Movies like The Return of the Shaggy Dog (1987)
The best movies like The Return of the Shaggy Dog (1987) are Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie (2018), The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013) and Casper Meets Wendy (1998). If The Return of the Shaggy Dog hooked you with its family and fantasy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedWizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008)9.0/10 from 261 votes
- NewestStill on Hold (2026)Released 2026
Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie (2018)
When their trip to San Lorenzo takes a turn for the worst, Arnold and his classmate’s only hope of getting home is retracing the dangerous path that led to Arnold's parents' disappearance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013)
While trying to prove to her family she can be mature and responsible, teen wizard Alex Russo conjures up a spell to rid herself of her bad qualities, unintentionally creating a Good and Evil Alex. When Evil Alex gets involved in a plan to take over the world by a dark wizard, Good Alex must find a way to save her family, humankind, and ultimately herself in an epic Good vs. Evil battle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisCasper Meets Wendy (1998)
When a warlock threatens Wendy the Good Little Witch, she and her aunts hide out at a resort where Casper the Ghost is vacationing with his uncles. Although Casper and Wendy are told ghosts and witches don't get along, the two are kindred spirits! This spooky family-friendly adventure finds Casper and Wendy bridging the ghost-witch divide to battle the warlock who is intent on destroying Wendy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
SnoozefestMovies like thisWizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008)
When Alex is caught using magic to clean her room she is forced to go to wizard school with Justin. Max and Jerry camp out on the terrace to prove their manhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 thisUnder Wraps 2 (2022)
As Marshall, Gilbert and Amy are preparing for her father’s Spooktacular Halloween-themed wedding to his fiancé Carl, plans go awry when they discover that their mummy friend Harold and his beloved Rose may be in danger.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTom and Jerry: The Magic Ring (2002)
The Oscar-winning cat-and-mouse twosome--Tom and Jerry--returns with another adventure. When Tom and Jerry's irrepressible curiosity gets the best of them, the mysterious magic ring that Tom guards with his life ends up stuck over Jerry's head. Now, Jerry must find a way to free himself of the ring while fleeing Tom, who wants to remove the ring any way he can! Find out if the pair can conjure up a solution in this fur-raising, madcap escapade.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Brave Little Toaster to the Rescue (1997)
When Toaster and the gang spark friendships with the playful animals at the veterinary hospital, they soon discover their new pals are about to be sent to a testing laboratory.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKermit's Swamp Years (2002)
At 12 years old, Kermit the Frog and best friends Goggles and Croaker travel outside their homes in the swamps of the Deep South to do something extraordinary with their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisScooby-Doo! and the Legend of the Vampire (2003)
The Yowie Yahoo starts kidnapping musicians at a concert attended by Scooby and the gang in Vampire Rock, Australia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisScooby-Doo! Mask of the Blue Falcon (2012)
The Mega Mondo Pop Cartoon-a-Con in sunny California marks the spot for mystery in this all-new original Scooby-Doo adventure! The Mystery Inc. pals -- Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby -- head to the annual convention, but they're not there to crack their next case. They want to meet their favorite comic book characters and see a megabucks movie premiere, an explosive big-screen remake of the classic cartoon The Adventures of Blue Falcon, featuring Shaggy and Scooby's favorite superheroes: caped avenger Blue Falcon and his trusty but bumbling robo-pup, Dynomutt.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Loud House Movie (2021)
The Loud family travel to Scotland and discover they are descendants of Scottish royalty as they move into their giant ancestral castle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRevolting Rhymes (2017)
Two half-hour animated films based on the much-loved rhymes written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSofia the First: Once Upon a Princess (2012)
Set in the storybook world of Enchancia, the music-filled movie follows Sofia, an average girl whose life suddenly changes when her mother marries the king and she is whisked off to live in a castle with her mom, new step-father, King Roland II, and step-siblings, Amber and James. Along the way this ordinary girl learns to navigate the extraordinary life of royalty, and in the process makes everyone around her feel special.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Monkey King (2023)
A stick-wielding monkey teams with a young girl on an epic quest for immortality, battling demons, dragons, gods — and his own ego — along the way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGenius (1999)
Charlie Boyle finds that even his high IQ can't solve all of his problems when he takes on a double life in order to make friends his own age.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Want a Dog for Christmas, Charlie Brown (2003)
All Rerun wants from Santa is a dog, but his mother won't let him have one. Spending time with Snoopy provides the perfect pick-me-up. But when Snoopy gets too busy to play with Rerun, they call in a substitute—Snoopy's brother Spike.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisTom and Jerry Cowboy Up! (2022)
This time, the rivals team up to help a cowgirl and her brother save their homestead from a greedy land-grabber, and they’re going to need some help! Jerry’s three precocious nephews are all ready for action, and Tom is rounding up a posse of prairie dogs. But can a ragtag band of varmints defeat a deceitful desperado determined to deceive a damsel in distress? No matter what happens with Tom and Jerry in the saddle, it’ll be a rootin’ tootin’ good time!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisClifford's Really Big Movie (2004)
Fearing that he costs too much to feed, Clifford decides to join a traveling carnival so he can enter a talent contest in hopes of winning a lifetime supply of Tummy Yummies treats. Joined by his friends Cleo and T-Bone, Clifford meets up with Shackleford the High-Flying Ferret and Rodrigo Chihuahua of Steel, as they work together to turn a broken-down act into a record-breaking show.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScooby-Doo! Stage Fright (2013)
Join Scooby-Doo, Shaggy and the Mystery Inc. crew as they head to Chicago for Talent Star, a hit talent show in which Fred and Daphne are finalists with some high hopes. Unlucky for them, the competition is frightful as the show is being broadcast from an opera house with a history of horrors and a particularly vengeful phantom that has cursed the show's production.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSky High (2005)
Set in a world where superheroes are commonly known and accepted, young Will Stronghold, the son of the Commander and Jetstream, tries to find a balance between being a normal teenager and an extraordinary being.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWalt Disney Animation Collection - Volume 3 (2009)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & fantasy
Madicken of June Hill (1980)
A second movie based on Astrid Lindgren's novel "Madicken och Junibackens pims", which is about two sisters and their adventures in 1910s Sweden.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
Bugsy Malone (1976)
New York, 1929, a war rages between two rival gangsters, Fat Sam and Dandy Dan. Dan is in possession of a new and deadly weapon, the dreaded "splurge gun". As the custard pies fly, Bugsy Malone, an all-round nice guy, falls for Blousey Brown, a singer at Fat Sam's speakeasy. His designs on her are disrupted by the seductive songstress Tallulah who wants Bugsy for herself.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStill on Hold (2026)
After his phone runs out of battery, Chico, a young boy, tries everything to contact his first date.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Habitation of Dragons (1992)
Two brothers of totally different natures live in a small town in Texas. Since the death of their father they confront one another all the time for all kind of major and minor problems.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Treacle (1987)
Old Blackpool comedian Alfie Duffell allegedly wrote a song called 'Put a Bit of Treacle on my Pudding Mary-Ann', which might have made him famous, had he not sold it years ago, for five pounds. Now it is up to his grandson Stephen to take the song into the eighties.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Ballerina (1966)
Story of a young ballet student in Denmark who succeeds despite her mother’s objections.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
The Last Heroes (2019)
A group of friends - a tomb raider, a chatty salesman, a naughty journalist, a lazy nerd and the shy assistant of a mysterious blind and silent shopkeeper - meet again in the quiet small town where they had shared a terrible secret. When a skeptical policeman discovers the link between a weird animals slaughter and some occult practices, strange things start happening. Together, they will discover the ancient curse of Kaisha and have to face the demons of the past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Grand Finale (2024)
A chamber orchestra is working out of a rundown theatre in Reykjavik. Financial hardship places a great strain on the band and the lead violinist, Sigrun. The annual grant from the city is coming to an end so the band hires a world renowned cellist in order to save the band. The media goes wild and money starts to flow to the band again. Too bad the cellist is not a very nice person – he is quite the assgrabber and a two faced cheater. Too late to fire the star and the grand concert that will save the band is about to begin when the cellist chokes to death – 15 minutes before the concert. The band decides to risk it all and play the concert with a dead solo artist – not really thinking about how to end such a macabre show.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Return of the Shaggy Dog?
The closest matches to The Return of the Shaggy Dog are Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie (2018), The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013) and Casper Meets Wendy (1998). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Return of the Shaggy Dog?
Start with Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie (2018), the closest match to The Return of the Shaggy Dog.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Return of the Shaggy Dog?
Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008), rated 9.0/10 by 261 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Return of the Shaggy Dog?
Still on Hold (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Return of the Shaggy Dog?
Yes: Hey Arnold! The Jungle Movie (2018), The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013) and Casper Meets Wendy (1998).
How are movies similar to The Return of the Shaggy Dog chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Return of the Shaggy Dog, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.