Are you trying to decide what to see on your next family movie night with the kids? Finding it difficult to settle on a movie that will please everyone? Check out some of our editors’ picks for the finest kid-friendly family movies now available for streaming on Netflix, Disney+, HBO NOW, and other services. Included in the selection are timeless works as well as more modern classics, exciting adventures, hilarious comedies, and moving tragedies.
It doesn’t matter what kind of mood you’re in, any of these movies would be great for the whole family to watch together. Do you still need to be motivated? Our selection of 50 Movies Every Kid Should Watch Before They Turn 12 is filled with tried-and-true picks that we know your family will enjoy. Alternately, utilize our age-based filters to select the best selection for your child. Get some popcorn, settle in, and take it all in best family movies
Best online movies that are appropriate for kids
One of the finest ways to spend quality time with your family is to get cozy on the couch with a big bowl of popcorn, some engaging media, and your kids. It’s difficult to find a movie that everyone will like (cue the sibling bickering). Here are movies that the whole family will enjoy watching together; some of them may even bring back fond memories from your own youth. Have supper ready, turn out the lights, and relax.
Do you feel like watching a bunch of great family movies back to back? Everything from old favorites to brand new releases to Disney classics are all here. Family movie night is often a battleground. Choose a film that will appeal to everyone in the family with caution; otherwise, you may be met with insults, eyerolls, tears, and slammed doors. But things needn’t be this way at all. If you know what you’re looking for, you can find a shot that incorporates all of the prototypes you have lying about the house. One of the fifty movies we’ve chosen below is the one you’ll have to go out of your way to find.
The lion king
This animated picture was a huge hit when it was initially released, and its popularity has only grown with the release of a theatrical spin-off, a remake, and repeated viewings on Disney+. Our flawed hero is Simba, the lion cub who grows up to be a spoiled little brat pretending to be king of Pride Rock; Scar is the hissable villain; and Pumbaa and Timono, the funny and flatulent comic team, provide the laughs. Having fun is guaranteed at all times. Let there be peace and harmony!
Harry Potter and the sorcerer’s stone
Start your evening of magic and mayhem with the first book in the Harry Potter series. Once a young wizard learns of his true identity and magical skills, he finds himself on Platform 9 3/4, on his way to Hogwarts, an incredible boarding school. Everything in the young wizard’s world, and his life, turns upside down after that. In other words, it’s a classic movie of toy story franchise.
E.T. the extra-terrestrial
Simply put, a boy meets an alien. The boy and the alien became best buddies. Audiences everywhere cried excessively at the scene where the boy says goodbye to the extraterrestrial buddy who has to return home. Clearly, Steven Spielberg’s direction makes all the difference, as he infuses this family film with a sense of childlike delight. If you can think of a more fantastic scene from a ’80s film than E.T. and Elliott riding their bikes past the moon, we’ll buy you a bag of Reese’s Pieces. In other words,family comedy animated movie.
The Goonies
This masterwork from director Richard Donner and producer Steven Spielberg, featuring the indestructible Goonies, young boy is as timeless as its title suggests. This comedic film from the 1980s follows a group of young children as they try to prevent the foreclosure of their family home. Mikey, the overly enthusiastic pack leader, convinces his friends that looking for One-Eyed Willy’s treasure is a great way to stay true to their heritage; but, their search for the gems is fraught with danger, especially after the Fratelli crime family finds out about it. In other words, it’s a toy story movies.
Star wars
How about a viewing order for the Star Wars movies? Intriguing query! Our advice is to start with the best possible foundation: the first version of the work. Children’s attention will be captured like a target in the young girl Death Star’s tractor beam from the first image of the enormous Star Destroyer whirling almost forever across the screen. Even the most restless youngling will be entertained by two hours by the ageless heroes, fearsome villains, attractive droids, and the mysteries of the Jedi in this matinee-style enchantment. With each new addition to the canon and spin-offs, Star Wars has become a more complex family rite of passage, but if you’re merely in the mood for a single excursion to a galaxy far, far away, Star Wars will never disappoint. In other words, it’s a PG movie.
The Mitchells Vs. the machines
Generation X-friendly against the backdrop of a digital apocalypse, a hilarious comedy about a true story of spy kids family road trip pits the electronic obsessions of millennials against those of Generation Z. Olivia Colman’s ruthless A.I. is in charge of the bad guys, while the chaotic Mitchell family stands for humanity. Easily the funniest and most technically proficient Netflix original film. In other words, it’s a PG movie.