Movies like Back to School (1986)
The best movies like Back to School (1986) are Playdate (2025), Drillbit Taylor (2008) and The Toy (1982). If Back to School hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedToy Story 3 (2010)7.8/10 from 16,441 votes
- NewestSemester One (2026)Released 2026
Playdate (2025)
When out-of-work accountant Brian joins stay-at-home dad Jeff for a playdate with their sons, he expects a laid-back afternoon. Instead, they're chased by mercenaries, and Brian—totally unprepared—must survive one absurd obstacle after another.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDrillbit Taylor (2008)
Dealing with a sociopathic school bully, three high school freshmen hire a low-budget bodyguard to protect them, not realizing he is just a homeless beggar and petty thief looking for some easy cash.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Toy (1982)
On one of his bratty son Eric's annual visits, the plutocrat U.S. Bates takes him to his department store and offers him anything in it as a gift. Eric chooses a black janitor who has made him laugh with his antics. At first the man suffers many indignities as Eric's "toy", but gradually teaches the lonely boy what it is like to have and to be a friend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisSt Trinian's (2007)
When their beloved school is threatened with closure should the powers that be fail to raise the proper funds, the girls scheme to steal a priceless painting and use the profits to pull St. Trinian's out of the red.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Distinguished Gentleman (1992)
A Florida con man uses the recent death of the long time Congressman from his district, who he just happens to share a last name with, to get elected to his version of paradise, the U.S. Congress, where the money flows from lobbyists.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOscar (1991)
Angelo "Snaps" Provolone made his dying father a promise on his deathbed: he would leave the world of crime and become an honest businessman. Despite having no experience in making money in a legal fashion, Snaps sets about to keep his promise.
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 thisGreedy (1994)
Meet the McTeagues. They've come to stake a claim in their wealthy uncle's will… only he's not dead yet!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisThe Ladies Man (1961)
After his girl leaves him for someone else, Herbert gets really depressed and starts searching for a job. He finally finds one in a big house which is inhabited by many, many women. Can he live in the same home with all these females?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLegally Blonde (2001)
Fashionable sorority queen Elle Woods has it all, but, she wants nothing more than to be Mrs. Warner Huntington III. But he dumps her before heading to Harvard Law School. Elle rallies all of her resources and gets into Harvard, determined to win him back. While there, she figures out that there is more to herself than just good looks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHigh Heels and Low Lifes (2001)
Two friends are drawn into a seedy underworld of extortion and violence when they try to blackmail a gang of bank robbers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 Three Stooges (2012)
Left on the doorstep of an orphanage run by nuns, three newborn knuckleheads grow up to be finger-poking, nyuk-nyuking janitors named Larry, Curly and Moe. When they learn that financial problems will soon force the only home they've ever known to close, the trio sets out to raise $830,000 in one month. Out in the world for the very first time, the three innocent bumblers become embroiled in a murder plot and find stardom on a TV reality show.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisPocket Listing (2016)
A satirical thriller about L.A.'s real estate roller coaster. Double crosses, adultery, murder, mistaken identity, and revenge ensues when a mysterious power player and his sultry wife hire a disgraced Los Angeles property broker to discreetly market and sell their Malibu villa.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKindergarten Cop (1990)
Hard-edged cop John Kimble gets more than he bargained for when he goes undercover as a kindergarten teacher to get the goods on a brutal drug lord while at the same time protecting the man's young son. Pitted against a class of boisterous moppets whose antics try his patience and test his mettle, Kimble may have met his match … in more ways than one.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Big League (1994)
When the owner of the Minnesota Twins passes away, he bequeaths the team to his preteen grandson. The newly minted head honcho quickly appoints himself manager, causing unrest in an organization that struggles to take orders from a 12-year-old.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJim Jefferies: Freedumb (2016)
Returning for a second Netflix comedy special, Jim Jefferies unleashes his famously ferocious black humor to a packed house in Nashville, Tennessee.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies 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 thisVic the Viking: The Magic Sword (2019)
Vic dreams of going to sea as a member of the crew captained by Halvar, his father, who unfortunately thinks that the child is too weak to embark with him and his brave warriors in search of dangerous adventures; but fate will offer Vic the opportunity to prove to Halvar that he is a true Viking.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisDon't Let the Riverbeast Get You! (2012)
In this campy throwback to 1950s monster films, a vicious monster, the Riverbeast, has arisen from its watery lair to terrorize a peaceful New England town. Local tutor Neil Stuart has seen the beast before, but nobody believed his story, making him the town laughingstock. Neil sets out to not only prove that the Riverbeast exists, but also, with the help of his beautiful pupil, scrappy tutor buddies, and a former professional athlete, to vanquish the aquatic menace!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Playing with Death (2011)
The family of Eusebio, a sick old man, believes that he has begun to lose his mind and that the stories he tells, which nobody listens to, are those of a crazy person.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Woody, Buzz, and the rest of Andy's toys haven't been played with in years. With Andy about to go to college, the gang find themselves accidentally left at a nefarious day care center. The toys must band together to escape and return home to Andy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSemester One (2026)
A collection of home videos depicting the activities of a freshman in college and his friends
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj (2006)
Taj Mahal Badalandabad leaves Coolidge College behind for the halls of Camford University in England, where he looks to continue his education, and teach an uptight student how to make the most out of her academic career.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like this100 Girls (2000)
Matthew, a college freshman, meets his dream girl in a dorm elevator during a blackout. He never sees her face, but instantly falls in love. In the morning, the power is restored, but the "dream girl" has vanished. All Matthew knows is that she lives in an all-girls dorm. He sets out on a semester-long journey to find his mystery girl among a hundred female suspects. Could it be Wendy? Dora? Arlene? Patty? Cynthia? Or the 95 other girls, any of whom could have been in that elevator with Matthew.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisDaddy's Home (2015)
The story of a mild-mannered radio executive who strives to become the best stepdad ever to his wife's two children, but complications ensue when their freewheeling, freeloading real father arrives, forcing stepdad to compete for the affection of the kids.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Re-Education of Molly Singer (2023)
In college, attorney Molly Singer was the life of every party. Now, she's about to be fired because she can't leave her partying ways behind. Molly's boss, Brenda, tells Molly there's one way to save her job: re-enroll at her old alma mater, befriend Brenda's socially awkward son, Elliot, and take him from zero to campus hero.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisVan Wilder: Freshman Year (2009)
It is freshman year at Coolidge College and Van Wilder is ready to party. To his dismay, all the girls have taken a vow of chastity and the dean rules the school. Van embarks on a crusade to land the campus hottie, Kaitlin, and liberate his school from sexual oppression and party dysfunction.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Back to School?
The closest matches to Back to School are Playdate (2025), Drillbit Taylor (2008) and The Toy (1982). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Back to School?
Start with Playdate (2025), the closest match to Back to School.
What is the highest-rated movie like Back to School?
Toy Story 3 (2010), rated 7.8/10 by 16,441 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Back to School?
Semester One (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Back to School?
Yes: Playdate (2025), Drillbit Taylor (2008) and The Toy (1982).
How are movies similar to Back to School chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Back to School, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.