When I shared our boys’ newfound love for Little Giants on Instagram yesterday, I shared that part of the reason they loved it was that it wasn’t scary at all. Our kids are not exactly the bravest when it comes to movies and shows (even ominous music is enough to spook them sometimes) and I had so, so many DMs from you guys who have children who are the same way. This prompted me to ask for your recommendations for movies your kids have loved that didn’t freak our your little ones who might be a little more sensitive to scary things. I received so many great suggestions! I wanted to compile them into a blog post today to make it easy to reference next time you’re looking for a not-too-scary movie to watch with little ones.
The list below comes from YOUR recommendations but I have put an asterisk (*) by the movies I added myself or the movies I agree with from your recs that our boys have watched and loved so you may easily see the ones I stand by. I hope this list is helpful the next time you’re ready to pop some popcorn and curl up on the couch with your kids!
Not Too Scary Movies for Kids
Throwback Not Too Scary Movie Favorites
This category includes movies from the 1990s/early 2000s and older that have stood the test of time!
- Homeward Bound* (this one did get some tears but the laughs at the antics of Chance and Sassy majorly eclipsed the tears — plus it’s not too long!)
- Cool Runnings* (another once that absolutely cracked our kids up)
- Space Jam*
- Babe* (I personally ADORE this movie)
- Air Bud*
- The Parent Trap* (the Lindsay Lohan version)
- Elf*
- Little Rascals
- First Kid
- Cheaper By the Dozen (both 1 and 2)
- My Dog Skip
- The Sandlot
- Freaky Friday
- Red Dog
- Mary Poppins
- Honey I Shrunk the Kids
- Rookie of the Year
- Harriet the Spy
- Milo and Otis
- The Brady Bunch
- Swiss Family Robinson
- Curious George
- The Rescuers Down Under
- A Bugs Life
- Monsters, Inc.
- Ratatouille
- Fly Away Home
- Mary Kate & Ashley Movies
More Recent Not too Scary Movie Recommendations
This category includes more recent movie favorites that aren’t too scary.
- Madagascar* (If you haven’t seen this one you HAVE TO watch it!!! It’s hilarious for both kids and adults. A rare gem!)
- Cars*
- How to Train Your Dragon* (The beginning can be a little spooky but it calms down pretty fast.)
- Despicable Me* (those Minions are so dang funny!)
- The Incredibles*
- Zootopia* (Note: The first time we tried this one, it was a little too spooky in parts, but they like it now!)
- Migration*
- Encanto*
- Sing*
- Hunt for the Wilderpeople
- The Mitchells vs The Machines
- Flow
- Coco
- The Lego Movie
QUESTION OF THE DAY
Any not-too-scary movies for kids you’d add to this list?
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hotel transylvania
Any intel on what ages these movies are good for? What were some of the first movies your kids loved? Thanks!
I’m curious about your take on Peter Pan — I’m very sensitive about any misogynistic leanings in some of the older films (seems to be a rampant theme!). My daughter loves the Tinkerbell tonie, so I thought Peter Pan would be a good first movie for her, but as we started watching it I was a bit horrified by numerous sexist comments/misogynistic portrayals of the female characters (jealous/petty/etc.), so I immediately turned it off. Curious on your take on the movie as a whole (since we didn’t finish!), as you’re always so thoughtful about these kinds of things! I, also, appreciate that sometimes it is good to watch or read things like this, so that we can have conversations with our kids about how these are problematic themes and are not correct or accurate representations of women.
Smart move! If you keep going with Peter Pan are some pretty terrible depictions of Native Americans. We fast forwarded through those. It’s a tough balance when they’re too young to understand, but not too young to be affected by the stereotypes…
I’m actually really glad you asked this bc it made me second guess my inclusion of this movie on this list (I actually just removed it bc I do feel like it warranted a big disclaimer). We watched it because one of the books we were reading from the Land of Stories book series with the big kids had the characters going to Neverland and meeting Captain Hook and Peter Pan, etc. I also was very surprised by the movie (def didn’t remember all of that from my childhood!) and while we watched the whole film and it did not scare the boys, we absolutely had multiple very serious conversions as we watched bc of some of the things you mentioned as well as the depictions of the Native Americans further along in the film. Thank you for bringing this up in such a thoughtful way!
Also, I feel like we do this a lot even in just regular shows or other movies – stop and talk to the boys about how it’s not OK for people to talk to other people certain ways, or how this is not how certain people should ever be portrayed, etc. — but this was definitely a much more extreme case of these type of conversations.
Have you tried the Tinkerbell movies? Secret of the wings etc? No Peter pan or any of those other characters are involved in these movies.
I would honestly avoid all Disney movies then. If you notice there is a common theme in most Disney movies- especially the older ones. The parents die, the “child” witnesses this death and is now all alone- usually in the first 10-15 minutes of the movie (Bambi, The Lion King, etc). The greatest trauma that can happen to a child is a staple of most Disney movies.
If you watch you can see older male adults groom younger children in way that is presented as acceptable and possibly even loving.
The amount of sublimal messaging in Disney movies is scary. You can find all sorts of information on Disney movies on the web. Some are conspiracy theories but there are a lot where they dissect the movies and you will never ever watch it the same way when you know the messaging they are sending to kids.
Happy belated birthday Julie!
Great list! I’ll definitely come back to this. Looking over the titles I had to smile – every kid can be so different. My 6yo has gotten braver, but Coco terrified him so much he wouldn’t even let me fast forward through the scary scenes! And we couldn’t get through the first five minutes of Cars either.
Elf is probably the least scary movie we’ve found., with the Inside Out movies coming in close behind. My kids have also been great with Olaf’s Adventure (a 30 minute seasonal short) and surprisingly, Lady and the Tramp – though both have one scene that’s a little tough.
Thank you for sharing this list! I have never been an easy scare, even as a young child (my favorite movie was Hunchback of Notre Dame when I was like 6, lol) so my judgement is a little warped. I think this will help to reference in the future as my son gets a little older.
Any of the standalone Tinkerbell movies are great. Also love Over the Moon.
A good site to use is doesthedogdie.com – gives a lot of great intel about deaths, abuse, etc. for both kids and adults.
I swear I have yet to find the perfect movie. Our 4 year old loves the Aristocats-not scary at all, great music. But casual racism with a Siamese cat. Why is it so hard to find a wholesome film??
Nothing to do with movies (although I’m super grateful for this last too!) but I just wanted to let you know that I am signed up to receive emails every time you post a new blog. But they have not come through for the past two weeks. I’m not sure if you can reach out to the provider and let them know. I just thought I would share with you, in case that’s important
My kids also get spooked by ominous music and even just a nighttime scene where it’s dark, so I feel qualified to chime in (ha!) – our favorites are Inside Out 1 & 2, Zootopia 1 & 2, and Elemental. Elemental is slept on, but it’s so cute!! Also, during Christmas time, the cartoon version of the Grinch (with Benedict Cumberbatch voice) and the Netflix movie “That Christmas” are my kids’ favorites!
I second the recommendations for the Grinch (all versions, my kids love all of them). Also if you haven’t seen Secret Life of Pets (I think 1 and 2?) they are hilarious with adult and kid humor. I will sit down to watch that one with my kids anytime. My kids are a little older now and have never shied away from scary movies so I apologize if this has scary scenes I don’t remember, but it’s so funny it’s worth looking into.
Love this list! Our family loves Charlotte’s Web (2006), Rio, Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007), and The Great Muppet Caper to name a few!
The Brave Little Toaster
Can you do a post about how you approach screen time with your boys? I have a newly minted two year old and we’ve been largely screen free except during airplane travel and sickness.
My 9 and 5 year old boys are the same! Some of our family favorites include Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Sword in The Stone, and The Night at the Museum series
For some reason, my son absolutely LOVES ‘woody the woodpecker goes to camp’