While we love Disney feature length films and we crave the rides and food at Disney World, a large part of the Disney franchise is their TV channel, which has been around since the 1980s. When you think of Disney Channel, you probably think of the dozens of original television series, as well as the channel’s collection of entertaining DCOMs, Disney Channel Original Movies, but what about the programs that combine the two?
There have been several shows on Disney Channel that did so well that creators decided to give them more screen time with their own movies. Some of these movies even brought our favorite characters to theaters around the country instead of just televisions in viewers’ homes. We decided to take a look at some of these movies based on original series and see how they rank according to the audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Here are ten of those films and how they did:
Jett Jackson: The Movie - 46%
The lowest film on our list happens to be the oldest, released in 2001. Jett Jackson is a famous TV actor, starring in the series Silverstone. He decides that he has had enough and wants to quit, even though three years were just added to the show’s film schedule.
However, Jett suddenly becomes sucked into Silverstone’s world, and Silverstone gets thrown into the real world, after a prop malfunctions. Both are forced to deal with their new lives and discover what it’s like to be someone else. Viewers gave this film a mere 46% score.
The Lizzie McGuire Movie - 49%
Before Disney had Miley Cyrus playing an ordinary girl and a pop star, Hillary Duff did it first in this 2003 film. Lizzie McGuire and her eighth-grade class are taking a trip to Italy where she gets mistaken for a famous Italian singer.
She manages to fake an illness and get out of her school responsibilities so that she can sneak out to spend her days swooning over hottie Paolo Valisari, a friend and singing partner of Lizzie’s doppelganger Isabella, and living the famous life. Audiences weren’t convinced that this movie is what dreams are made of, because they only gave it a 49%.
The Even Stevens Movie - 52%
Summer has arrived for the Even Stevens family, and they, along with Beans, are taking a vacation to Mandelino, an island off the coast of California that serves as the setting for Family Fakeout, a new reality show. However, as usual with the Stevens clan, chaos quickly ensues.
The natives to the island shun the Stevens after Louis ruins the palace where they were supposed to be staying, and the family then breaks into two groups who suddenly find themselves against each other. They must figure out how to get along and survive in this new reality if they’re ever going to make it off the island together. This film was given a 52% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Suite Life Movie - 53%
You may have heard of twin telepathy, the belief that twins have some sort of deep mental connection, but you’ve never seen it like this. Zach and Cody end up in a fascinating study about twins where they get fed a special fruit that causes them to become closer than your average twins.
They find that not only do they have the ability to hear each other’s thoughts, they can even feel each other’s pain. The two boys have to learn to get along enough to figure out what’s going on and stop a potentially harmful experiment. The majority of audiences must not be twins, because this film only managed to get a 53% score on RT.
Hannah Montana: The Movie - 67%
Miley Stewart has always had the dream life - she’s a normal girl by day and a famous singer, Hannah Montana, by night. However, when her Hannah attitude and glam world begin encroaching on her Miley life, her dad decides that she needs to go back to the town where she was raised in Tennessee to get back to her roots.
Miley must put her fame aside and figure out who she really is, until the town needs Hannah’s help for a fundraiser! With both Miley and Hannah needed in the same place and only a few people aware of her secret, this movie had audiences on the edge of their seats, giving it a 67%.
Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie - 67%
You know everything’s going to be a breeze when wizard siblings Alex, Justin, and Max must go on a magic free vacation with their parents. Rule breaker Alex sneaks a magic wand on the trip, and she accidentally uses it to change the past when she wishes that her parents had never met.
Now her mom and dad have no idea who the other is, and as far as they know, they have no children. The three teens have to take a dangerous journey to try and figure out how to undo the spell before it’s too late. This magical movie tied with Hannah Montana with a 67% score.
Kim Possible: A Sitch in Time - 69%
Secret agent and crime fighter Kim Possible has earned herself three Disney channel movies, and the first one was released in 2003. It’s a new school year for the teenage cheerleader and her best friend and sidekick Ron, but the year is not off to a good start. Ron has found out that he has to move to Norway.
Kim must go on her next mission with the assistance of her friends Wade and Monique. She follows evil all the way to Australia, where a couple of villains have stolen a small statue that allows time travel. The wicked acts of the villains threaten to destroy the past, including that of Kim and Ron, and Kim has to do all she can to save it. This time traveling tale received a 69%.
The Proud Family Movie - 70%
Penny Proud is turning sixteen, and things are not going very well. She fails her driver’s test, gets pulled from a music video opportunity by her dad, and is forced to go on a lame vacation with her family. However, the island is not what it appears to be.
An evil scientist Dr. Carver is planning to take over the world by stealing Oscar’s secret multiplying formula, and he’s got an army ready to help him - a bunch of Proud family clones! Penny has to try and save her family and their vacation from the forces of evil. With a duty like that, this movie might deserve more than a 70%!
Good Luck Charlie, It’s Christmas! - 79%
Disney sure loves sending families on vacation. The Duncans are taking a trip to the grandparents’ new condo in California for the holidays. As usual per Disney films, things don’t go quite as planned when Dad, PJ, Charlie, and Gabe end up on a flight without Mom and Teddy, and the next one to their destination isn’t until Christmas is already over.
The two have to find a different way to Palm Springs, which includes hitch hiking and getting their luggage stolen. Things aren’t going much better at the grandparents’, where the other members of the family have found themselves in the middle of chaos. This big family and their crazy adventures get a 79% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, sharing first place on our list.
Phineas and Ferb The Movie: Across the Second Dimension - 79%
Evil Dr. Doofenshmirtz is up to no good once again, this time creating an “other-dimension-inator,” which allows people to travel to other dimensions. Due to an accident with their own invention, Phineas and Ferb crash into Doofenshmirtz’s lab, wrecking the scientist’s latest scheme.
The boys help him rebuild his machine, and soon the boys find themselves in a parallel world where Doofenshmirtz rules the Tri-State area at last. Phineas and Ferb have to find the other world doubles of themselves and all their friends in the hopes that they can help them find a way back home. This film deserves the top spot on our list, being cable’s fifth highest viewership movie ever in total viewers. It earns a 79%.
