Family spy act has iffy behavior, peril, and potty humor.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 9+?
Any Positive Content?
Violence & Scariness
a lot
Classic cartoon violence, including fistfights, heavy objects dropping on characters, and falls from great heights. Lead characters are often in danger, chased by villains on foot, motorbikes, and cars. Villains use laser weapons. Lincoln gets hit by a tranquilizer dart. One villain has a hammer for a hand and hits people with it. Lincoln and Gran-Gran fall off a cliff. The siblings bicker a lot. Running gags where kids accidentally break things or hurt the same side character repeatedly. In one scene, a driver isn't looking at the road and runs over pedestrians. The sisters have specially designed weapons, including explosive flower petals. In the climax, Lincoln decides to sacrifice himself by separating from his family, which may upset some viewers. It briefly appears that a character has died, and another character makes a joke about bringing coffins.
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Lincoln owns merchandise from fictional comic book secret agent spy "David Steele" but ends up selling it to help his family. Characters vacation in a resort where there are recurring gags on extra charges for services. Hotel is managed by Flip Phillipini's relative, who shares his greedy characteristics. Clyde and Lincoln use Google-inspired "Gooblie" for internet searches.
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
a little
Lincoln uses playful language to make an order at the hotel bar. The bartender hands him ice cream but uses cocktail shakers to prepare it. Characters claim they bought drinks for Gran-Gran in her bachelorette party. Multiple characters are seen holding cocktail glasses or drinking from coconut shells. While doing karaoke, a character claims the robot has had enough of singing, to which he responds, "I can stop whenever I want." In the credits, the robot is shown in a pose mimicking a drunk man holding a can of oil.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.
Grandpa and Gran-Gran are engaged and act lovey-dovey to each other. In a scene where Gran-Gran pretends to sleep, Grandpa says she needs energy for their "cuddle under the stars." During the wedding ceremony, they share a smooch. In a fight, a villain loses his cargo shorts, revealing his underwear. A side character "likes" a photo of themselves nearly kissing a man on social media.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.
Strong themes of family and supporting each other. Family always sticks together and no one goes at it alone. Lincoln learns that being a hero is "about more than gadgets" and takes sacrifice-making tough choices even if you don't like them.
Positive Role Models
a little
Characters are loud and have big personalities. Most have self-serving tendencies, laser-focused on their own desires and interests, at times acting oblivious to others' needs and space. Main character Lincoln is brave and loyal. He makes wrong decisions trying to help his family, redeeming himself through sacrifice in the end. Lincoln and Gran-Gran share a loving and nurturing bond filled with admiration. Like in the series, some sibling rivalry is played for laughs. Unlike in the series, parents are around more often.
Diverse Representations
a little
Gran-Gran is a skilled secret agent spy, breaking age and gender stereotypes. Her boss is a strong Black woman. Lincoln's best friend Clyde has gay dads but they aren't allotted much screen time. All characters in the family are White, and the sisters' personalities are one-dimensional, leaning into tropes like science nerd, comic relief, dark and depressed. Characters eventually learn to appreciate their differences and unique abilities. Villains are judged based on physical appearance.
Parents need to know that No Time to Spy: A Loud House Movie is a TV movie based on The Loud HouseTV series, following the Loud family as they embark on a spy mission. The family dynamic remains true to the series: boisterous and bickering, yet also close-knit and loyal. Unlike the show's usual focus on everyday family life, the movie shifts to exciting external conflicts. Main character Lincoln's (voiced by Bentley Griffin) fascination with another character's past as a spy leads to decisions that put him and the family in danger. Expect cartoonish fistfights, thrilling high-speed chases, punching, and falling from great heights. While fans will find the extreme scenarios familiar, newcomers might be surprised by the characters' self-absorption and disregard for others' safety. But the Loud family kids—led by their parents—eventually team up to find strength in working together, recognizing the value in one another's unique skills and abilities. Situations where comedy is tailored for adults include nods to spy films like No Time to Die andreferences to bachelorette parties and high prices. Bathroom humor, a staple of the series, also makes an appearance, but language is mild, mostly variations of "butt" and "dang." While the ending is heartwarming, it does include a moment of parent-child separation that could be unsettling for more sensitive kids.
I wanted to sit with my 7 yrs old son and enjoy some father son time. This was another boring, "the women characters do all the heavy lifting and thinking, while the men are just there to be bumbling useless oafs OR EVIL henchmen. Or gay. These are just a chore to watch anymore. I was happy to see my son fast forwarding thru all the "girl power" stuff and l watch the parts that he could identify with. Unfortunately when his favorite character was on screen, it was just that character, again, being a useless clumsy failure. Alot of the "comedy" was just the girl characters ridiculing and mocking the male characters. My son doesn't really notice this stuff at least consciously. So we finished it, and at the mid point the narrative kinda course corrects and it was much more fun from there out.
In NO TIME TO SPY: A LOUD HOUSE MOVIE, Lincoln (voiced by Bentley Griffin) loves spy stories and is excited to welcome Gran-Gran, Myrtle (Alex Cazares), into the family. He can't wait to hear about her past as a secret agent. During Grandpa's (Piotr Michael) wedding retreat, Lincoln tries to show off his own spy skills but ends up finding trouble with Myrtle's old enemy, who captures his Gran-Gran-to-be. Now, the Loud family must come together to form an elite spy squad and rescue her.
True to the family name, the third movie based on The Loud Houseseries is a fun but flawed addition to the series, best enjoyed by those already familiar with the Loud family's tricks. As it turns up the volume on violence and bathroom jokes—to the point of feeling excessive for the target audience—No Time to Spy: A Loud House Movie remains remarkably faithful to the series' tone and style, featuring an intrinsic plot that leads to a heartwarming climax on the power of family and sacrifice. While the movie will entertain fans and even make critics chuckle a few times, it misses the opportunity to do more when it comes to breaking stereotypes. Gran-Gran's strength as a super spy is overshadowed by her desire to settle and have a family. Clyde is once again given a small role. The Loud sisters are still bickering and one-dimensional. Lincoln, on the other hand, may be at his most selfless.
Recurring gags using a toilet plunger to suck people's faces and scenes where a driver runs over pedestrians because he's not paying attention might be funny to some but feel extreme and out of place. This movie is good for fans of the franchise who understand its humor; for newcomers, the balance between quirkiness and hostility may lean too heavily toward the latter.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Lincoln's character journey. In his desire to be a secret agent, he was laser-focused on action and gadgets and ended up in dangerous situations. What does he learn in the end? Notice how Lincoln's heroism comes through in his decision to protect his family instead of fighting villains.
Other characters show a lack of concern for the well-being of others. Can you recall some of their actions that might not have been nice in real life?
Gran-Gran is a successful spy who also wants to have a family. Talk about how, historically, these two things were not considered possible for women. Are there examples of women in your circle who are breaking barriers?
While Lincoln admires Gran-Gran, he doesn't always listen to her advice. What could Lincoln have learned from her, and what can your kids learn from elders in their lives?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
By Fernanda Camargo
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
