Every The Lonely Island Movie, Ranked

The Lonely Island, comprised of Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer, injected fresh life in Saturday Night Live when they were hired for the 2005 season. Just their second SNL Digital Short, “Lazy Sunday,” set the internet ablaze. It is often pointed at as the primary reason why YouTube is the powerhouse it is today. Many of their other Digital Shorts, including “Threw It on the Ground,” “I Just Had Sex,” I’m on a Boat,” “J**z in My Pants,” “Like a Boss,” and “Great Day” were also either hysterical, bangers, or a combination of the two. And, while the trio (well, really, just Taccone and Schaffer) haven’t directed many movies, they have helmed a few and, for the most part, they’re nearly as good as their best shorts.

To qualify for this list, the movie had to have been directed by either Taccone or Schaffer. Samberg has not directed, save for a few shorts and an episode of Between Two Ferns, all of which he co-directed with the other two. Also, Extreme Movie was excluded because, even though a vignette was written by Taccone, Samberg, and Schaffer, it’s just one vignette, not the entire film.

7) The Watch

This is the only entry on the list that feels like a director for hire movie. None of The Lonely Island’s idiosyncratic appeal is here. The end result that is The Watch was far from worth the headache it took to release it. This Schaffer film was initially titled Neighborhood Watch, but after the February 2012 shooting of Trayvon Martin, the marketing team had to go into damage control mode. The strategy was a title change and to reveal its hook. Specifically, that it’s actually an alien invasion movie.

The whole alien angle is one of the movie’s big problems. On one hand, it wants to be a laugh-a-minute comedy starring Zoolander‘s Ben Stiller, Superbad‘s Jonah Hill, Wedding Crasher‘s Vince Vaughn, and The IT Crowd. So, it has a few raunchy dialogue exchanges. Then it turns into a goofy alien movie and tries to keep that R-rated nature steady. It just doesn’t gel.

Stream The Watch with a Starz Apple TV Channel subscription.

6) The Naked Gun

2025’s The Naked Gun placing so low on the list should not be seen as an indictment of its quality as much as it is a signal that the rest of The Lonely Island’s filmography is so, so good. As it stands, The Naked Gun is fun, funny in spots, and not much more. And in 2025, that’s an unfortunate rarity when it comes to theatrical releases.

Liam Neeson fills Leslie Nielsen’s deadpan shoes better that one might have expected, but it’s really Pamela Anderson who steals the show here. Schaffer’s tight direction also deserves a shout-out. He understood what made the original film such a breezy classic and does well diversifying what types of humor the audience sees so it never becomes one note.

5) Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers

Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers is, thus far, the only kids movie to feature involvement from the entire The Lonely Island trio. Taccone voices the DCEU’s Batman (And other roles), Schaffer directed and voiced E.T. (And other roles), and Samberg voices Dale.

It’s a fun nostalgia fest, with a fun Who Framed Roger Rabbit-style mixture of live action and animation (Roger Rabbit himself even pops up at one point). Many reviewers pointed that it was essentially the antithesis of Space Jam: A New Legacy. And that’s very fair, as it revives a long-dormant property in ways that feel inventive and reference plenty of popular culture standouts without seeming like a gratuitous cash grab with no script.

Stream Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers on Disney+.

4) Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

It may have been a big financial flop, not unlike the next entry on this list, but Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is nonetheless the most important entry in The Lonely Island’s filmography. It also features a soundtrack that is every bit as hilarious and memorable as their work on SNL. “I’m So Humble,” “Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song),” “Mona Lisa,” “Hunter the Hungry Is Gon’ Eat,” “Things in My Jeep,” and “Incredible Thoughts” are all, well, incredible.

Popstar only ranks lower than a few other entries because it isn’t as consistently laugh-out-loud funny as two of the others and isn’t as moving as the third. Were someone to go into the comments and say it’s The Lonely Island’s best film they wouldn’t be wrong about that, and not just in an “Everybody has their opinion and all opinions are right for the one expressing them” kind of way.

Rent Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping on Amazon Video.

3) Hot Rod

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping may be the film that serves as the best representation of who The Lonely Island are, but Hot Rod is still their most important film. It also shows just how popular the trio got how quickly. Schaffer, Taccone, and Samberg were only with SNL a year before they got the chance to break into Hollywood. Lorne Michaels saw a ton in them, put an equally large amount of faith in them, and the box office receipts just didn’t match that talent, potential, and faith.

But, in time, Hot Rod has become the ultra-quotable cult classic it was always going to become. Samberg’s central character, Rod Kimble, may be an idiot whose ultimate goal is to save then fight his stepfather, but he’s a lovable idiot. And, alongside Samberg’s endearing work at the center, this is also a movie that coasts on note-perfect supporting performances. Taccone, Isla Fisher, Danny McBride (who was also very fresh on the scene at the time), Bill Hader (who has an amazing scene involving LSD and a shard of metal), Will Arnett, Ian McShane, and Sissy Spacek are all here to play ball. Toss in a wonderful Footloose reference and the popularization of the phrase “Cool beans” and Hot Rod is a treat.

Stream Hot Rod on Kanopy.

2) MacGruber

Cinematic adaptations of Saturday Night Live sketches usually don’t pan out. For every The Blues Brothers there are three Coneheads. Taccone’s MacGruber is without a doubt towards the top of the heap. If it weren’t for Wayne’s World it would be the very best. And, for those who are on Will Forte’s wavelength, it often beats even that Mike Myers and Dana Carvey fronted ’90s classic. It’s endlessly quotable, but we fully admit that it’s a love-it-or-hate-it type of comedy. You are either on its dumb, celery-up-the-butt wavelength or you’re not, full stop.

The film also has the late Val Kilmer playing a character named Dieter von Cunth, which is in and of itself hilarious. But it’s the way his character is killed that is even better. His character’s send-off is full-on gratuity, and it couldn’t be better. Speaking of gratuity, now is the time to get to the best part of MacGruber (outside KFBR392, if you know you know). Exceeding even Top Gun, with “Take My Breath Away” by Berlin playing over it, this film has the best sex scene ever committed to celluloid. Well, pair of sex scenes. Plenty of credit should also be given to Taccone for taking his and Forte’s (and John Solomon’s) MacGruber sketches, which typically ran for about three minutes and were split into three parts, and turning that into a 90-minute movie. Sure, it wasn’t easy to turn the Wayne’s World sketches into a movie, either, but it had to have been even more difficult for MacGruber. There was basically no basis for a narrative there outside MacGruber being an awful, awful human being. Also give the Peacock series a shot, too. It was unfairly passed over and is a treat for fans.

Rent MacGruber on Amazon Video.

1) Honorable Mention: Palm Springs

Unlike Extreme Movie, Brigsby Bear, or I Used to Go Here, Palm Springs genuinely feels like a product of The Lonely Island, even if it wasn’t actually directed by a member of The Lonely Island. So, it gets an honorable mention spot. But the honorable mention placement is fortuitous, because it definitely has a fair claim to the number one spot.

As Nyles, a man trapped in a Groundhog Day-style time loop, Samberg is fully convincing and humorous in a way unusual for him. He’s playing a depressed, struggling character here and he makes Nyles’ frustration and ultimately defeatist look at his situation fully understandable. The film also benefits from a strong narrative, giving the characters meaningful (And often heartbreaking) interactions with one another that allows you to get to know them as people, not archetypes. But as great as the script and Samberg are, this is Cristin Milioti’s movie. As Sarah Wilder, who gets dragged into the time loop, she displays just about every emotion known to humankind and knocks them all out of the park. Groundhog Day may be seen as the ultimate time loop movie, but Palm Springs gives it a serious run for its money in the quality department.

Stream Palm Springs on Hulu.

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