Movies Like Up for bittersweet adventures and unlikely friendships
Bittersweet animated adventures about grief, second chances, and unlikely travel companions.
Bittersweet animated adventures about grief, second chances, and unlikely travel companions.
Best first watch
Onward (2020)
95% fit102 min · IMDb 7.4 · RT 88%
Like the seed film, Dan Scanlon's story turns grief into motion. Ian and Barley's quest is a bittersweet animated adventure built on second chances, family regret, and a road trip that lets unlikely travel companions grow closer through jokes, setbacks, and small acts of courage. The suburban fantasy setting keeps it family-safe, while the ending lands with the same warm ache.
Watch if
Watch if you want sibling banter, fantasy road trips, and grief handled gently.
Skip if
Skip if quest movies with lots of worldbuilding feel too busy tonight.
For you if
- You want adventure stories that carry real sadness and real warmth.
- You enjoy unlikely duos who bicker, bond, and change each other.
- You need family movies that keep adults emotionally invested.
Not for you if
- You want wall-to-wall action with very little downtime.
- You prefer broad comedy without grief or tender moments.
- You need strictly gentle stories with almost no peril.
How Up (2009) alternatives compare
Pick Onward if you want the strongest grief thread and the clearest second-chance payoff. Choose Abominable for a softer, scenic journey that still hits tenderly. Missing Link is the breeziest odd-couple trip, while Bolt delivers the quickest laughs and the simplest get-home plot. Go with How to Train Your Dragon when you want the biggest action, the widest world, and a friendship story that lifts off fast.
How hard it hits emotionally
Most tearful
Adventure scale
Quest across town
Comedy level
Banter-heavy
Fantasy creature factor
Magic everywhere
How hard it hits emotionally
Light ache
Adventure scale
World tour
Comedy level
Dry and chatty
Fantasy creature factor
Mythic oddball
How hard it hits emotionally
Warm separation
Adventure scale
Cross-country chase
Comedy level
Big cartoon laughs
Fantasy creature factor
Barely fantasy
How hard it hits emotionally
Quietly moving
Adventure scale
Mountain-spanning trek
Comedy level
Gentle laughs
Fantasy creature factor
Magical yeti trip
How hard it hits emotionally
Big heart
Adventure scale
Sky-high epic
Comedy level
Action with jokes
Fantasy creature factor
Dragons everywhere
Not sure what to watch?
Date night
How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
It mixes sweet character growth, playful flirting, and soaring flight scenes without getting too heavy.
Quick watch
Its brisk runtime, clear quest, and steady joke rhythm make it easy for a weeknight.
Friend group
The fast pace and big laugh sidekicks give a group plenty to react to together.
Find your pick
Would you rather watch a gentle, heart-led journey than a louder adventure built on action or comedy?
Moments you loved
Best movies like Up (2009)
1. Onward (2020)
102 min · IMDb 7.4 · RT 88%
Like the seed film, Dan Scanlon's story turns grief into motion. Ian and Barley's quest is a bittersweet animated adventure built on second chances, family regret, and a road trip that lets unlikely travel companions grow closer through jokes, setbacks, and small acts of courage. The suburban fantasy setting keeps it family-safe, while the ending lands with the same warm ache.
Watch if
Watch if you want sibling banter, fantasy road trips, and grief handled gently.
Skip if
Skip if quest movies with lots of worldbuilding feel too busy tonight.
Where to watch
2. Missing Link (2019)
94 min · IMDb 6.7 · RT 88%
This one leans more playful, yet it still fits the bittersweet animated adventure lane through loneliness and the need to belong. Chris Butler pairs Sir Lionel Frost, Mr. Susan Link, and Adelina Fortnight as unlikely travel companions, then lets the journey become a second chance at friendship and self-respect. The stop-motion look gives the globe-trotting quest a handcrafted storybook feel.
Watch if
Watch if you want witty banter and a family-safe odd-couple adventure.
Skip if
Skip if you prefer stronger emotional stakes than globe-trotting comedy.
Where to watch
3. Bolt (2008)
98 min · IMDb 6.8 · RT 90%
Like the seed film, this adventure starts with a lonely lead who has to cross a huge distance with company he never expected. Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino become unlikely travel companions in a fast, family-safe animated adventure about separation, trust, and second chances. Chris Williams and Byron Howard keep the pace snappy, with emotion carried through character banter and a clear get-home structure.
Watch if
Watch if you want fast laughs, talking animals, and a simple cross-country mission.
Skip if
Skip if cartoon chaos and broad gags wear you out quickly.
Where to watch
4. Abominable (2019)
97 min · IMDb 7.0 · RT 83%
Yi's trip with Everest gets very close to the page angle. Grief sits right at the center, and the movie turns that pain into a bittersweet animated adventure where unlikely travel companions slowly heal each other on the road. Jill Culton keeps the feeling gentle and family-safe, using wide mountain views and music to make the second-chance journey feel calm, hopeful, and personal.
Watch if
Watch if you want gentle healing, scenic travel, and a sweet creature friend.
Skip if
Skip if you want sharper jokes or higher-stakes action beats.
Where to watch
5. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
98 min · IMDb 8.1 · RT 99%
This one trades road-trip comedy for bigger action, but it still runs on grief, second chances, and an unlikely bond formed during adventure. Hiccup and Toothless feel like deeply mismatched travel companions as they learn to trust each other in secret, while the father-son conflict gives the story a bittersweet pull. Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders build a faster, more sweeping world without losing the family-safe heart.
Watch if
Watch if you want bigger action, soaring flight, and earned friendship.
Skip if
Skip if battle scenes sound too intense for your family night.
Where to watch
Beyond movies
TV shows and books that scratch the same itch
Hilda
This is a family adventure series built around a curious kid and the people she gathers around her as she keeps wandering into strange new places. Like Up, it mixes gentle sadness, warmth, and discovery, with a strong focus on lonely characters finding connection and home through travel.
Netflix
Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts
This fits the animated family adventure hub through its colorful quest structure, funny creature encounters, and kid-friendly energy that still gives adults real emotional stakes. It shares Up's love of unlikely companions on the road, and it keeps returning to loss, rebuilding, and second chances.
Netflix
Over the Garden Wall
This is an animated adventure about two mismatched travelers moving through a series of strange stops, guided by grief, fear, and the hope of getting home. It matches Up through bittersweet feeling, oddball travel companions, and the way emotional healing hides inside a whimsical journey.
Hulu
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
by Kate DiCamillo
This is a family adventure built around loss, love, and learning how to keep going after heartbreak. Like Up, it mixes sadness with wonder, and follows an unlikely traveler through a series of encounters that gradually open his heart.
Available at major bookstores
Common questions about movies like Up (2009)
What is the best movie like Up (2009)?
Based on our analysis, Onward (2020) is the closest match with a 95% fit score. See the full breakdown above for why it earned the top spot.
Which of these works best if kids and adults are watching together?
Bolt and Abominable are the easiest all-ages crowd-pleasers here. They have clear goals, bright humor, and friendly creature energy. Missing Link also plays well with adults, since Chris Butler adds drier jokes and a fussier period-adventure setup.
Which one should I avoid if grief feels too close right now?
Onward and Abominable put loss right in the center, and both can hit hard in different ways. How to Train Your Dragon brings more battle danger and father-son conflict. Bolt and Missing Link stay lighter if you want family-safe adventure with less raw sadness.
What should I pick if I want to end the night feeling hopeful?
Abominable is the gentlest lift. Its mountain journey, music, and growing trust leave you with a calm, warm afterglow. How to Train Your Dragon also ends on a strong upswing, especially if you want triumph mixed with real emotional change.
Which is easiest for a tired weeknight, and which needs more focus?
Missing Link is the quickest sit with a clean, brisk rhythm, and Bolt is easy to drop into because the get-home plot is so simple. Onward asks you to track fantasy rules and family emotion, while How to Train Your Dragon rewards fuller attention during its action and world setup.
Which one is the funniest, and which leans most heartfelt?
Bolt is the loudest laugh machine, thanks to Rhino, Mittens, and Bolt's total certainty that he has powers. Onward and Abominable lean more heartfelt because grief and family memory shape the whole trip. Missing Link sits in the middle with polished banter and a lighter emotional touch.
Where should I start if I want the closest match to this bittersweet animated adventure mood?
Start with Onward. It puts grief, second chances, and a quest structure right up front, so it fits the page angle immediately. If you want something softer after that, move to Abominable, then save How to Train Your Dragon for the biggest action jump.
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