If you’re wondering why ‘Spy Kids’ was just added to the National Film Registry, we can no longer be friends

1990s and 2000s family-friendly movies were something else… and by that, I mean they were the most enjoyable and heartwarming films ever made. That includes Robert Rodriguez’s instant classic Spy Kids, the 2001 release that has finally gotten the attention it deserves.

Spy Kids is now in the National Film Registry. Yay! Discussing Film explained that these movies “have cultural or historic importance.”

For many, this is still Alexa PenaVega’s best role. Okay, so the Thumb-Thumbs were super weird, but let’s forget about those for a second. PenaVega and Daryl Samara star as Carmen and Juni Cortez, siblings on a mission to find their parents, who are real spies who have been abducted. Although that might seem like a brutal and intense storyline for a kid’s movie, it’s pretty tame for Robert Rodriguez (El Mariachi, Machete, From Dusk Till Dawn). Luckily those Thumb-Thumbs were involved, so that adds some levity and goofiness to the whole deal.

I’ll be the first to admit I was a bit of a scaredy-cat as a child. It took me a while to get used to the loud, booming noise of the movie theater. But once I started going, I loved the magical experience (and, let’s be real, the popcorn). I was 11 when Spy Kids came out, and it’s the perfect movie because it’s all about adventure, but it’s not so terrifying that you have nightmares for a week. The film absolutely needed to be added to the National Film Registry, because it made so many of us want to save the day, help others, and take on a compelling challenge. Sure, it might look like a silly little movie at first glance, but it’s so much more than that, and it had a positive message that you can do anything you put your mind to. After all, don’t parents want their kids to be motivated and excited?

2001 was a funny year for movies. Acclaimed dramas like A Brilliant Mind mingled with totally perplexing ones like Vanilla Sky, and then you had corny thrillers like The Glass House and Joy Ride. But maybe you could say that about any year, since 2024 had a hit like Wicked and a confusing mess like Megalopolis. I like that the National Film Registry includes different genres along with some nostalgic favorites for kids who grew up in the 1990s and 2000s. Beverly Hills Cop, The Social Network, and Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan were also some of the films honored in this way.

X users agreed with the National Film Registry’s brilliant choice. One user said everyone hoped they could become a Spy Kid, which couldn’t be truer.

Others called the movie “an undeniable classic” and wondered why the movie wasn’t added sooner. That’s a good point.

There are a lot of gems on the National Film Registry, including another one of my childhood faves, Home Alone. And, while everyone is talking about Spy Kids, what about adding another family-friendly movie about a writer who investigates all the mystery in her world? I’m praising the 1996 classic Harriet the Spy, which starred the adorable Michelle Trachtenberg and made me want to buy a black and white notebook just like the main character. I might not have grown up and become a spy (sorry, Carmen and Juni!), but I did become a writer, so the stories you consume as kids do matter!