of money. To get the necessary sum, three friars start to sing in plain clothes, incognito, also recording records and doing shows in nightclubs.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Tenants (1987)
A satirical comedy about the oddball inhabitants of a Tehran apartment building and their landlord.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Marriage Adventures (1959)
Helena (Xenia Kalogeropoulou) returns to Greece after studying in Paris and on the ship home she meets Dinos (Dinos Iliopoulos). An attraction develops between them and after a while Dinos asks for her hand in marriage. Helena though cannot accept his proposal because she is pregnant.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Big Fool (1967)
Businessman Telis Birkas (Periklis Hristoforidis) decides to marry his daughter Antzela (Sasa Kastoura) with a nice guy, his accountant Dinos (Dinos Iliopoulos). Antzela though does not want to hear a word about it. Telis, decides to train Dinos in order for him to win his daughter's heart. Training does not go so well and so the call in the big guns.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Something Hot (1964)
During an International Trade Fair at Thessaloniki, a mature woman, Rena (Martha Karagianni), goes there with her sister to convince her childhood friend Dinos (Dinos Iliopoulos) to have a "white wedding" so that she can inherit a large estate. Dinos though, does not accept because even though he is actually a womanizer he acts as a shy and modest man around people. Everyone there will meet a group of musicians and one of them will fall in love with the daughter of the strict manager of the company Dinos works for who is accompanied by Dinos. At some point, everyone goes to Athens where things get more complicated untill everyone finds his perfect match. In the end Rena gets her inheritance and all together they perform a musical play in a grand theater.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining (1958)
Kostas (Dinos Iliopoulos), a small-time lawyer is tasked with accompanying Smaro (Smaroula Giouli), a young rich heiress, from the country to Athens where she wants to sell her estate. Kostas though starts a day late and Smaro goes to Athens by herself. In the end after much wandering and misunderstandings Kostas will meet Smaro who will fall in love with him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Canned Laughter (1979)
Robert Box asks his colleague Lorraine out for a date. They go to a restaurant where Dave Perry tries to break it as a stand-up comedian.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Por Trás do Pano (1999)
A famous actor believes he has totally mastered his craft. A young and talented actress is open to new challenges. They meet, and confront each other; on, and off the stage. From his personal and artistic lethargy, he sees the possibilities of a new beginning, new opportunities, after starting to see her. The story unravels, as the title states, "behind the curtain."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng?
The closest matches to Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng are Adventures in Public School (2018), The Gumball Rally (1976) and Duplex (2003). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng?
Start with Adventures in Public School (2018), the closest match to Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng?
Work It (2020), rated 7.5/10 by 1,235 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng?
A Very Jonas Christmas Movie (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Korean movies like Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng?
The closest matches are in other languages.
How are movies similar to Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ugly Duckling Ms. Maeng, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.