# Big Momma's House
**Big Momma's House** is a 2000 American comedy film in which FBI agent [Malcolm Turner](https://www.edgepedia.org/malcolm-turner), played by [Martin Lawrence](https://www.edgepedia.org/martin-lawrence), goes undercover disguised as a large Southern grandmother to protect a federal witness and her son. Directed by Raja Gosnell and released by 20th Century Fox on June 2, 2000, it earned $117.6 million at the United States box office despite generally unfavorable reviews from critics.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) • [2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/critic-reviews/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | June 2, 2000 (wide theatrical), 20th Century Fox; PG-13 rating for language, crude humor, and violence[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) |
| Director and writers | Raja Gosnell; screenplay by Darryl Quarles and Don Rhymer[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/) |
| Principal cast | Martin Lawrence (Malcolm Turner), Nia Long (Sherry), Paul Giamatti (John), Terrence Howard (Lester), Anthony Anderson (Nolan), Ella Mitchell (Big Momma)[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/) |
| Runtime | 1 hour 38 minutes (99 minutes by another listing)[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) • [3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house) |
| Box office | $117.6 million gross in the United States[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) |
| Critical reception | Metascore 33 (generally unfavorable) from 27 reviews; 31% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer from 80 reviews[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/critic-reviews/) • [1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) |
| Audience reception | 57% Popcornmeter from more than 250,000 ratings; 5.3/10 on IMDb from about 97,000 votes[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0208003/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
FBI agents Malcolm Turner (Martin Lawrence) and John ([Paul Giamatti](https://www.edgepedia.org/paul-giamatti)) are tracking escaped prisoner Lester Vesco ([Terrence Howard](https://www.edgepedia.org/terrence-howard)). They stake out the home of Big Momma, the grandmother of Lester's former girlfriend Sherry ([Nia Long](https://www.edgepedia.org/nia-long)). Big Momma is out of town at the moment Sherry shows up with Trent, her son, and Malcolm, an expert at disguise, dons a padded suit along with a flowered house dress to welcome them posing as her, adopting her daily habits of making soul food, helping deliver babies, and giving testimony at the neighborhood church.[3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house) • [1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house)
The disguise premise drives the comedy. Malcolm must maintain the impersonation while protecting Sherry, whom he suspects of helping Lester, and while managing his growing feelings for her.[3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house)
### Content and rating
The film is rated PG-13 for language, crude humor, and violence. Common Sense Media, which recommends it for ages 14 and up, notes occasional profanity, brief comic nudity, a scene in which the disguised agent shares a bed with the woman he is protecting, gun violence in which a character is shot and injured, and comic violence in which Big Momma tosses around an arrogant self-defense instructor.[3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house)
### Sequels
The film's box office success produced a franchise. *Big Momma's House 2* (2006), directed by John Whitesell, scored 34 on Metacritic, again "generally unfavorable," with 10 of 20 reviews negative; the Los Angeles Times called it a "sluggish sequel to the 2000 box office hit."[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house-2/critic-reviews/)
## Cast and production
The film pairs Lawrence with Nia Long, Paul Giamatti, Terrence Howard, Anthony Anderson, and [Cedric the Entertainer](https://www.edgepedia.org/cedric-the-entertainer) as the Reverend; Ella Mitchell plays Hattie Mae Pierce, the real Big Momma.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/) The prosthetic makeup was created by Greg Cannom, the Oscar-winning makeup effects artist known for *Mrs. Doubtfire*; [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide)'s reviewer credited Cannom's work as "yet another prosthetic screen wonder."[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/) Lawrence also served as co-producer.[3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house)
Production companies included Twentieth Century Fox, Taurus Film, New Regency Pictures, Friendly Productions, and Runteldat Entertainment.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house)
## Reception
**Critics were largely negative.** The film scored 33 on Metacritic, labeled "generally unfavorable," with 13 of 27 reviews negative, 7 mixed, and 7 positive.[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/critic-reviews/) Rotten Tomatoes' critics consensus calls it "funny in some parts, but it is essentially a one-joke movie," and the Tomatometer stood at 31 percent from 80 reviews.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house)
The most favorable reviews came from mainstream newspapers. The [San Francisco Chronicle](https://www.edgepedia.org/san-francisco-chronicle)'s Bob Graham found it "quite sweet-natured" and admitted to laughing; the Charlotte Observer's Lawrence Toppman summarized it as "Lawrence plus latex equals laughs."[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/critic-reviews/) Roger Ebert gave it 50, writing that "any movie that employs an oven mitt and a plumber's friend in a childbirth scene cannot be all bad."[2](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/critic-reviews/) Negative reviews targeted the script: the Los Angeles Times called it a string of unfunny one-liners, and Salon's Andrew O'Hehir described "a reheated cross-dressing shtick" that appeals to "your inner fourth-grader."[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/) Common Sense Media's Nell Minow gave it 2 out of 5, calling the premise promising but the story a series of situations that underuses its three talented stars.[3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house)
Audiences were warmer than critics. The Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter reached 57 percent from more than 250,000 ratings, and IMDb users gave 5.3 out of 10 from about 97,000 votes.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0208003/) The film was a NAACP Image Award nominee.[3](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house)
## References
1. [Big Momma's House, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/big_mommas_house)
2. [Big Momma's House critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/critic-reviews/)
3. [Parents' Guide to Big Momma's House, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/big-mommas-house)
4. [Big Momma's House (2000), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0208003/)
5. [Big Momma's House reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house/)
6. [Big Momma's House 2 critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/big-mommas-house-2/critic-reviews/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Action, thriller, and crime series film entries › Entries released in the 2000s › Released 2000 to 2004*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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