Top 20 Worst Comedy Movies of All Time
#20: “Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd” (2003)
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More like Dumb and Dumberer: When They Decided to Make This Movie. “Dumb and Dumber” is a classic, but a prequel was absolutely not warranted. Did we really need to know how Harry and Lloyd met each other? It also doesn’t help that none of the talent from “Dumb and Dumber” was carried over, complete with new writers, a new director, and new actors playing Harry and Lloyd. Despite the valiant efforts of lead actors Derek Richardson and Eric Christian Olsen, the movie is just a mess. It’s unfunny, it’s missing the original’s underlying sweetness, and worst of all, it’s mean-spirited, complete with offensive jokes and an excess of potty humor that never lands. Just watch the original again instead!
#19: “Zoolander 2” (2016)
Ben Stiller had a decade and a half to develop a sequel to his cult comedy “Zoolander.” Instead of building upon his original creation, though, Stiller lazily recycles gags from the first film, which we’ve already rewatched dozens of times already. On the rare occasion that “Zoolander 2” does try telling a new joke, it always deteriorates into a sea of confusion and randomness. Hey, Fred Armisen’s head has been CGI’d onto a little kid’s body. Oh look, Benedict Cumberbatch is playing a non-binary character. Ah, it’s Kiefer Sutherland, Susan Sarandon, and Ariana Grande… for some reason. How is any of this funny? We’d say that this movie is full of setups with no payoffs, but most of the jokes don’t even have proper setups.
#18: “That’s My Boy” (2012)
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The gags in “That’s My Boy” are more lame and the performances more degrading than those in “Dirty Grandpa” and trust us: that’s saying a lot. The former was promoted as Adam Sandler’s venture into hard R territory. Here’s the thing, though: Sandler’s trademark crude humor is tailor-made for 13-year-old boys. So, why make a movie that your target demographic can’t even buy a ticket to? That doesn’t even begin to describe just how incompetent this comedy is. With senseless swearing, an inappropriate twist and a subplot pulled right out of the Mary Kay Letourneau case, the film seems to think that it’s being edgy when really, it’s just being childish. And just when you think it can’t possibly get any more desperate for laughs, Vanilla Ice shows up.
#17: “Norbit” (2007)
Oh, how the mighty can fall. There was a time when Eddie Murphy was considered the funniest man on the planet, and his creative output throughout the ‘80s and ‘90s was nothing short of spectacular. Then... something happened, and we got “Norbit”. While we can’t ignore how good he is in the Shrek franchise, there’s very little to recommend about the movie in question - aside from Rick Baker’s Oscar-nominated makeup. The script, co-written by Murphy himself, is an absolute mess. It both lacks a lot of sense and isn’t very funny. Lots of comedies fail to generate laughs, but few are as bad as “Norbit”. The movie is mean and crude, not to mention filled with offensive stereotypes. Risqué comedies like this are forced to toe a line, but because “Norbit” lacks any laughs whatsoever, it only comes across as downright hostile.
#16: “Grown Ups 2” (2013)
This movie is everything you’d expect from a 2010s Adam Sandler comedy. Sandler has carved himself out a little niche in the comedy landscape, providing flicks that are consistently maligned yet unendingly popular. His unique brand of humor is famous, maybe even infamous - goofy voices, childish and gross-out humor, lame catch phrases that make “fetch” seem cool, and stories that are seemingly nothing but excuses for Sandler to make millions while hanging out with friends. “Grown Ups 2” has all of the above. A CGI deer stands on two legs and pees into Sandler’s mouth in its first few minutes, and that’s about all viewers need to know going in.
#15: “National Lampoon’s Gold Diggers” (2003)
National Lampoon was once a leading name in comedy, producing all-time classics like “Animal House” and the “Vacation” series of films. But, like Eddie Murphy, their star eventually faded thanks to some ill-conceived creative endeavors - including “Gold Diggers”. The story concerns two not-so-bright friends marrying older women in the hopes of inheriting their estates when they pass on. It’s one of the rare films to hold a 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and with a laughable score of 6, it’s the eleventh-lowest-rated movie on Metacritic. Critics agree that there’s nothing to like here. Not the crass humor, not the production values, and certainly not the vile main characters.
#14: “Freddy Got Fingered” (2001)
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Somewhat bizarrely, Tom Green’s long-reviled “Freddy Got Fingered” is going through a bit of cultural resurgence and critical re-evaluation. Some see it as a valiant experiment that went for broke in its total outlandishness. It’s more a prank on the audience, throwing literally everything at the wall - including a scene in which a baby is swung around by its umbilical cord - and seeing what sticks. Unfortunately, very little sticks. We have to commend Green for his bravery (if you want to call it that), but the gross-out and raving mad jokes throughout “Freddy Got Fingered” just aren’t funny. Watching this movie could be described as experiencing a fever dream without any semblance of fun, whimsy, or coherence.
#13: “Gigli” (2003)
It’s amazing to think how a movie with such talent could go so off the rails. Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are major stars, and writer-director Martin Brest crafted one of the all-time great comedy movies with “Beverly Hills Cop”. And yet “Gigli” is easily one of the worst films ever made. In fact, it was so bad that it utterly destroyed Brest’s career; he hasn’t directed a single film since. “Gigli” is basically a string of should-be-way-better scenes of dialogue spoken by weirdly uninterested actors; there’s virtually no story to speak of. The movie is also in bad taste, centering on grossly unlikable characters and featuring generally offensive humor. It’s a career low for everyone involved.
#12: “Movie 43” (2013)
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Even if you’ve never seen “Movie 43,” chances are you’ve at least heard about the infamous segment where Hugh Jackman’s chin is given a certain feature from which we’ll spare you. Believe it or not, that arguably isn’t even the most disgusting bit in this anthology comedy. The audience also has to watch Chris Pratt defecate all over a car windshield, Jeremy Allen White endure the advances of his parents, and Halle Berry and Stephen Merchant undergo grotesque plastic surgery. The funniest thing about “Movie 43” is that so many talented actors and filmmakers agreed to take part in this laugh-free dead zone. That being said, we understand why Richard Gere tried to get out of it and why George Clooney out-right said no.
#11: “Ed” (1996)
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Just a few years after “Friends” made him a household name, Matt LeBlanc earned a Razzie nomination for Worst New Star. The offending movie was “Ed”, a so-called comedy about a baseball-playing chimpanzee. The concept of the flick is ridiculous; it sounds like a particularly uninspired “Saturday Night Live” skit. LeBlanc carries over none of his Joey Tribbiani charm - in fact, “Ed” is the type of movie that Joey would probably find himself trapped in. The “animals playing sports” genre is a surprisingly robust one, but “Ed” lacks the childish charm, sweetness, or humor that make those films successful. It’s a complete misfire.
#10: “Fred: The Movie” (2010)
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Lucas Cruikshank is to Generation Z what Pauly Shore was to Millennials. Neither of these comedians are that funny, but somehow they managed to produce a series of poor quality movies that people actually watched. Cruikshank rose to prominence with his YouTube alter ego Fred Figglehorn, quite possibly the most insufferable character ever to grace any medium. Seriously, we have trouble listening to Fred’s obnoxiously high-pitched voice for more than a second. So, whose bright idea was it to give him a feature-length TV movie with a budget of roughly $4 million? Also, how dare you waste John Cena!
#9: “Loqueesha” (2019)
You know all those straight white men who feel like they have it worse than everyone else in today’s politically correct climate? Well, Jeremy Saville made a movie for that demographic and it’s every bit as tasteless as the premise suggests. In addition to directing, writing, and producing, Saville plays Joe, a Caucasian man who lands his own radio show by pretending to be an African-American woman. With smarter filmmakers at the helm, maybe “Loqueesha” could’ve been a bold satire about white privilege and woke culture. Instead, it feels like 98 minutes of listening to an out of touch guy preach about racism, and other serious topics that he clearly doesn’t understand. What’s worse, the film isn’t funny – not even in a shocking way.
#8: “Chairman of the Board” (1998)
This comedy saw Trimark Pictures attempting to make Carrot Top a movie star. Suffice to say, it didn’t work. In fact, it probably did more harm to the comedian’s career than good. He plays Edison, an unsuccessful inventor and surfing enthusiast without many funds who inherits a billionaire’s successful company. Cue the wacky and deliriously unfunny “fish out of water” hijinks. The jokes are lame and predictable, and Carrot Top makes for 95 minutes’ worth of less-than-enjoyable company. It’s baffling to think that this movie was made for $10 million, especially when it grossed a paltry $181,000. Let’s just say: there’s a reason this was Carrot Top’s only feature-length movie.
#7: “It’s Pat” (1994)
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Arguably the worst “Saturday Night Live” movie ever made, “It’s Pat” is based on Julia Sweeney’s long-running androgynous character. Like the “SNL” sketches that birthed the movie, most of the humor is derived from the other characters’ confusion regarding Pat’s sex. The movie is a one trick pony that runs almost 80 long minutes, and the central conceit doesn’t work. Sweeney’s Pat is an unlikable hero, and while the message of self-acceptance is noble, it’s told via some truly detestable comedy. The film was so poorly received that it grossed just $60,000 on an $8 million budget. It was dropped from theaters after its opening weekend and never thought of again. Rightfully.
#6: “Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star” (2011)
Like “That’s My Boy,” “Bucky Larson” is another R-rated comedy that will only appeal to middle schoolers who think that fart jokes are the pinnacle of humor. Where Sandler is at least a bankable name, however, Nick Swardson is basically the poor man’s Kevin James. We’re not sure who wanted to see Swardson headline his own movie, but then again, we’re also not sure who keeps paying money to see Happy Madison Productions. “Bucky Larson” operates on the logic that if the main character speaks in a weird voice, wears a dumb wig, and constantly shows off his buck-toothed smile, the film will eventually get a laugh. Meanwhile, the entire plot is supported by a paper-thin joke: Bucky Larson is an unlikely adult film star.
#5: “Son of the Mask” (2005)
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It’s a very tall order doing Jim Carrey comedies without Jim Carrey. The legendary comedian has a very distinct style of outlandish and energetic physical humor. And he has an incredible talent for making it work. It’s very easy for that type of humor to turn annoying and off-putting, and that’s exactly what happened in “Son of the Mask”. This movie saw a less-capable actor attempting to emulate Carrey’s brand of humor, and the results are quite grating. But the blame isn’t solely placed at Jamie Kennedy’s feet. The movie’s script was lacking, and its sense of energy often tipped into the obnoxious. Even the special effects were somehow worse than the decade-old original.
#4: “Holmes & Watson” (2018)
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The script for this “Sherlock Holmes” parody reads like it was written thirty years ago and even then, most of these jokes would’ve been stale. It’s hard to say what’s more mind-boggling: that this comedy is so dated or that Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly willingly signed on. Maybe everyone assumed that Ferrell and Reilly would salvage the picture with their chemistry and improv skills. Alas, neither brought their A-Game… or even their D-Game. “Holmes & Watson” is one missed opportunity after another, even when a promising punch-line is gift-wrapped for the filmmakers. For example, you had Reilly wearing a helmet full of bees and you didn’t make a Nicolas Cage joke! See, even we can come up with better material than this.
#3: “The Master of Disguise” (2002)
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While not an Adam Sandler movie, “The Master of Disguise” was made by his Happy Madison production company, and it signaled a downward trend. The film stars Sandler’s fellow “SNL” alum Dana Carvey as Pistachio Disguisey, a horribly-named man who comes from a family of secret agents known as the Masters of Disguise. Enter Carvey doing impressions that’d irritate most people while dressed in ridiculous costumes. The movie is nothing but an excuse for Carvey to do goofy voices and impersonations, which wouldn’t be so bad if the impressions were actually funny. Or, any of the so-called humor for that matter. It may be enjoyable for kids, but even that’s questionable.
#2: “Bio-Dome” (1996)
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This MGM comedy starring Pauly Shore and Stephen Baldwin contains the first on-screen appearance of Jack Black’s band, Tenacious D. Their brief appearance is a shining beacon of hope in this otherwise hopeless film. The flick infamously holds a score of 1 on Metacritic, tying with a few others for the title worst-reviewed movie in the site’s history. It’s essentially an exercise in relentless childish humor led by performances from Shore and Baldwin that have been called obnoxious, and who turn their characters from lovable stoner goofballs into insufferable nightmare humans. It also takes interesting themes about environmentalism and does pretty much nothing with them. We don’t necessarily need “messages” in our comedies, as long as they’re actually funny. But unfortunately, “Bio-Dome” isn’t funny either. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. “Your Highness” (2011) A Box Office Bomb with Boring & Juvenile Humor “Kangaroo Jack” (2003) Even by CGI Kangaroo Movie Standards, This Is Bad “The Apple” (1980) A Musical Comedy with Bad Music & Comedy: Not a Great Combo “Parting Shots” (1999) A Horribly Offensive Movie That Earned Both Condemnation & Controversy
#1: “Jack and Jill” (2011)
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From “Grown Ups 2” to “The Ridiculous 6,” Happy Madison has not only brought us some of the decade’s worst comedies, but some of the lowest scores in Rotten Tomatoes history. Even with the studio’s track record, however, we can’t believe that a comedy like “Jack and Jill” ever got made. Adam Sandler plays Jack, an advertising executive who works in A LOT of shameless product placement. Sandler also plays Jill, Jack’s twin sister. This is where the pitch meeting for the movie should’ve been stopped dead in its tracks. Instead, Sandler and company were given almost $80 million to bring this Razzie magnet to the silver screen… plus Al Pacino’s involvement! Again, we’re so, so grateful for “The Irishman.”
