Last Updated on 5 June 2026 by Colette
A week or so ago I promised Chloe we’d sit down and watch a film together while her siblings were out doing other things. Initially we had planned to watch Mean Girls but she had ended up watching that the weekend before at a sleepover so I found myself a bit stuck for ideas!
As a parent, finding appropriate and entertaining movies to watch with your 12-year-old daughter can be challenging – I wanted to watch something a bit more grown up with her, something we wouldn’t necessarily watch with her little sister, but I also wanted to be mindful of the fact that at (almost) 12, she’s not necessarily as grown up as she might think she is. I wanted a film that would be suitable for her age but would still feel grown up (and that I wouldn’t mind watching too!)
I know previously, when she was a little younger, I’ve gone to watch films with her and realised they were more grown up than I thought (Grease and Dirty Dancing are a case in point – though I was definitely watching those before I was 12 and I guess most of the less appropriate content probably just went over my head!)
I put a shout out on social media asking other parents for their recommendations for films to watch along the lines of Clueless and Mean Girls and thought it was worth bringing those recommendations together into one big list – as much for my reference as for yours!
Some of the recommendations are films I haven’t even heard of and many of them are films I haven’t watched myself – I’m a bit rubbish at watching films to be honest and there are so many “classics” that I’ve never seen – so hopefully this list will give Chloe and I something to work through together!
Get a 30 day free trail of Amazon Prime Video – Prime Video is a great place to start when you’re trying to find a way to stream these films!
The best films to watch with your 12 year old daughter – as recommended by mums!
- Clueless
- Mean Girls
- Pitch Perfect
- 10 Things I Hate About You
- Never Been Kissed
- The Wedding Singer
- Ever After
- Pretty in Pink
- She’s the Man
- 13 Going on 30
- John Tucker Must Die
- Legally Blonde
- Bring it On
- Princess Diaries
- What a Girl Wants
- Just My Luck
- Freaky Friday
- Wild Child
- She’s All That
- The Duff
- Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
- To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
- The Kissing Booth
- Uptown Girls
- Drive Me Crazy
- Sugar and Spice
- Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion
- The Craft
- School of Rock
- Coraline
- Freedom Writers
- Speak
- Bridge to Terabithia
- Final Destination
- Mermaids
- 50 first dates
- He’s Just Not That Into You
- The Parent Trap
- Cheaper By The Dozen
- Twilight
- Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
- Miss Congeniality
- Big
- Step Up
- Wayne’s World
- Angus, thongs and perfect snogging
- A league of their own
- Hunger Games
- Maid in Manhattan
- Beaches
- Stepmom
- Men in Black
- Practical magic
- Juno
- Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet
- Hananah Montana
- East A
- Spice Girls Movie
- Wonder
We actually ended up watching Romeo + Juliet but whilst this is a 12 cert, it’s pretty brutal in places – more so than I had remembered and, because Chloe didn’t really know the story of Romeo & Juliet (I know, how?!) a lot of the language and detail just went right over her head. So basically, it’s one of my favourite films but at 12, she was probably a bit too young for it and didn’t love it!
I think next on our list with either be 10 Things I Hate About You (which was a super popular recommendation) or 50 First Dates which I remember loving when I first saw it.
If you’ve got suggestions of great films to watch with my 12 year old daughter, let me know and I’ll add them in!
Check out these movie night essentials to make the most of your film experience:
Fairy lights for bedroom movie nights
Have a read of these posts next:
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