The 10 Best Netflix Original Musicals (And Why ‘Emilia Pérez’ Didn’t Make the Cut)

Picture Credit: Netflix

Netflix has become a home for the modern musical, offering movies that’ll make a theater kid drool, family fare that’s going to be on your kids’ (or your) recurring Spotify rotation, holiday features, and Emilia Pérez.

Nevertheless, Netflix musicals have racked up love, Oscar wins and nominations, and global impact. But when it comes to the platform’s originals, which one hits all the right notes?

So here we go: here are the ten best original musical features on Netflix.

If you’re wondering why Emilia Pérez isn’t here—uh, because it’s bad. Possibly one of the worst musicals of the decade. Its entire awards run was a psy‑op. The ones on this list are better, further, faster, stronger, and decidedly less problematic. (The Prom might’ve made the cut if it weren’t for James Corden’s major screen time.)

It is a crime that The Lonely Island’s silly visual album starring Andy Samberg and Akiva Schaffer as the titular baseball stars Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire is only 30 minutes long. I needed ten more minutes. No, an hour. Nevertheless, it’s one of the best musical projects on the platform. I’m calling it a movie. You can’t stop me.

The Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience is a hysterical, psychedelic laugh riot that serves as a fun follow‑up to their masterpiece Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, packed with unforgettable tunes. I still crack up over Andy screaming “JOSE” and Schaffer’s nonchalant, “and I’m Mark.” Nothing will hit the serotonin highs of seeing Stephanie Beatriz, HAIM, and Maya Rudolph crossover to sing about IHOP and forcing the boys to shake their butts. Peak cinema.

Adam Sandler as a walking, talking, 50-something 5th-grade class lizard who becomes a moral compass to his students is such a charming little movie about growing up. Well, if you can move past the gross-out jokes and bizarre product placements. Yet, it has a positive cynicism that more films should strive for. Much of that is thanks to Robert Smigel and Sandler’s joint script and the silly tunes provided. Granted, none of them are particularly memorable, but the story and Sandler’s deep, crotchety voice coming out of this kind‑hearted lizard are so delightful that it barely matters.

Man—or, mane—it’s bizarre that a My Little Pony reboot pushed itself to tell a story about unity with themes of misinformation and bigotry, and somehow pulled it off staggeringly well. The shift from 2D to 3D animation might not be ideal, and the quality, while pretty and harmless, lacks a distinctive art style. But it’s well made up for in direction. Plus it’s funny, and the songs are good. I still get chills over the Trump‑like character Sprout’s (Ken Jeong, but with Alan Schmuckler’s singing voice) catchy fearmongering villain song. Either way, this one really goes to show friendship is magical.

Now we’re getting to the Oscar‑nominated stuff—far better than the previously mentioned. Starting with animation legend Glen Keane’s China‑set musical about a girl named Fei Fei in grief, who, alongside her stowaway soon-to-be step-brother Chin, travels to the moon to help the moon goddess reunite with her long‑lost love. The tunes are probably the weakest component, and the adventure beats lean heavily on narrative familiarity, but darn is it visually outstanding. The animation is absolutely breathtaking, whether it’s the earthly scenes of China or the fantastical world of Lunaria. Plus, you’ve got Broadway star Phillipa Soo as a moon goddess singing tunes, and Ken Jeong as a cute lil dog alien (a lot of Jeong roles on this list).

Arlo the Alligator Boy, about a swamp‑dwelling alligator-boy teen finding his family in NYC, is a sweet, sincere, really funny, and visually stunning 2D animated musical, and criminally underrated. Possibly one of the best productions that Titmouse has done in their repertoire. Its world of anthropomorphic animal‑human hybrids might be bizarre, but the tale of identity, found family, and belonging it weaves is deeply touching. Most importantly, the songs, penned by Alex Geringas and Ryan Crego—blending R&B and gospel with stellar vocals from Michael J. Woodard and Mary Lambert—are absolute bangers. I’ve been bumping a few of the tracks myself since 2021. If you haven’t seen it, I’d highly recommend it.

Think Muppet Christmas Carol meets The Greatest Showman. A greatest SNOWMAN, if you will. David E. Talbert’s Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey is a wonderful, Black‑led Christmas movie about newfound hope that spreads yuletide cheer with magical musical numbers full of rhythm and soul — thanks to John Legend and Philip Lawrence’s songwriting. From the African‑inspired set decor to the costuming and delightful performances from Forest Whitaker, Keegan‑Michael Key, and Madalen Mills (who should be in more movies), this story about a worn‑down toymaker finding his light again through his granddaughter is a new‑age classic that deserves to be celebrated more. The unified dancing choreography across the beautifully decorated sets is irresistibly joyful, and the sweet candy cane soul embedded in it will give you a cavity—in the best way possible.

The only movie you’ll ever see about a kinkajou ever. Before K‑Pop Demon Hunters took the world by storm, Vivo made the pioneering strum as the first Sony Pictures Animation musical—and like that film, in another life, it would’ve been a fantastic hit in theaters. Much like most films on this list, it’s another point‑A‑to‑point‑B adventure: a plucky domesticated kinkajou (voiced by and tunes from Lin‑Manuel Miranda, the latter being extremely stronger than the former) treks from Cuba to Miami to fulfill his late owner’s wish to bring a love song to his old flame, alongside a hyperactive tween in fresh grief. Yet it ties together some stellar, vibrant musical numbers and a few songs that’ll make you shed a tear or two. It’s vibrant, cinematic, and unbelievably gorgeous with soul.

Picture Credit: Netflix

There’s no reason why Matthew Warchus’s take on the Tim Minchin Broadway musical based on Roald Dahl’s classic, about a telekinetic girl taking down her totalitarianist-run school, should go as hard as it does. And yet, it does. It retains a sense of surrealism, absurdity, anarchy, and fun, as the source, topped off with magnificent performances: Lashawna Lynch as the sweet Miss Honey, Emma Thompson’s hilarious and terrifying Miss Trunchbull, and Alisha Weir in a star‑making turn as the titular lead. She’s full of power long before she became a ballerina vampire in Abigail. The choreography and direction pop with rare extravagance that few live‑action family musicals can capture. Just watch the “Revolting Children” sequence and you will be radicalized as hell.

Picture Credit: Netflix

The summer of 2025 was when Huntr/x and the Saja Boys took the world by storm. Adults, kids, and their parents all had KPDH fever—and who can blame them? Don’t look me in the eye and tell me every song from this didn’t live in your head rent‑free. “Golden,” “How It’s Done,” “Free,” “Your Idol”—nothing but banger after banger. It became the first Netflix animated feature to win an Oscar for Best Original Song, and it blows the hell out of the last time the streamer won in that category. Vibrant, colorful, exhilarating, inspiring, and laced with passionate love for Korean culture from front to back, this cultural phenomenon is an inspiring and riveting tale of identity, hot demons, and friendship—with silly iconic heroines slaying demons and being K-pop icons.

The first time Lin‑Manuel Miranda stepped behind a camera, he knocked it out of the park with his semi‑autobiographical Jonathan Larson musical adaptation. Anchored by a compelling and earth‑shattering musical performance from Andrew Garfield—wait, he can friggin’ sing?—landing him an Oscar nod in the process, Miranda beautifully breathes a surreal vision of NYC mixed with a groundedness in the everyday struggle of a dreamer pursuing their passion. The moment “30/90” kicks off the film, you know you’re in for a ride that never stops, becoming increasingly visually eye‑popping with each musical number. It may be way too inside‑baseball for some—it’s a real theater person’s movie—but nevertheless, it’s one of the best musicals released this decade and the best the streamer has to offer. It should’ve gotten the Best Picture nom over Don’t Look Up.

Picture Credit: Netflix

That’s our picks – what are yours?