Movies like Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life (2016)
The best movies like Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life (2016) are Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021), Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010) and Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017). If Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life hooked you with its family and comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedForrest Gump (1994)8.5/10 from 30,877 votes
- NewestThe Twits (2025)Released 2025
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021)
Greg Heffley is a scrawny but ambitious kid with an active imagination and big plans to be rich and famous – he just has to survive middle school first.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDiary of a Wimpy Kid (2010)
Greg Heffley is headed for big things, but first he has to survive the scariest, most humiliating experience of any kid’s life – middle school! That won’t be easy, considering he’s surrounded by hairy-freckled morons, wedgie-loving bullies and a moldy slice of cheese with nuclear cooties!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCaptain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017)
Based on the bestselling book series, this outrageous comedy tells the story of George and Harold, two overly imaginative pranksters who hypnotize their principal into thinking he’s an enthusiastic, yet dimwitted, superhero named Captain Underpants.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarold and the Purple Crayon (2024)
Inside of his book, adventurous Harold can make anything come to life simply by drawing it. After he grows up and draws himself off the book's pages and into the physical world, Harold finds he has a lot to learn about real life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow to Eat Fried Worms (2006)
During the first day of his new school year, a fifth grade boy squares off against a bully and winds up accepting a dare that could change the balance of power within the class.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Twits (2025)
When the meanest, nastiest villains pull a trick to take over their town, two brave children team up with a family of magical animals to bring them down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisClifford the Big Red Dog (2021)
As Emily struggles to fit in at home and at school, she discovers a small red puppy who is destined to become her best friend. When Clifford magically undergoes one heck of a growth spurt, becomes a gigantic dog and attracts the attention of a genetics company, Emily and her Uncle Casey have to fight the forces of greed as they go on the run across New York City. Along the way, Clifford affects the lives of everyone around him and teaches Emily and her uncle the true meaning of acceptance and unconditional love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRecess: All Growed Down (2003)
T.J. and The Recess Gang are kidnapped by the Third Street School's kindergartners, who are in turn being bullied by a new kid in their class.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDiary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (2011)
Wimpy Greg Heffley, now in seventh grade, thinks he has it all together. He has mastered middle school and gotten rid of the Cheese Touch. However, Greg's older brother, Rodrick, is itching to cut him down to size. He gets the perfect opportunity when their mother tries to force the boys to bond. Rodrick may be Greg's chief tormentor, but he feels his constant pranks are just what his little brother needs to prepare him for life's hard knocks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDiary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (2022)
As a new school year begins, Greg is subject to relentless teasing from his brother Rodrick. Will Greg manage to get along with him? Or will a secret ruin everything?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Boxtrolls (2014)
An orphaned boy raised by underground creatures called Boxtrolls comes up from the sewers and out of his box to save his family and the town from the evil exterminator, Archibald Snatcher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDennis the Menace (1993)
Mr. Wilson's ever-present annoyance comes in the form of one mischievous kid named Dennis. But he'll need Dennis's tricks to uncover a collection of gold coins that go missing when a shady drifter named Switchblade Sam comes to town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisSnoopy Presents: Lucy's School (2022)
The Peanuts gang is anxious about starting at a new school in the fall, inspiring Lucy to start her own school instead. She soon learns that teaching isn't as easy as it sounds and that change can be a good thing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCadet Kelly (2002)
Hyperactive teenager Kelly is enrolled into a military school when her new stepfather becomes the Commandant. At first she has problems fitting in and taking orders until she tries out for the drill team.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
Inventor Flint Lockwood creates a machine that makes clouds rain food, enabling the down-and-out citizens of Chewandswallow to feed themselves. But when the falling food reaches gargantuan proportions, Flint must scramble to avert disaster. Can he regain control of the machine and put an end to the wild weather before the town is destroyed?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMatilda (1996)
Matilda Wormwood is an brilliant and intelligent little girl. Unfortunately, her parents, Harry and Zinnia, fail to see that fact. As time passes, she finally starts school and has a kind teacher, loyal friends, and a terrifying, sadistic headmistress. As she becomes fed up with the constant cruelty, she discovers she has a special gift that she just might be able to use to outwit the unruly adults around her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Little Prince (2015)
Based on the best-seller book 'The Little Prince', the movie tells the story of a little girl that lives with resignation in a world where efficiency and work are the only dogmas. Everything will change when accidentally she discovers her neighbor that will tell her about the story of the Little Prince that he once met.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like this100% Wolf (2020)
Freddy Lupin, heir to a proud family line of werewolves, is in for a shock when on his 14th birthday his first 'warfing' goes awry, turning him into a ferocious poodle. The pack elders give Freddy until the next moonrise to prove he has the heart of a wolf, or risk being cast out forever. With the help of an unlikely ally in a streetwise stray named Batty, Freddy must prove he's 100% Wolf.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Jungle Book (1967)
The boy Mowgli makes his way to the man-village with Bagheera, the wise panther. Along the way he meets jazzy King Louie, the hypnotic snake Kaa and the lovable, happy-go-lucky bear Baloo, who teaches Mowgli "The Bare Necessities" of life and the true meaning of friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Pagemaster (1994)
Rich knows a lot about accidents. So much so, he is scared to do anything that might endanger him, like riding his bike, or climbing into his treehouse. While in an old library, he is mystically transported into the unknown world of books, and he has to try and get home again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRead It and Weep (2006)
A young girl turns into an A-List celebrity over night when her private journal is accidently published and becomes a best-seller.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisEnchanted (2007)
The beautiful princess Giselle is banished by an evil queen from her magical, musical animated land and finds herself in the gritty reality of the streets of modern-day Manhattan. Shocked by this strange new environment that doesn't operate on a "happily ever after" basis, Giselle is now adrift in a chaotic world badly in need of enchantment. But when Giselle begins to fall in love with a charmingly flawed divorce lawyer who has come to her aid - even though she is already promised to a perfect fairy tale prince back home - she has to wonder: Can a storybook view of romance survive in the real world?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisO hloupé havířce (1990)
Havíř's wife Barbora is a bit of a fool. She believes everything she is told and thus prepares her patient husband for unenviable moments. In the end, the miner gets really angry! He decides to go out into the world to see if there is anyone more stupid than his own wife. If so, he will return to his wife. But to his surprise, he finds plenty of such people in the world. And he stands to make a fortune. But when he returns home, he finds that his wife hasn't changed at all. Stupidity is eternal!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & comedy
Dr. Dolittle (TBA)
Sent on a forced vacation to a five-star hotel, Dr. Dolittle learns from his pet monkey Chi-Chi that an epidemic has broken out among the animals in Africa. Together with Chi-Chi, he embarks on a journey to Africa aboard a tourist hot air balloon. The duo soon discovers that the epidemic is the work of the villainous robber Barm`o`Ley, who can deny nothing to his young daughter Lea. Barm`o`Ley kidnaps baby animals to stock his daughter’s private zoo. However, after meeting Dr. Dolittle, Lea begins to reconsider her attitude toward animals — and ultimately reforms her father, Barm`o`Ley.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
Emil and the Detectives (1931)
When a suspicious man bribes Emil with chocolate in return for a bundle of cash, the young lad thinks of a plan to catch him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & comedy
Forrest Gump (1994)
A man with a low IQ has accomplished great things in his life and been present during significant historic events—in each case, far exceeding what anyone imagined he could do. But despite all he has achieved, his one true love eludes him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisUnder a Texas Moon (1930)
A cowboy arrives in a small town and winds up trying to help a local rancher stop a gang of cattle thieves while romancing a pretty young girl.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Odette Toulemonde (2007)
Objectively, Odette Toulemonde has nothing to be happy about, but is. Balthazar Balsan has everything to be happy about, but isn’t. Odette, awkwardly forty, with a delightful hairdresser son and a daughter bogged down in adolescence, spends her days behind the cosmetic’s counter in a department store and her nights sewing feathers on costumes for Parisian variety shows. She dreams of thanking Balthazar Balsan, her favorite author, to whom – she believes – she owes her optimism. The rich and charming Parisian writer then turns up in her life in an unexpected way.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisPirates Down the Street (2020)
When a pirate family's arrival shakes up a coastal town, the kids next door offer to help them blend in and fight a bitter rival.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Mavka: The Forest Song (2023)
Mavka, a Soul of the Forest, faces an impossible choice between love and her duty as Guardian of the Heart of the Forest when she falls for a human, a talented young musician named Lukas.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life?
The closest matches to Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life are Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021), Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010) and Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life?
Start with Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021), the closest match to Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life.
What is the highest-rated movie like Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life?
Forrest Gump (1994), rated 8.5/10 by 30,877 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life?
The Twits (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life?
Yes: Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2021), Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010) and Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017).
How are movies similar to Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.