Fictional Sisters Who Made Me Wish I Was Part of Their Family

Welcome to Flick & Lit, a column to celebrate and discuss media made for chicks

While writing about the childhood best friend I never had, I realised I’d been looking in the wrong place. My sisters had been filling that role all along. They argued with me and made me think I was found in the trash, but they also loved me unconditionally and made me feel seen. They’re still my favourite people in the world.

Maybe that’s why I have such a soft spot for sisters in fiction. They feel familiar, but they’re also aspirational. They remind me that sisterhood isn’t about getting along all the time; it’s about having that person’s back even if you also have to slap them in the face.

So, in honour of the girls who taught us that love stories don’t have to be romantic (or even outside your own home), here are the fictional sisters who made me wish I had a spare room in their family house.

I’m counting the days for Practical Magic 2, after watching the first movie just last year. Spooky films are not usually my thing, but it was love at first sight with the Owens. It’s the perfect portrayal of how being raised by the same people does not mean you’ll end up the same. Though they are completely different in personalities and in what they want for themselves, they share an unbreakable bond and loyalty. Fun fact: the movie is actually based on a book by Alice Hoffman.

I know we all love Lilo and Stitch, with their unlikely friendship and eventually becoming one of the found family stories, but I might love Lilo and Nani even more. Like so many other older sisters, Nani has to become a parent by circumstance and not choice, and instead of giving us an unrealistic version easily digestible for kids, we see a realistic one. While Nani makes mistakes, she is trying her best; on the other hand, Lilo is just being a kid who doesn’t get how hard it is. It’s really a story of our lives.

Though probably not the best-known fictional sisters, Ramona and Beezus are among my favourite duos. It’s most certainly one of the first to come to mind when I think about sisters on the screen and on the page—yes, it’s based on Beverly Cleary’s books! As a little sister, I know how much we can be a source of embarrassment, so besides seeing myself in Ramona, I love how they show resentment and love coexisting.

The most recent discovery on this list, I watched Voicemails for Isabelle not expecting I would cry in the first five minutes. It’s mainly because Jill’s little sister, Izzy, has cystic fibrosis, making it harder for them to share moments they would otherwise have, like going to school together or drinking at a party. It also made me cry because it reminded me of how lucky I am to have my sisters. It gave a whole new meaning to the song Dancing On My Own.

I first fell in love with the Bennet sisters in the 2005 adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Then, I fell in love twice more with the 1995 version and the new The Other Bennet Sister (2026) BBC series. No matter which one you saw first—or if you actually only read the book—we need to give credit to Jane Austen's brilliant mind. Oh, how lucky we are to have so many versions of them! And there’s even a new one coming out this year (probably not the last either), with Emma Corrin as Elizabeth and Olivia Colman as Mrs Bennet.

Watching Alex and Camryn gives me the best mix of nostalgia and witchy—let’s say, they’re the nieces of Practical Magic and cousins of Hallie and Annie from Parent Trap, since they were also separated at birth. Coventry-born, the Twitches grew up on Earth but in very different houses and lifestyles. It teaches us that being sisters is more than just growing up together and sharing memories; it’s almost an automatic connection by nature

I’ve only watched the 2019 movie, but I still had to include this group of sisters, who originated from Louisa May Alcott’s novel. It’s such a complex portrayal of sisterhood, where Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy clearly love each other deeply, but still feel jealousy, resentment, and rivalry. As one of three, I relate to how the relationships among different sisters are vastly different.

This list wouldn’t be complete without one of my favourite sisters on and off the screen: Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen. There were so many options to pick from, but New York Minute is my favourite movie from their catalogue. That’s because we witness them bonding over a series of misadventures around New York, finally starting to appreciate their twin for what exactly makes them so different from themselves.

I was obsessed with this movie when it came out, and even though XO, Kitty is not as good (to me), I still had to watch it—all three seasons. I feel a sense of loyalty to these sisters as if they were my own. Maybe I connected with them because I’m also one of three women, or because their relationship is so incredibly supportive and uncomplicated. Especially in the movie, where Kitty’s intentions in mailing her sister’s letters were from a genuine good place.

If you wish you were the missing sibling in these families, make sure to subscribe to Flick & Lit, so you don’t miss the next letter.

Sincerely,
Renata 💋