The Best Kids Movies Of 2023 Our Families Loved, Quote Often, & Watch On Repeat

Elemental didn’t just look spectacular when it was released in theaters in early 2023, it also had a message that really works for parents. Because the movie about a world where all of the elements live in a sort of separate harmony in Element City, avoiding mixing until fire element Ember and water element Wade become friends, is really about honoring your parents. And we can get behind that. The movie ended up receiving consistently positive reviews as well, with one critic touting Elemental for its “stunning animation” and calling it a “high-concept ‘Romeo & Juliet’ romantic comedy.”

Katie McPherson, a Romper staff writer, says Elemental earned rewatch status in her family. “My son saw Elemental at daycare for the first time and couldn’t quit talking about it, so we turned it on for him later that evening,” McPherson says. “We all ended up totally engrossed in the story, which deals so much with the experiences immigrant and first-generation kids. It’s one we rewatch again and again, and the ending still makes me cry every time.”

Watch Elemental, rated PG, on Disney+.

It is no small feat to keep kids invested and engaged in a movie that is over two hours long, but Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse pulled it off. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that this sequel to Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse has incredible animation and a record-breaking number of Spider-Men and Spider-Women into the mix. Including a pregnant Jessica Drew for the first time ever.

Anne Vorrasi, senior lifestyle editor at Romper, says Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse was a “thrilling” movie for her whole family. “My children (ages 3 and 6), husband, and I don’t necessarily have the same taste in movies, but there was something about this movie that resonated with each of us. Only my 3-year-old is a Spidey enthusiast, and since he started showing interest in the Marvel superhero, we’ve watched Into the Spider-verse (also a great flick) literally dozens of times and dabbled in a few of the comics,” Vorrasi says. “Across the Spider-Verse was honestly much more complex than the first movie, but still, he seems to have absorbed the characters and the gist of the plot in a pretty impressive way. Even my 6-year-old, who’s less into superheroes, was really into this movie.”

“It’s one of the only films we can cue up on family movie night and not have someone end up in tears,” she adds. “I thought it was equally thrilling (expected) and profound (unexpected) and only made me more curious about the vast network of diverse Spider-Men and Women heroes out there.”

Watch Spider-Man Across the Spider Verse, rated PG, on Netflix.

Not every ‘90s-era nostalgic remake works, and bringing back the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to introduce the pizza-loving brothers Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo to a new generation absolutely seemed like an idea that could fail. It could have been too niche, too specific, too bizarre for a younger crowd. This was not the case for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, not at all. The animated movie, which saw the four brothers taking on a mysterious crime syndicate with their new pal April, managed to be a surprise hit of the summer. It raked in more than $180 million despite being in theaters alongside Barbie and Oppenheimer. Which tells us the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are here to stay.

Miranda Rake, a staff writer at Romper, is looking forward to watching this one with her kids when they’re older. “My kids are 2 and 6, i.e. too young for this movie, so my husband and I snuck away and saw it together when it came out,” she shares. “Despite lots of silly (honestly delightful) pizza-and-fart humor, this movie spoke with surprising tenderness to the experience of being a teenager. I don’t see this kind of respect and near-reverence for the teenage moment on screen very often, and I left the theater feeling simply glad this movie exists. I can’t wait to watch it with my kids when they’re older — it’s as gorgeous as it is earnest, and I think it will stand the test of time.”

Watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, rated PG, on Paramount+.

What else can we say about Greta Gerwig’s Barbie that hasn’t already been said? The movie was essentially the movie of the year (sorry Oppenheimer), appealing to the masses with its unique take on the secret world of the doll we’ve all known for most of our lives. The heart of the movie, the humor, and of course, the fashion behind Barbie made it an instant classic that will be rewatched for years to come.

Like so many of us, Elizabeth Angell, Editor-in-Chief of Romper, says she and her kids found themselves quoting Barbie because all 113 minutes and 54 seconds of the movie were just that good. “For my 14- and 11-year-old, the Barbie movie made them feel like they were in on the joke and part of the moment. We quoted lines to each other all summer and listened to the soundtrack in the car on the way to camp. They’re going to come back to it over the years and notice new things they didn’t get the first time around, laugh in different places, maybe even cry. But mostly it will remind them of this particular summer and the fun we had.”

Watch Barbie, rated PG-13, on Max.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie was sort of destined to be a smash hit, thanks in no small part to the stellar cast, the soundtrack, and the fact that everyone has played the video game at least 10,000 times. Another nostalgic pick that gives us an origin story, Brooklyn plumber brothers Mario and Luigi are just trying to fix a pipe when they get transported to a magical world. It was fun and engaging and Jack Black sings an original song, what’s not to love?

Jamie Kenney, staff writer at Romper, says it’s become a family movie night staple. “My kids, 9 and 12, absolutely loved this movie. This summer we took a trip to Europe and they each watched on the plane... twice... both ways. It makes sense. It’s funny, and their dad is a big gamer so he’s molded them into Mario fans from day one, so I think they really enjoyed seeing beloved characters in this more narrative format,” she says. “They’ve chosen it for family movie night several times since and, of course ‘Peaches’ has practically been our family’s theme song for 2023.”

Watch The Super Mario Bros. Movie, rated PG, on Netflix.

When it was first announced that Halle Bailey would be taking on the role of Ariel in the live-action version of The Little Mermaid, there was a ridiculous amount of backlash. Unfair backlash that could have spelled trouble for the film at the box office. It did not. Bailey was praised for her portrayal of a mermaid who wants to live on land, and the movie broke records as one of the most-viewed Disney premieres on Disney+ ever. Even before the movie premiered, in fact, parents were sharing the most joyful videos of Black and brown children seeing themselves represented as a Disney princess in a Disney movie.

“Even just thinking about it makes me emotional,” Bailey told Vogue UK earlier this year of those reactions. “Because I still feel like that inside. I feel like that five-year-old. And it made me so filled with love that they know they’re beautiful and that they can be princesses too.”

Watch The Little Mermaid, rated PG, on Disney+.

It really looks like 2023 was the year for nostalgia at the movies, and apparently it was what we all needed. It helps, of course, that movies like Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, based on the seminal book by Judy Blume, were done so beautifully. After decades of preteens reading the go-to book on adolescence, it was really incredible to see Margaret Simon and her friends come to life in a way that felt emotional and real and, strangely, still timely after all these years.

“This masterpiece of adolescence is a movie both my kids and I loved,” Romper’s Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Angell says. “Margaret captures with so much compassion and humor what it means to be 12, how big existential questions can co-exist with worries about clothes and friends and whether or not you like a boy. Plus we can all now chant about increasing our busts, which is hilarious.”

Watch Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, rated PG-13, on Starz.

PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie was kind of guaranteed to be a hit with little ones who have spent hours and hours watching Chase, Marshall, and the rest of the pups keep Adventure City clean and safe. The movie did not rest on its laurels, however, giving the pups magical super powers and adding in a supervillain determined to steal those powers to really amp up the action. Of course everyone loved it. What’s not to love?

Watch PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, rated PG, on Paramount+.

Taylor Swift was basically the boss of 2023, and turning her Taylor Swift: Eras Tour into a movie after so many of us were in ruins over our inability to get tickets to the concert was a stroke of pure genius. The concert documentary was so good, it even had non-Swifties singing its praises.

“My 9-year-old daughter and I aren’t Swifties, but when some friends suggesting going to see Eras as a mother-daughter outing we were happy to tag along,” Romper staff writer Jamie Kenney says. “The aisles were full of little girls dancing to their favorite songs in Taylor-inspired outfits, and you can tell they thought Swift was performing just for them, which was absolutely adorable to watch. And honestly, fan or not, you can’t help but be impressed by the size and scope of the show. My daughter’s favorite moments were from the Evermore part of the show or, as she put it ‘When Taylor Swift was being a beautiful witch in the woods.’”

Rent Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, rated PG-13, for $19.98 on Amazon Prime Video.

Trolls Band Together was so jam-packed with talented actors and singers, it would have been a shock if it wasn’t a great movie. Beyond the very cute story of the Trolls coming together through all different genres of music to support each other, this movie also brought *NSYNC back together for their first song in decades. “HONESTLY THE BEST MOVIE IVE SEEN IN A HOT MINUTE!!! The music is so catchy and I can't stop listening,” wrote one reviewer. “I loved the story and all the different types of characters I think the direction they're going is pretty good!”

What’s better than a fun animated movie filled with catchy tunes? Not much.

Watch Trolls Band Together, rated PG, in theaters or rent it on Amazon Prime Video for $19.99.