Parents, get excited! There are so many new kids’ movies streaming in 2024 that your little ones’ Paw Patrol obsessions from this year are bound to be put on pause. Plus, there are even some great world-building fantasies for the older kiddos to enjoy.
Ahead, we’re unveiling the slate of heartwarming family films and captivating animated tales you should know about. Count on each one to whisk you and your family to lands far away from the living room couch. And if you really want to indulge the magic of the movies the right way, be sure to cocoon you and yours with the comfiest of slippers and the butteriest of popcorn.
“Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day”
Disney is again reviving Judith Viorst’s beloved tale about a disheartened kiddo who thinks his luck is the absolute worst. For this reimagined go-round, the comedy of mishaps will follow Alex and his Mexican American family on a road trip riddled with hilarious speed bumps. Wanting to reconnect to each other and their roots, the group embarks on a mission that’s relatable at every age.
Starring: Eva Longoria, Cristo Fernandez, Cheech Marin, Jesse Garcia, Paulina Chavez, Jacqueline Torres, and Thom Nemer
Rated: PG
Platform: Disney+
Release date: January 10, 2024
"The Tiger's Apprentice"
Based on the 2003 book by Laurence Yep, this vibrantly new animated kids' movie streaming in 2024 features a stellar voice cast (see below) behind its mind- and body-bending action. Tommy Lee is a young Chinese American kid who has just lost his grandmother but gains another mentor in the form of a talking tiger named Mr. Hu. Now an apprentice getting the hang of ancient Chinese magic, Tommy finds a new purpose and path to continue the legacy his grandmother carved out for him.
Starring: Lucy Liu, Michelle Yeoh, Henry Golding, Sandra Oh, Sherry Cola, Diana Lee Inosanto, Bowen Yang, and Brandon Soo Hoo
Rated: PG
Platform: Paramount+
Release date: January 27, 2024
"Orion and the Dark"
Pitch-black bedroom bravery: We still don't have it. And neither does Orion, the adorable wavy-haired scaredy-cat at the center of the latest adventure comedy from DreamWorks. Confronted with the anthropomorphic form of his greatest fear—the Dark—Orion learns that giving in to his fears is the real menace. And, parents, Charlie Kaufmann co-wrote this one, so be on the lookout for some esoteric Easter eggs.
Starring: Jacob Tremblay, Paul Walter Hauser, Werner Herzog, and Juliet Jelenic
Rated: PG
Platform: Netflix
Release date: February 2, 2024
"Damsel"
One of Netflix's offerings for families with older kids, Damsel will fill the Stranger Things-sized hole left after Season 4, especially since Season 5 will be the series' last. Everyone's favorite double-digit teenager with telekinetic abilities takes center stage here as Elodie, a sharp-witted princess whose prince has just sacrificed her to a fire-breathing dragon. An upside-down take on the traditional fairy tale, this new kids' movie streaming on Netflix in 2024 tags along with Elodie in her fight to survive.
Starring: Millie Bobby Brown, Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett, Brooke Carter, Robin Wright, Nick Robinson, and Nicole Joseph
Rated: PG-13
Platform: Netflix
Release date: March 8, 2024
Spellbound
Starring: Rachel Zegler, Nicole Kidman, Javier Bardem, Nathan Lane, and John Lithgow
Rated: PG
Platform: Netflix
Release date: March 10, 2024
"Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver"
The world-building continues on a moon in the furthest universe, the setting of this space fantasy with Man of Steel helmer Zack Snyder in the driver's seat. In Part One: A Child of Fire, we met Kora, a lone wolf with a mysterious past who took the lead in rebelling against the evil Imperium. In Part Two, the details of which are being kept under wraps, the saga will continue. Heads up: There's lots of combat and gunfire—kind of like a souped-up Star Wars—so older viewers only for this new kids' movie streaming on Netflix in 2024.
Starring: Sofia Boutella, Charlie Hunnam, Ed Skrein, Jena Malone, Anthony Hopkins, Cary Elwes, Cleopatra Coleman, and Djimon Hounsou
Rated: PG-13
Platform: Netflix
Release date: April 12, 2024
"Thelma the Unicorn"
This one comes from the pages of Aussie Aaron Blabey's award-winning children's book of the same name. It tells the story of Thelma, an ordinary pony whose wish to become a sparkly unicorn glamourpuss comes true. Confronted with the reality the grass may be more glittery but isn't always greener in the mythical horse's pasture, she trots through a joyful journey of self-acceptance and self-love.
Starring: Brittany Howard, Will Forte, Jermaine Clement
Rated: PG
Platform: Netflix
Release date: May 17, 2024
"Ultraman: Rising"
The themes are as big as the action in this Japanese American co-production. Ken Sato is a professional baseball player, but an even more legendary gig awaits him in Japan: becoming the world's biggest hero. His name is Ultraman, and he's tasked with defending Earth from mortal enemies. But not only does he have the third rock from the sun to care for; he inherits a kaiju baby monster who thinks he's mommy. Yeah, it's a full plate.
Starring: Tamlyn Tomita, Gedde Watanabe, Keone Young, Yuki Yamada, Christopher Sean, and Julia Harriman
Rated: PG
Platform: Netflix
Release date: June 14, 2024
"Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie"
SpongeBob SquarePants lives in a sea-sunken pineapple that's part of the underwater city Bikini Bottom. And for the most part, all the action in the Sponge-verse has been in or around his abode. However, in this addition to the underwater milieu, the silly sea sponge sees his whole town get scooped out of the ocean. Teamed with Sandy Cheeks, a thrill-seeking squirrel from the surface, he heads to Texas to take on the menacing company responsible for the pillage.
Starring: Grey Griffin, Tom Kenny, Johnny Knoxville, Craig Robinson, Loretta Devine, Bill Fagerbakke, Wanda Sykes, and Mary Jo Catlett
Rated: NR
Platform: Netflix
Release date: July 19, 2024
"In Your Dreams"
Stevie and her little brother, Eliott, are polar opposites, yet they team up to travel into their collective subconscious to find The Sandman, the weaver of the dream state they believe can grant them their ultimate wish. So, what would they risk traveling into the world of dreams to get? The promise of saving their parents' marriage. It's a hefty want, but it's buoyed by tons of humor and themes of heartwarming sibling bonds and affection.
Starring: Kai Zen, Blue Chapman
Rated: Ages 7 and up
Platform: Netflix
Release date: August 2, 2024
Related: All the Family Movies Hitting Theaters in 2024
“Wallace & Gromit”
Aardman Animation has been churning out stellar films all its own since Chicken Run. The studio’s most iconic feat, however, might be Wallace & Gromit, and come next year, the iconic duo is getting another movie. In the latest tale, Wallace, everyone’s favorite cheese-loving inventor, unleashes a Smart Gnome with a mind of its own, and it’s up to Gromit, his extremely pragmatic beagle, to save him from losing his inventing abilities to the techy goblin for good.
Starring: TBD
Rated: TBD
Platform: Netflix
Release date: TBD, 2024
"That Christmas"
Based on the trilogy of children's books by writer/director Richard Curtis, this heartwarming animated film will follow friends and family living in a seaside town through the holidays. In a series of entwined tales, they will experience love, loneliness, and Santa dealing with a huge mistake. Plus, we hear there's an issue with turkeys!
Starring: Brian Cox, Fiona Shaw, Jodie Whittaker and Bill Nighy
Rated:
Platform:
Release Date: TBD
