6 Great Comedy Movies on Netflix Right Now (April 2025)

The power of a Sandra Bullock romantic comedy simply cannot be denied. Add in Channing Tatum and Daniel Radcliffe and you’ve got an underrated gem worth tromping through jungles for.

Bullock plays Loretta Sage, an archaeologist-turned-novelist who uses real history as the inspiration for her lusty romance novels. A psychotic billionaire (Radcliffe, who absolutely shines in the villainous role) kidnaps Loretta, convinced that her expertise is key to finding the lost city and treasure mentioned in her most recent book. Alan (Tatum), the Fabio-esque cover model for Loretta’s books, takes it upon himself to rescue her, despite the fact that he’s not exactly an adventure hero in real life. (He prefers to travel with an eye mask and a hypoallergenic pillow.) 

The Lost City hearkens back to adventure romance movies like Indiana Jones and Romancing the Stone, but it leans more toward hard comedy because both leads are just so hilariously out of their element. (A scene in which Bullock has to pull leeches off of Tatum comes to mind.) Clever joke writing and dynamic performances from the two leads make it a memorable watch. It leaves Netflix May 8, so check it out now.

In the summer of 2023, Barbie exploded into theaters in a mushroom cloud of bubble-gum pink glory. (Oppenheimer, of course, premiered the same day, leading to a box office phenomenon known as “Barbenheimer.”) Now that the movie is available to stream on Netflix, it’s worth revisiting in a quieter setting. 

Margot Robbie plays a “Stereotypical Barbie,” who lives in Barbieland alongside a diverse collection of fellow dolls. Because Barbies can “be anything,” the dolls are convinced that all problems of women’s rights have been solved in the real world. But when Stereotypical Barbie begins experiencing “irrepressible thoughts of death,” she travels to the real world and learns that that’s not exactly true. 

Ryan Gosling is especially hilarious as Ken, who does his job of “Beach” with hysterical cluelessness. America Ferrera plays a human woman who encounters Barbie in the real world and helps her to save Barbie land with a particularly inspiring monologue. Whether you have a nostalgic love of Barbies or blame them for unrealistic body standards, you will love this movie.

An athlete (Emilio Estevez), a brain (Anthony Michael Hall), a princess (Molly Ringwald), a basket case (Ally Sheedy) and a criminal (Judd Nelson) are sentenced to spend an entire Saturday in detention. Despite the cliques and stereotypes that divide them, the teens start to realize that their classmates have the same issues and anxieties that they do. This John Hughes movie stands the test of time with an unflinching look at how peer pressure, parental demands and sex have always influenced teens. (And probably always will.)

The performances from the “Brat Pack,” as these young actors would come to be known, are wonderfully vulnerable and appealing. There are chase sequences, dance breaks, heists, and more as the kids try to avoid their pompous Vice Principal (Paul Gleeson). It’s a classic for a reason.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler have become an iconic duo due to their collaborations on SNL, Mean Girls, and co-hosting the Golden Globes. Baby Mama is one of the few films they’ve actually starred in together, though, and their chemistry elevates it to comedy greatness. Fey stars as Kate, a driven businesswoman who decides in her late thirties that she wants to have a baby but finds she is unlikely to have success with IVF. Poehler plays Angie, an immature slacker who agrees to become a surrogate for Kate’s baby. 

When Angie breaks up with her shiftless boyfriend (Dax Shepard), she ends up moving in with Kate. Despite their clashing personalities, the two women end up helping each other grow — Kate learns to loosen up and be more nurturing, while Angie learns to be more responsible. Watching these two brilliant comedians go through childbirth classes and other parenting milestones together is reliably hilarious. 

If you’re a parent or on your way to becoming one, this movie is a must-see. But if you’ve ever had a best friend who drives you insane (and who hasn’t?) you’ll find something to relate to here too.

Have you ever had a boss completely take over your life? That’s the situation for Harper (Zoey Deutch) and Charlie (Glen Powell), who are assistants to extremely demanding executives. Harper works for Kirsten (Lucy Liu), a sharp-tempered sports journalist who demands perfection from her staff. Charlie works for Rick (Taye Diggs), a businessman with severe anger management issues. Realizing their bosses need a distraction so they can regain control of their own lives, Harper and Charlie manipulate Rick and Kirsten into falling in love. “When they’re boning, we’re free!,”  says Harper. Of course, the two assistants end up falling in love along the way.

Set It Up hearkens back to when big-budget rom-coms were commonplace and successful. Deutch and Powell have irrepressible chemistry together, and the situations they manufacture for their bosses are absurd in a way that feels endearing. It’s a perfect “watch on your couch with pizza” movie.

This adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved novel is a classic for the whole family. Matilda (Mara Wilson) is an extremely bright girl in an exceptionally dim family. Her prodigious passion for learning (and especially reading) cannot be squashed by her thuggish father (Danny DeVito, who also directs and narrates the film), her vapid mother (Rhea Perlman) or even the terrifying school principal, Miss Trunchbull (Pam Ferris). Instead, Matilda develops mysterious powers that help her take down the bullies and rewrite her own story.

Wilson is downright adorable in Matilda, and real-life couple Devito and Pearlman are hilarious as her over-the-top oafish parents. It’s a funny, delightful film that lives up to the spirit of the novel, making you believe in the power of books to change lives.