15 Science Fiction Movies To Add To Your Watchlist Immediately

Who needs adults? E.T. is a marvel of the popular genre — a vibrant, sweet, funny, and magical movie. But one of director Steven Spielberg's most inspired choices is to cloak many of the film's authority figures (parents, teachers, government stooges) in shadow and silhouette. Why? Because a leathery little scamp like E.T. is lovable only in the uninhibited mind of a child; fear, distrust, and paranoia are born of experience and disappointment. It's not that adults are evil in the world of E.T.; it's just that their curiosity isn't rooted in compassion. Why help a creature phone home when there's use for him here? Kids don't think that way. E.T. doesn't, either.

Director: Steven Spielberg

IMDB Rating: 7.9/10

Cast: Henry Thomas, Drew Barrymore, Robert MacNaughton, Dee Wallace, Peter Coyote

Notable Awards: Academy Award for Best Music, Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film.

One of the most talked-about movies in the past couple of years, Dune has been described as "hugely satisfying and incredibly frustrating." It follows the character Paul Atreides, who arrives on Arrakis after his father accepts stewardship of the dangerous planet. However, chaos soon ensues after a betrayal, with forces clashing to control melange, a precious resource. 

Director: Denis Villeneuve

IMDB Rating: 8/10 

Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Jason Momoa

Notable Awards: Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Academy Award for Best Film Editing, AFI Movies of the Year 

A visually appealing and exceptionally thrilling movie, Snowpiercer is set in a post-apocalyptic ice age where only a few survivors of the human race are on board — travelling around the globe. The plot follows the lead, Curtis, who leads a group of people who want to take control of the engine and, of course, the future of what's left of civilisation.  

Director: Bong Joon Ho

IMDB Rating: 7.1/10

Cast: Chris Evans, Jamie Bell, Tilda Swinton

Notable Awards: 2013 Winner APFF Award. Best Art Direction. Ondrej Nekvasil., Best Cinematography. Hong Kyung-pyo.

Known as one of the most confusing and googled movies of all time, Nolan's Tenet cannot be kept off this list! The plot follows a CIA operative known as the Protagonist who is meant to save the world when a few objects that can be manipulated and used as weapons fall into the wrong hands. The movie is compelling, intriguing, and in classic Nolan fashion, will leave you with a hundred questions, if not more. 

Director: Christopher Nolan

IMDB Rating: 7.3/10

Cast: Elizabeth Debicki, John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Kenneth

Notable Awards: Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, Bandung Film Festival for Imported Film, BAFTA Award for Best Special Visual Effects

The Platform is a movie with mature themes and is not for the faint-hearted. The movie is about a prison where inmates are fed on a descending platform. Those on the upper levels take more than their fair share, while those below are left to starve on scraps till one man decides to change the system.

Director: Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia

IMDB Rating: 7/10

Cast: Iván Massagué, Alexandra Masangkay, Zorion Eguileor, Antonia San Juan

Notable Awards: Goya Award for Best Special Effects, European Film Award for Best Visual Effects

This science-fiction action film released in 2023 has already made our list because of how good it is. The plot follows a future war between the human race and AI. An ex-special forces agent, Joshua, is recruited to hunt down and kill the Creator, who is an architect of advanced AI. The Creator has developed a weapon that has the ability to end the war and with it all of mankind. However, when Joshua and his team of elite operatives venture into enemy-occupied territory, they discover the world-ending weapon is actually an AI in the form of a young child.

Director: Gareth Edwards

IMDB Rating: 6.9/10

Cast: John David Washington, Gemma Chan, Madeleine Yuna Voyles

Notable Awards: 2024 VES Award for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Feature,  Sierra Award for Best Visual Effects

One of Joaquin Phoenix's finest works, Her is a movie that'll stay with you long after you've watched it. It is a romantic sci-fi that is refreshing, to say the least when it comes to science fiction movies. The plot follows Theodore Twombly, an introverted writer who buys an Artificial Intelligence system to help him write. However, things take a turn when he finds out about the AI's ability to learn and adapt, eventually making him fall in love with it. What we love the most is how the movie is able to question the future of digital tools and humans' dependence on them.

Director: Spike Jonze

IMDB Rating: 8/10

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Spike Jonze, Scarlett Johansson

Notable Awards: Academy Award for Writing, Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay - Motion Picture

Another gorgeous romantic science-fiction movie, The Time Traveler's Wife, is a heartwarming yet heart-wrenching movie that reminds you of how short lived yet beautiful life can be. The plot follows Henry DeTamble, a librarian with a unique gene that lets him travel involuntarily through time. However, his wife, Claire Abshire, finds it difficult to cope with it, leading to complications. 

Director: Robert Schwentke

IMDB Rating: 7.1/10

Cast: Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, Hailey McCann

Notable Award: BMI Film Music Award

A movie that took everyone by storm and won so many Oscars, Everything Everywhere All At Once is less of a film and more of an experience. The plot follows a Chinese immigrant who unwillingly gets caught up in an epic adventure. She must connect to different versions of herself in several parallel universes to stop someone hell-bent on harming the multiverse.

Director: Daniel Scheinert, Daniel Kwan

IMDB Rating: 7.8/10

Cast: Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, Stephanie Hsu

Notable Awards: Academy Award for Best Picture, Academy Award for Best Directing

One of the more underrated Cillian Murphy movies, Sunshine follows a team of astronauts who set out to save the sun. However, things take a turn when the crew's lives are endangered after an accident occurs. The movie has an excellent cast, a stunning orchestral score, and a solid plot based on a grandiose sci-fi idea.

Director: Danny Boyle

IMDB Rating: 7.2/10

Cast: Cillian Murphy, Michelle Yeoh, Rose Byrne, Chris Evans

Notable Awards: British Independent Film Award for Best Technical Achievement

The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951) is one of the most influential fantasy sci-fi movies in history. The film, set in Cold War during the earlier stages of the nuclear arms race involves an alien who visits Earth along with a powerful robot to deliver an important message that'll affect the entire human race. If you're someone who loves old movies, then don't pass up on this classic. 

Director: Robert Wise

IMDB Rating: 7.8/10

Cast: Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal Patricia Neal, Helen Benson, Hugh Marlowe

Notable Awards: Golden Globe Award for Best Film Promoting International Understanding

This 1980 movie is regarded as one of the best sequels ever made. It further develops the characters, pushing the Star Wars Universe into even darker territory. The plot follows Vader, who dispatches thousands of probe droids across the galaxy searching for Skywalker after the Rebels' victory at the Battle Of Yavin. The movie showcases the numerous challenges the lead overcomes, including a vicious Wampa, AT-ATs, and the ultimate decision to complete his Jedi training or risk all that he fought for to rescue his friends.

Director: Irvin Kershner

IMDB Rating: 8.7/10

Cast: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Peter Mayhew

Notable Awards: Academy Award for Best Sound Mixing, People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie

Arguably one of the best Pixar animated movies out there. WALL-E, short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-class, is the last robot left on Earth, who spends his days tidying up the planet. However, during 700 years of doing so, he has also developed a personality that has led way to a very human emotion — loneliness. But things take a turn when he spots EVE (Elissa Knight), a sleek and shapely probe sent back to Earth on a scanning mission. Enchanted, WALL-E embarks on his greatest adventure — EVE across the galaxy.

Director: Andrew Stanton

IMDB Rating: 8.4/10

Cast: Ben Burtt, Andrew Stanton, Elissa Knight

Notable Awards: BAFTA Award for Best Animated Film, Nebula Award for Best Script

One of the most recognisable and beloved movies of all time. The plot is about an experiment by a weird scientist that goes horribly wrong, leading to his teenage friend going back in time to the 1950s, where he is forced to reunite with the younger version of his parents.

Director: Robert Zemeckis

IMDB Rating: 8.5/10

Cast: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, George McFly

Notable Awards: People's Choice Award for Favorite Movie, Academy Award for Best Sound Editing

If you saw the Barbie movie this year, we bet you're familiar with the fact that this movie's opening inspired the opening sequence! Gone down as one of the best movie sequences in film history, it gives the audience an insight into life before humans came around. The movie, on the other hand, is beautifully shot and directed by star Kubrick, who touches on themes of artificial intelligence vs mankind. The plot explores humanity discovering a mysterious, artificial object buried underneath the lunar surface. With the assistance of HAL 9000, an intelligent computer, humankind embarks on an interesting quest.

Director: Stanley Kubrick

IMDB Rating: 8.3/10

Cast: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter

Notable Awards:  Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, BAFTA Award for Best Cinematography