Ranking The Mary-Kate And Ashley Movies From "Nothing Special" To "Cinematic Genius"

Our favorite twin child actors starred in so many movies, but it's time to find out which one is the best.

I grew up in the age of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen's stardom.

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From their start playing baby Michelle on Full House, all the way to their New York Minute, the Olsen Twins were a household name, an empire, a lovable duo. There were books, movies, TV shows, dolls (I LOVED THE DOLLS!), and multiple fan websites. However, these movies were the true stars. I watched and rewatched them so many times, including in my first year of university when my friend and I would get Mountain Dew and Laffy Taffy and make our way through them during the holidays. (Shout out to you, friend.)

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But the time has come to pick favorites. There's zero method to my madness here, but after a childhood as an Olsen twins mega-fan, I feel qualified to declare a ranking. You'll notice I didn't include the first four movies featuring the Olsen Twins (To Grandmother's House We Go, Double, Double Toil and Trouble, How the West Was Fun, and, of course, It Takes Two). To me, these always existed in a league of their own. It Takes Two is arguably the best movie they've ever made. The others are cutesy kids movies as opposed to tween/teen ones. The movies below are...special. You know they're not "good movies," but the joy they bring is unparalleled.

So, without further ado, here's the official ranking of Olsen twins movies:

10. New York Minute

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Look, something had to come last. The one that felt least like a "classic MK & A" was it. So. This movie. Studious Jane is trying to get to New York to give an important speech and rebellious Roxy is skipping school to go to a Simple Plan music video shoot. While being chased by a truancy officer, they get caught up in some dubious movie pirating scheme. It just doesn't feel like peak Olsen twins, and I'm not sorry to place it last.

Redeeming Factors? Some quality quotes, excellent teen heartthrobs as the twins' love interest, and the quirky animal-turned-sidekick.

Dooming Factors? I mean, points for the bonkers storyline, but this feels more like a buddy cop comedy film than a cringeworthy teen flick.

9. When in Rome

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Don't get me wrong, I love the storyline. The twins are doing a summer internship at a fashion house in Roma. It's every teen's dream. But — and I'll be brutally honest here — literally every character, other than those played by MK & A, is abysmal. From the cheesy Australian billionaire business mogul who whisks his intern supervisor and two fired interns away to his beach house, to the evil Mr. Tortellini, who was always jealous of his boss, to mean girl Heidi, to sleazy Paolo. Replace all the other characters and maybe, just maybe, this movie might have cracked the top five.

Redeeming Factors? The cute outfits, ROME, and the not-at-all-bizarre situation in which teen interns get to design and run a fashion shoot. Sure.

Dooming Factors? Paolo, Heidi...every character but the twins and maaaaaybe Jamie.

8. Our Lips Are Sealed

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Another wacky premise that, like New York Minute, feels more like a buddy cop comedy than a MK & A classic. Blabbermouth twins who are desperate to be popular witness a crime and have to go into witness protection, but they keep blowing their cover and moving cities until they finally end up in Sydney, Australia. But come on, it feels like a mega-goofy movie compared to the cheesy teen "romances" that are higher up on this list. The whole school hunting them down after they ruined the cheerleading pyramid, the weird mafia guys, the Sheilas, the goofy chase sequence...it's just too much. Maybe Australia was an "exotic" overseas location if you were from the States or the UK, but when you're from New Zealand (neighbor to Aussie), it's nothing exciting.

Redeeming Factors? Their pet kangaroo, the superb sequence in which the twins try to impress the Aussies and eat a spoon of Vegemite, and the AMAZING retro outfits the twins wear to the yacht party.

Dooming Factors? Literally everything above, but particularly the two bad guys who chase the girls to Sydney, the chase sequences, and the annoying spoiled brat mean girl.

7. Switching Goals

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I like this one as much as the next Olsen Twins fan, but some of them have to go at the bottom of the heap. The twins switch places so that soccer star Sam can be coached by her sports-obsessed Dad while loathes-sports Emma joins the "loser" team. With the worse-than-Comic-Sans opening credits font, the creepy funeral home guy, and the subpar dad, this one just doesn't make the top five cut. Admittedly, I'm starting to question why I did this whole ranking thing because I love them all, but they all make me cringe in a big big way. 

Redeeming Factors? The excellent scene where the twins switch places multiple times so that Sam can talk to her crush Greg and totally mess it up. Best scene of the movie.

Dooming Factors? I'm sorry, but the dad just is a big jerk. He switches his twins out so he can coach his athletic child and avoid spending time with the one with whom he has nothing in common. Not cool, dude. Also, he's totally sexist.

6. Holiday in the Sun

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Grab some snacks, I have a lot to say about this one. I know what you're thinking: how did THIS rank this high? Because let's face it, if the storyline of Our Lips Are Sealed is wacky, then this movie is straight up bonkers. Mega-rich (obvs) twins are whisked away on their family's private plane to the Bahamas for winter break (boohoo we didn't get to go to Hawaii with our friends) and somehow get tangled up with an antiquities smuggling situation. There's a terrible love triangle. They go on waterslides a lot. Parents try to be cool. There's swimming with dolphins. This movie also has jail, a boat chase, a weird chase of criminal around the island, terrible jokes, and the world's best date followed by grossest date. It's whack, okay. BUT...

Redeeming Factors? Oh hells yeah. Let me preface this by saying that the majority of the redeeming factors are also heavily responsible for making this movie almost laughably terrible: Megan Fox is the ultimate mean girl (she has some SUPERB lines), the TERRIBLE, and I mean TERRIBLE, sequences in which the twins fight about having your cake and eating it too and making your bed and then having to sleep in it, the excellent soundtrack, and the gorgeous setting. But, the ultimate terrible/redeeming factor of this movie: Jordan's love song to Alex with accompanying montage after they've known each other for, LIKE, TWO OR THREE DAYS is hysterical.

Dooming Factors? Casual cultural appropriation. The twins' family friend is creepily obsessed with one of them: "Everyone has a hobby, right? You're mine." CREEP ALERT.

5. The Challenge

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*Cue theme music* I don't know what it is about this one, because while it obviously has its cheesy and crappy elements, I've always liked it. Estranged twins — one competitive and academic, the other a hippie yogi — end up on the same team on a game show vying to win college scholarships. They can't stop fighting and both find VERY cheesy love interests, one of whom proclaims that Lizzie is his first love (!!!). Truly, it's equal parts cringe and good, because the estranged twin story line actually really works in this.

Redeeming Factors? The game show element is fun, the barnyard animals are cute, the setting is gorgeous, the montage at the end with clips from their past movies is nostalgic. The cheesiness is both dooming and redeeming.

Dooming Factors? It's let down by the super weird ending in which past love interests show up and start fighting over the twins, who then run off on the beach into the sunset. 'Kay.

4. Getting There

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The twins are ready for an adventure! Off on their first road trip with friends to see the Winter Olympics, the twins encounter many a bump in the road. There's a Vegas Elvis-officiated wedding, an orange juice king, the classic ditzy friend, way too many conversations about the gray area and whether gray is a color, and a friend named Toast. But honestly, once again, there's something about this one that's great.

Redeeming Factors? Two sweet couples get together, annoying Sam gets put in his place, and there's snow sports. What's not to love?

Dooming Factors? Danny (and, like, everyone else) is super mean to Toast. They made Lyndi toooo ditzy. Sam wouldn't take no for an answer. "Sam, we're parking. Not driving." TOO MUCH.

3. Billboard Dad

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If you're surprised that this is so close to the top, the door is over there. THIS is peak Olsen Twins. The twins want their widowed father to be happy again, so they put a personal ad on a billboard to try to find him a date. WHAT COULD GO WRONG? From the '90s style — hello, colored-tinted sunnies — to the ridiculous Nigel, there's so much to love about this movie. It's heartwarming because it's about making their dad happy, and it brings together two souls and families. Sorry, that was too cheesy even for me. Still, I stand by this ranking.

Redeeming Factors? SO MANY. Nigel. The scene where the girls tip a bucket of water on their pseudo-stepbrother. The excellent espionage scene in which the girls and their friends catch Nigel making knockoffs of their dad's art AND THEN expose him with a terrible rap at the art party.

Dooming Factors? One of the twins has a crush on their diving coach — let's not glamorize inappropriate relationships. Also Nigel.

2. Passport to Paris

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*Doo do doo do, doo do doo do, doo do doo do* If you can't hear the theme music, you haven't watched this enough. I will stand by the ranking of this movie until the day I die, so don't even bother fighting me on it.

"Barbara: Look, I know your grandpa's not great with you girls...
Melanie: Mom, that's like saying the Titanic's not great with icebergs.

Friend of Aly & Melanie: She was totally edging on my squeeze, so I dinged her with a bounce-bounce in the numbers lab."

HOW CAN YOU NOT LOVE THIS MOVIE WHEN IT HAS THIS QUALITY DIALOGUE?! HOW?!

Okay, my strong feels about the EXCELLENT writing of this movie aside, it's quality MK & A. They get shipped off to Paris to spend spring break with their ambassador-to-France grandpa but end up getting chaperoned around Paris by his boring assistant. It's a major snooze fest, so they sneak off with two cute French boys, meet a French supermodel, order fish instead of Cola, and go on many an adventure. It has EVERYTHING you need for a good, old-fashioned MK & A movie, including a shopping montage, cheesy lines, multiple love interests, and many a JINX moment.

Redeeming Factors? When the twins get the fancy French chef to try McDonald's. Boring Jeremy finding love. The twins actually using something they learned in history class at home and during their time in Paris to get some important French guy to listen to their grandpa. When Grandpa decides to come back to the States for a holiday to actually get to know his granddaughters. One of the French boys trying to impersonate both French girls and American girls. THE DIALOGUE.

Dooming Factors? Too many spit takes. Also, the trip to Paris is about the parents trying to get their daughters to learn that there's more to life than socializing and shopping...yeah, I want my kids to be less spoiled and superficial, so I send them to Europe for spring break.

1. And finally, Winning London

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If you're surprised...well, don't be. In Winning London, competitive Chloe Lawrence and her Model UN team get selected to go to London to compete in a big Model United Nations competition, and her easygoing sister Riley has to fill one of the spots. There's drama, there's love, there's diplomacy. It's SUBLIME. I won't budge on this. Here's why:

1. EXCELLENT style. The checkered pants and coats. The wacky shopping montage also features some quality outfits.

2. The mega-cringe James Bond-esque scene in which Riley and crush Brian rescue some of the other Model UN kids from a hostage situation (obvs part of the Model UN contest). Cue the too-cheesy scene in which the kids slide down a laundry chute as part of the escape.

3. The twins dress up as boys to get into a male-only fancy pants club to see Chloe's crush.

4. The numerous visits to the Peter Pan statue in Hyde Park. And the rest of the iconic London scenery.

5. The amazingly awful dance party where Riley teaches her crush to dance and then gets cheated out of a slow dance with him.

6. The twins play polo on horseback. Hilarity ensues.

7. The number of times we hear, "I play to win."

8. That a young Jesse Spencer (from Chicago Fire and House) is Chloe's love interest.

9. The teachers being named Mr. Holmes and Miss Watson.

10. The soundtrack is fabulous.

I'm sure there are so many other wonderful things about this movie, because it's AMAZING. Why don't you rewatch it yourself to find out?

Dooming Factors? None. Zip. Zero.

Warner Bros.

There you have it. We got there. I 100% stand by these rankings, except for the fact that ranking any of them out of the top five made me feel like I was abandoning cute puppies. These movies are all unique, cringeworthy, cheesy, awful, and amazing in their own ways. That's what's so wonderful about them. The Olsen twins were iconic, and a crucial part of my childhood (and many others'). These movies, I believe, stand the test of time. They're wholesome and silly, and, let's face it, made just so the twins could live out their dreams. Who can fault them for that? If you need a feel-good movie that will make you forget about real life, there's 10 whole movies of ridiculousness just waiting for you.

And yes, Winning London is the best and always will be. End of story.