The Top 50 Teen Movies from the 90s & Early 2000s
by kjtenorman | created - 09 Jan 2016 | updated - 08 Dec 2019 | PublicA chronological list of the best teen movies from the the 1990s and early 2000s.
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1. Pump Up the Volume (1990)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Mark runs a pirate radio station and causes an uproar when he speaks his mind and enthralls fellow teens.
Director: Allan Moyle | Stars: Christian Slater, Samantha Mathis, Anthony Luke Lucero, Andy Romano
Votes: 31,139 | Gross: $11.54M
2. Cry-Baby (1990)
PG-13 | 85 min | Comedy, Musical
In 1950s Baltimore, a bad boy with a heart of gold wins the love of a good girl, whose boyfriend sets out for revenge.
Director: John Waters | Stars: Johnny Depp, Ricki Lake, Amy Locane, Susan Tyrrell
Votes: 64,773 | Gross: $8.27M
3. Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991)
PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy
Five siblings are left alone all summer when their mom leaves town and the evil babysitter bites the dust.
Director: Stephen Herek | Stars: Christina Applegate, Joanna Cassidy, John Getz, Josh Charles
Votes: 37,941 | Gross: $25.20M
4. Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991)
PG | 93 min | Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy
A tyrant from the future creates evil android doubles of Bill and Ted and sends them back to eliminate the originals.
Director: Peter Hewitt | Stars: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, William Sadler, Joss Ackland
Votes: 81,006 | Gross: $38.04M
5. Encino Man (1992)
PG | 88 min | Comedy
When they find a frozen caveman in their back yard, two high school outcasts thaw him and introduce him to modern life while he in turn gets them to actually enjoy life.
Director: Les Mayfield | Stars: Sean Astin, Brendan Fraser, Pauly Shore, Megan Ward
Votes: 45,207 | Gross: $40.69M
6. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1992)
PG-13 | 86 min | Action, Comedy, Fantasy
Flighty teenage girl Buffy Summers learns that she is her generation's destined battler of vampires.
Director: Fran Rubel Kuzui | Stars: Kristy Swanson, Donald Sutherland, Paul Reubens, Rutger Hauer
Votes: 49,427 | Gross: $16.62M
7. Dazed and Confused (1993)
R | 103 min | Comedy
The adventures of high school and junior high students on the last day of school in May 1976.
Director: Richard Linklater | Stars: Jason London, Wiley Wiggins, Matthew McConaughey, Rory Cochrane
Votes: 199,247 | Gross: $7.99M
8. Clueless (1995)
PG-13 | 97 min | Comedy, Romance
Shallow, rich and socially successful Cher is at the top of her Beverly Hills high school's pecking scale. Seeing herself as a matchmaker, Cher first coaxes two teachers into dating each other.
Director: Amy Heckerling | Stars: Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, Brittany Murphy, Paul Rudd
Votes: 245,575 | Gross: $56.63M
9. Mallrats (1995)
R | 94 min | Comedy, Romance
Both dumped by their girlfriends, two best friends seek refuge in the local mall.
Director: Kevin Smith | Stars: Shannen Doherty, Jeremy London, Jason Lee, Claire Forlani
Votes: 128,817 | Gross: $2.12M
10. Empire Records (1995)
PG-13 | 90 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Twenty-four hours in the lives of the young employees at Empire Records when they all grow up and become young adults thanks to each other and the manager. They all face the store joining a chain store with strict rules.
Director: Allan Moyle | Stars: Anthony LaPaglia, Debi Mazar, Maxwell Caulfield, Rory Cochrane
Votes: 61,780 | Gross: $0.30M
11. Hackers (1995)
PG-13 | 105 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Teenage hackers discover a criminal conspiracy with plans to use a computer virus that will capsize five oil tankers.
Director: Iain Softley | Stars: Jonny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie, Jesse Bradford, Matthew Lillard
Votes: 74,798 | Gross: $7.56M
12. Scream (1996)
R | 111 min | Horror, Mystery
A year after the murder of her mother, a teenage girl is terrorized by a masked killer who targets her and her friends by using scary movies as part of a deadly game.
Director: Wes Craven | Stars: Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Skeet Ulrich
Votes: 388,102 | Gross: $103.05M
13. The Craft (1996)
R | 101 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
A newcomer to a Catholic prep high school falls in with a trio of outcast teenage girls who practice witchcraft, and they all soon conjure up various spells and curses against those who anger them.
Director: Andrew Fleming | Stars: Robin Tunney, Fairuza Balk, Neve Campbell, Rachel True
Votes: 107,599 | Gross: $24.88M
14. Romeo + Juliet (1996)
PG-13 | 120 min | Drama, Romance
Shakespeare's famous play is updated to the hip modern suburb of Verona still retaining its original dialogue.
Director: Baz Luhrmann | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Claire Danes, John Leguizamo, Harold Perrineau
Votes: 244,644 | Gross: $46.35M
15. Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997)
R | 92 min | Comedy
Two dim-witted, inseparable friends hit the road for their ten-year high school reunion and concoct an elaborate lie about their lives in order to impress their classmates.
Director: David Mirkin | Stars: Mira Sorvino, Lisa Kudrow, Janeane Garofalo, Alan Cumming
Votes: 52,981 | Gross: $29.21M
16. I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)
R | 101 min | Horror, Mystery
Four young friends bound by a tragic accident are reunited when they find themselves being stalked by a hook-wielding maniac in their small seaside town.
Director: Jim Gillespie | Stars: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Anne Heche, Ryan Phillippe
Votes: 158,030 | Gross: $72.59M
17. Can't Hardly Wait (1998)
PG-13 | 100 min | Comedy, Romance
A complete graduating class, consisting of beautiful girls, geeks and promising footballers, assemble at a rich classmate's residence for a party. Interesting developments follow at the get-together.
Directors: Harry Elfont, Deborah Kaplan | Stars: Jennifer Love Hewitt, Ethan Embry, Charlie Korsmo, Lauren Ambrose
Votes: 53,948 | Gross: $25.34M
18. Disturbing Behavior (1998)
R | 84 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
The new kid in Cradle Bay, Washington stumbles across something sinister about the town's method of transforming its unruly teens into upstanding citizens.
Director: David Nutter | Stars: James Marsden, Katie Holmes, Nick Stahl, Tobias Mehler
Votes: 25,260 | Gross: $17.41M
19. The Faculty (1998)
R | 104 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
When Casey Connor, Herrington High School's newspaper photographer, witnesses the murder of a nurse and sees her alive again, he decides to investigate the bizarre happenings.
Director: Robert Rodriguez | Stars: Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Laura Harris, Josh Hartnett
Votes: 135,007 | Gross: $40.06M
20. Urban Legend (1998)
R | 99 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
A college student suspects a series of bizarre deaths are connected to certain urban legends.
Director: Jamie Blanks | Stars: Jared Leto, Alicia Witt, Rebecca Gayheart, Michael Rosenbaum
Votes: 71,438 | Gross: $38.07M
21. Drop Dead Gorgeous (1999)
PG-13 | 97 min | Comedy, Romance, Thriller
A small-town beauty pageant turns deadly as it becomes clear that someone will go to any lengths to win.
Director: Michael Patrick Jann | Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Denise Richards, Ellen Barkin, Allison Janney
Votes: 40,754 | Gross: $10.56M
22. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
PG-13 | 97 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A high-school boy, Cameron, cannot date Bianca until her anti-social older sister, Kat, has a boyfriend. So, Cameron pays a mysterious boy, Patrick, to charm Kat.
Director: Gil Junger | Stars: Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik
Votes: 384,708 | Gross: $38.18M
23. Cruel Intentions (1999)
R | 97 min | Drama, Romance
Two vicious step-siblings of an elite Manhattan prep school make a wager: to deflower the new headmaster's daughter before the start of term.
Director: Roger Kumble | Stars: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, Selma Blair
Votes: 205,016 | Gross: $38.77M
24. Election (1999)
R | 103 min | Comedy, Romance
A high school teacher meets his match in an over-achieving student politician.
Director: Alexander Payne | Stars: Matthew Broderick, Reese Witherspoon, Loren Nelson, Chris Klein
Votes: 104,448 | Gross: $14.88M
25. But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)
R | 85 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A naive teenager is sent to rehab camp when her straitlaced parents and friends suspect her of being a lesbian.
Director: Jamie Babbit | Stars: Natasha Lyonne, Clea DuVall, Michelle Williams, Brandt Wille
Votes: 41,158 | Gross: $2.21M
26. American Pie (1999)
R | 95 min | Comedy
Four teenage boys enter a pact to lose their virginity by prom night.
Directors: Paul Weitz, Chris Weitz | Stars: Jason Biggs, Chris Klein, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Jennifer Coolidge
Votes: 433,449 | Gross: $102.56M
27. She's All That (1999)
PG-13 | 95 min | Comedy, Romance
A high school jock makes a bet that he can turn an unattractive girl into the school's prom queen.
Director: Robert Iscove | Stars: Freddie Prinze Jr., Rachael Leigh Cook, Matthew Lillard, Paul Walker
Votes: 103,741 | Gross: $63.37M
28. Never Been Kissed (1999)
PG-13 | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A newspaper reporter enrolls in high school as part of research for a story.
Director: Raja Gosnell | Stars: Drew Barrymore, David Arquette, Michael Vartan, Molly Shannon
Votes: 97,503 | Gross: $55.47M
29. Varsity Blues (1999)
R | 106 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A back-up quarterback is chosen to lead a Texas football team to victory after the star quarterback is injured.
Director: Brian Robbins | Stars: James Van Der Beek, Jon Voight, Paul Walker, Ron Lester
Votes: 49,024 | Gross: $52.89M
30. Drive Me Crazy (1999)
PG-13 | 91 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Nicole and Chase used to be BFFs, then junior high happened. The high school centennial dance is coming but Nicole gets dumped. So does Chase. They stage a relationship to get at their exes. They visit each other's worlds. Love in the air?
Director: John Schultz | Stars: Melissa Joan Hart, Adrian Grenier, Stephen Collins, Mark Metcalf
Votes: 21,280 | Gross: $17.85M
31. Jawbreaker (1999)
R | 86 min | Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Three of the most popular girls at Reagan High accidentally kill the prom queen with a jawbreaker when a kidnapping goes horribly wrong.
Director: Darren Stein | Stars: Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz, Alexandra Adi
Votes: 28,917 | Gross: $3.07M
32. The Virgin Suicides (1999)
R | 97 min | Drama, Romance
A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents in suburban Detroit in the mid 1970s.
Director: Sofia Coppola | Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, James Woods, Kathleen Turner
Votes: 169,046 | Gross: $4.86M
33. Detroit Rock City (1999)
R | 95 min | Adventure, Comedy, Music
In 1978, four rebellious teenagers try to scam their way into a KISS concert.
Director: Adam Rifkin | Stars: Edward Furlong, Giuseppe Andrews, James DeBello, Sam Huntington
Votes: 41,325 | Gross: $4.22M
34. Idle Hands (1999)
R | 92 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Horror
A teenage slacker's right hand becomes possessed with murderous intent.
Director: Rodman Flender | Stars: Devon Sawa, Seth Green, Elden Henson, Jessica Alba
Votes: 46,717 | Gross: $4.00M
35. Dick (1999)
PG-13 | 94 min | Comedy
After wandering off during a White House tour, two high school girls inadvertently become Richard Nixon's top secret advisers at the height of the Watergate scandal.
Director: Andrew Fleming | Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Michelle Williams, Dan Hedaya, Will Ferrell
Votes: 21,352 | Gross: $6.24M
36. Teaching Mrs. Tingle (1999)
PG-13 | 96 min | Comedy, Thriller
The story of a girl who is willing to do anything to become Valedictorian, even if it means murdering the teacher that stands in her way.
Director: Kevin Williamson | Stars: Helen Mirren, Marisa Coughlan, Katie Holmes, Jeffrey Tambor
Votes: 21,708 | Gross: $8.95M
37. Bring It On (2000)
PG-13 | 98 min | Comedy, Romance, Sport
A champion high school cheerleading squad discovers its previous captain stole all their best routines from an inner-city school and must scramble to compete at this year's championships.
Director: Peyton Reed | Stars: Kirsten Dunst, Eliza Dushku, Jesse Bradford, Gabrielle Union
Votes: 105,613 | Gross: $68.38M
38. Almost Famous (2000)
R | 122 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A high-school boy in the early 1970s is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone magazine about an up-and-coming rock band as he accompanies them on their concert tour.
Director: Cameron Crowe | Stars: Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, Kate Hudson, Frances McDormand
Votes: 293,195 | Gross: $32.53M
39. Final Destination (2000)
R | 98 min | Horror, Thriller
After getting a premonition about a plane crash on his school trip, Alex, a student saves a few of his classmates. However, their situation gets complicated when death starts chasing them.
Director: James Wong | Stars: Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Kristen Cloke
Votes: 279,228 | Gross: $53.33M
40. Whatever It Takes (2000)
PG-13 | 94 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A modern-day remake of the Cyrano DeBergerac tale.
Director: David Raynr | Stars: Shane West, Marla Sokoloff, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe, Manu Intiraymi
Votes: 11,990 | Gross: $8.74M
41. Donnie Darko (2001)
R | 113 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a man in a large rabbit suit who manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
Director: Richard Kelly | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone, Mary McDonnell, Holmes Osborne
Votes: 849,505 | Gross: $1.48M
42. The Princess Diaries (2001)
G | 115 min | Comedy, Family, Romance
Mia Thermopolis has just found out that she is the heir apparent to the throne of Genovia. With her friends Lilly and Michael Moscovitz in tow, she tries to navigate through the rest of her sixteenth year.
Director: Garry Marshall | Stars: Julie Andrews, Anne Hathaway, Hector Elizondo, Heather Matarazzo
Votes: 163,417 | Gross: $108.25M
43. Sugar & Spice (2001)
PG-13 | 81 min | Comedy, Crime
A popular high-school cheerleader becomes pregnant by the star quarterback and turns to crime to support her desired lifestyle.
Director: Francine McDougall | Stars: Marla Sokoloff, Marley Shelton, Melissa George, Mena Suvari
Votes: 15,322 | Gross: $13.28M
44. Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
R | 97 min | Comedy, Romance