Movies like Paper Champions (2020)
The best movies like Paper Champions (2020) are The Main Event (2020), Cadet Kelly (2002) and Much Ado About Nothing (2013). If Paper Champions hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMuch Ado About Nothing (2013)6.8/10 from 299 votes
- NewestTJPW Grand Princess '26: Fate in Ryōgoku (2026)Released 2026
The Main Event (2020)
An 11-year-old aspiring wrestler enters a competition to become the next WWE superstar by using special powers from a magical mask.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMuch Ado About Nothing (2013)
A modern retelling of Shakespeare's classic comedy about two pairs of lovers with different takes on romance and a way with words.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGabriel Iglesias: I'm Sorry for What I Said When I Was Hungry (2016)
Hawaiian-shirt enthusiast Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias finds the laughs in racist gift baskets, Prius-driving cops and all-female taco trucks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChris Rock: Kill the Messenger (2008)
An HBO special edited from three performances from Chris Rock's 2008 comedy tour: London (dark suit, dark shirt), Johannesburg (black suit, white shirt) and New York (shiny jacket). Topics include the ongoing presidential campaign, the possibility of a black president, George W. Bush, gas prices, low-paid jobs, ringtones and bottled water, sex, relationships and the correct use of the n-word
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRookie of the Year (1993)
When the cast comes off his once broken arm, a 12-year-old boy can throw a 100-mile-an-hour fastball, and the Chicago Cubs want him as their new pitcher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Jetsons & WWE: Robo-WrestleMania (2017)
Blast off to adventure in this animated feature where our favorite space-age family, The Jetsons, meet the superstars of WWE! When George unearths WWE’s Big Show, who has been frozen for 100 years, the futuristic face-off begins! Once thawed, Big Show wastes no time in taking the WWE belt from the current robot champ as well as taking total control of Orbit City. It’s up to The Jetsons to travel back in time and enlist help from WWE’s brightest stars: Sheamus, Alicia Fox, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins and the Uso brothers. Can this cosmic tag-team prevail and set this twisted time-warp straight? Tune in and see with The Jetsons and WWE!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Air Up There (1994)
Jimmy Dolan is a college basketball coach who wants a big promotion. To get it, he needs to make a dramatic find. He ends up deep in Africa, hoping to recruit Saleh, a huge basketball prodigy Jimmy glimpsed in a home movie. But Saleh is the chief's son and has responsibilities at home, since the tribe's land is threatened by a mining company with its own hotshot basketball team.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAdventures in Public School (2018)
A socially-awkward, home-schooled kid forces his way into public school against his suffocating, but loving, mother's wishes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill (2020)
Jerry Seinfeld takes the stage in New York and tackles talking vs. texting, bad buffets vs. so-called "great" restaurants and the magic of Pop Tarts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJim Gaffigan: Beyond the Pale (2006)
The affable, towheaded comic demonstrates his hysterical brand of self-effacing comedy and deadpan delivery at two sold-out shows at Chicago's Vic Theater. It's OK to laugh at this pale white guy...'cause nobody's laughing at Jim Gaffigan harder than Jim Gaffigan!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOld Boys (2018)
In the school-set re-working of Cyrano, an awkward but imaginative pupil helps the handsome but spectacularly dim school-hero pursue the fiery daughter of a visiting French teacher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Trouble with Angels (1966)
Mary and her friend, Rachel, are new students at St. Francis Academy, a boarding school run by the iron fist of Mother Superior. The immature teens grow bored and begin playing pranks on both the unsuspecting nuns and their unpleasant classmates, becoming a constant thorn in Mother Superior's side. However, as the years pass, Mary and Rachel slowly mature and begin to see the nuns in a different light.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAirplane II: The Sequel (1982)
A faulty computer causes a passenger space shuttle to head straight for the sun, and man-with-a-past Ted Striker must save the day and get the shuttle back on track – again – all the while trying to patch up his relationship with Elaine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwitched (2020)
Tired of being bullied, Cassandra Evans prays that her nemesis, Katie Sharp, the queen bee of social media, would know what it’s like to walk a day in her shoes. Her prayer is answered in an unexpected way when they get switched.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Big League (1994)
When the owner of the Minnesota Twins passes away, he bequeaths the team to his preteen grandson. The newly minted head honcho quickly appoints himself manager, causing unrest in an organization that struggles to take orders from a 12-year-old.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIliza Shlesinger: War Paint (2013)
Her innocent appearance is just a cover for Last Comic Standing winner Iliza Shlesinger's acerbic, stream-of-conscious comedy that she unleashes on an unsuspecting audience in her hometown of Dallas in "War Paint," her first stand-up special.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNate Bargatze: The Tennessee Kid (2019)
Comic Nate Bargatze touches on air travel, cheap weddings, college football, chocolate milk and the perils of ordering coffee in this stand-up special.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeware of Blondie (1950)
Mr. Dithers leaves Dagwood in charge of the office for a short period. Poor old Dagwood manages to gum things up when he falls for a confidence scam engineered by the duplicitous Toby Clifton. He even finds himself in a compromising position that seriously endangers his future connubial happiness with his wife Blondie. Once again, it's up to Blondie to straighten out the mess.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Chatha Pacha: The Ring of Rowdies (2026)
In the heart of Fort Kochi, three brothers and their crew of unlikely misfits stumble into the wild world of WWE-style costumed wrestling. What begins as a scrappy hustle soon explodes into a riot of masks, egos, and full-blown madness, all set against the backdrop of a city that never plays by the rules. But can their brotherhood survive when the real fight begins outside the ropes?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
TJPW Prelude to Grand Princess '26 (2026)
Prelude to Grand Princess '26 was a professional wrestling event promoted by Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling (TJPW). It was held on March 7, 2026 at Shin-Kiba 1st RING in Tokyo, Japan.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
TJPW Grand Princess '26: Fate in Ryōgoku (2026)
TJPW Grand Princess '26: Fate in Ryōgoku was a professional wrestling event promoted by Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling (TJPW). It was held on March 15, 2026 at Ryōgoku KFC Hall in Tokyo, Japan.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
DDT Good Good! Yokohama Battle 2026 (2026)
DDT Good Good! Yokohama Battle 2026 was a professional wrestling event promoted by DDT Pro-Wrestling, which was held on February 28, 2026 at Yokohama Radiant Hall in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. In the main event, Yuki Ishida challenged To-y for the DDT Extreme Championship in a Soccer vs Sumo! Mixed Martial Arts 'ITACHI' Rules match.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Last Round (2021)
Taxista Verde, the wrestler loved by all children, must fulfill his destiny bonded by blood: to put an end to Eslabón Perdido and the vampire entourage that back him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
A Matter of Size (2009)
Four overweight friends from the Israeli city of Ramle are fed up of dieting and the dieting club they belong to. When Herzl (155 kilos), the main protagonist, loses his job as a cook and starts working as a dishwasher in a Japanese restaurant in Ramle he discovers the world of Sumo where large people such as himself are honored and appreciated. Through Kitano (60 kilos), the restaurant owner, a former Sumo coach in Japan (who is supposedly hiding from the Yakuza in Israel), he falls in love with a sport involving "two fatsos in diapers and girly hairdos". Herzl wants Kitano to be their coach but Kitano is reluctant - they first have to earn their spurs. "A MATTER OF SIZE" is a comedy about a ‘coming out’ of a different kind - overweight people learning to accept themselves.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
His Private Secretary (1933)
Dick Wallace wants to marry a minister's grand-daughter but his father, who wants him to get work on his company's business, is opposed. She takes a job with the company to prove she's okay.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Carpool Guy (2005)
Joel Goodman is a hotshot advertising executive angling for a promotion, but he feels stuck - not least of all in traffic. A seeming answer to his prayers comes in the form of a homeless man whom Joel pays to sit in his passenger seat so he can use the carpool lane. The two form an unexpected bond, and Joel comes to realize that sometimes changing lanes can change your life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950)
Jonesy and Lou are in Algeria looking for a wrestler they are promoting. Sergeant Axmann tricks them into joining the Foreign Legion, after which they discover Axmann's collaboration with the nasty Sheik Hamud El Khalid.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Paper Champions?
The closest matches to Paper Champions are The Main Event (2020), Cadet Kelly (2002) and Much Ado About Nothing (2013). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Paper Champions?
Start with The Main Event (2020), the closest match to Paper Champions.
What is the highest-rated movie like Paper Champions?
Much Ado About Nothing (2013), rated 6.8/10 by 299 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Paper Champions?
TJPW Grand Princess '26: Fate in Ryōgoku (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Paper Champions?
Yes: The Main Event (2020), Cadet Kelly (2002) and Much Ado About Nothing (2013).
How are movies similar to Paper Champions chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Paper Champions, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.