Sometimes, you just need to watch a family comedy film that doesn’t make you think too much, that simply allows you to laugh and take pleasure in the absurdity of life. Comedy, after all, is designed to help us forget about the unpleasantness of the outside world.
That is the kind of film you get with My Spy, the new comedy that combines the spy and tough-guy-out-of-water genres. If you’re looking for some other films that perform a similar genre-bending or just movies that star Dave Bautista, then here are 10 films that you should watch if you loved My Spy.
Updated on October 5th, 2020 by Richard Keller: Family movies are rare today. That's why a film like My Spy drew audiences, even if critics didn't enjoy it as much. However, there are quite a few other movies like this to rent or stream for a fun evening or day of binge-watching, so we've added a few more!
Johnny English
The man known to several generations as Mr. Bean took on the role of a British secret agent in Johnny English. Well, he only became a secret agent at M17 because he accidentally caused the deaths of all the other agents.
Though he tries to be a version of James Bond, Johnny is more like Inspector Clouseau. He bumbles his way through his case. It's his sheer luck that allows him to succeed on his mission. The movie was commercially successful enough to generate two sequels.
Agent Cody Banks
At the height of his TV career on Malcolm in the Middle, Frankie Muniz was brought in to star as a 15-year-old secret agent in Agent Cody Banks. In the film, Cody needs to traverse the daily menaces of high school, finish his chores, and save the world as an undercover CIA agent.
However, Cody Banks is not as much about the mission as it is his inability to speak to girls. Particularly Natalie Connors, played by Hilary Duff. Throughout the film, CIA experts help Cody do his homework, complete his chores, and teach him how to be debonair with the opposite sex.
Spy Hard
While Leslie Nielsen had a respectable career as a dramatic actor, his star took off when he starred in the comedy film Airplane and the TV show Police Squad. He took the success of those to star in several other movies. This included Spy Hard.
A parody of everything secret agent and action-based, Nielsen starred as agent WD-40. His goal is to save the world from General Rancor, played by, of all people, Andy Griffith. The movie has plenty of groan-able and laugh-inducing moments.
Spies in Disguise
The computer-animated Spies in Disguise is a family-friendly story about a teen, voiced by Tom Holland, who tries to help a super-spy, voiced by Will Smith. By some circumstance, Smith's character becomes a talking pigeon for the majority of the film.
Unfortunately, Spies in Disguise was released on Christmas 2019. This was the same time as Little Women and Rise of Skywalker. So, it was lost in the shuffle. Luckily, it found a place on DVD and streaming services.
The Spy Next Door
Jackie Chan stars in this 2010 film about a retired CIA officer who's asked to take care of his girlfriend's three children. Of course, hilarity and chaos ensue. Especially when one of the kids downloads some secret CIA files on his iPod.
The Spy Next Door is typical action-comedy fare in a family-friendly environment. Though the kids dislike Chan's character at first, they warm up to him once they find out what he does and the danger they're in. Plus, viewers get to watch Chan in all his martial arts glory.
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)
Though not a spy film, Guardians of the Galaxy has a similar feel to My Spy, in that both are more than a little irreverent and silly. What’s more, Guardians of the Galaxy makes excellent use of Dave Bautista’s considerable talents as a comedic actor.
The real brilliance of Bautista’s performance in this film, though, is that it allows him to combine both his tough-guy persona and his penchant for spot-on comedic delivery. It’s also just a truly hilarious film that is a great addition to the MCU.
Mr. Nanny (1993)
The words Hulk Hogan and kiddy comedy are not necessarily two words that you would hear together, but they certainly work—to a degree—in this 1993 film. There are quite a few plot twists and turns that don’t entirely make sense, but there’s no denying that Hulk Hogan is endearing in a buffoonish way.
As flawed as the writing sometimes is, Hulk Hogan still manages to have fun in the role, and it’s hard not to find him, and the situations in which he finds himself, oddly endearing and, at times, even humorous.
The Pacifier (2005)
Vin Diesel has established himself by playing a certain kind of character: tough, no-nonsense, gravelly-voiced. It’s quite a surprise, then, to see him in a film that turns all of that upside down, as happens in this 2005 film. It is, obviously, a bit of a ridiculous film, but that seems partially by design.
You can’t have Vin Diesel interacting with a bunch of kids without veering into the absurd. Still, Diesel more than holds his own, revealing heretofore untapped veins of comedic potential. It’s a genuinely feel-good film with some moments of genuine humor.
Spy (2015)
Sometimes, it’s necessary to take a genre and turn it on its head through satire and humor, and who better to do that to the spy film than Melissa McCarthy, one of the finest comedic actresses of her generation?
Though she, of course, has the uncanny ability to turn whatever project she acts in into solid gold, she’s in even finer form than usual in Spy. While McCarthy is the beating heart of the film, it also has some notably hilarious performances by both Rose Byrne and Jason Statham.
The Spy Who Dumped Me (2018)
Generically, this film is a bit strange, since it can’t quite seem to decide whether it wants to be a spy film or a comedy, or both, a problem made worse by its emphasis on violence and explosions. However, no film that stars two towering comedic talents like Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon (who have some truly great chemistry together) can be all bad.
It’s the performances that tie this film together, rendering it into a fine piece of spy entertainment with some genuinely funny moments.
I Spy (2002)
This film, released in 2002 and based on the television series of the same name, stars Eddie Murphy and Owen Wilson, two comedic actors who work pretty well together. Though there are quite a few plot holes in the film, there’s no denying that both Murphy and Wilson deserve their reputations as two of the funniest men working in Hollywood.
What’s more, it’s also worth pointing out that this film, rather unusually for a spy film, is directed by a woman, Betty Thomas (who also directed the Eddie Murphy film, Dr. Dolittle).
Spy Kids (2001)
For those looking for a spy film with a lighter, family-friendly atmosphere, Spy Kids fits the bill. Admittedly, the film does verge sometimes into the ridiculous, but it seems to work, precisely because it knows what it is and doesn’t try to take itself too seriously.
They must have done something right with it, because the film was not only successful at the box office but has also spawned its own franchise, with three films following this one: Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams, Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over, and Spy Kids: All the Time in the World.
Kindergarten Cop (1990)
By the time that he starred in this hilarious comedy, body-builder Arnold Schwarzenegger had already established himself as an action movie icon. Here, he plays a cop trying to bring down a drug dealer who goes undercover as a teacher of kindergarteners.
Needless to say, all sorts of mayhem ensues but, given that this is a 1990s film, everything comes out happily in the end. Strange as it may seem, Schwarzenegger, muscle-bound and sometimes wooden as he might seem, actually has quite a bit of comedic talent, as he amply displays throughout this silly but heartwarming film.
The Game Plan (2007)
Taking a page out of the tough-guy-meets-kids playbook, The Game Plan takes the Rock as a football player and pairs him up with a daughter that he never knew that he had. The critics, of course, did not like the film at all, but audiences did, leading to the film becoming quite the financial success.
There’s no question that part of what makes the film so enjoyable is the Rock himself who, even in the most subpar movies, manages to use his considerable charm and charisma to elevate the material around him.
Playing with Fire (2019)
In yet another playoff of the tough guy and kids formula, Playing with Fire follows a team of elite firefighters who unexpectedly find themselves put in charge of a group of children that they save from a burning cabin. The expected hijinks ensue.
If at times, the film relies a bit too much on the expected slapstick gags for its humor, there’s no denying that John Cena has some true comedic talent, and there are some heartwarming moments as the tough firefighters and the children slowly begin to bond with one another, each of them bringing something to the table.