It's always a great decision to rewatch the classic teen movies of the '00s, but it's also fun to recall the ones that you forgot about because they weren't as memorable. When you hear their titles, the details suddenly come rushing back in a burst of nostalgia.
The movies on this list aren't necessarily bad, they just don't have the legacy of iconic films from the first decade of the 2000s like She's the Man, John Tucker Must Die, and Bring It On. Some are under appreciated. Some are not-so-great, but still make for a nostalgic movie night. Some are films that you saw in theaters and forgot about until now because they lack staying power.
These films also feature classic young '00s actors, including ones who were at their peak during those golden years but whose careers eventually went downhill. Here are 15 ‘00s Teen Movies You Completely Forgot About.
15. Clockstoppers (2002)
In this movie, Jesse Bradford (Bring It On) plays Zak, a teenager who discovers a watch that gives him the ability to speed up his body's molecules to the point where the world appears to be standing still. With this technology, the wearer can move faster than everything else on Earth.
Bradford made this film two years after the iconic Bring It On, but his casting wasn't enough to ensure the legacy of the film. Unfortunately, he never really maintained the career momentum he got from Bring It On, although he's still a working actor. Besides a turn by French Stewart as a brilliant scientist, the cast was made up of relative unknowns. Columbian American actress Paula Garcés plays Zak's love interest Francesca, the new girl at school who just moved to the U.S. from Venezuela.
However, the concept of time slowing down makes for some eye-catching sequences, including a scene in which Zak slows down time while a sprinkler is running and he and Francesca touch the water droplets that are suspended in the air.
14. Agent Cody Banks (2003)
This spy movie stars Frankie Muniz as the secret agent in the title, with Hilary Duff as his love interest. At this point, Muniz and Duff were both famous enough to carry the movie between them. Muniz starred on Malcom in the Middle and the weepy dog film My Dog Skip. Duff had starred on Lizzie McGuire and brought the world The Lizzie McGuire Movie in the same year that Agent Cody Banks bowed in theaters. But Cody Banks wasn't as good as Duff's more memorable teen movies, A Cinderella Story (2004) and The Perfect Man (2005).
Muniz and Duff lacked chemistry and the plot was thin. The production went through some turbulence when Jason Alexander, who was supposed to direct, backed out. He was replaced by Vic Armstrong, who was then replaced by Harald Zwart. Zwart has gone on to helm 2010's reboot of The Karate Kid and The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.
Agent Cody Banks is still a fun throwback movie. Ian McShane and Darrell Hammond costar, and, strangely enough, Madonna was a producer.
13. The Prince and Me (2004)
Despite the similarity in the name, The Prince and Me is not a fresh, new adaptation of The King and I. It's a rom-com starring Julia Stiles as Paige, who falls in love with the Crown Prince of Denmark, Edvard (Luke Mabley), who is attending college in the U.S. under a secret identity. She doesn't know he's a prince, of course. When she finds out, Paige faces the task of learning to be a suitable wife for a Prince.
Julia Stiles bestows her signature rebellious charm onto the film, but even she couldn't save it from negative reviews from critics. For some reason, it spawned three direct to video sequels, all without the film's anchor, Stiles, and eventually without Luke Mabley either.
The roles were shamelessly recast, with Kam Heskin taking over the role of Paige and Chris Geere (You're the Worst) taking over for Mabley after he left the franchise following the second film. Kam Heskin also played Elizabeth Bennet in the 2003 Mormon present day adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice called Pride & Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy.
12. Sydney White (2007)
Sydney White is a retelling of "Snow White" starring Amanda Bynes. She plays the tomboyish Sydney White, who starts college and rushed her late mother's sorority, Kappa. In this version, the seven dwarfs become seven dorks who live together in a run-down house. Tyler Prince (Matt Long) is her love interest and modern-day Prince Charming, and his sometimes girlfriend Rachel Witchburn (Sara Paxton) is the evil queen/witch stand-in and the president of Kappa.
Matt Long is suave as Sydney's beau, and pulls off the charming scene in which Tyler serenades Sydney in the library with the help of an all-male a cappella group. But Long was not as well-known as Amanda Bynes and Sara Paxton. The actors playing the dorks were unknowns except Danny Strong (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gilmore Girls) and Samm Levine (Freaks and Geeks).
Sydney White is a charming Amanda Bynes comedy, though not as good as She's the Man.
11. Snow Day (2000)
Snow Day has its share well-known actors: Jean Smart, Chevy Chase, Josh Peck, Mark Webber (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), and Chris Elliott. Also, Iggy Pop acts in it.
Snow Day hails from Nickelodeon Movies and follows a group of kids who try to extend their snow day for as long as possible by keeping the local snowplow driver (Elliott) from clearing the streets. Veteran actors Smart and Chase team up to play Webber's parents. As for Josh Peck, Snow Day was only his second onscreen role.
You might be wondering what happened to the actress who plays the object of Mark Webber's affection, Emmanuelle Chriqui. She's been working consistently since then, most recently appearing in the TV series Shut Eye and Entourage.
Snow Day also featured the original song "Another Dumb Blonde" from "Perfect Day" singer Hoku. This film perfectly captures what it's like to have a snow day off from school, and it's great movie to watch when you have a snow day of your own.
10. Aquamarine (2006)
Aquamarine features Sara Paxton as a mermaid. It's based on the 1997 YA book of the same name by Alice Hoffman. Hoffman also penned Practical Magic, which was adapted into the 1998 film of the same name. Singer and actor JoJo made her feature film debut in the 2006 movie, costarring with Emma Roberts and Paxton.
Here's the story: Aquamarine befriends best buds Hailey (JoJo) and Claire (Roberts) and enlists them to help her find true love on land. In a concept borrowed from Disney's The Little Mermaid, if she doesn't find a guy who will fall in love with her in a few days, she'll have to relinquish her legs and return to the sea. What's worse, she'll have to consent to an arranged marriage.
Arielle Kebbel played the resident bad girl in this movie the same year that she starred in John Tucker Must Die. Paxton and Roberts, who also had music careers, contributed songs to the soundtrack. Raymond, the object of all three girls' affection, is played by Jake McDorman, who went on to appear on Greek and star on Limitless.
9. Herbie: Fully Loaded (2005)
This reboot of the Herbie franchise was successful at the box office but received lukewarm reviews from critics. Herbie the Love Bug is an anthropomorphic Volkswagen Beetle with magical powers that make him an excellent racer. In this reboot, Herbie helps Maggie (Lindsay Lohan) win a big race so she can help her financially-troubled family.
Looking at the cast: Michael Keaton plays her dad, Justin Long plays her friend-turned-love interest, and Matt Dillon plays the bad guy. Cheryl Hines and Jimmi Simpson round out the cast. There were also tons of cameos from NASCAR drivers, including Benny Parsons. Herbie: Fully Loaded also featured the original song "First" by Lohan, who was in the midst of her singing career.
This movie pales in comparison to better Lindsay Lohan movies like Mean Girls and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, but it's still a fun flick, with Herbie himself providing some irrestistible slapstick comedy.
8. Accepted (2006)
Accepted is an overlooked gem. It's a comedy about the transition from high school to college starring Justin Long and Jonah Hill, with an ensemble cast that features Blake Lively, Lewis Black, and Maria Thayer (Forgetting Sarah Marshall).
When Bartleby Gaines (Long) and his friends don't get into a single college, they decide to deceive their parents by inventing and running South Harmon Institute of Technology (S.H.I.T). Jonah Hill starred in this film right before he made it big with Superbad (2007). Blake Lively did Accepted right after she gained recognition from The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005).
The movie is filled with memorable jokes, including the scene in which Hill's character gets hazed while rushing fraternities by being forced to wear a hot dog suit and shout "Ask me about my weiner!" at passing students. Accepted is also a refreshing take on the first year of college film.
7. Hoot (2006)
Hoot features an actress who you may have heard of, by the name of Brie Larson. Before she won an Oscar in 2016 for Room, she has been acting on screen since 1998. She memorably appeared in the wonderful teen movie Sleepover with Alexa Vega in 2004.
In Hoot, an adaptation of Carl Hiaasen's YA book of the same name, she costars with Logan Lerman and Cody Linley. They play a trio of Florida teens who are determined to save an owl habitat from being destroyed so that a pancake house can be built on the land. Luke Wilson, Tim Blake Nelson, Neil Flynn, and Clark Gregg also star, along with singer Jimmy Buffett.
The same year that Hoot was released, Linley began appearing on Hannah Montana, his best known role to date. Hoot was Logan Lerman's first big film role: he would go on to star in the successful teen drama The Perks of Being a Wallflower, adapted from Stephen Chbosky's novel, and many more films including Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, and Indignation.
6. Material Girls (2006)
Material Girls is a Hilary and Haylie Duff vehicle loosely based on Jane Austen's novel Sense and Sensibility. Hilary and Haylie play Tanzie and Ava Marchetta, wealthy and stylish cosmetics heiresses who suddenly lose all their money. Anjelica Huston costars as their fashion rival, Fabiella.
At this point, Hilary was a bona fide movie star. Haylie also had her own film and music career, most notably landing a role in the cult classic Napoleon Dynamite. And so, it seemed logical that the two sisters should team up for a movie. Unfortunately for them, Material Girls was panned by critics. Even one of the actors, Lukas Haas, went on record saying, "I don’t think it’s good."
The sisters' cover of Madonna's "Material Girl" was heavily promoted with the film. You won't find this flick on any lists about movies based on Jane Austen books. The sisters would only share the big screen again in one more film: the little-known animated movie Foodfight! (2012).
5. Raise Your Voice (2004)
In Raise Your Voice, Hilary Duff stars as an aspiring professional singer. Her older brother Paul is the one who supports her the most, but he dies in a car crash and Terri loses interest in singing until her mom encourages her to attend a competitive music program.
Having Duff play a singer seems like a no-brainer. Oliver James, who had just done What a Girl Wants the year before, plays her love interest and fellow musician Jay. Although James's Twitter bio reads "actor, writer, musician and thinker of things," his last on screen credit was in 2012. Jason Ritter (Girls, Another Period) plays Terri's fated brother, and he has a truly terrible haircut. Kat Dennings also has a supporting role.
Hilary Duff sang the tracks "Fly," "Someone's Watching over Me," and "Jericho," which all appear on her eponymous second album. The rock band Three Days Grace also cameoed in the film as themselves.
4. Ella Enchanted (2004)
Anne Hathaway stars in this adaptation of Gail Carson Levine's 1997 novel of the same name. In this fantasy story, Ella is under a magic spell that forces her to obey any order she is given, no matter how dangerous. The film adaptation was starkly different from the book, most notably with the concept that the film was aware of being a fairy tale and poked fun at the genre. It received mixed reviews.
Hugh Dancy plays Prince Char, and the cast included Cary Elwes, Steve Coogan, Minnie Driver, Parminder Nagra, Jim Carter, and model and Project Runway host Heidi Klum in one of her biggest roles to date. Cary Elwes is notably playing the opposite of his famous Princess Bride role here: he takes the role of Prince Char's evil uncle and regent Sir Edgar.
Ella Enchanted is also notable because it gave Hathaway a chance to show off her bona fide vocal talent pre-Les Misérables. She covers "Don't Go Breakin' My Heart" with Jesse McCartney, "Somebody to Love," and sang on a remix of "You Make Me Feel like Dancing."
3. Stick It (2006)
Stick It is a gymnastics movie led by Missy Peregrym, who bears a passing resemblance to Kristen Stewart in both appearance and acting style. Besides Stick It, she's best known for the show Rookie Blue. She plays Haley, a tomboyish ex-gymnast. When she has a run-in with the law, a judge forces her to go back to that world and her strict coach (Jeff Bridges). However, the circumstances under which Haley left make her return even harder: she walked out of championships and quit, betraying her teammates. Twilight's Kellan Lutz also stars.
There's a particularly memorable scene in which one gymnast is docked points from an otherwise perfect routine because her bra strap is showing and looking anything other than polished is a no-no. In solidarity, all her other teammates tug their bra straps out of their leotards before their routines, even though it means they'll also be penalized for it. And lastly, who could forget the classic line, "It's not called gym-nice-tics"?
2. What a Girl Wants (2003)
What a Girl Wants stars Amanda Bynes as Daphne, an American raised by a single mom who goes to London to find the father that she's never met, Lord Henry Dashwood (Colin Firth). She decides to try to conform to London's upper class for her father's sake. You probably didn't know that the film is based on the 1955 play The Reluctant Debutante by William Douglas-Home, about the London debutante season.
Raise Your Voice's Oliver James plays Daphne's English love interest Ian. Amanda Bynes is charming as always, and her very American character trying to fit in with snooty English aristocrats and English culture is amusing. Colin Firth trades in his sexy leading man status to play a dad, but needless to say, he still has his Mr. Darcy good looks.
"What a Girl Wants" is also the name of a 1999 Christina Aguilera song, but there doesn't appear to be any connection.
1. Big Fat Liar (2002)
Big Fat Liar is an excellent lesser-known '00s movie. Frankie Muniz and Amanda Bynes face off against Paul Giamatti - what's not to like?
Here's the story: Jason (Muniz) writes an essay for school titled "Big Fat Liar", which sleazy Hollywood producer Marty Wolf (Giamatti) finds and decides to steal as an idea for a movie. Jason and his pal Kaylee (Bynes) exact elaborate revenge on him and seek to get Jason the credit he deserves. That includes the iconic moment where they contrive to dye Wolf's skin blue, soundtracked to the earworm "Blue (Da Ba Dee)" by Eiffel 65. It's incredibly entertaining to watch as Giamatti receives one cruel blow after another from a pair of kids.
The rest of the cast is stacked: Sandra Oh, Taran Killam, John Cho, Donald Faison (Scrubs), and Lee Majors. Kenan Thompson and Dustin Diamond have bit roles.
Jason and Kaylee secretly stay in a props warehouse while carrying out their plans, and of course, they get to try on tons of costumes and mess around with cool props. Every '00s kid watching was jealous.
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How many of these movies did you remember? Are there any that should have been on this list? Sound off in the comments.