# Cheaper by the Dozen 2
**Cheaper by the Dozen 2** is a 2005 American family comedy and the sequel to the 2003 film *Cheaper by the Dozen*, directed by [Adam Shankman](https://www.edgepedia.org/adam-shankman) and starring [Steve Martin](https://www.edgepedia.org/steve-martin), Bonnie Hunt, and [Eugene Levy](https://www.edgepedia.org/eugene-levy). The Baker family takes its twelve children on a lakeside summer vacation, where they clash with the large family of Tom Baker's old rival, Jimmy Murtaugh.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2) It was released by 20th Century Fox on December 21, 2005, earned about $130 million worldwide against a $60 million production budget, and received strongly negative reviews from critics while drawing a much warmer audience response.[2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/) • [3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Cheaper-by-the-Dozen) • [4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2/critic-reviews/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | December 21, 2005 (domestic and Latin America), distributed by 20th Century Fox[2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/) |
| Director and writer | Adam Shankman; screenplay by Sam Harper[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/63346) |
| Running time and rating | 1 hr 34 min; rated PG[2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/) |
| Budget and box office | $60,000,000 production budget; $9,309,387 opening weekend; $82,571,173 domestic; $130,154,568 worldwide per Box Office Mojo, $135,015,330 per The Numbers[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Cheaper-by-the-Dozen) • [2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/) |
| Critical reception | 8% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (93 reviews); Metascore 34 on Metacritic[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2) • [4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2/critic-reviews/) |
| Audience reception | 57% on the Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter from more than 250,000 ratings[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2) |
| Availability | Streaming on Disney Plus; digital purchase or rental on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, and Fandango At Home[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
[Tom Baker](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-baker) (Steve Martin), a college football coach, and his wife Kate ([Bonnie Hunt](https://www.edgepedia.org/bonnie-hunt)), an author, take their twelve children to Lake Winnetka for a summer vacation at their old cabin, hoping for one last family trip before the children grow up and go their separate ways; daughter Lorraine is preparing to leave for an internship with Vogue in New York, and Nora is heavily pregnant.[7](https://www.dibbleinstitute.org/wp-new/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Cheaper-By-the-Dozen-2-Movie-Guide.pdf) The Bakers find their vacation lodging run-down, and Tom struggles to repair it himself.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2)
Across the lake lives Tom's old high school rival Jimmy Murtaugh (Eugene Levy), now a wealthy local figure with a large family of eight children by his wife Sarina ([Carmen Electra](https://www.edgepedia.org/carmen-electra)).[7](https://www.dibbleinstitute.org/wp-new/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Cheaper-By-the-Dozen-2-Movie-Guide.pdf) • [8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2/cast-and-crew) The two fathers escalate a competition of one-upmanship through a series of family games.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2) Meanwhile the children's storylines cross the family divide: [Charlie Baker](https://www.edgepedia.org/charlie-baker) grows close to Anne Murtaugh, and Sarah Baker begins a first romance with Eliot Murtaugh.[7](https://www.dibbleinstitute.org/wp-new/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Cheaper-By-the-Dozen-2-Movie-Guide.pdf) The rivalry culminates in a canoeing race in which the families must choose between loyalty and competition.[7](https://www.dibbleinstitute.org/wp-new/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Cheaper-By-the-Dozen-2-Movie-Guide.pdf)
## Cast and production
Steve Martin, Bonnie Hunt, and the actors playing the twelve Baker children returned from the 2003 film, including [Hilary Duff](https://www.edgepedia.org/hilary-duff) as Lorraine, Piper Perabo as Nora, Tom Welling as Charlie, and Kevin G. Schmidt as Henry.[9](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Cheaper_By_the_Dozen_2?hl=en_US&id=aCXjhcP_3fE) The Murtaugh family included Eugene Levy, Carmen Electra, Jaime King as Anne, and [Taylor Lautner](https://www.edgepedia.org/taylor-lautner) as Eliot.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2/cast-and-crew)
The film was produced by [Shawn Levy](https://www.edgepedia.org/shawn-levy) and Ben Myron for Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, with Peter James as cinematographer, Cary White as production designer, and [John Debney](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-debney) composing the score.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/63346) Sam Harper wrote the screenplay; the film credits the 1948 novel *Cheaper by the Dozen* by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey as its literary source, with the film characters created by Craig Titley.[5](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/63346) The 2003 original had been a substantial commercial success, grossing $190,212,113 worldwide on a $40 million budget, and the sequel carried a larger $60 million budget.[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Cheaper-by-the-Dozen)
## Box office
The sequel opened to $9,309,387 domestically on December 21, 2005, and finished with $82,571,173 in the United States and Canada, about 63 percent of its worldwide total.[2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/) Both the opening and the domestic total fell far short of the 2003 film, which had opened to $27,557,647 and grossed $138,614,544 domestically.[3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Cheaper-by-the-Dozen) The two trackers differ on the worldwide figure: [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) reports $130,154,568, while The Numbers reports $135,015,330.[2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/) • [3](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Cheaper-by-the-Dozen) International markets led by the United Kingdom ($11,100,702), Mexico ($7,277,396), Spain ($6,588,656), and Australia ($6,775,165) supplied most of the foreign gross.[2](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/)
## Critical reception
Critics rated the film poorly. On Rotten Tomatoes it holds an 8% Tomatometer from 93 reviews, with the critics consensus reading, "A sequel to a remake, Cheaper 2 wastes its solid cast in scenes of over-the-top, predictable humor."[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2) Metacritic assigned a Metascore of 34, categorized as generally unfavorable, with 2 of 24 counted reviews positive, 11 mixed, and 11 negative.[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2/critic-reviews/) Michael Rechtshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter called it "a textbook example of how not to mess with success," and Variety's Justin Chang described a "bland, canned but studiously professional sequel."[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2/critic-reviews/)
Some reviewers found partial merits. Roger Ebert of the [Chicago Sun-Times](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-sun-times) gave it 75 and singled out [Alyson Stoner](https://www.edgepedia.org/alyson-stoner)'s performance as Sarah, comparing her vulnerability to [Reese Witherspoon](https://www.edgepedia.org/reese-witherspoon)'s in *The Man in the Moon*; Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times, also at 75, called it "a family comedy that is actually involving, even believable."[4](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2/critic-reviews/) Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave it 1 out of 4, objecting to what he called a mix of sitcom humor and snickering sex jokes sold as family entertainment.[10](https://auth-web.moviesanywhere.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2)
Audience response was markedly warmer than the critics'. The Rotten Tomatoes Popcornmeter stands at 57% from more than 250,000 user ratings, against the 8% Tomatometer.[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2) Google Play users rate it 4.3 out of 5 from 599 reviews.[9](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Cheaper_By_the_Dozen_2?hl=en_US&id=aCXjhcP_3fE)
## Legacy and availability
The film was the last theatrical entry in the Steve Martin-led series; the franchise was later rebooted with a 2022 film directed by Gail Lerner, produced by Kenya Barris, which follows a couple raising ten children while running a family business.[11](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2022) The 2005 sequel has retained a nostalgic audience: a 2025 outdoor screening attended by Taylor Lautner drew attention on social media, with the film described as "still a fantastic 2000s family watch," and a widely shared scene of Lautner's character putting his arm around Alyson Stoner's Sarah at a movie theater remains among its best-remembered moments.[12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/taylor-lautner-funny-exchange-cheaper-by-the-dozen-2-co-star-over-scene)
As of late 2026 the film streams on Disney Plus and can be rented or purchased digitally on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, and Fandango At Home; it is also available on DVD and Blu-ray.[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2)
## References
1. [Cheaper by the Dozen 2, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2)
2. [Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0452598/)
3. [Box Office History for Cheaper by the Dozen Movies, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Cheaper-by-the-Dozen)
4. [Cheaper by the Dozen 2 critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2/critic-reviews/)
5. [Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/63346)
6. [Cheaper by the Dozen 2 streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2)
7. [Cheaper By the Dozen 2 Discussion Guide, The Dibble Institute](https://www.dibbleinstitute.org/wp-new/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Cheaper-By-the-Dozen-2-Movie-Guide.pdf)
8. [Cheaper by the Dozen 2 cast and crew, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2/cast-and-crew)
9. [Cheaper By the Dozen 2, Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Cheaper_By_the_Dozen_2?hl=en_US&id=aCXjhcP_3fE)
10. [Cheaper By the Dozen 2, Movies Anywhere](https://auth-web.moviesanywhere.com/movie/cheaper-by-the-dozen-2)
11. [Cheaper by the Dozen (2022), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/cheaper_by_the_dozen_2022)
12. [Taylor Lautner Had A Funny Exchange With His Cheaper By The Dozen 2 Co-Star, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/taylor-lautner-funny-exchange-cheaper-by-the-dozen-2-co-star-over-scene)
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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 › Teen and comedy series film entries › Entries released in the 2000s*
*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*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license