17 mother-daughter duo movies to stream this Mother's Day

• Before Mother's Day on May 12, these are the best movies to watch to get in the spirit.

• It doesn't matter if your mom is next to you on the couch or 1,000 miles away.

• These mother-daughter movies highlight the special relationship between moms and their girls.

Mother's Day is a time to celebrate your mom, but if you live far away, spending time with her can be impossible.

If you can't be near your mom this Mother's Day, or if you're simply looking for a movie to watch while you sit on the couch together, we've compiled a list of films that'll make you appreciate all your mother — or stepmother — does for you, without breaking the bank on a present she might not ever use.

One of Netflix's newest original movies is "Mother of the Bride," which is about a close-knit mother and daughter celebrating a wedding.

"Mother of the Bride," which dropped this week, stars Brooke Shields and Miranda Cosgrove as a mother and daughter, Lana and Emma, who are celebrating the surprise wedding of Cosgrove's character Emma in Thailand.

The catch? Emma's fiancé is the son of Lana's ex from way back when. Now, Lana has to balance being happy for her daughter while also staying away from the man who broke her heart.

"Mother's Day" is streaming on Netflix.

"Dumplin'" is about a mother and daughter learning to respect each other, all set to a Dolly Parton soundtrack.

Even though many of us have probably wished Jennifer Aniston was our mother (or sister or friend) at some point or another, "Dumplin'" shows it's potentially not all it's cracked up to be.

While the two have trouble communicating and understanding each other, it's clear the love is there — it just takes a beauty pageant, some drag queens, and a magic act to coax it out.

You can stream "Dumplin'" on Netflix.

If you somehow missed it before it won best picture at the Oscars, check out "Everything Everywhere All at Once."

Former best picture winner "Everything Everywhere All at Once" is about a lot of things, but mainly, it's about the fractured bond between a mother, Evelyn, and her daughter, Joy, played by screen legend Michelle Yeoh in an Oscar-winning performance and Stephanie Hsu (who was nominated).

You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll question reality, and you'll feel compelled to re-watch "Ratatouille." It's no wonder that it became A24's highest-grossing film of all time and its first film to cross the $100 million mark at the box office.

You can stream "Everything Everywhere All at Once" on Netflix.

"The Mother" is an action-packed film starring Jennifer Lopez.

Lopez stars as a military operative known only as "The Mother" — the name becomes literal when she discovers the daughter she gave up for adoption, Zoe, has been kidnapped by her enemies.

If you're a mother and daughter who bond via intense action films, "The Mother" is perfect this year. And you wouldn't be alone in liking it  — according to Deadline, the streamer reported 250 million people watched "The Mother" upon its premiere last year.

"The Mother" is streaming on Netflix.

"Moxie" is about a daughter following in her rebellious mother's footsteps.

"Moxie" is the story of Vivian, a teenager who decides to follow in the footsteps of her mother, Lisa (played by Amy Poehler, who also directed the film), by starting her own zine to combat the pervasive sexism at her high school.

While it's primarily a film about Vivian and her friends, the bond between Lisa and Vivian is one of the stronger points of the movie, and Poehler does a great job at playing an actually cool mom.

"Moxie" is streaming on Netflix.

"Terms of Endearment" centers around the close relationship between mom Aurora and her daughter Emma.

Have a box of tissues on hand if you decide to watch "Terms of Endearment." The film, which stars Shirley MacLaine, follows Aurora and Emma, a mother-daughter duo who are very close despite constantly fighting. As each woman moves through life, love, and relationships, their bond remains constant until the very end.

It won five Oscars, including best picture, best director, best actress, and best supporting actor, and was the second-highest-grossing film of 1983, only behind "Return of the Jedi."

You can stream "Terms of Endearment" on Paramount+.

In "Freaky Friday," mom Tess and daughter Anna each learn about each other's lives when they magically swap bodies.

"Freaky Friday" should be mandatory viewing for every teenager ... and mother of a teenager. Anna and Tess, played by Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis, respectively, spend a few days trying to live each other's lives and learn they both have their own challenges, including Battle of the Bands, new husbands, parenting, detention, and much more.

Spoiler: They don't stay swapped forever, but they do come out of it with a healthy appreciation for each other.

Since "Freaky Friday" made over $160 million at the global box office, we can't say we're surprised that a sequel starring Lohan and Curtis is reportedly in the works, per a 2023 Deadline report.

You can stream "Freaky Friday" on Disney+.

"Lady Bird" tells many stories, but at its heart, it's a story about a complicated mother-daughter relationship.

Lady Bird, played by Saoirse Ronan, and her mother, Marion, played by Laurie Metcalf, manage to go from adversaries to best friends in a matter of seconds, just like real moms and daughters do. Both actresses were nominated for Oscars, and it's easy to see why, even if you just watch the first and last scenes of the film.

Never before on film has a mother-daughter relationship been so realistic and painful yet loving.

You can stream "Lady Bird" on Tubi.

In "Akeelah and the Bee," Angela Bassett plays Tanya, mother to spelling genius Akeelah, played by Keke Palmer.

While Tanya at first doesn't want her daughter to compete, she later decides she needs to support her in following her dreams, even if they scare her, and even though Akeelah might fail.

You can stream "Akeelah and the Bee" on Tubi.

"The Joy Luck Club" has not one but four strong mother-daughter duos to learn from.

"The Joy Luck Club," based on the Amy Tan novel of the same name, tells the stories of the four members of the clubs, and their relationships with their daughters. Each mother has a lesson to teach her daughter or a message to tell them about their lives in China.

The film is also only the second in Hollywood history to have a predominantly Asian cast. The third did not come along until 25 years later: "Crazy Rich Asians," another film featuring a heartwarming mother-daughter relationship.

You can stream "The Joy Luck Club" on Hulu, Paramount+, or Peacock.

"Raising Helen" is the film for the unconventional family: adopted, chosen, biological, or anything in between.

After Helen's sister and her husband die and leave their three kids in her custody, she must learn to become a mother by giving up her wild ways. Helen, played by Kate Hudson, has cute scenes bonding with each kid, but the crux of the movie comes from her relationship with 15-year-old Audrey, played by Hayden Panettiere.

Warning: This movie might also make you want to call your sister. Be prepared.

You can stream "Raising Helen" on The Roku Channel.

Not everything about "Mermaids" has aged well, but the complicated relationship between Rachel and her daughter Charlotte remains relatable to this day.

Winona Ryder stars as Charlotte in a performance that earned her a Golden Globe nomination. She and her mother, Rachel, played by Cher, couldn't be more different, which leads to a lot of friction in their household. However, predictably, the two eventually come to understand one another and the reasons for each other's decisions.

You can stream "Mermaids" on Tubi.

"The Princess Diaries" is more of a grandmother-granddaughter story ... but we think it still counts.

Grandmothers are mothers, too! Besides, Mia, played by Anne Hathaway, also has a goals-worthy relationship with her cool artist mom. They even go rock climbing together and make balloon art! Plus, Mia's mom never felt that Mia needed a makeover — she loved her just the way she was.

But the most delightful part of "The Princess Diaries," which grossed a healthy $165 million globally, has to be when Queen Clarice (Julie Andrews) lets her hair down to just enjoy a San Francisco day with her granddaughter — it'll have you reaching for the phone to call your grandma pronto.

You can stream "The Princess Diaries" on Disney+.

"Brave" is a rare Disney movie in which the mom lives, and she has a complex relationship with her teenage daughter, Merida.

"Brave" shows that even Pixar can take a stab at a complicated mother-daughter relationship, and it works. Merida learns that her mother just wants what's best for her, and her mother learns to love Merida for who she is, not who she wants her to be.

"Brave" made a staggering $539 million at the global box office, the highest-grossing film on this list. Once you watch it with your mom, you'll understand why.

You can stream "Brave" on Disney+.

"Turning Red" is another entry into Pixar's canon of mother-daughter movies.

"Turning Red," released in March 2022, is about Mei Lee, the 13-year-old daughter of Chinese-Canadian immigrants. When she starts puberty, she discovers that when she gets upset or excited, she turns into a giant red panda.

Over the course of the film, Mei must learn to accept her family's curse (or blessing?) and learn to stand up for herself while also respecting her mom, and her mom must learn to accept Mei.

You can stream "Turning Red" on Disney+.

Yes, "Little Women" is mainly a sisters movie, but something about Jo's scenes with Marmee have us feeling a little emotional.

The bond between the March sisters is unbreakable and the heart of the film, but the true family leader is their mother, affectionately called Marmee, played by Laura Dern in the 2019 movie version.

Specifically, her two scenes with Jo (Saoirse Ronan) — the one after Amy (Florence Pugh) burns Jo's book and she wisely tells Jo that "there are some natures too noble to curb, and too lofty to bend," and the one where Jo speaks about how she might want to be with Laurie after all — will remind you that, sometimes, it's hard to hear what your mom has to say, but she's usually right.

You can stream "Little Women" (2019) on Hulu.

And finally, "Mother's Day," which might not be the best mother-daughter film, but it certainly has the most mothers and daughters.

"Mother's Day" is a film in the same vein as "He's Just Not That Into You," "Valentine's Day," and "New Year's Eve." It features a large ensemble of A-list actors who are all interconnected in some way, and by the end, everyone has repaired their fractured relationships or realized they deserve better.

Except, in the case of "Mother's Day," almost all of the relationships are focused on mothers and daughters, with Julia Roberts, Jennifer Aniston, Kate Hudson, Sarah Chalke, and Margo Martindale all playing mothers (and Shay Mitchell as a stepmother).

You can stream "Mother's Day" on Max.

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