Movies Like Ernest Goes to School

If you liked Ernest Goes to School (1994), a family and comedy movie directed by Coke Sams, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
Thunderstruck (2012)
★ 6.2/10Also comedy and family
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.
2
Nativity! (2009)
★ 6.3/10Also comedy and family
Paul, charged with directing his school's Nativity play, falsely boasts that his ex-girlfriend plans to turn the production into a film.
3
Rookie of the Year (1993)
★ 6.2/10Also family and comedy
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.
4
My Spy (2020)
★ 6.9/10Also family and comedy
A hardened CIA operative finds himself at the mercy of a precocious 9-year-old girl, having been sent undercover to surveil her family.
5
Billy Madison (1995)
★ 6.2/10Also comedy
Billy Madison is the 27 year-old son of Bryan Madison, a very rich man who has made his living in the hotel industry. Billy stands to inherit his father's empire, but only if he can make it through all 12 grades, 2…
6
Playing with Fire (2019)
★ 6.6/10Also family and comedy
A crew of rugged firefighters meet their match when attempting to rescue three rambunctious kids.
7
Cadet Kelly (2002)
★ 6.2/10Also family and comedy
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.
8
Dennis the Menace (1993)
★ 5.9/10Also family and comedy
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…
9
Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 (2011)
★ 5.9/10Also comedy and family
Puppy mayhem turns the lives of newlywed Chihuahua parents Papi and Chloe upside down when their rambunctious, mischievous puppies present one challenge after another. But when their human owners end up in trouble, the…
10
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (2014)
★ 6.2/10Also family and comedy
Alexander's day begins with gum stuck in his hair, followed by more calamities. Though he finds little sympathy from his family and begins to wonder if bad things only happen to him, his mom, dad, brother, and sister…
11
Recess: Taking the Fifth Grade (2003)
★ 6.6/10Also family and comedy
Everyone's favorite fourth graders have graduated! It's an all-new school year for the kids — and the gang hits the fifth grade running! But they're stopped in their tracks when they discover some unwelcome changes…
12
The Sandlot 2 (2005)
★ 5.9/10Also family and comedy
A decade has passed in the small town where the original Sandlot gang banded together during the summer of ’62 to play baseball and battle the Beast. Now, back at the dugout, nine new kids descend on the diamond only…
13
How to Eat Fried Worms (2006)
★ 6.2/10Also comedy and family
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.
14
Mickey's House of Villains (2002)
★ 7.3/10Also family and comedy
The villains from the popular animated Disney films are gathered at the House of Mouse with plans to take over. Soon, the villains take over the house and kick out Mickey, Donald and Goofy. It's all up to Mickey and…
15
Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie (2017)
★ 6.3/10Also family and comedy
Based on the bestselling book series, this outrageous comedy tells the story of George and Harold, two overly imaginative pranksters who hypnotize their principal into thinking he’s an enthusiastic, yet dimwitted…
16
Recess: School's Out (2001)
★ 6.6/10Also family and comedy
The school year is finally ending, and T.J. Detweiler is looking forward to summer. But boredom quickly sets in when his friends leave for camp — until T.J. uncovers an evil plot to do away with summer vacation! A…
17
PAW Patrol: Jet to the Rescue (2020)
★ 7.1/10Also family
A royal relative steals a gem with the power to make things fly, the Paw Patrol takes to the skies to stop him and save Barkingburg.
18
Snoopy Presents: Lucy's School (2022)
★ 7.3/10Also family and comedy
The Peanuts gang is anxious about starting at a new school in the fall, inspiring Lucy to start her own school instead. She soon learns that teaching isn't as easy as it sounds and that change can be a good thing.
19
Snoopy Presents: It's the Small Things, Charlie Brown (2022)
★ 7.3/10Also family
Charlie Brown is determined to win the big baseball game. But things turn into a fiasco right before the matchup, when Sally bonds with a little flower on the pitcher's mound and vows to protect it at all costs.
20
Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (2020)
★ 7.2/10Also family and comedy
Phineas and Ferb travel across the galaxy to rescue their older sister Candace, who has been abducted by aliens and taken to a utopia in a far-off planet, free of her pesky little brothers.