History Film / SpyKids

* ''Film/SpyKidsArmageddon'' (2023). Another live-action film, with Robert Rodriguez directing again and co-writing with his son Racer. After helping a game developer release a powerful computer virus, two children, whose parents (Creator/ZacharyLevi and Creator/GinaRodriguez) are the greatest spies in the world, have to become spies themselves to save the world and fix their mistake. Due for release in September of 2023 on Netflix.

* BackForTheFinale: ''Every major character'' from the first two movies come back for the "big fight" at the end of the third one.
** And some minor characters as well, like Dinky Winks and his son.

* ''Spy Kids: Armageddon'' (2023). Another live-action film, with Robert Rodriguez directing again and co-writing with his son Racer. After helping a game developer release a powerful computer virus, two children, whose parents (Creator/ZacharyLevi and Creator/GinaRodriguez) are the greatest spies in the world, have to become spies themselves to save the world and fix their mistake. Due for release in September of 2023 on Netflix.

* ''Spy Kids: Armageddon'' (2023). Another live-action film, with Robert Rodriguez directing again and co-writing with his son Racer. After helping a game developer release a powerful computer virus, two children, whose parents are the greatest spies in the world, have to become spies themselves to save the world and fix their mistake. Due for release in September of 2023 on Netflix.

** In the third film, after Juni asks why every game has lava in it. Francis corrects him, telling him that "there's no lava in VideoGame/{{Halo}} or VideoGame/{{Metroid}} it's molten magma."

* AbsenteeActor:
** It can be seen, in the first movie, that only Isador "Machete" Cortez attends Gregorio and Ingrid's wedding; there's no sign of their sister Marissa. This, out of universe, is because she wasn't cast yet - or even written into the Franchise - but in universe it is unknown as to why she did not attend their wedding. Given the age difference between them, possibly she was a child and not old enough to attend.
** Devlin doesn't appear in the second film, as a new director for OSS is chosen to replace him, and is in fact, never even mentioned. In the third film he reappears as the president of the United States. While in the film it's explained that after retiring from his position in the OSS, he ran for president as he wanted to be in a position of power that was public instead of the secret one he previously held, the real life reasoning is that Rodriguez couldn't afford to have Creator/GeorgeClooney on screen for more than three minutes of screentime.
* ActionMom: Ingrid Cortez and Marissa Wilson.

** It can be seen, in the first movie, that only Isador "Machete" Cortez attends Gregorio and Ingrid's wedding; there's no sign of their sister Marissa. This, out of universe, is because she wasn't cast yet - or even written into the Franchise - but in universe it is unknown as to why she did not attend their wedding.

* CrossOver: Creator/DannyTrejo has [[WordOfSaintPaul stated]] that the Machete Cortez in ''Film/{{Machete}}'' is what the Machete Cortez from ''Spy Kids'' does when he's not taking care of the kids. As Creator/RobertRodriguez intended to make a ''Machete'' movie years before [[DevelopmentHell he was able to,]] he inserted a more family-friendly version of the character into ''Spy Kids'' in the meantime, so this is technically canonical.

The character of Machete originated in this series, and a spoof of what he'd look like as a B-movie action hero later appeared in one of the ''Film/{{Grindhouse}}'' trailers. That trailer was eventually made into ''{{Film/Machete}}''[[note]]and the sequel ''Film/MacheteKills''[[/note]], a full-length exploitation flick parody. Although Rodriguez planned ''Machete'' starring Trejo long before ''Spy Kids'' started production, the project sat [[DevelopmentHell stagnant]] for years. In the meantime, Rodriguez decided to insert a more family-friendly version of the character in the ''Spy Kids'' movies. Which means that, yes, ''Machete'' and ''Spy Kids'' [[SharedUniverse share a universe]]. Try watching these films the same way again.

[[index]]
* ''Film/{{Machete}}'' (2010)
* ''Film/MacheteKills'' (2013)
[[/index]]

* OverlyLongSpanishName: Carmen's full name is Carmen Elizabeth Juanita Echo Sky Brava Cortez, and Juni's is Juni Rocket Racer Rebel Cortez. Both of which are significant jokes:

** In the first film, Mr. Lisp hesitates to attack a robot double that matches his son to a tee, which ends up costing him. Later on, Ingrid and Gregori do a DoubleTake when they see Carmen and Juni's robot doubles, with similar results.

* ImagineSpot: When Gregorio encounters the father of Juni's bully (who's several inches taller than him) in the first movie, he imagines being attacked and responding throwing him into the front window. The kids cheer and celebrate himand Juni runs into his father's arms to be picked up...only to phase back into reality and leave, the father boasting.

* PrecisionFStrike: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] by a LastSecondWordSwap, once in each of the first two movies. Done again by Carmen in the fourth film when she, Marissa, Rebecca, Cecil, and Spy-Baby are cornered by Tick Tock's agents.

* ConspicuousCG: All over the place.
** The third movie has a ''really'' bad case of "Conspicuous 3D". Basically, they were banking on shoving 3D CGI in your face to sell the movie. You could make a DrinkingGame out of watching the movie in 2D and taking a shot every time every time a blurry foreground object, clearly meant to be rendered in 3D, blocks half the screen.

* BadassGrandpa: Again, Grandpa is Creator/RicardoMontalban - what did you expect?

[[quoteright:312:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spy_kids_dvd.jpg]]

** In the fourth film, Cecil turns off the lights before proceeding to knock down a bunch of {{Mooks}}. All we see is his glowing gloves punching everywhere.

** He's briefly seen working on another brain in the third film, but dramatically smashes his entire lab table when his family calls him for help.

** In the second film Donnagan [[spoiler:and Felix]] are this, which breaks Juni's faith in the OSS.

** Donnagan loves his children, [[spoiler:and [[DontTellMama is afraid of his wife]] ]].

** Minion during the demonstration to Lisp gives a lot of cues to Floop. [[spoiler:When he gets the Third Brain, he uses the spy kids to depose Floop and trap him in The Virtual Room.]]

* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: [[spoiler:Donnagon.]] In the first movie he's a minor good guy ([[BadassInDistress who spends most of the time as a Fooglie]]), in the second he's the BigBad, and in the third he's back to being a good guy again. It's mentioned this is a recurring thing for him.

** [[spoiler:Donnogan Giggles]] has done this by the beginning of the third movie, as has [[spoiler:The Toymaker]] by the end of the third and [[spoiler:The Timekeeper]] by the end of the fourth. Also, [[spoiler:Minion]] shows up on the kids' side [[BackForTheFinale at the end]] when they called everyone...
** In fact, the only villains to ''not'' end up on the good side are Mr. Lisp, Ms. Gradenko, and [[spoiler:Tick Tock]]. Given the HighHeelFaceTurn trope, it's unusual because out of all the villains in the series, the only female is one of the three who don't get redeemed.

* ManicPixieDreamGirl: Subverted. Carmen is attracted to Gary Giggles in the second movie, insisting that she could "change him", and her giving up on this is played as CharacterDevelopment. Needless to say, {{shipping}} ensued anyway. Doesn't help that Gary immediately rushes to save her from a giant monkey robot in the third film.

** Seems to be a running theme at the OSS; the office belonging to the head of the agency being a desk sitting atop a high-rise platform which is only reachable by moving steps, all within the center of a large ''chasm''.
** The OSS lab in the third film is equally egregious, with dozens of "cubicles" jutting out from the walls for several stories upward with zero room to move or any practical way to get down. Even worse, they're ''not enclosed''.

* ''WesternAnimation/SpyKidsMissionCritical'' (2018). A [[AllCGICartoon CGI]] television series rebooting the franchise. It was produced Rodriguez and [[Creator/RainmakerEntertainment Mainframe Studios]] and was released on April 20, 2018 on Creator/{{Netflix}}.

!!The Spy Kids franchise has the following recurring tropes:

* GovernmentAgencyOfFiction: The [=OSS=], which in RealLife is a [[http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USG/JCS/OSS/OSS-Functions/index.html defunct organization that existed in the early 1940s]]. (That OSS is a precursor to the {{CIA}}.)