Movies like California Dreaming (2007)
The best movies like California Dreaming (2007) are Disaster Holiday (2024), A Very Brady Sequel (1996) and Thunderstruck (2012). If California Dreaming hooked you with its comedy and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedIt Happened One Night (1934)7.8/10 from 1,483 votes
- NewestNimrods (2026)Released 2026
Disaster Holiday (2024)
A workaholic dad, trying to win over his kids, heads to the coast of Durban for a big work meeting — under the guise of a family road trip vacation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Very Brady Sequel (1996)
A man claiming to be Carol Brady's long-lost first husband, Roy Martin, shows up at the suburban Brady residence one evening. An impostor, the man is actually determined to steal the Bradys' familiar horse statue, a $20-million ancient Asian artifact.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThunderstruck (2012)
After NBA star Kevin Durant switches talent with 16 year old Brian, the teenager becomes the star of his high school team, but Durant starts struggling and eventually learns an important lesson.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNational Lampoon's Vacation (1983)
Clark Griswold is on a quest to take his family to the Walley World theme park for a vacation, but things don't go exactly as planned.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Family Plan (2023)
Dan Morgan is many things: a devoted husband, a loving father, a celebrated car salesman. He's also a former assassin. And when his past catches up to his present, he's forced to take his unsuspecting family on a road trip unlike any other.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDumb and Dumber (1994)
Lloyd and Harry are two men whose stupidity is really indescribable. When Mary, a beautiful woman, loses an important suitcase with money before she leaves for Aspen, the two friends (who have found the suitcase) decide to return it to her. After some "adventures" they finally get to Aspen where, using the lost money they live it up and fight for Mary's heart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPlaydate (2025)
When out-of-work accountant Brian joins stay-at-home dad Jeff for a playdate with their sons, he expects a laid-back afternoon. Instead, they're chased by mercenaries, and Brian—totally unprepared—must survive one absurd obstacle after another.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Odd Couple II (1998)
Brucey, the son of Oscar, calls his father to invite him to his wedding to Felix's daughter next Sunday in California. Oscar and Felix meet again at Los Angeles International Airport and rent a car in order to go to San Malina for the wedding.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWild Hogs (2007)
Restless and ready for an adventure, four suburban bikers leave the safety of their subdivision and head out on the open road. But complications ensue when they cross paths with an intimidating band of New Mexico bikers known as the Del Fuegos.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRide Along (2014)
For the past two years, high-school security guard Ben has been trying to show decorated APD detective James that he's more than just a video-game junkie who's unworthy of James' sister, Angela. When Ben finally gets accepted into the academy, he thinks he's earned the seasoned policeman's respect and asks for his blessing to marry Angela. Knowing that a ride along will demonstrate if Ben has what it takes to take care of his sister, James invites him on a shift designed to scare the hell out of the trainee. But when the wild night leads them to the most notorious criminal in the city, James will find that his new partner's rapid-fire mouth is just as dangerous as the bullets speeding at it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYour Sister's Sister (2011)
Iris invites her friend Jack to stay at her family's island getaway after the death of his brother. At their remote cabin, Jack's drunken encounter with Hannah, Iris' sister, kicks off a revealing stretch of days.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDaria in 'Is It Fall Yet?' (2000)
Daria is a 17-year-old girl who is a little too smart and funny to fit in with the crowd. It’s summertime and the livin' is hard. Daria finds herself forced into volunteering at the OK To Cry Corral, a summer camp for the overly sensitive and those who'd like to be.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHollywood or Bust (1956)
The last movie with Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin together, is a satire of the life in Hollywood. Steve Wiley is a deceiver who cheats Malcolm Smith when he wins a car, claiming that he won it too. Trying to steal the car, Steve tells Malcolm that he lives in Hollywood, next to Anita Ekberg's. When Malcom hears that, they both set out for Hollywood and the adventure begins...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRide Along 2 (2016)
As his wedding day approaches, Ben heads to Miami with his soon-to-be brother-in-law James to bring down a drug dealer who's supplying the dealers of Atlanta with product.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Three Stooges (2012)
Left on the doorstep of an orphanage run by nuns, three newborn knuckleheads grow up to be finger-poking, nyuk-nyuking janitors named Larry, Curly and Moe. When they learn that financial problems will soon force the only home they've ever known to close, the trio sets out to raise $830,000 in one month. Out in the world for the very first time, the three innocent bumblers become embroiled in a murder plot and find stardom on a TV reality show.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisChef (2014)
When Chef Carl Casper suddenly quits his job at a prominent Los Angeles restaurant after refusing to compromise his creative integrity for its controlling owner, he is left to figure out what's next. Finding himself in Miami, he teams up with his ex-wife, his friend and his son to launch a food truck. Taking to the road, Chef Carl goes back to his roots to reignite his passion for the kitchen -- and zest for life and love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Bob's Burgers Movie (2022)
When a ruptured water main creates an enormous sinkhole right in front of Bob's Burgers, it blocks the entrance indefinitely and ruins the Belchers’ plans for a successful summer. While Bob and Linda struggle to keep the business afloat, the kids try to solve a mystery that could save their family's restaurant. As the dangers mount, these underdogs help each other find hope and fight to get back behind the counter, where they belong.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Brothers Grimm (2005)
Folklore collectors and con artists, Jake and Will Grimm, travel from village to village pretending to protect townsfolk from enchanted creatures and performing exorcisms. However, they are put to the test when they encounter a real magical curse in a haunted forest with real magical beings, requiring genuine courage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Great Outdoors (1988)
It's vacation time for outdoorsy Chicago man Chet Ripley, along with his wife, Connie, and their two kids, Buck and Ben. But a serene weekend of fishing at a Wisconsin lakeside cabin gets crashed by Connie's obnoxious brother-in-law, Roman Craig, his wife, Kate, and the couple's two daughters. As the excursion wears on, the Ripleys find themselves at odds with the stuffy Craig family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLogan Lucky (2017)
Trying to reverse a family curse, brothers Jimmy and Clyde Logan set out to execute an elaborate robbery during the legendary Coca-Cola 600 race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHappy Feet (2006)
Into the world of the Emperor Penguins, who find their soul mates through song, a penguin is born who cannot sing. But he can tap dance something fierce!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChicken Little (2005)
When the sky really is falling and sanity has flown the coop, who will rise to save the day? Together with his hysterical band of misfit friends, Chicken Little must hatch a plan to save the planet from alien invasion and prove that the world's biggest hero is a little chicken.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisBroad Trip (2026)
When buttoned-up daughter Alice plans a “bachelorette” road trip with her wild and impulsive mother, Jeanie, to talk her out of marrying a guy she just met, they rediscover their unbreakable bond, confronting old wounds and old flames, while learning the lesson that sometimes life doesn’t follow a plan — and maybe that’s okay.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
State of Bacon (2014)
State of Bacon tells the kinda real but mostly fake tale of an oddball group of characters leading up to the annual Blue Ribbon Bacon Festival. Bacon-enthusiasts, Governor Branstad, a bacon queen, Hacksaw Jim Duggan, members of PETA, and an envoy of Icelanders are not excluded from this bacon party and during the course of the film become intertwined with the organizers of the festival to show that bacon diplomacy is not dead.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996)
Slacker duo Beavis and Butt-Head wake to discover their TV has been stolen. Their search for a new one takes them on a clueless adventure across America, during which they manage to accidentally become America's most wanted.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhat Women Want (2000)
Advertising executive Nick Marshall is as cocky as they come, but what happens to a chauvinistic guy when he can suddenly hear what women are thinking? Nick gets passed over for a promotion, but after an accident enables him to hear women's thoughts, he puts his newfound talent to work against Darcy, his new boss, who seems to be infatuated with him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt Happened One Night (1934)
A runaway heiress makes a deal with the rogue reporter trailing her but the mismatched pair end up stuck with each other when their bus leaves them behind.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisManitou's Canoe (2025)
Abahachi, the Apache chief, and his white blood brother Ranger fight tirelessly for peace and justice - but a new, up-and-coming gang is making life particularly difficult for them! They lure Abahachi and Ranger into a trap in order to get their hands on the legendary “Canoe of Manitou”.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNimrods (2026)
Three friends journey from Kansas City to Los Angeles, mistakenly believing that their band is opening for Green Day on New Year’s Eve.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Hot Tamale (2006)
A road trip to Los Angeles inadvertently leads a young man from Wyoming into a wild maze of psychotic hit-men, racy women, jewel thieves and a salsa band.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like California Dreaming?
The closest matches to California Dreaming are Disaster Holiday (2024), A Very Brady Sequel (1996) and Thunderstruck (2012). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after California Dreaming?
Start with Disaster Holiday (2024), the closest match to California Dreaming.
What is the highest-rated movie like California Dreaming?
It Happened One Night (1934), rated 7.8/10 by 1,483 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like California Dreaming?
Nimrods (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like California Dreaming?
Yes: Disaster Holiday (2024), A Very Brady Sequel (1996) and Thunderstruck (2012).
How are movies similar to California Dreaming chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside California Dreaming, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.