Spy Kids
Official film series logo
Created by	Robert Rodriguez
Original work	Spy Kids (2001)
Owner	Troublemaker Studios
Years	2001–present
Print publications
Book(s)	List of books
Comics	List of comics
Films and television
Film(s)	Spy Kids (2001) Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002) Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003) Spy Kids: All the Time in the World (2011) Spy Kids: Armageddon (2023) Spin-off films: Machete (2010) Machete Kills (2013)
Animated series	Spy Kids: Mission Critical (2018)
Audio
Soundtrack(s)	Spy Kids Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over Spy Kids: All the Time in the World Spy Kids: Armageddon
Miscellaneous
Total Box Office	$550.3 million

Spy Kids is an American media franchise centered on a series of spy action comedy films created by Robert Rodriguez. The plot follows various children, who discover that their respective parents are spies and become involved in an espionage organization when their parents go missing. The films include Hispanic themes, as Rodriguez is of Mexican descent.^[1]

Background

Influences

Spy Kids was influenced by elements of the James Bond movies, through the genre of family films. Rodriguez has stated that the first movie was "a fusion of Willy Wonka and James Bond",^[2] while the second was the "Mysterious Island and James Bond mix".

The spy organization in the films is called the OSS. These initials are from the Office of Strategic Services, a former U.S. intelligence organization during World War II which later evolved into the CIA. The character Donnagon Giggles was named after William Joseph Donovan, the director of the original OSS.^[3] The initials in the Spy Kids universe are never specified on screen, but, in one of the books, they stand for the Organization of Super Spies.

Themes

One of the main themes of Spy Kids is the unity of family. The children have adult responsibilities, and a lesson is that keeping secrets from family members can have a negative effect on relationships. The first film also deals extensively with sibling rivalry and the responsibility of older children. There is also a strong sense of Latino heritage.

Technical innovations

The other films were shot with High Definition digital video,^[4] parts of the third film using an anaglyphic process to create the 3-D effect. Audiences were given red/blue 3D glasses with their tickets in movie theatres. Four sets of these glasses were also included in the DVD release. The third film was used as a test for a special Texas Instruments digital projector which can project polarized 3D, which does not require the red-blue lenses, later reused for The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D (2005).^[5][6]

Films

Spy Kids (2001)

After retiring from espionage for ten years, Gregorio and Ingrid (Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino) are pulled back into duty for their important assignment despite the fact they were out of practice, and were captured. Their two children, Carmen and Juni (Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara), stay with their uncle Felix Gumm (Cheech Marin) and discover the truth of their parents' past, which they had neglected to tell them because they were afraid that if they knew, they would picture danger at every corner; and decide to rescue them. On their first mission, Carmen and Juni manage to bring around their estranged uncle, Isador "Machete" Cortez (Danny Trejo), a genius gadget inventor and Juni helps to redeem a TV show host named Fegan Floop (Alan Cumming). Together, Carmen and Juni thwart the plan of Floop's notorious second in-command Alexander Minion (Tony Shalhoub) to develop an army of androids resembling young children (including Carmen and Juni themselves) for a mastermind named Mr. Lisp (Robert Patrick) and his partner Ms. Gradenko (Teri Hatcher). The robots based on Carmen and Juni became part of Floop's show.

Spy Kids 2: The Island of Lost Dreams (2002)

As agents of the OSS, Carmen and Juni try to save the daughter (Taylor Momsen) of the President of the United States (Christopher McDonald) while facing a particularly hard competition with Gary and Gerti Giggles (Matt O'Leary and Emily Osment), the two children of a double-dealing agent Donnagon Giggles (Mike Judge), whom Carmen and Juni helped to rescue them from the first film. Juni gets fired from the OSS after fighting with Gary over a smaller version of the transmooker, a device that can shut off all electronic devices even though it was Gary who started the fight. Juni loses his spot for the best spy kid of the year award, while Donnagon plans to steal the transmooker to take over the world. On their second mission, Carmen and Juni follow the trail to the mysterious island of Leeke Leeke which is home to Romero (Steve Buscemi), an eccentric scientist who attempted to create genetically miniaturised animals, but instead ended up with his island inhabited by mutant monsters. Eventually, Donnagon is fired and Gary is suspended, and the transmooker is destroyed. Juni is offered his job back, but in order to take a break from the OSS, he retires to start his own private eye agency.

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over (2003)

After retiring from the OSS, Juni is thrust back into service when an evil mastermind named Sebastian "The Toymaker" (Sylvester Stallone) creates a fictional video game called Game Over, which hypnotizes its users. Carmen was sent on a mission to disable the game, but disappeared on Level 4. With the help of his maternal grandfather, Valentin Avellan (Ricardo Montalban), who uses a wheelchair, Juni is sent after Carmen and helps her to disable the game in order to save the world. It is revealed that Sebastian was the one who disabled Valentin in the first place. Instead of avenging his former partner, Valentin forgives Sebastian who is redeemed.

Spy Kids: All the Time in the World (2011)

The OSS has become the world's top spy agency, while the Spy Kids department has become defunct. Marissa (Jessica Alba), a retired spy, is thrown back into the action along with her two stepchildren, Rebecca and Cecil (Rowan Blanchard and Mason Cook), when a maniacal Timekeeper (Jeremy Piven) attempts to take over the world. In order to save the world, Rebecca and Cecil must team up with Marissa.

Spy Kids: Armageddon (2023)

The fifth installment titled Spy Kids: Armageddon, served as a relaunch of the franchise, involves a plot that centers on a multicultural family. Robert Rodriguez is again writer/director, while the project is a joint-venture production between Skydance Media and Spyglass Media Group.^[8][9] The film is scheduled for distribution on Netflix,^[10] making it the second Spy Kids project produced for the platform.^[7] Gina Rodriguez, Zachary Levi, Everly Carganilla and Connor Esterson were set to star,^[11] along with Billy Magnussen^[12] and D. J. Cotrona.^[13] The plotline for the film: "When the children of the world's greatest secret agents unwittingly help a powerful Game Developer unleash a computer virus that gives him control of all technology, they must become spies themselves to save their parents and the world".^[14] Production of the film wrapped in late August 2022,^[15][16] and was released on Netflix on September 22, 2023.^[17]

Though the movie does not include other characters from the franchise, Rodriguez confirmed that it takes place in the same continuity as the previous installments.^[18]

Future

In September 2023, Rodriguez confirmed that Netflix intends to develop additional Spy Kids movies,^[18] with the filmmaker expressing hope to begin production on a sequel the following year.^[19] Rodriguez explained that Armageddon incorporated a new family because so much time had passed since All the Time in the World, and so he wanted to incorporate a new set of characters before returning to what came before; confirming that he intends to bring back "legacy characters" from the previous installments in future movies.^[18]

Television

Spy Kids: Mission Critical (2018)

An animated series based on the films, Spy Kids: Mission Critical, was released on Netflix in 2018.^[20] The first and second seasons both consist of 10 episodes^[21] and is produced by Mainframe Studios.^[22] Robert Rodriguez was one of the executive producers on the show.

Main cast and characters