Movies like McHale's Navy (1997)
The best movies like McHale's Navy (1997) are Down Periscope (1996), Major Payne (1995) and The Mouse That Roared (1959). If McHale's Navy hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)8.1/10 from 6,469 votes
- NewestMayday (2026)Released 2026
Down Periscope (1996)
Maverick Navy Lieutenant Commander Tom Dodge will never be a textbook officer, but he's a brilliant seaman who's always wanted to command a nuclear submarine — he's been given one last chance to clean up his record. Unfortunately, Admiral Graham, his nemesis, would rather sink the fleet than give Dodge his own boat. So, Graham stacks the deck against him and assigns Dodge to the Stingray, a diesel-powered WW2 submarine that can barely keep afloat. To make matters worse, Dodge's crew is a collection of maladjusted, mistake-prone misfits. Then, he's tagged the "enemy" in a crucial war game, and ordered to take on the U.S. Navy's best.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMajor Payne (1995)
Major Benson Winifred Payne is being discharged from the Marines. Payne is a killin' machine, but the wars of the world are no longer fought on the battlefield. A career Marine, he has no idea what to do as a civilian, so his commander finds him a job - commanding officer of a local school's JROTC program, a bunch of ragtag losers with no hope.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Mouse That Roared (1959)
The Duchy of Grand Fenwick decides that the only way to get out of their economic woes is to declare war on the United States, lose and accept foreign aid. They send an invasion force (in chain mail, armed with bows and arrows) to New York and they arrive during a nuclear drill that has cleared the streets.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMayday (2026)
When a U.S. Navy pilot on a top-secret mission during the Cold War gets trapped behind enemy lines, his only chance at survival is to form an alliance with an eccentric ex-KGB agent.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHot Shots! (1991)
The gang that created Airplane! and The Naked Gun sets its sights on Top Gun in this spoof. Topper Harley is a talented but unstable fighter pilot with an axe to grind: clearing the family name. His mission is to avenge his father and save a mission sabotaged by greedy weapons manufacturers. He also gets involved in a relationship with Ramada Thompson, a woman with an unusually talented stomach. Hot Shots! makes fun of a variety of other films, from Dances with Wolves to The Fabulous Baker Boys.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMen in Black: International (2019)
The Men in Black have always protected the Earth from the scum of the universe. In this new adventure, they tackle their biggest, most global threat to date: a mole in the Men in Black organization.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisHot Shots! Part Deux (1993)
Topper Harley is found to be working as an odd-job-man in a monastery. The CIA want him to lead a rescue mission into Iraq, to rescue the last rescue team, who went in to rescue the last rescue team—who went in to rescue hostages left behind after Desert Storm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwashbuckler (1976)
A pirate and a hot-tempered noblewoman join forces to protect Jamaica from a tyrant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGabriel Iglesias: I'm Sorry for What I Said When I Was Hungry (2016)
Hawaiian-shirt enthusiast Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias finds the laughs in racist gift baskets, Prius-driving cops and all-female taco trucks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAustin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)
When diabolical genius Dr. Evil travels back in time to steal superspy Austin Powers's ‘mojo,’ Austin must return to the swingin' '60s himself - with the help of American agent, Felicity Shagwell - to stop the dastardly plan. Once there, Austin faces off against Dr. Evil's army of minions to try to save the world in his own unbelievably groovy way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMen in Black (1997)
After a police chase with an otherworldly being, a New York City cop is recruited as an agent in a top-secret organization established to monitor and police alien activity on Earth: the Men in Black. Agent K and new recruit Agent J find themselves in the middle of a deadly plot by an intergalactic terrorist who has arrived on Earth to assassinate two ambassadors from opposing galaxies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)
At the height of the Cold War, a mysterious criminal organization plans to use nuclear weapons and technology to upset the fragile balance of power between the United States and Soviet Union. CIA agent Napoleon Solo and KGB agent Illya Kuryakin are forced to put aside their hostilities and work together to stop the evildoers in their tracks. The duo's only lead is the daughter of a missing German scientist, whom they must find soon to prevent a global catastrophe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Errand Boy (1961)
Paramutual Pictures wants to know where all the money is going so they hire Morty to be their spy. Morty works for Mr. Sneak and gets a job in the mail room so that he can have access to the lot. But all that Morty ever finds is that he can cause havoc no matter what he does.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Outcasts (2017)
After falling victim to a humiliating prank by the high school Queen Bee, best friends and world-class geeks, Mindy and Jodi, decide to get their revenge by uniting the outcasts of the school against her and her circle of friends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984)
Adventurer/surgeon/rock musician Buckaroo Banzai and his band of men, the Hong Kong Cavaliers, take on evil alien invaders from the 8th dimension.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNaked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult (1994)
Frank Drebin is persuaded out of retirement to go undercover in a state prison. There he has to find out what top terrorist, Rocco, has planned for when he escapes. Adding to his problems, Frank's wife, Jane, is desperate for a baby.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisIliza Shlesinger: War Paint (2013)
Her innocent appearance is just a cover for Last Comic Standing winner Iliza Shlesinger's acerbic, stream-of-conscious comedy that she unleashes on an unsuspecting audience in her hometown of Dallas in "War Paint," her first stand-up special.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
After the insane General Jack D. Ripper initiates a nuclear strike on the Soviet Union, a war room full of politicians, generals and a Russian diplomat all frantically try to stop it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisPrivate Valentine: Blonde & Dangerous (2008)
When fluffy, bubble gum movie star Megan Valentine suddenly finds herself broke and humiliated in the public eye, she wanders from the wreckage of a car accident and witlessly enlists in the U.S. Army hoping in vain that it will change her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChoque de Cultura: A Série (2025)
The biggest names in alternative transportation reunite years after the show ended. Rogerinho is now a psychic. Renan got rich. Julinho has a death sentence hanging over him, and Maurílio created the first script.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Anti-Exorcist (TBA)
A gender-divergent demon fights for liberation, clashing with a Catholic priest.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Dokidoki! Pretty Cure the Movie: Memories for the Future (2013)
One day, Mana Aida receives a wedding dress from her mother and grandmother that they had worn in the past. While thinking about who she would wear this beside someday, a mysterious man named Marsh appears, and Mana is thrown back into the past. She was happy to see her grandmother she loved and her old dog Maro, but she then realizes that Alice and Rikka aren't there because memories have been altered. In order to save precious memories, the future, dreams and hope, Mana transforms into Cure Heart.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Bomb Scared (2017)
Somewhere in Spain, four ETA terrorists await a phone call before carrying out a mission, while the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where Spanish soccer team is one of the favorites to win, is being held in South Africa.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisHappiness (1998)
The lives of several individuals intertwine as they go about their lives in their own unique ways, engaging in acts which society as a whole might find disturbing in a desperate search for human connection.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDuckTales: The Movie - Treasure of the Lost Lamp (1990)
With his nephews and niece, everyone's favorite rich uncle, Scrooge McDuck, treks from his mansion home in Duckburg in search of the long-lost loot of the thief Collie Baba. But finding the goods isn't quite what it's "quacked" up to be! Their thrilling adventure leads to comical chaos, magical mayhem, and a lesson about what is far more valuable than money, gold and jewels.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNas Entranhas de Nicolópolis (2022)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Wo ist der Bahnhof? (1985)
The brothers Gé and Arie Temnes return to the home where they used to live as teenagers during WWII. Arie talks about the role that he played in the resistance movement.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Speed Racer (2008)
Speed Racer is a young and brilliant racing driver. When corruption in the racing leagues costs his brother his life, Speed must team up with the police and the mysterious Racer X to bring an end to the corruption and criminal activities.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Nan Movie (2022)
Catherine Tate's iconic character Nan hits the big screen as she goes on a wild road trip from London to Ireland with her grandson Jamie to make amends with her estranged sister Nell. Militant vegan arsonists, raucous rugby teams, all night raves and crazed cops on motorbikes all make for a proper day out. An origin story that mixes Nan's present with her past where we finally find out what's made her the cantankerous old bastard she is today.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Like McHale's Navy and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like McHale's Navy?
The closest matches to McHale's Navy are Down Periscope (1996), Major Payne (1995) and The Mouse That Roared (1959). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after McHale's Navy?
Start with Down Periscope (1996), the closest match to McHale's Navy.
What is the highest-rated movie like McHale's Navy?
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), rated 8.1/10 by 6,469 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like McHale's Navy?
Mayday (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like McHale's Navy?
Yes: Down Periscope (1996), Major Payne (1995) and The Mouse That Roared (1959).
How are movies similar to McHale's Navy chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside McHale's Navy, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.