40 Adult Jokes That Made It Into Children’s Movies

Most of us are up for indulging our youthful sides by enjoying a kids’ movie every now and then. But let’s face it, nothing spices up a seemingly innocent film better than a lewd sexual reference or a sleazy bit of innuendo. So, here are 40 of what we think are the finest (or worst) adult jokes to have crept into kids’ movies.

40. Inside Out

Pixar’s Inside Out is a 2015 comedy about a girl whose emotions are personified by a panel of creatures inside her head. In one scene, the protagonist — newly arrived in San Francisco — is being kept awake by scary noises outside. One of her emotions asks if it is a bear making the noise. Then another replies, “I saw a really hairy guy once, who looked like a bear.” A bear in the gay capital of America? They’re probably not talking about grizzlies…

39. Mrs. Doubtfire

Robin Williams had a whale of a time barraging Pierce Brosnan with sexual innuendos in 1993’s Mrs. Doubtfire. For the scene in which Williams’ Mrs. Doubtfire and Brosnan’s Stu share a dining table, Mrs. Doubtfire lists a number of references to nighttime activities. These include “little Jack Horny,” “Rumple Foreskin,” and “a bit of the old cunning linguistics.” You’d think James Bond would have had a good comeback…

38. Cars

Pixar’s 2006 hit Cars makes a “flashy” appearance on this list. Near the start of the film, a pair of groupies lift their suspensions and give hero Lightning McQueen a glimpse of their lit-up headlights. These are presumably meant to be… breasts? It’s hard to tell, but McQueen’s lecherous look afterward suggests that it’s something naughty.

37. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

We know better than to expect subtlety from a Michael Bay movie. But in the 2014 Bay-produced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Michaelangelo meets journalist April (Megan Fox) and says, “She’s so hot I can feel my shell tightening.” Yes, and the way he delivers it makes our skin crawl. It’s one thing to make a nudge-nudge-wink-wink innuendo, but this takes it to a whole other level.

36. The Brave Little Toaster

1987’s The Brave Little Toaster is a pretty dark movie that follows a group of unwanted home appliances on an otherworldly quest to find their original owner. But even by those strange standards, the scene in which a computer gets seriously over-excited about being “used” by a supercomputer and then ejects sheets of white paper feels a bit wrong.

35. Cars

Vehicular comedy Cars certainly doesn’t hold back on adult humor that will be lost on the little ones. At one point in the 2006 Pixar classic, we see a roadside sign that bears the legend “convertible waitresses.” And while kids will have trouble reading it, let alone understanding it, the reference is fully exposed for us adults.

34. Hocus Pocus

Another joke that tips over from a bit naughty to downright gross is this one from Halloween Disney classic Hocus Pocus. In the 1993 film, the three evil witches tell a bus driver that they “desire children.” But the guy misunderstands and tells them that he’s up for the challenge — but that it’ll “take [him] a couple of tries.”

33. Muppet Treasure Island

Kermit and Miss Piggy haven’t always been a tight couple. In the 1996 film Muppet Treasure Island, for example, Miss Piggy and Tim Curry’s Long John Silver gush over their past romance. And a dismayed Kermit can only look on as Miss Piggy suggestively greets Silver with “Hello, Looooong John…”

32. Toy Story

Kicking off our mini list-within-a-list of dirty jokes in the Toy Story franchise is this allusion to ladies of the night. In 1995’s Toy Story, the toys get surrounded by the mutilated creatures in Sid’s house. One of them is a pair of slender Barbie legs attached to a fishing line with a dangling hook. Ergo, it’s a hooker…

31. Toy Story 2

When cowgirl Jessie shows up in 1999’s Toy Story 2, Buzz changes from cocky space pioneer to an adolescent who struggles to contain his excitement around her. There’s no better example of this than when Jessie flies acrobatically across the room to open a door, causing Buzz’s wings to stand to attention. It’s okay, Buzz, we’ve all been there…

30. Toy Story 3

Rounding off the Toy Story Sleaze Trilogy is good old Mr. Potato Head. He certainly doesn’t take kindly to the furry villain Lotso stealing his wife’s lips in 2010’s Toy Story 3. In a moment that enlightens us as to what potatoes get up to in the sack, an enraged Mr. Potato Head exclaims, “No one takes my wife’s mouth but me!”

29. Aladdin and the King of Thieves

This one may have slipped by you because Disney’s 1996 offering Aladdin and the King of Thieves went straight to video. But when Aladdin and Jasmine are getting married in the flick, a nearby elephant causes the ground to tremble. Then Robin Williams’ Genie quips, “I thought the earth wasn’t supposed to move until the honeymoon.”

28. A Bug’s Life

Life as a male ladybug is pretty frustrating for Francis the ladybug in the 1998 Pixar movie, A Bug’s Life. But it does allow the makers to slip in a nice adult joke. In one scene, Francis gets mistaken for a lady by a sleazy trio of flies, one of whom asks if he wants “to pollinate with a real bug.”

27. Shrek

Lord Farquaad is the inept antagonist of 2001’s Shrek and the butt of many of the movie’s jokes. You have to be really careful how you pronounce his name, for one thing. And in a particularly funny scene, Donkey and Shrek snigger about whether his absurdly oversized castle is “compensating for something.”

26. Wreck-It Ralph

Only adults would notice the dozens of video-game arcade Easter eggs in 2012’s Wreck-It Ralph. But did you also spot the crazy, naughty gag at Pac-Man’s expense? At one point, our guy Ralph refers to the yellow icon as a “cherry-chasing dot-muncher.” And if you don’t know what that means, you can google it.

25. Madagascar

Nothing is quite as good as a swear word to express the extremity of a situation. But when you do it in a kids’ movie, you need to get creative. So in the 2005 safari comedy Madagascar, Marty the zebra shouts, “Sugar honey iced tea!” when he realizes he’s about to become lion food. It’s all in the first letters of each of those words…

24. Monsters, Inc.

Despite being the movie that makes light of “monsters in the closet,” Monsters, Inc. gives us one of the sauciest adult jokes ever seen in a kids’ movie. Because when Sulley sticks his head out of the wardrobe in one scene from the 2001 classic, we see that poster to his left. We think Daddy needs a serious word with Uncle Roger…

23. Hercules

Most adults will know the tale of Oedipus, the mythical Greek guy who kills his father and then sleeps with his mother. Yes, it’s weird. And it’s even weirder that it pops up in Disney’s Hercules from 1997. Just pray that you don’t need to explain who Oedipus is to the kids watching it with you.

22. Robots

How do robots procreate? This crucial question is answered in Robots, a lighthearted 2005 comedy. Here, we learn that they receive disassembled baby robots in the mail and then make them themselves. In a nice double-gag, though, robot Herb Copperbottom misses the “delivery” of the baby robot... and his wife reassures him that “making the baby is the fun part.”

21. Aladdin

Robin Williams is at it again in 1992’s Aladdin. When Genie expresses his admiration for the titular hero, he feels the need to clarify that he doesn’t like him in that way. He says, “Not that I want to pick out curtains, or anything.” And as for all of Genie’s celebrity impressions, there’s just no way kids today are picking those up.

20. Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory

Veruca Salt’s famous question, “Whoever heard of a Snozzberry?” never gets answered in 1971’s Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. But the answer did get revealed in 1979 in another of Roald Dahl’s books, My Uncle Oswald. That’s when a Snozzberry is used to describe a piece of the anatomy usually associated with another fruit – the banana. Probably a good thing Veruca never knew that.

19. The Black Cauldron

In fairness, when the frumpy witch in Disney’s not-too-memorable ’80s fantasy-fest The Black Cauldron asks Fflewddur Fflam, “You don’t mind if I pluck ya harp, do ya handsome?”, he is actually holding a harp. But we know Disney better than that, and this line combined with the witch’s lusty demeanor gives it a whole new layer of meaning.

18. Little Rascals

We’ve so far had plenty of stand-ins (or stand-ups?) for the ultimate giveaway of male “excitement.” But when Alfalfa’s hair in Little Rascals stands up on end when he kisses his girlfriend, Darla, it feels a little… off. These kids are, what, ten years old? And here they are getting hair-erections? But hey, it was the ’90s.

17. Space Jam

When a doctor asks the dreaded question of whether you’re “unable to perform,” we all know what he means. And that’s exactly what happens to poor Patrick Ewing in Space Jam. He could at least have called it “shooting hoops,” “dunking balls” or something else along those lines. Either way, Ewing responds with a resounding, “No!”

16. The Emperor’s New Groove

Whoops, Disney did it again. This time it’s a cheeky gag in 2000’s The Emperor’s New Groove when Kronk pitches a comically undersized tent pretty much over his crotch. And when a man has a “pitched tent,” we know there needs to be a long, firm pole holding it up, right? Outrageous.

15. Monster House

The Oscar-nominated 2006 spooky comedy Monster House sees a trio of kids trying to survive a house that’s quite literally trying to devour them. And when Jenny says to Chowder that they are attacking the house’s “uvula,” the surprisingly anatomically educated kid replies, “Oh, so it’s a girl house.”

14. The Santa Clause

Kids have no idea what went down in the ’60s: music, partying, and free love – all enhanced by a stream of psychoactive substances. But Tim Allen as Santa in 1994’s The Santa Clause is clearly aware of this when he starts flying and tells his son, “It’s okay, I’m used to it. I lived through the ’60s.” A joke that literally flew over every kids’ head.

13. The Rescuers

Possibly the most infamous production prank in Disney’s history is this: a brief but clear glimpse of a topless woman on a poster in the background in 1977’s The Rescuers. It occurred as the mice Bianca and Bernard speed through the city in a sardine can. Disney only noticed 20 years later and had to order the return of over three million copies of the video release to edit it out.

12. Ratatouille

In the 2007 Pixar hit, Ratatouille, Linguini starts talking about how he has a “tiny, little…” while doing the universal symbol for “something small” with his fingers. And, of course, his manhood is immediately called into question. The pants-ward glance from his love interest, Colette, says it all.

11. Scooby-Doo

When scratchy-voiced Shaggy gets some unlikely interest from a pretty blonde lady in the 2002 live-action take on Scooby-Doo, he can hardly believe his luck. Not just because he’s punching way above his weight, but also because her name is Mary Jane... Shaggy’s “favorite name.” Confirmation (if ever we needed it) that Shaggy’s a massive stoner, maybe?

10. The Cat in the Hat

The Cat in the Hat movie adaptation from 2003 didn’t do justice to Dr. Seuss’ witty creation, and it wasn’t helped by its crass sense of humor. Case in point: Mike Meyers, as The Cat, chucks away a gardening implement, calling it a “dirty hoe.” And then he grabs it and starts licking it while saying, “I love you.” It’s a joke that’s equal parts “meh” and “argh.”

9. The Incredibles

Whenever someone has superpowers, they pretty much end up falling into the category of villain or hero (or sometimes an ambivalent, conflicted in-betweener, such as the Incredible Hulk). But 2004 Pixar movie The Incredibles takes superpowers down a sordid path when it shows a headline reading, “X-RAY VISION PEEPING TOM?”

8. Cars 2

The Cars series is particularly prolific for its X-rated jokes, but this one from the 2011 sequel is easily the most extreme. It all looks perfectly innocent as the villainous Lemons have themselves a Lemon Party. But if you’ve trawled the darker corners of the internet, you’ll know what “Lemon Party” stands for. If not, then best keep things that way…

7. The Rugrats Movie

For a baby to make a reference to circumcision is pretty unexpected. But that’s what happens in 1998’s The Rugrats Movie when one infant investigates his diaper and is relieved to find his bits intact. Then another looks down and says, “Consider yourself lucky.”

6. The Mask

It’s not all that surprising that Jim Carrey’s whirlwind performance in 1994 hit The Mask would’ve thrown up some adult references easily missed by kids. Like the part where he’s distracting a bunch of goons with animal balloons and accidentally pulls a condom from his pocket. And there we all were thinking it was just a white, flaccid balloon.

5. 101 Dalmatians

Cruella de Vil is an evil character, we know. But sometimes characters say things that really cross the line. In the 1996 family-friendly pup flick 101 Dalmatians, for example, Cruella insinuates that Jeff Daniels’ character might be the father of some puppies. “Haven’t you been a busy boy,” she cackles.

4. Cinderella

“Aww, look. That mouse is using the other mouse’s tail to gather beads that fell on the floor.” Sure... sure it is. Watching the bead-gathering scene from 1950 classic Cinderella from an adult perspective and pausing it at just the right moment can conjure a whole other kind of beading going on.

3. Bambi

When this male skunk in Bambi gets a kiss from Bambi’s buddy Flower, he quickly turns red from top to toe. He also hardens from the excitement. This cheeky, full-body stiffness certainly has other connotations! But the kids of 1942 probably missed it... right?

2. The Little Mermaid

Falling into the gray area of did-Disney-do-this-on-purpose? is the semi-legendary scene in 1989’s The Little Mermaid where the Prince marries an undercover Ursula. In it, the minister seems to get a bit over-excited about the two pretty people standing in front of him. Thinking ahead to the wedding night, maybe?

1. The Road to El Dorado

In DreamWorks’ 2000 colonial adventure, The Road to El Dorado, romance blossoms between rakish hero Tulio and the striking Chel. But instead of it ending in the usual cartoon kisses, we hear the sounds of slurping offscreen. And when they then get interrupted and pop their heads up into shot, Chel appears from somewhere a little too low down on Tulio’s body for it to have been an innocent peck on the cheek.