2022’s Disney+ Cheaper By The Dozen revived a new version of the Baker family. This time, the clan was represented by a blended and diverse family rather than the entirely white main cast of Steve Martin’s 2003 movie. The remake, however, shares the basic storyline from the 2003 portrayal: the Baker family comes into a lot of money that allows them to move into a much bigger home, but it forces them away from their childhood home to a new environment. There are still plenty of children running around, and there is no shortage of love the parents have for their kids.

However, there are plenty of ways the 2022 version is different from 2003’s Cheaper By the Dozen. For one, there is a difference in the number of children. 2022’s film only has nine children, with a nephew and the parents allowing the family to equal 12 people. What’s more, the Disney+ remake also includes more parents in the overall story. Each ex-spouse of the main couple is featured as a significant member of the family, while in Martin’s movie, the parenting was done by the two biological parents of the 12 kids. There are various other ways the two versions of Cheaper By The Dozen differ.

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7 Diversity in a Blended Family

     Disney+ Original Movie Cheaper By The Dozen 2022

2022’s Cheaper By The Dozen gives representation to a blended family, something the 2003 movie never did. The 2022 film made a point to be a more diverse portrayal, still showing the ups and downs and relatability of family from another perspective. Blended families are more typical now, as reported by Healthline, and there can be conflicts amongst the parents and exes as everyone tries to figure out what role to play in the children’s lives. Cheaper By The Dozen explores the battle of how each parent goes about co-parenting with each other and the different relationships and bonds the kids have created with the adults in their lives.

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6 The Parents’ Jobs

     Disney+ 2022 Cheaper By The Dozen Paul and Zoey

Paul and Zoey Baker are the owners of a breakfast restaurant that all their children work at. The catalyst for the family moving away from their home comes from Paul getting support for his sauce invention and the desire to have the family’s breakfast restaurant branch out beyond its one location. The parents work together to run the restaurant. In the 2003 Cheaper by the Dozen, Tom and Kate Baker have drastically different professions. Tom is a football coach, and his transfer to a D1 college is the reason for the family’s move. Meanwhile, Kate is an author who spends part of the movie promoting her novel during a book tour.

5 Significance of the Baker Children

     Twentieth Century Fox 2003 Cheaper By The Dozen Baker Family

The new Cheaper by the Dozen is arguably more about Paul and Zoey. While the kids have a role in the film, the more significant moments are left to the parents to hash out together. That is not entirely the case in the 2003 verion. Although Tom and Kate are at the helm of the movie, the kids have plenty of room to be heavily featured and essential to the story. While some do outshine others, as is the case in the 2022 version, the movie for the kids comes across as more evened out compared to the parents. 2003’s Baker children are essential to the story and have more fleshed-out relationships with each other than the 2022 Bakers are shown to.

4 Less Focus On Chaos

2003’s Cheaper By The Dozen thrived on chaos. It was likely happening constantly during this movie, whether it was soaking underwear in meat, propelling off the roof, causing a fight in school, or creating chaos around the house. It was an element that showed off how the Baker siblings worked together to cause mayhem, or just in general, as a dysfunctional group. 2022’s film has a small chaos sequence toward the beginning and a few shenanigans occurring throughout the movie. However, they never had the same creative energy designed to cause mayhem that the 2003 version did.

3 The Lack of Adult Baker Children

     Twentieth Century Fox Cheaper By The Dozen 2003 Nora and Hank

One of the intriguing elements of 2003’s Cheaper by the Dozen is that while 11 of the kids lived at home, one was an adult in her early 20s, living with her boyfriend in a separate apartment. Nora Baker is still very much a part of the family, even if her desire to grow into her own person outside her parents and siblings is apparent in nearly every scene she is in. However, it is an adult aspect of the movie that the 2022 counterpart is missing. This storyline shows Nora understands her journey as loving her family no matter how crazy things can get, compared to sticking around with her kid-hating boyfriend, Hank. The 2022 version does not portray the questions of what it means to try to find yourself outside your family as you grow up.

2 Impact of the Move

     Cheaper By The Dozen Remake 2022

In 2022’s Cheaper by the Dozen, the impact of the move away from home is there, but less prominently than in the 2003 counterpart. The Baker family moves away from their home, but they still live close enough to their family’s restaurant to work there every day. Their new school is not as friendly as the school they had moved away from. Their new neighbors have their own set of problematic issues. The eldest daughter has trouble transitioning to a new basketball team. The film also shows that with the move and business ventures, Paul is home less, which is hurting the family. Except, that is contradictory to how the film itself is showing things. When Paul goes on his first business trip, it does not appear he is gone for long. Yet, everyone acts as if he has been gone for weeks and that this has grown into a constant thing.

The emotional impact of the move on the 2003 movie is a bigger deal for everyone. School comes with bullies in elementary and high school. Charlie’s life falls apart between the football team and potentially failing. The suggestion they would become a “happier and stronger family” only becomes a bigger lie by the day. The family accepts Kate’s time away from home, but Tom’s job hurts everyone far worse. Tom is home, bringing the football team to practice in their yard. However, mentally and emotionally, he is far away, far more focused on his job than his kids, which causes him to desperately play catch-up no matter what he is doing.

1 Emotional Build-Up to Running Away from Home

     Twentieth Century Fox 2003 Cheaper By The Dozen Baker Family Reunited

Seth’s choice to run away in the 2022 film comes after being uncomfortable with being surrounded by the Baker siblings and then accused of stealing. The accusation is wrong, but rather than stick around and work it out, Seth leaves the house, and rather than a frantic search for Seth, Paul quickly and conveniently claims he knows exactly where Seth is going. He is right on his first guess, and the rest of the family arrives to convince Seth to come with them, which he does. Unfortunately, although it may be a nice moment, it does not come across as being the earned conclusion it should be.

Seth’s final act mirrors Mark Baker’s in the 2003 movie. However, there are significant differences. Even before the family moves, Mark spends the entire film being utterly miserable and feeling left out. His siblings refer to him as “FedEx,” highlighting his feelings of not fitting in with his family. In addition to the issues with his siblings, the final act sees Mark must deal with the fact that his beloved frog, Beans, died. When no one cares, Mark takes it upon himself to leave his family behind for Midland and bury Beans with his mother. The reveal that Mark has run away sparks a frantic hunt for him amongst Tom, Kate, and the Baker siblings. No one knows where Mark is or where he would go until Nora mentions escaping to her favorite place in the world. Tom’s reunion with Mark, and Mark’s last reunion with his mother and siblings, tie into the overall theme of the importance of family.