In this piece, we will take a look at the 35 best comedy movies on Netflix. For more comedy movies, head on over to 10 Best Comedy Movies on Netflix.
The box office has been around for almost a century now, with some movie studios and production companies having existed for even longer. The oldest studio in the U.S. is Universal Pictures, which was set up initially as a group of nickelodeons but soon evolved to the Universal Film Manufacturing Company after Thomas Edison’s Edison Trust tried to establish a monopoly on motion picture viewing and asked for more royalty payments from the Nickelodeons. The rest, as they say, is history, with Universal Pictures being one of the largest production studios in the world and being responsible for some of the greatest hits in film history such as Furious 7 and Jurassic World. As for Edison Trust’s fate, its meddling with the film industry is the reason that today the U.S. movie sector is called Hollywood and not New York, as all film producers moved to Hollywood to avoid the patent bullying, a decision that started the company’s decline, with its fate sealed in 1918 after a federal court ruled its fee collection practices excessive and a barrier to free trade.
Naturally, since it is one of the oldest modern day industries, the film sector has also evolved with the passage of time. However, before we get to that, you might be surprised to know that the first film was actually shown in France and not in America. This movie was shown on a widescreen through the world’s first projector and consisted of a collection of fictional and real storylines. Since then, however, the film industry has evolved to show viewers content in three dimensions and IMAX – which has larger frames than typical projections. However, despite being popularized recently, 3D films are not a new phenomenon and have been present since the early 1900s.
Despite all these advances, the ability to watch a movie from the comfort of one’s home still holds significant attraction, and this is where the rise of the world’s most popular online video streaming service Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) comes into play. Netflix is an American company headquartered in Los Gatos, California, and it initially started as a DVD distribution service. For our younger readers, DVDs were physical disks that replaced video cassettes for delivering movies and often saw films in high definition delivered straight to the viewer’s home. DVDs reigned supreme in the content delivery market until very recently when the widespread availability of high speed internet connections replaced the need to own physical storage disks since content could simply be streamed online.
And right at the time when the Internet was disrupting content delivery, Netflix was present in all its glory to take advantage through having an already well established platform that provided users with an advanced and easily accessible service. Netflix had introduced video on demand years before the rise of the industry, as it entered the market in 2007. A couple of years later, the company also started to release content that it had produced itself, with its first television series, House of Cards, being an instant hit. The effects of its ability to ride the wave of the Internet are visible in the share price as well.
Netflix’s shares were trading at $4 when it entered the video on demand market, had appreciated tenfold in 2011 when House of Cards was released, and peaked to a whopping $690 during the coronavirus pandemic when global lockdowns forced people to turn to indoor avenues for entertainment. The company’s relaxed and user friendly nature also made it allow password sharing for its platform, but the constant threat of investors breathing down its neck to earn more money is forcing it to roll back this feature – much to the dismay of its 231 million paid subscribers. The share price has also retreated from its all time highs and is currently at $322 per share.
The investor pressure to make Netflix cut down on account sharing is bolstered by the market value of the company’s industry. A research report from Fortune Business Insights suggests that the global video on demand industry was worth $69 billion in 2021 and grew to $82.7 billion last year. The industry has one of the strongest compounded annual growth rates (CAGR) that we’ve come across, which, according to the research firm, sits at 17.5%. This rate should let the industry grow to $257 billion by the end of 2029.
Netflix also announced a big change in January 2023, when the firm’s co founder and CEO Mr. Reed Hastings decided to step down from his role. The company also shared details about the extent of password sharing on its platform in a shareholder letter where it explained:
Later in Q1, we expect to start rolling out paid sharing more broadly. Today’s widespread account sharing (100M+ households) undermines our long term ability to invest in and improve Netflix, as well as build our business. While our terms of use limit use of Netflix to a household, we recognize this is a change for members who share their account more broadly. So we’ve worked hard to build additional new features that improve the Netflix experience, including the ability for members to review which devices are using their account and to transfer a profile to a new account. As we roll out paid sharing, members in many countries will also have the option to pay extra if they want to share Netflix with people they don’t live with. As is the case today, all members will be able to watch while traveling, whether on a TV or mobile device.
With these details in mind, let’s take a look at some of the top comedy movies on Netflix.
Photo by Souvik Banerjee on Unsplash
Our Methodology
We narrowed down the list of best comedy movies by picking Rotten Tomatoes’ top fifty comedies on Netflix streaming and DVD. Then the IMDB score for each of these was calculated, and the top 35 are listed below as part of our top 35 comedy movies on Netflix collection.
Best Comedy Movies on Netflix
35. Through My Window
Latest IMDB Score: 5.4
Through My Window sees a woman struggle with her shyness and feelings for her neighbor.
34. Murder Mystery 2
Latest IMDB Score: 5.6
Murder Mystery 2 is a star studded flick with Adam Sandler and Jennifer Anniston as a detective couple.
33. Tootsies & The Fake
Latest IMDB Score: 5.9
Tootsies & The Fake sees a group of artists deal with the aftermath of knocking out a top performer.
32. Army of Thieves
Latest IMDB Score: 6.4
Army of Thieves sees a gang of thieves attempt to rob a safe during a zombie apocalypse.
31. Band Aid
Latest IMDB Score: 6.6
Band Aid is an American movie released in 2017. It follows a couple who start a band to save their marriage.
30. Don’t Think Twice
Latest IMDB Score: 6.7
Don’t Think Twice is about a group of entertainers who struggle with conflict after one of them gets recognition.
29. I’ll See You in My Dreams
Latest IMDB Score: 6.7
I’ll See You in My Dreams sees a retired singer relive her life by initiating new relationships helped by her friends.
28. Tallulah
Latest IMDB Score: 6.7
Tallulah is an unconventional tale about a mother who hires a babysitter to look after her child.
27. Stripes
Latest IMDB Score: 6.8
Stripes was released in 1981 and it follows friends who join the military to make their lives more interesting.
26. Other People
Latest IMDB Score: 6.8
Other People sees a comedy writer reconnect with his mother after moving back with her for her final moments.
25. Goon
Latest IMDB Score: 6.8
Goon is an American Canadian flick starring Sean Williams Scott as a bouncer for a hockey team.
24. She’s Gotta Have It
Latest IMDB Score: 6.8
She’s Gotta Have It, as the name suggests, is about a woman that has three boyfriends and wants to keep all of them.
23. The Meyerowitz Stories
Latest IMDB Score: 6.9
The Meyerowitz Stories sees a family reunite for their father. It stars Adam Sandler.
22. I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore
Latest IMDB Score: 6.9
I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore sees a burgled woman track down the thieves only to confront a criminal enterprise.
21. Junebug
Latest IMDB Score: 6.9
Junebug follows the journey of an art gallery owner dealing with her potential in laws.
20. I Am Not Madame Bovary
Latest IMDB Score: 6.9
I Am Not Madame Bovary is a Chinese comedy covering the journey of a woman’s battle against bureaucracy.
19. The Sapphires
Latest IMDB Score: 7
The Sapphires is an Australian film about a group of girls who entertain American troops in Vietnam.
18. Julie & Julia
Latest IMDB Score: 7
Julie & Julia is a biographical flick covering the journey of the cook and bloggers, Julia Child and Julie Powell.
17. Paddleton
Latest IMDB Score: 7.1
Paddleton is a tale of two neighbors who come closer after one of them is diagnosed with cancer. It’s named after a game developed by its lead actors.
16. The Lobster
Latest IMDB Score: 7.1
The Lobster is a science fiction comedy that sees single people forced to find a partner or get turned into animals.
15. Private Life
Latest IMDB Score: 7.2
Private Life follows the journey of a writer attempting to have a child.
14. The Edge of Seventeen
Latest IMDB Score: 7.3
The Edge of Seventeen is a high school comedy covering the conflict between a girl and her best friend.
13. The Squid and the Whale
Latest IMDB Score: 7.3
The Squid and the Whale is an American comedy that sees a couple’s children deal with their divorce.
12. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Latest IMDB Score: 7.3
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs is a series of stories set in America after the Civil War.
11. Frances Ha
Latest IMDB Score: 7.4
Frances Ha is a romantic comedy about a struggling dancer.
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Disclosure: None. 35 Best Comedy Movies on Netflix is originally published on Insider Monkey.
