Movies like Tugboat Princess (1936)
The best movies like Tugboat Princess (1936) are The King's Daughter (2022), The Thirteenth Year (1999) and Wake of the Red Witch (1948). If Tugboat Princess hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)7.6/10 from 14,234 votes
- NewestDesert Warrior (2026)Released 2026
The King's Daughter (2022)
King Louis XIV's quest for immortality leads him to capture and steal a mermaid's life force, a move that is further complicated by his illegitimate daughter's discovery of the creature.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Thirteenth Year (1999)
A teen learns that his birth mother is a mermaid after he begins to grow fins and slimy scales on his thirteenth birthday.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWake of the Red Witch (1948)
Captain Ralls fights Dutch shipping magnate Mayrant Sidneye for the woman he loves, Angelique Desaix, and for a fortune in gold aboard the Red Witch.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisPrincess Protection Program (2009)
When her nation is invaded, a young princess is taken into the Princess Protection Program. She is relocated to Louisiana, where she stays with a covert agent and his tomboyish daughter, and must learn how to behave like an ordinary teenager.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking (1988)
After her father's ship is carried off by a sudden storm, the spunky Pippi Longstocking is stranded with her horse, Alfonso,and her pet monkey, Mr. Neilson, and takes up residence in the old family home, which is thought by neighborhood children to be haunted. Soon, two children, Tommy and his sister Anika, venture into the house only to meet up with Pippi. The three soon become friends and get into various adventures together, including cleaning the floor with scrubbing shoes, dodging the "splunks", going down a waterfall in barrels, and helping Pippi with the problem of having to go to an orphanage. Older children will probably get the most out of this movie.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisLord Jim (1965)
After being discredited as a coward, a 19th century seaman lives for only one purpose: to redeem himself. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with Sony Pictures Entertainment in 2000.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPollyanna (1960)
A young girl comes to an embittered town and confronts its attitude with her determination to see the best in life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCharlie St. Cloud (2010)
Accomplished sailor Charlie St. Cloud has the adoration of his mother Claire and his little brother Sam, as well as a college scholarship that will lead him far from his sleepy Pacific Northwest hometown. But his bright future is cut short when tragedy strikes and takes his dreams with it. After high school classmate Tess returns home unexpectedly, Charlie grows torn between honoring a promise he made four years earlier and moving forward with newfound love. As he finds the courage to let go of the past for good, Charlie discovers the soul most worth saving is his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAquamarine (2006)
Two teenage girls discover that mermaids really do exist after a violent storm washes one ashore. The mermaid, a sassy creature named Aquamarine, is determined to prove to her father that real love exists, and enlists the girls' help in winning the heart of a handsome lifeguard.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPan (2015)
Living a bleak existence at a London orphanage, 12-year-old Peter finds himself whisked away to the fantastical world of Neverland. Adventure awaits as he meets new friend James Hook and the warrior Tiger Lily. They must band together to save Neverland from the ruthless pirate Blackbeard. Along the way, the rebellious and mischievous boy discovers his true destiny, becoming the hero forever known as Peter Pan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBarbie as the Island Princess (2007)
Young Rosella is saved by a few kind animals after a shipwreck. Now called Ro, she learns to talk to animals. One day, she saves the life of a prince and returns to civilisation to discover her past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTrue Spirit (2023)
When the tenacious young sailor Jessica Watson sets out to be the youngest person to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the world, many expect her to fail. With the support of her sailing coach and mentor Ben Bryant and her parents, Jessica is determined to accomplish what was thought to be impossible, navigating some of the world’s most challenging stretches of ocean over the course of 210 days.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHook (1991)
The boy who wasn't supposed to grow up—Peter Pan—does just that, becoming a soulless corporate lawyer whose workaholism could cost him his wife and kids. During his trip to see Granny Wendy in London, the vengeful Capt. Hook kidnaps Peter's kids and forces Peter to return to Neverland.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe World in His Arms (1952)
A boisterous sea captain in the Pacific Coast, circa 1850, has a plan to buy Alaska from the Russians… if they don’t kill him first.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDolittle (2020)
After losing his wife seven years earlier, the eccentric Dr. John Dolittle, famed doctor and veterinarian of Queen Victoria’s England, hermits himself away behind the high walls of Dolittle Manor with only his menagerie of exotic animals for company. But when the young queen falls gravely ill, a reluctant Dolittle is forced to set sail on an epic adventure to a mythical island in search of a cure, regaining his wit and courage as he crosses old adversaries and discovers wondrous creatures.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWillow (1988)
The evil Queen Bavmorda hunts the newborn princess Elora Danan, a child prophesied to bring about her downfall. When the royal infant is found by Willow, a timid farmer and aspiring sorcerer, he's entrusted with delivering her from evil.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDesert Warrior (2026)
In 7th-century Arabia, Princess Hind becomes a warrior to defy the ruthless Emperor Kisra. Forged into a warrior and aided by legendary bandit Hanzala, Hind unites warring tribes for a last stand—the historic Battle of Dhi Qar—that will change history.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisLife of Pi (2012)
The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)
Born under unusual circumstances, Benjamin Button springs into being as an elderly man in a New Orleans nursing home and ages in reverse. Twelve years after his birth, he meets Daisy, a child who flits in and out of his life as she grows up to be a dancer. Though he has all sorts of unusual adventures over the course of his life, it is his relationship with Daisy, and the hope that they will come together at the right time, that drives Benjamin forward.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTo Have and Have Not (1945)
A Martinique charter boat skipper gets mixed up with the underground French resistance operatives during WWII.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Tugboat Princess?
The closest matches to Tugboat Princess are The King's Daughter (2022), The Thirteenth Year (1999) and Wake of the Red Witch (1948). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Tugboat Princess?
Start with The King's Daughter (2022), the closest match to Tugboat Princess.
What is the highest-rated movie like Tugboat Princess?
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008), rated 7.6/10 by 14,234 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Tugboat Princess?
Desert Warrior (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Tugboat Princess?
Yes: The King's Daughter (2022), The Thirteenth Year (1999) and Wake of the Red Witch (1948).
How are movies similar to Tugboat Princess chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Tugboat Princess, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.