Movies like The Lesson (1987)
The best movies like The Lesson (1987) are BURN·E (2008), Planet 51 (2009) and Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe (2022). If The Lesson hooked you with its animation and science fiction, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedRegular Show: The Movie (2015)7.9/10 from 454 votes
- NewestTime Travellers (2023)Released 2023
BURN·E (2008)
What lengths will a robot undergo to do his job? BURN·E is a dedicated hard working robot who finds himself locked out of his ship. BURN·E quickly learns that completing a simple task can often be a very difficult endeavor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPlanet 51 (2009)
When Earth astronaut Capt. Chuck Baker arrives on Planet 51 -- a world reminiscent of American suburbia circa 1950 -- he tries to avoid capture, recover his spaceship and make it home safely, all with the help of an empathetic little green being.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisBeavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe (2022)
In 1998, Beavis and Butt-Head are sentenced to Space Camp by a “creative” judge. Their obsession with a docking simulator (huh huh) leads to a trip on the Space Shuttle, with predictably disastrous results. After going through a black hole, they re-emerge in our time, where they look for love, misuse iPhones, and are hunted by the Deep State. Spoiler: They don’t score.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStarship Troopers: Traitor of Mars (2017)
Federation trooper Johnny Rico is ordered to work with a group of new recruits on a satellite station on Mars, where giant bugs have decided to target their next attack.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisFuturama: The Beast with a Billion Backs (2008)
Fresh off ripping space-time a new one at the end of "Bender's Big Score," the Planet Express crew is back to mend the tear in reality, or (hopefully) at least not make it worse. Beyond the tear, though, lurks a being of inconceivable...tentacularity. What will become of Earth, and indeed, our universe, when faced with the Beast with a Billion Backs?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRobotech: The Shadow Chronicles (2006)
In the year 2044 AD, the human race has amped-up its space exploration and reached out to the stars through the miracle of ROBOTECHNOLOGY, but not without bringing intergalactic war upon the Earth itself. Heroes will die and allegiances will shift. But in the midst of combat, perhaps peace will spring up through the charred remains of battered history. One of the greatest science fiction sagas of all time continues...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStar Wars: The Clone Wars (2008)
As the Clone Wars sweep through the galaxy, Anakin Skywalker and his new Padawan learner Ahsoka Tano plunge into a dangerous mission to rescue the kidnapped son of crime lord Jabba the Hutt.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTransformers Prime: Beast Hunters - Predacons Rising (2013)
Autobots, Decepticons, Predaking and Predacons form an unlikely alliance to battle a resurrected Unicron.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisFinal Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)
Led by a strange dream, scientist Aki Ross struggles to collect the eight spirits in the hope of creating a force powerful enough to protect the planet. With the aid of the Deep Eyes Squadron and her mentor, Dr. Sid, Aki must save the Earth from its darkest hate and unleash the spirits within.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBattle for Terra (2007)
A peaceful alien planet faces annihilation, as the homeless remainder of the human race sets its eyes on Terra. Mala, a rebellious Terrian teenager, will do everything she can to stop it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Transformers: The Movie (1986)
The Autobots must stop a colossal planet-consuming robot who goes after the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. At the same time, they must defend themselves against an all-out attack from the Decepticons.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRegular Show: The Movie (2015)
After a high school lab experiment goes horribly wrong, Mordecai and Rigby must go back in time to battle an evil volleyball coach in order to save the universe — and their friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLeroy & Stitch (2006)
Lilo, Stitch, Jumba, and Pleakley have finally caught all of Jumba's genetic experiments and found the one true place where each of them belongs. Stitch, Jumba and Pleakley are offered positions in the Galactic Alliance, turning them down so they can stay on Earth with Lilo, but Lilo realizes her alien friends have places where they belong – and it's finally time to say "aloha".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHome (2015)
When Earth is taken over by the overly-confident Boov, an alien race in search of a new place to call home, all humans are promptly relocated, while all Boov get busy reorganizing the planet. But when one resourceful girl, Tip, manages to avoid capture, she finds herself the accidental accomplice of a banished Boov named Oh. The two fugitives realize there’s a lot more at stake than intergalactic relations as they embark on the road trip of a lifetime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTom and Jerry Blast Off to Mars! (2005)
While carrying on their usual hi-jinks, they inadvertantly stow-away on a spaceship bound for Mars. They meet up with the local Martian residents and cause them to invade the Earth, aided by the "Invincitron", a vacuum-wielding giant robot. Tom, Jerry and their Martian ally, Peep, save the day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five (2008)
Ordered to teach a martial arts class of rambunctious bunny kittens, Po tells stories of each of the Furious Five's pasts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlien: Containment (2019)
Aboard a small escape pod, four survivors try to discover what caused the destruction of their spaceship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBen 10: Alien Swarm (2009)
Ben and a mysterious girl from his past must prevent an alien threat from destroying the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEuropa Report (2013)
A crew travels to Europa, Jupiter’s icy moon, to investigate signs of life in its subsurface ocean, but disaster cuts them off from Earth, leading to a tense and dangerous exploration.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExtinct (2021)
Op and Ed, two adorable donut-shaped animals - flummels - accidentally time-travel from 1835 to modern-day Shanghai. There they discover traffic, trans fats, and worst of all, that flummels are now extinct. It's up to this bumbling pair to save themselves and their species...and, just maybe, change the course of history.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGodzilla vs. Gigan Rex (2022)
When army of Gigans tries to invade and destroy the Earth, the only one who can stop them is Godzilla.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & animation
Shannon Amen (2019)
Shannon Amen unearths the passionate and pained expressions of a young woman overwhelmed by guilt and anxiety as she struggles to reconcile her sexual identity with her religious faith. A loving elegy to a friend lost to suicide.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Shorts from Radiator Springs (2016)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Rendezvous in Space (1964)
This documentary, the final film directed by Frank Capra, explores America's plans for the future of space exploration. It was produced by the Martin-Marietta Corporation for exhibition in the Hall of Science at the 1964 New York World's Fair.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Oumpah-Pah the Red Skin (1965)
A short animation film about knights.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
The Criminals (1993)
Animated mugshots of criminals.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
I See What Is Here (2013)
The shots used in this piece were from first test shots with the Mobile Phone 60x microscope. Subjects included the fur of a cat, hair of a girl, a cutting board, and a ball of cat fur that was burned with an incense stick. Unfortunately, during the final shot the flame melted part of the microscope lens.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
A Family Portrait (2009)
A family portrait session goes horribly wrong, as secrets and jealousy bubble to the surface under the photographer's watchful gaze.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Origin (2019)
An astronaut from an interstellar colony returns to Earth to determine why they lost contact.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Time Travellers (2023)
Medieval time travelers on a flying visit to the future, the so-called present, and the not-so-distant past encounter burgers, SUVs, esotericists, and a mammoth, and then (spoiler alert) return to the past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Like The Lesson and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Lesson?
The closest matches to The Lesson are BURN·E (2008), Planet 51 (2009) and Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe (2022). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Lesson?
Start with BURN·E (2008), the closest match to The Lesson.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Lesson?
Regular Show: The Movie (2015), rated 7.9/10 by 454 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Lesson?
Time Travellers (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to The Lesson chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Lesson, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.