All 4 ‘My Little Pony: Equestria Girls’ Movies in Order (Including Shorts & Specials)

If you’ve heard about ‘My Little Pony’ you’ve undoubtedly at one point in time become interested in the spinoff brand ‘Equestria Girls’ as well. ‘Equestria Girls’ is set in an alternate version of Equestria resembling modern-day Earth, featuring humanoid characters with colorful skin tones similar to their ‘My Little Pony’ counterparts. The parallel world includes locales like Canterlot High School, led by Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna, who mirror Princesses Celestia and Luna from Equestria. The spinoff turned out to be extremely successful and gave rise to its own franchise of movies, specials, video games, and shorts, and due to that, we decided to tell you how to watch them in order.

All 4 ‘Equestria Girls’ movies in release date order (with Shorts & specials)

‘Equestria Girls’ spinoff franchise began with the release of ‘Equestria Girls’ in 2013 and so far the franchise consists of 4 animated movies, 6 specials, and 6 collections of shorts. And this is if you don’t count video games and other related media. Even before the first movie was released, however, the toy line itself faced criticism. Some mothers expressed concerns describing the humanized characters as too attractive, “anorexic,” reminiscent of the original Barbie, or resembling Bratz dolls. These parents were worried about the potential negative influence on their children’s perceptions and body image. But, all the criticism was in vain since ‘Equestria Girls’ kept earning money. The following are the ‘Equestria Girls’ movies in their release date order:

1. ‘Equestria Girls’ (2013)
2. ‘Rainbow Rocks’ prelude shorts (2014)
3. ‘Rainbow Rocks’ (2014)
4. ‘Rainbow Rocks’ encore shorts (2015)
5. ‘Friendship Games’ prelude shorts (2015)
6. ‘Friendship Games’ (2015)
7. ‘Legend of Everfree’ (2016)
8. ‘Canterlot’ shorts (2017)
9. A collection of Music Videos / ‘Summertime’ Shorts (2017)
10. ‘Tales of Canterlot High’ (2017) Specials
11. ‘Better Together’ Web Series (2017-2020)
12. ‘Forgotten Friendship’ (2018) Special
13. ‘Rollercoaster of Friendship’ (2018) Special
14. ‘Spring Breakdown’ (2019) Special
15. ‘Sunset’s Backstage Pass’ (2019) Special
16. ‘Holidays Unwrapped’ (2019) Special

Are all ‘Equestria Girls’ movies, specials & shorts connected? What’s the best way to watch them?

Even though all movies can be watched as standalone installments, all ‘Equestria Girls’ movies, shorts, and specials are generally connected and set in the same ‘My Little Pony’ franchise universe. The best way to watch the movies and specials is in their respective release date orders accompanied by a series of short videos.

All ‘Equestria Girls’ movies in chronological order

The chronology of the ‘Equestria Girls’ movies is rather simple, the only thing that you need to watch out for are the short collections as they are generally tied to the movies.

1. ‘Equestria Girls’ (2013)

Twilight Sparkle and her friends attend a royal summit in the Crystal Empire after her coronation as a princess. Sunset Shimmer, a former student, steals Twilight’s crown containing the Element of Magic through a mirror portal, leading to a chase. The other princesses reveal that the portal connects to an alternate world, tasking Twilight with retrieving the crown before it closes, and despite being told to travel alone, Spike follows her.

2. ‘Rainbow Rocks’ prelude shorts + ‘Rainbow Rocks’ movies + ‘Rainbow Rocks’ encore shorts

Reformed bully Sunset Shimmer faces ostracism at Canterlot High School despite her attempts at redemption. Her only friends, counterparts of Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, and Rarity, form a rock band named “the Rainbooms” for a school musical showcase. The girls realize that the magic from Twilight Sparkle’s crown grants them pony-like features when playing their instruments.

The movie should be watched after 8 prelude shorts and followed by 3 encore shorts.

3. ‘Friendship Games’ prelude shorts + ‘Friendship Games’ movie

Canterlot High School students gear up for the Friendship Games against Crystal Prep Academy, an event featuring academics and sports. Sunset Shimmer becomes worried when her friends, the Wondercolts, unexpectedly exhibit pony-like features while playing musical instruments. To understand this magical development, Sunset tries to contact Twilight Sparkle for guidance but receives no response.

The movie should be watched after 5 prequel shorts.

4. ‘Legend of Everfree‘

Canterlot High School students embark on a field trip to Camp Everfree, owned by Gloriosa Daisy and Timber Spruce. Transfer student Twilight Sparkle experiences nightmares of her malevolent alter ego, “Midnight Sparkle,” while developing telekinetic powers. Concerned about the lingering influence of Midnight, Twilight confides in her friend Sunset Shimmer, who shares her own experience of transformation.

5. ‘Canterlot’ shorts + ‘Summertime’ Shorts + ‘Tales of Canterlot High’ Specials

The three specials focus on the daily lives and adventures of Canterlot High School’s top students—Twilight Sparkle, Sunset Shimmer, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. These events occur after the storyline of ‘My Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Legend of Everfree.’

Before you watch the three specials you should watch ‘Canterlot’ shorts, there are 10 shorts to go through and 6 music videos closely related to the theme of the specials.

6. ‘Better Together’ / ‘My Little Pony: Equestria Girls‘ Web Series (2017-2020)

‘My Little Pony: Equestria Girls’ is an animated web series that serves as a spin-off of Hasbro’s ‘My Little Pony’ franchise, reimagining the main characters from ‘My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic’ as human teenagers in a high school setting. Premiering on YouTube on November 17, 2017, and concluding with its second season on June 23, 2020, the series, which featured a new wardrobe for the characters designed by stylist Laura Schuffman, explored the adventures and daily lives of the characters in their human forms. The web series consisted of 70 episodes in total.

7. ‘Forgotten Friendship’ (2018) Special

Sunset Shimmer and her friends, including Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Twilight Sparkle, work on Canterlot High School’s yearbook. They encounter Wallflower Blush, a quiet and ignored girl, and later, Trixie demands an entry as ‘The Greatest and Powerfullest.’ Sunset refuses, leading to Trixie revealing that Sunset was once voted “Biggest Meanie.” Angered, Trixie vows revenge and leaves, setting the stage for potential conflict.

8. ‘Rollercoaster of Friendship’ (2018) Special

Rarity takes a summer job as a costume designer for a new amusement park where she meets the chief designer, Vignette Valencia. Vignette discovers a peculiar phone feature that absorbs objects, finding it amusing. Rarity designs costumes for a parade and invites her friends—Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Sunset Shimmer, and Twilight Sparkle. However, Vignette decides to showcase the Rainbooms, leading to potential challenges for Rarity and her friends in the parade.

9. ‘Spring Breakdown’ (2019) Special

Canterlot High students embark on a cruise for spring break, each with different interests in relaxation. Rainbow Dash, yearning for adventure, inadvertently disrupts their plans. After a conversation with Trixie, Rainbow Dash proposes attracting danger using their Equestrian magic during a scheduled show. Despite initial reluctance from her friends, they unintentionally “pony up” during the performance. A storm ensues, leading Rainbow Dash to believe it’s caused by evil magic, but her friends opt for a rational approach to address the situation.

10. ‘Sunset’s Backstage Pass’ (2019) Special

The protagonists attend the Starswirled Music Festival, excited about a reunion performance by their favorite pop duo, PostCrush. Sunset Shimmer and Pinkie Pie face minor annoyances during the first day, culminating in their expulsion from the festival after a mishap with a churro vendor. Sunset, frustrated, rejects Pinkie’s apology. While sitting despondently on a hill, Sunset is unexpectedly hit by a magical energy blast.

11. ‘Holidays Unwrapped’ (2019) Special

Premiering on Discovery Family on November 2, 2019, ‘Holidays Unwrapped’ is the fifth and final one-hour Equestria Girls special. In contrast to previous specials, it comprises six seven-minute shorts rather than a single hour-long story. Serving as the last ‘Equestria Girls’ content produced by DHX Media.

Where to watch the above-mentioned movies, specials & shorts?

Considering that the franchise is pretty large, there is no single streaming service that carries the entirety of ‘Equestria Girls’ animated content, this is why we made this comprehensive guide on where to watch all installments:

Will there be more ‘Equestria Girls’ movies?

It doesn’t seem likely that the ‘Equestria Girls’ franchise will get another installment, the prospects of that happening seem very low taking into account that the last short was released 4 years ago with no new regarding the rest of the media. However, if some news comes forward, we will update you as always.

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