Aahana Swrup
David Gordon Green’s holiday-time family comedy film ‘Nutcrackers’ tells the surprisingly real-life-inspired tale of a big-city curmudgeon and his four mischievous nephews. The narrative revolves around Mike Maxwell, who finds himself traveling to rural Ohio a few weeks before Christmas. His visit is brought on by the unfortunate death of his estranged sister and brother-in-law, which has left his four nephews, Justice, Junior, Simon, and Samuel Kicklighter, orphaned. As a result, Mike ends up being their reluctant legal guardian who must find a new foster home for the kids in time and return to his life in Chicago. Nonetheless, the bustling chaos that the Kicklighter brothers kick up threatens to prolong their uncle’s stay at their family farm.
The Hulu film utilizes a well-loved formula of putting a cranky grown-up and a band of untamed youngsters at the center of a story about an unexpectedly found family. Consequently, if Mike and his endearingly rambunctious nephews have wormed their way into your heart, you must be looking for other follow-ups. Therefore, we’ve put together the perfect list of movies similar to ‘Nutcrackers’ for your entertainment!
10. Problem Child (1990)
Directed by Dennis Dugan, ‘Problem Child’ is the first installment in a trilogy about the titular character, Junior, a seven-year-old orphaned kid. Despite Junior’s less-than-stellar record, Ben Healy and his wife, Flo, adopt the kid and welcome him into their loving family. However, with the new addition to the family dynamics, the couple’s days soon turn haywire thanks to Junior’s non-stop mischievous antics. Thus, things take a drastic turn when Junior’s apparent friendship with a serial killer gets him and Flo kidnapped, leaving Ben to clean up an unpredictable mess.
This dark-comedy film employs outlandish events to convey a uniquely delightful story about an unconditional parent-kid relationship. For the same reason, if ‘Nutcrackers’ has made you a fan of troublesome kids and their journey to acceptance, this film might be worth your time.
9. Home Alone 3 (1997)
When it comes to Christmas chaos, the ‘Home Alone’ franchise is the obvious go-to choice. As such, its third installment, ‘Home Alone 3,’ directed by Raja Gosnell, will be the ideal next watch for viewers who enjoyed ‘Nutcrackers.’ It follows 8-year-old Alex Pruitt, who accidentally acquires a toy that houses a top-secret computer chip in a gift exchange following an airport baggage mix-up. As a result, he ends up on the radar of menacing spies Alice, Petr, Burton, and Earl.
However, when these spies decide to break into Alex’s home, the kid has a trick or two up his sleeve to foil their dastardly attempts. ‘Home Alone 3’ presents an entertaining blend of hijinks and the holidays that viewers will find themselves gravitating towards, especially in the wake of all the trouble Kicklighters from ‘Nutcrackers’ get into.
8. The Naughty Nine (2023)
Directed by Alberto Belli, ‘The Naughty Nine‘ is an eccentric holiday heist film that follows a band of troublemakers who set their thieving sights on the North Pole. When Andy wakes up Christmas morning to no gifts from Santa Claus—thanks to his Naughty performance throughout the year—he refuses to accept his fate. As a result, the fifth grader and his friend, Dulce, assemble a team of misfits and fellow Naught-list-kids to infiltrate Santa’s Village and take back their rightful gifts.
‘The Naughty Nine’ depicts an outlandish adventure undertaken by a group of friends who will inevitably remind viewers of the Kicklighter brothers with their penchant for shenanigans. As a result, if you’re up for more child-like tomfoolery that coincides with the season’s jolliness, this is the film for you.
7. The Bad News Bears (1976)
The Michael Ritchie directorial ‘The Bad News Bears‘ tells the heartwarming story about the bond between a baseball coach and his little league team. The protagonist, Morris Buttermaker, is a former minor-league baseball player whose life has taken a downturn since his glory sports days. These days, he coaches a youth baseball team known as The Bears, which is made up of some of the most hopeless young athletes. However, his solution to fixing their performance invites much apprehension as he adds a female pitcher, Amanda Whurlizer, to the team. ‘The Bad News Bears’ parallels ‘Nutcrackers’ through its depiction of the relationship between Morris and his players. As such, both films excel at dynamics that gradually bloom from inconvenient obligations to found family.
6. The Game Plan (2007)
If your favorite part of ‘Nutcrackers’ was Mike’s tumultuous but ultimately fulfilling road to redemption, then Andy Fickman’s ‘The Game Plan’ might be the film for you. It follows the story of Joe Kingman, a football star who is happy with his bachelor life. However, the arrival of 8-year-old Peyton, who claims to be his daughter from a previous relationship, turns his world upside down. As Peyton’s parentage gets confirmed, Joe has no choice but to take her under his wing. Eventually, they inevitably grow close until the intervention of Peyton’s Aunt Stella threatens to separate the father-daughter duo.
Joe’s character development from a lousy, deadbeat father to someone who genuinely cares for his ward will appeal to fans of ‘Nutcrackers.’ As such, the central relationship in the tale is bound to remain reminiscent of Mike’s adventures with his nephews.
5. The Pacifier (2005)
Directed by Adam Shankman, ‘The Pacifier’ is the perfect family comedy film for viewers who are drawn to stories about tough, reluctant caretakers and their unruly keep. The film chronicles the story of Shane Wolfe, a celebrated Navy SEAL whose next assignment of protecting kidnapped scientist Howard Plummer’s five children turns out to be an unwanted babysitting job. Consequently, as he takes on the duty of looking after the designated rebel, Zoe, her siblings, and their beloved, disruptive pet duck, Shane finds himself wading through a whole new world of trouble. ‘The Pacifier’ has all the elements that form the basis of ‘Nutcrackers’ but still provides enough of a spin on the niche genre to hold the audience’s intrigue.
4. Nanny McPhee (2006)
Based on author Christianna Brand’s ‘Nurse Matilda’ books, ‘Nanny McPhee’ is an Emma Thompson and Colin Firth starrer directed by Kirk Jones. The film transports the viewers to 1860s England, where a group of siblings retain the same level of lawlessness as Mike’s nephews from ‘Nutcrackers.’ Cedric Brown is the widowed father of seven disobedient children who take great pleasure in driving away every new nanny that their father sends their way. As a result, Cedric employs the expert child-rearer, Nanny McPhee, whose distinct magical technique might just teach Simon and his siblings a lesson.
‘Nanny McPhee’ features the same building blocks as ‘Nutcrackers’ and accepts the chaos of the central Brown siblings without any didactic dressing downs. Therefore, if you enjoyed the latter film and are in the mood for something similar with a more evident focus on sibling dynamics, you should give this film a chance.
3. Playing With Fire (2019)
‘Playing With Fire’ is another endearing addition to the accidental guardianship genre that centers around firefighters. It follows commanding officer Jake Carson and his team of smokejumpers, Mark, Rodrigo, and Axe. In an assignment, they rescue three children, Brynn, Will, and their toddling sister, Zoey, who inevitably fall under the momentary guardianship of the firefighters. However, Jake and his team soon learn that reining in Brynn and her siblings might be more difficult than any of their previous fire-jumping missions.
‘Playing With Fire’ has the same love for mischief and silly troublemaking that ‘Nutcrackers’ portrays. Therefore, viewers will notice a stark resemblance between the antics of the kids under Jake’s supervision and the Kicklighter siblings.
2. Uncle Buck (1989)
The John Hughes film ‘Uncle Buck’ offers a protagonist whose story remains remarkably kindred to Mike from ‘Nutcrackers.’ Buck Russell is a carefree guy who has a thing against commitments. Therefore, he finds himself in for a surprise when he becomes his brother’s choice of a babysitter. Consequently, he finds himself strapped in for an unexpected adventure as he attempts to earn Tia, Miles, and Maizy’s approval while focusing on keeping his nieces and nephew alive under his care.
Buck’s character holds a great deal in common with Mike, as both shoulder their responsibilities as uncles in light of a family crisis. Even though their narrative diverge in some places, the overall exploration of inter-character dynamics as well as familial themes remains the same across both stories.
1. The Spy Next Door (2010)
With Jackie Chan as the lead, Brian Levant’s ‘The Spy Next Door‘ is a slapstick action-comedy film that centers around a spy who becomes the inadvertent babysitter to three young kids. Bob Ho is an international undercover spy who is looking forward to a life of retirement with his girlfriend, Gillian, who is oblivious to his past double life. As a result, when Gillian is called away on business, Bob ends up earning the responsibility of looking after her three kids, Farren, Ian, and Nora. Given the children’s abject dislike of their mom’s boyfriend, Bob’s babysitting duty turns into a recipe for chaos. However, the stakes rise through the roof when one of them accidentally catches the attention of the spy’s nemesis, a Russian terrorist.
‘The Spy Next Door’ adapts a different road to the same mayhem that the Kicklighter kids kick up in their farmside lives in ‘Nutcrackers.’ Consequently, Bob and Mike retain a kindred connection on their respective roads to accidental parenthood.
Read More: Nutcrackers Ending, Explained
