Movies like The Circus (1943)
The best movies like The Circus (1943) are At the Circus (1939), Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012) and Animal Crackers (2018). If The Circus hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBig Top Scooby-Doo! (2012)7.6/10 from 224 votes
- NewestNo Other Choice (2025)Released 2025
- In SpanishMortadelo & Filemon: Mission Implausible (2014)Also in Spanish
At the Circus (1939)
Jeff Wilson, the owner of a small circus, owes his partner Carter $10,000. Before Jeff can pay, Carter's accomplices steal the money so he can take over the circus. Antonio Pirelli and Punchy, who work at the circus, together with lawyer Loophole try to find the thief and get the money back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMadagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012)
Animal pals Alex, Marty, Melman, and Gloria are still trying to make it back to New York's Central Park Zoo. They are forced to take a detour to Europe to find the penguins and chimps who broke the bank at a Monte Carlo casino. When French animal-control officer Capitaine Chantel DuBois picks up their scent, Alex and company are forced to hide out in a traveling circus.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnimal Crackers (2018)
A family must use a magical box of Animal Crackers to save a rundown circus from being taken over by their evil uncle Horatio P. Huntington.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHatari! (1962)
A female wildlife photographer arrives on an East African reservation where a group of men trap wild animals for zoos and circuses.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYou're Never Too Young (1955)
When an aspiring barber becomes inadvertently involved in the theft of a valuable diamond, necessity forces him to masquerade as a 12 year-old child - with humorous consequences.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBogus (1996)
Recently orphaned, a young boy is taken in by his godmother who is shocked to realize that she can see the boy's imaginary friend: a flamboyant, French magician named Bogus.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisAdventures in Babysitting (2016)
Two teen rival babysitters, Jenny and Lola, team up to hunt down one of their kids who accidentally ran away into the big city without any supervision.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHorton Hears a Who! (2008)
An imaginative elephant named Horton hears a faint cry for help coming from a tiny speck of dust floating through the air. Horton suspects there may be life on that speck and despite a surrounding community, who thinks he has lost his mind, he is determined to save the tiny particle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBig Top Scooby-Doo! (2012)
When Scooby and the gang hear of a werewolf plaguing a traveling circus, they go undercover as circus performers to get to the bottom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMortadelo & Filemon: Mission Implausible (2014)
A criminal produces an uncontrollable laughter to the population and Mortadelo and Filemón will have to stop him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Bad Guys 2 (2025)
The now-reformed Bad Guys are trying (very, very hard) to be good, but instead find themselves hijacked into a high-stakes, globe-trotting heist, masterminded by a new team of criminals they never saw coming: The Bad Girls.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRio 2 (2014)
It's a jungle out there for Blu, Jewel and their three kids after they're hurtled from Rio de Janeiro to the wilds of the Amazon. As Blu tries to fit in, he goes beak-to-beak with the vengeful Nigel, and meets the most fearsome adversary of all: his father-in-law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
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 comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisPeter Rabbit 2: The Runaway (2021)
Peter Rabbit runs away from his human family when he learns they are going to portray him in a bad light in their book. Soon, he crosses paths with an older rabbit who ropes him into a heist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTop Cat Begins (2015)
Top Cat and his new feline friend hatch a scheme to steal from the fearful Mr. Big.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFerdinand (2017)
Ferdinand, a little bull, prefers sitting quietly under a cork tree just smelling the flowers versus jumping around, snorting, and butting heads with other bulls. As Ferdinand grows big and strong, his temperament remains mellow. But one day five men come to choose the "biggest, fastest, roughest bull" for the bullfights in Madrid— and Ferdinand is mistakenly chosen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Flintstones Meet Rockula and Frankenstone (1979)
The Flintstones and the Rubbles win a trip on "Make a Deal or Don't" to Count Rockula's castle in Rocksylvania, where they have an unpleasant meeting with the Count and his servant, Frankenstone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Geisha Boy (1958)
Gilbert Wooley is a second-rate magician who is sent to entertain the troops in the pacific. During his time in Japan he becomes attached to a little orphan boy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisArctic Dogs (2019)
Animals band together to save the day when the evil Otto Von Walrus hatches a sinister scheme to accelerate global warming and melt the Arctic Circle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisA-Haunting We Will Go (1942)
Stan and Ollie get involved with con men, crooks, a genial magician, and two interchangeable coffins with disastrous but funny results.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYennamo Yedho (2014)
Gautham and Nithya become friends after their respective partners ditch them to get married. Friendship turns to love for Gautham but things turn complicated when Nithya gets engaged to Raja. She calls off the engagement but now, he is in a rebound relationship with Kavya. Will the two express their love for each other?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
No Other Choice (2025)
After being laid off and humiliated by a ruthless job market, a veteran paper mill manager descends into violence in a desperate bid to reclaim his dignity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisClown Princes (1939)
The Our Gang kids put on a circus in the barn to raise money to help Porky's family pay the rent and avoid getting evicted.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Raju Gari Gadhi 3 (2019)
Ashwin and Maya, a couple in love, learn of the presence of an evil spirit in their life. Determined to bring their life back to normalcy, Ashwin sets out on a spooky journey to safeguard his love.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
2001 Maniacs (2005)
On their way to Spring Break, college kids take a detour through an old Southern town. The people of Pleasant Valley insist the kids stay for their annual barbecue celebration... but instead of getting a taste of the old South, the old South gets a taste of them!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisLittle Shop of Horrors (1986)
Seymour Krelborn is a nerdy orphan working at Mushnik's, a flower shop in urban Skid Row. He harbors a crush on fellow co-worker, Audrey Fulquard, and is berated by Mr. Mushnik daily. One day, Seymour finds a very mysterious unidentified plant which he calls Audrey II. The plant seems to have a craving for blood and soon begins to sing for its supper.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJoe Dirt (2001)
Joe Dirt is a janitor with a mullet hairdo, acid-washed jeans and a dream to find the parents that he lost at the Grand Canyon when he was a belligerent, trailer park-raised eight-year-old. Now, blasting Van Halen in his jacked-up economy car, the irrepressibly optimistic Joe hits the road alone in search of his folks.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Birdcage (1996)
A gay cabaret owner and his drag queen partner agree to put up a false heterosexual front so that their son can introduce them to his fiancée's conservative parents.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBrewster's Millions (1985)
Monty Brewster, an aging minor-league baseball player, stands to inherit $300 million if he can successfully spend $30 million in 30 days without anything to show for it, and without telling anyone what he's up to... A task that's a lot harder than it sounds!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMiracle in Cell No. 7 (2022)
Dodo Rozak just wants to be a good father to his daughter, Kartika, despite his limited intelligence, acts and behaves like children. In fact, it is Kartika who takes care of her father most of the time. Both live happily.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Like The Circus and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Circus?
The closest matches to The Circus are At the Circus (1939), Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012) and Animal Crackers (2018). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Circus?
Start with At the Circus (1939), the closest match to The Circus.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Circus?
Big Top Scooby-Doo! (2012), rated 7.6/10 by 224 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Circus?
No Other Choice (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like The Circus?
Yes: Mortadelo & Filemon: Mission Implausible (2014) and Top Cat Begins (2015).
How are movies similar to The Circus chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Circus, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.