Parents' Guide to

Descendants 2

By Emily Ashby, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Exceptional sequel promotes communication, female roles.

Movie NR 2017 111 minutes
Descendants 2 Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

  • Descendants 2 TV Movie: Uma and Mal
  • Descendants 2 TV Movie: Carlos, Evie, Jay, and Mal
  • Descendants 2 TV Movie: Mal and Ben
  • Descendants 2 TV Movie: Harry and Mal

Community Reviews

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age 8+

Based on 20 parent reviews

Starcatcher60
Starcatcher60 Adult
August 3, 2023
age 4+

The whole movie is cheesy and cheap!

This is just a bad made-for -TV movie. If you have young kids, they'll probably like it. You'll be bored and pretty pissed with the same plot that just repeats over and over. Honestly, such garbage. It's a bunch of girly "warriors" fighting over a boy. Come on. I do not want my daughter to look at this and think all she can do is be a pretty-pink-princess who cares about boys. The songs are pretty bad, although better than the first, not many of the actors can sing, and they are SO CHEESSY! The villains are pirates, who are so annoying and make you feel frustrated at their dramatic facial expressions and plastic props. Common Sense said there is violence in this film due to a swordfight with PLASTIC SWORDS! Serioulsy? Does this film's budget stink that much that they can't get good actors, costumes, sets (which are clearly CGI and Green Screen) songwriters, or anything else? The school that the characters go to is pretty cheese filled. This is a specific example, but at one point Evie says "We all did what we had to do. . . (dramatic breath for effect) to survive." and I literally lost it. WHO THE HECK HIRED THESE PEOPLE?! They can't act at all! NO skill whatsoever. Overall, the whole movie is cheesy, cheap garbage! Don't bother.
TheAdam
TheAdam Parent of 4 and 6-year-old
September 6, 2021
age 13+

More of the continued theme, Glorifying Evil as good

Even from the beginning the theme was glorifying evil as good, cool and cultured, presented to the audience in a hip musical filled with witchcraft, hexed and brainwashed teens and teachers. One teen even singing about hearing voices in his head. Immediately exposing children to a world of immorality, evil, satanism, the acult and demonic forces and possession in a "hey this is awesome" attitude. I was absolutely horrified! I couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing and I immediately realized what was happening to our generation of youth. I turned off the show and watched it later on my own. I didn't see anything at all that would change my mind or let me think that any child over the age of 16 should be watching such absolute brainwashing garbage teaching them about such horrible behaviors. It's no wonder why the kids today have zero respect for themselves, adults and are depressed and confused about good being evil and evil being good. I understand that this is an overly opinionated review but a desolate society deserves to know why we are in the place that we are in these days and I feel like Disney and the brainwashing techniques using this type of media is a major reason.
See all 20 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In DESCENDENTS 2, Auradon is abuzz with excitement over the upcoming cotillion, with Ben (Mitchell Hope) preparing to assume his role as king and Mal (Dove Cameron), her official place as a lady of the court. But as the event draws near, Mal begins to doubt her suitability as the kingdom's future queen, and in a fit of panic, she returns to the Isle of the Lost. There she discovers that her nemesis, Uma (daughter of Ursula) (China Anne McClain), has taken Mal's place as the island's leader, flanked by her devoted pals Gil (Gaston's boy, played by Dylan Playfair) and Harry (Hook's kid, played by Thomas Doherty). Evie (Sofia Carson), Jay (Booboo Stewart), and Carlos (Cameron Boyce) disguise Ben as a Villain Kid and head to the island to bring Mal back to Auradon, but a vengeful Uma has plans of her own to trick the royals into dissolving the barrier between the kingdom and the Isle.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (20 ):
Kids say (65 ):

Disney doesn't miss a beat with this worthy follow-up to the popular tale of the offspring of notorious villains rejecting their parents' wicked ways. As this story opens, Evie, Jay, and Carlos are happily settled in Auradon with little care of their past ways, but Mal wrestles with her inability to forget them completely. What follows is an identity crisis of epic proportions, made worse by her attempts to hide her troubles rather than working them out in healthy ways. It's a problem that may resonate with kids and tweens, and seeing Mal embrace her uniqueness, acknowledge her situation, and turn to her friends for help they're more than happy to give has great messages for viewers.

Descendants 2 fills the personnel gap left by the respective parents of Evie, Jay, Carlos, and Mal with a fun ensemble of new and newly prominent characters, in particular the scene-stealing Uma. Also noteworthy is the sword-wielding Lonnie (Dianne Doan), whose refusal to let the fact that she's a girl stop her from her goals would make her mom, Mulan, proud. Those who love Disney productions for their song-and-dance routines have good reason to be excited about this movie's excellent soundtrack, too.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how Descendants 2 presents female characters. Are they strong-willed? Do they work well with others? How do they relate to their male counterparts? Which ones are positive role models and why?

  • Are the villains in this story scary? Do you like being a little scared when you watch a movie?

  • Kids: What qualities make you unique among your friends? Are there times when you don't like standing apart from a crowd? How does it feel to be the unintentional center of attention?

  • Why is it important to talk about your feelings? Who do you confide in when you need advice? How does your family keep the lines of communication open? Why is communication an important character strength?

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