Movies like The 12 Days of Christmas
The best movies like The 12 Days of Christmas are Candy Cane Lane (2023), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) and Elf (2003). If The 12 Days of Christmas hooked you with its comedy and fantasy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The 12 Days of Christmas
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Lion King (1994)8.3/10 from 20,405 votes
- NewestRunt (2024)Released 2024
Candy Cane Lane (2023)
Determined to win the neighborhood's annual Christmas decorating contest, family man Chris makes a pact with an elf to help him out-do the competition. However, the elf casts a spell bringing the twelve days of Christmas to life, unleashing chaos on the small unsuspecting town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000)
The Grinch decides to rob Whoville of Christmas - but a dash of kindness from little Cindy Lou Who and her family may be enough to melt his heart...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisElf (2003)
When young Buddy falls into Santa's gift sack on Christmas Eve, he's transported back to the North Pole and raised as a toy-making elf by Santa's helpers. But as he grows into adulthood, he can't shake the nagging feeling that he doesn't belong. Buddy vows to visit Manhattan and find his real dad, a workaholic.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFamily Switch (2023)
When the Walker family members switch bodies with each other during a rare planetary alignment, their hilarious journey to find their way back to normal will bring them closer together than they ever thought possible.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeethoven's Christmas Adventure (2011)
A Christmas elf accidentally takes off in Santa's sleigh, crash lands in a small town, and loses the magic toy bag. Beethoven must rescue the elf, recover the bag from greedy crooks, and return the sleigh to Santa in time to save Christmas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDashing Through the Snow (2023)
Eddie Garrick is a good-hearted man who has lost his belief in the wonder of Christmas. While spending time with his nine-year-old daughter Charlotte on Christmas Eve, he befriends a mysterious man in a red suit named Nick.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Borrowers (2011)
Family adventure based on Mary Norton's classic children's books about a race of tiny people who live under the floorboards, resourcefully surviving by borrowing bits and pieces from the large residents who dwell above. After being discovered by 'human beans', borrower Arrietty and her parents are forced to leave their home while attempting to evade the clutches of obsessive scientist Professor Mildeye.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Santa Clause 2 (2002)
Better watch out! The big guy in red is coming to town once again. This time, Scott Calvin -- also known as Santa Claus -- finds out there's an obscure clause in his contract requiring him to take on a wife. He has to leave the North Pole to fulfill his obligations, or else he'll be forced to give up his Yuletide gig.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNoelle (2019)
Kris Kringle's daughter, Noelle, sets off on a mission to find and bring back her brother, after he gets cold feet when it's his turn to take over as Santa.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKristin's Christmas Past (2013)
Kristin, a cynical 34-year-old, drinks a mysterious champagne on Christmas Eve and wakes up seventeen years in the past, sharing a room with her 17-year-old self. Given the chance to change the worst Christmas of her life, she attempts to fix past mistakes, only to discover surprising truths about her family that may help her mend her present-day relationships.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisA Christmas Story Christmas (2022)
Follows Ralphie, now adult, who returns to the house on Cleveland Street to give his kids a magical Christmas like the one he had as a child, reconnecting with childhood friends, and reconciling the passing of his Old Man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)
Bitter and hateful, the Grinch is irritated at the thought of a nearby village having a happy time celebrating Christmas. Disguised as Santa Claus, with his dog made to look like a reindeer, he decides to raid the village to steal all the Christmas things.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special (1988)
Pee-wee Herman and pals are celebrating Christmas in the Playhouse in their own creative ways: Pee-wee makes a list for Santa Claus 1.5 miles long, teaches Little Richard how to ice skate, goes for a sleigh ride with Magic Johnson, enslaves Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello into making Christmas cards, receives a long phone call from Dinah Shore, even has more musical fun with k.d. lang, the Del Rubio Triplettes and Charo! Finally, Big Red arrives and announces that Pee-wee's Christmas list was so big, he didn't have enough presents for all the children of the world. Will Pee-wee follow his own advice and help others?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMerry Christmas, Drake & Josh (2008)
Step brothers Drake and Josh must give a foster family the best Christmas ever or face years in jail for a Christmas party gone wrong.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Search for Santa Paws (2010)
When Santa and his new best friend, Paws, discover that the boys and girls of the world have lost the spirit of the season, they take a trip to New York City. But after Santa loses his memory, it's up to Paws, a faithful orphan named Quinn, her new friend Will, and a wonderful group of magical talking dogs to save St. Nick and show the world what Christmas is really all about.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSanta Paws 2: The Santa Pups (2012)
When Mrs. Claus travels to Pineville, the merriest place on the planet, a quartet of magical puppies stow away on her sled, granting joyful wishes to the town's boys and girls. However, something goes terribly wrong - the Christmas spirit begins to disappear. Now, the Santa Pups and Mrs. Claus must race to save Christmas magic from running out for all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJingle All the Way (1996)
Howard Langston, a salesman for a mattress company, is constantly kept busy at his job, disappointing his son. After he misses his son's karate exposition, Howard vows to make it up to him by buying an action figure of his son's favorite television hero for Christmas. Unfortunately for Howard, it is Christmas Eve, and every store is sold out of Turbo Man. Now, Howard must travel all over town and compete with everybody else to find a Turbo Man action figure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMickey's Magical Christmas: Snowed in at the House of Mouse (2001)
When a huge snowstorm leaves everyone stranded, Mickey and all of his guests at the House of Mouse, including Pooh, Belle, Snow White, Cinderella, Ariel and many more of his old and new friends, break out the cookies and hot chocolate to help Donald mend his tattered Christmas spirit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Christmas Story (1983)
The comic mishaps and adventures of a young boy named Ralph, trying to convince his parents, teachers, and Santa that a Red Ryder B.B. gun really is the perfect Christmas gift for the 1940s.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Muppets Christmas: Letters to Santa (2008)
When Gonzo forgets to mail three letters to Santa, he convinces Kermit and the gang to help him deliver the notes to the North Pole. Along the way, they discover that Christmas is the time to be with those you care about most, as they dash home to make a friends Christmas wish come true.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRunt (2024)
In the Australian town of Upson Downs, ten-year-old Annie and Runt, her stray dog, attempt to win the Agility Course Championship at the Krumpets Dog Show in London in order to save their family's farm from drought and misery.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & comedy
Wait Till Your Mother Gets Home (1983)
An award winning high school football coach finds himself out of work, and switching roles with his wife for the summer when she goes back to work for the first time in 15 years.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
The Cutlass (1954)
The teenager Misha Polyakov, being with his mother in a Ukrainian village on vacation with his grandmother and about to return home to Petrograd, offers his best friend Genka to go with him. Suddenly, a white gang of Nikitsky bursts into the village and attacks Misha’s house, where Commissioner Polevoy lives. The purpose of Nikitskiy (aka Nikolskiy) is a dagger located at Polevoy. Saving the commissioner, Misha learns from him the history and secret of the weapon, and receives it for storage with a request to solve the secret. Having returned with adventures to Petrograd, Misha Polyakov with friends begins to unravel the riddle of the dagger, in the handle of which is encrypted text.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
VeggieTales: Rack, Shack & Benny (1995)
There's trouble brewing at the Nezzer Chocolate Factory! To celebrate the sale of two million chocolate bunnies, company president Nebby K. Nezzer announces that his workers may eat as many bunnies as they like! This sounds great, until three boys named Rack, Shack and Benny remember that their parents taught them not to eat too much candy. By paralleling the Biblical story of Sadrach, Meschach and Abednego and the fiery furnace, "Rack, Shack, & Benny" teaches kids how to resist peer pressure and stand up for what they believe in. Kids of all ages will love the songs, humor and dazzling 3D computer animation of VeggieTales!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
The Lion King (1994)
Young lion prince Simba, eager to one day become king of the Pride Lands, grows up under the watchful eye of his father Mufasa; all the while his villainous uncle Scar conspires to take the throne for himself. Amid betrayal and tragedy, Simba must confront his past and find his rightful place in the Circle of Life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAnother Word and I'll Mary You! (2007)
Katrin is a single mother of twins. When they find out that they owe their existence to a sperm donation, they persuade their mother to find their biological father.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Animal (1977)
Mike (Jean-Paul Belmondo) is a stuntman who works with his girlfriend Jane (Raquel Welch). On their wedding day Mike and Jane are forced by producers to do a stunt for a film they are working on. Mike, annoyed doesn't look on the road and crashes the car causing them to end up in a hospital. After they come out Jane doesn't want to talk to Mike so he decides to get her a job in a film in which he is a stunt double for his double who is a star in action pictures but is in fact a wimp.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Tóth Family (1969)
The Tóth family resides in Northern Hungary. The couple has a daughter and a son, the latter a member of the armed forces. When his weary major is ordered to take a vacation, the son talks him into a visit to his family home. Hilarity ensues when the Tóths go overboard trying to make things pleasant for the visiting major in hopes of an easier life for their son, the soldier.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
My Life as a Dog (1985)
A boy, obsessed with comparing himself with those less fortunate, experiences a different life at the home of his aunt and uncle in 1959 Sweden.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like this99 Francs (2007)
Paris, France, 2001. Octave Parango, a young advertiser working at the Ross & Witchcraft advertising agency, lives a suicidal existence, ruled by cynicism, irresponsibility and debauchery. The obstacles he will encounter in developing a campaign for a new yogurt brand will force him to face the meaning of his work and the way he manages his relationship with those who orbit around his egotistic lifestyle.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The 12 Days of Christmas?
The closest matches to The 12 Days of Christmas are Candy Cane Lane (2023), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) and Elf (2003). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The 12 Days of Christmas?
Start with Candy Cane Lane (2023), the closest match to The 12 Days of Christmas.
What is the highest-rated movie like The 12 Days of Christmas?
The Lion King (1994), rated 8.3/10 by 20,405 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The 12 Days of Christmas?
Runt (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The 12 Days of Christmas?
Yes: Candy Cane Lane (2023), How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) and Elf (2003).
How are movies similar to The 12 Days of Christmas chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The 12 Days of Christmas, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.