Movies like The Princess Who Had Never Laughed (1986)
The best movies like The Princess Who Had Never Laughed (1986) are Invisible Sister (2015), Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008) and The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013). If The Princess Who Had Never Laughed hooked you with its comedy 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
- NewestBill Burr: Drop Dead Years (2025)Released 2025
Invisible Sister (2015)
Teenager Cleo's school science project goes quite awry, causing her popular older sister Molly to go invisible.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 comedy & fantasy
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 comedy & fantasy
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 fantasy & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Fairly OddParents: Abra Catastrophe! The Movie (2003)
Evil lurks when Timmy's teacher and fairy hunter tries to capture a fairy to become Supreme MagicalRuler.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 comedy & fantasy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Fairly OddParents: Channel Chasers (2004)
After being punished with no more television for the rest of his life, Timmy wishes himself into the world of television in order to escape the harsh reality of his life and his parents. Unfortunately for him, his carelessness with magic results in Vicky taking over the world in the future. It's all up to Timmy to stop her in attempts to prevent her from destroying Dimmsdale, while escaping a mysterious masked man that is trying to track him down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDr. Strange (1978)
A psychiatrist becomes the new Sorcerer Supreme of the Earth in order to battle an evil Sorceress from the past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSnow Queen (2002)
Since a bitter winter storm stole the life of Gerda's mother, she and her father have sadly continued to run the remote hotel they call home. Lonely and isolated, Gerda's only joy is Kai, the handsome bellboy. A mysterious guest with an icy stare arrives at the hotel one night, wrapped in fur and diamonds. By daybreak, the "Snow Queen" has vanished with Kai! Gerda embarks on a journey of morphing seasons, fantastical creatures, and long-frozen mysteries in a desperate quest to find her stolen love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Warriors Gate (2016)
After a mysterious chest opens a gateway through time, teen gamer Jack is transported to an ancient empire terrorized by a cruel barbarian king. Jack will need all of his gaming skills as he battles to defeat the barbarian, protect a beautiful princess, and somehow find his way back home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRobot Chicken: Star Wars Episode III (2010)
Millions of years from now, after Socrates, Shakespeare and the bible are long forgotten, only two great works will remain: the sci-fi cinema epic Star Wars and Adult Swim's stop-motion animated, cheap gag extravanganza Robot Chicken. And now, for the first time, they come together for the third time, in this all new special. That's right, all your mot beloved Star Wars characters are going back through the comedy meat grinder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies 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 & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisHasan Minhaj: The King's Jester (2022)
Filmed at the historic Brooklyn Academy of Music, Hasan Minhaj returns to Netflix with his second stand-up comedy special Hasan Minhaj: The King's Jester. In this hilarious performance, Hasan shares his thoughts on fertility, fatherhood, and freedom of speech.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies 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 fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisElena and the Secret of Avalor (2016)
In the Kingdom of Avalor, Elena takes Naomi up a mountain to show her favorite view of the kingdom. Elena laments to Naomi how she was trapped in the Amulet of Avalor for forty-one years, and then presents to her a broken wand. She tells her that it was Shuriki's wand and how she would still be trapped in the Amulet if it was not for a brave young Princess: Sofia. Elena then proceeds to tell Naomi the whole story ...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBill Burr: Drop Dead Years (2025)
In what might be his most personal and introspective hour yet, Bill offers hilarious takes on everything from male sadness to dating advice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPsych: The Movie (2017)
The ambitious friends come together during the holidays after a mystery assailant targets one of their own. A comedic thrill-ride follows, as the wild and unpredictable Psych team pursues the bad guys, justice … and, of course, food!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSecret Society of Second-Born Royals (2020)
A rebellious teenage princess discovers she has superhuman abilities and joins a secret society of extraordinary second-born royals tasked with protecting the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSlumberland (2022)
A young girl discovers a secret map to the dreamworld of Slumberland, and with the help of an eccentric outlaw, she traverses dreams and flees nightmares, with the hope that she will be able to see her late father again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies 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 & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAladdin and His Wonderful Lamp (1986)
Based on the story "Aladdin and His Wonderful Lamp", directed by Tim Burton and starring Robert Carradine.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & comedy
The Emperor's New Clothes (1985)
Two con men take advantage of an emperor's vanity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & fantasy
The Tale of the Frog Prince (1982)
A spoiled, selfish princess's fate becomes entwined with a zany and witty frog with a secret past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & fantasy
The Princess and the Pea (1984)
A bored prince realizes he would like a wife. His mother searches through all the kingdoms far and wide for a "suitable" princess. In the meantime, a charming and witty young lady, who claims to be a princess, shows up at the castle doorstep with a sprained ankle and is shown hospitality by the prince and his best friend the Fool.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & comedy
The Little Mermaid (1987)
A mermaid princess is willing to sacrifice anything for love.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Faerie Tale Theatre: Rip Van Winkle (1987)
Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of Washington Irving’s classic tale about Rip Van Winkle, a carefree villager who wanders into New York’s Catskill Mountains, drinks with mysterious strangers, and falls into a deep sleep—awakening twenty years later to find the world around him transformed.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
The Pied Piper of Hamelin (1985)
The town of Hamelin pays the ultimate price after reneging on their promise to the pied piper. Based on the poem by Robert Browning.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Rapunzel (1983)
A sinister witch steals the baby of a simple candlemaker and his wife and names her Rapunzel. Determined to keep Rapunzel for herself, the witch locks her up in a tall tower all alone, with no way in or out except by climbing her long, braided hair. Wonders and dangers occur when the girl meets a handsome prince.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
The Boy Who Left Home to Find Out About the Shivers (1984)
An intelligent, fearless boy living in a superstitious Transylvanian village goes out into the world to figure out what everyone else is afraid of, "the shivers." A king hires him to rid his castle of ghosts and evil spirits, expecting him to die like all who have tried before him, but the boy is more fearless than he could have known.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Puss in Boots (1985)
A young man (Gregory Hines) journeys from rags-to-riches thanks to his talented Puss in Boots (Ben Vereen). Starring Ben Vereen, Gregory Hines, Alfre Woodard, George Kirby, and Brock Peters. Narrated by Shelley Duvall.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Princess Who Had Never Laughed?
The closest matches to The Princess Who Had Never Laughed are Invisible Sister (2015), Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008) and The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Princess Who Had Never Laughed?
Start with Invisible Sister (2015), the closest match to The Princess Who Had Never Laughed.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Princess Who Had Never Laughed?
Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008), rated 9.0/10 by 261 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Princess Who Had Never Laughed?
Bill Burr: Drop Dead Years (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Princess Who Had Never Laughed?
Yes: Invisible Sister (2015), Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School (2008) and The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013).
How are movies similar to The Princess Who Had Never Laughed chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Princess Who Had Never Laughed, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.