There have been plenty of times when Netflix didn’t bother to add any new sci-fi movies worth watching in a given month. But November is not one of those occasions. For action fans, Tom Cruise’s Oblivion is almost good enough that you won’t miss Edge of Tomorrow quite as much now that it’s departed Netflix again. For a more cerebral sci-fi thriller, Predestination may make your head spin.
Our third pick of the month is The Butterfly Effect, an underrated time travel story that celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024. You can find these films and more in our roundup of the best sci-fi movies on Netflix.
We’ve curated guides to the best sci-fi movies on Amazon Prime Video and the best sci-fi movies on Hulu, too. Need more recommendations? Then check out the best new movies to stream this week, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
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Oblivion2013 -
The Butterfly Effect2004
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Predestination2014
Oblivion (2013)
54%
7.0/10Welcome to the end of the world. You may have missed a few things along the way. Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) is definitely underinformed in Oblivion. Six decades after an alien invasion, Jack is stuck on Earth repairing drones alongside his partner, Victoria “Vika” Olsen (Andrea Riseborough). But Vika isn’t the woman that Jack keeps seeing in his dreams and half-remembered memories.
That woman turns out to be Julia (Olga Kurylenko), who is no figment of Jack’s imagination. She’s spent a few decades on ice, and the world has radically changed in her absence. Julia may also be the only one who can open Jack’s eyes to the reality of his identity and what he’s really been doing. More importantly, Julia’s return gives Jack a chance to forge his own destiny.
The Butterfly Effect (2004)
30%
7.6/10Ashton Kutcher leaves his comedic persona from That ’70s Show far behind in this sci-fi thriller. The Butterfly Effect casts Kutcher as Evan, a young man who suffered an incredibly traumatic childhood alongside his friends, Kayleigh (Amy Smart), Lenny (Elden Henson), and Tommy (William Lee Scott). Evan also frequently blacks out, which affects his memory.
Evan eventually discovers these blackouts were caused by his present-day mind superimposing itself on his younger version. Through his journals, Evan can actually go back in time and change his personal history. But every change he makes carries a severe consequence for the people he loves, as well as himself. And Evan only has a limited number of chances to make things right.
Predestination (2014)
69%
7.4/10You’re going to have to pay close attention to Predestination, which adapts Robert A. Heinlein’s famous sci-fi short story, — All You Zombies —. Note that this is not actually a zombie movie despite the name of that tale. Instead, the Spierig Brothers bring this twisted narrative to life with Ethan Hawke as an unnamed agent of the Temporal Bureau. It’s his job to save lives and keep history on track. However, one terrorist has eluded him his entire career.
For the agent’s final mission, he attempts to recruit a writer (Succession‘s Sarah Snook), who goes by the pseudonym the Unmarried Mother. The writer has a serious grudge against a former lover, and the agent is willing to use that to manipulate history in his favor. There’s a design that the agent is following from the start, but it may not be going in the direction that you predicted.
Elysium (2013)
61%
6.6/10Writer and director Neill Blomkamp offers another view of the future in Elysium, and the future sure sucks if you aren’t rich and powerful. All of the wealthy people get to live in the luxurious orbital station known as Elysium, while everyone else toils on an overpopulated Earth. The life of Max Da Costa (Matt Damon), an ex-convict, is shattered by a fatal dose of radiation suffered on Earth. His only hope for a cure is an illegal shuttle ride to Elysium for the medical bays located there.
The price of Max’s trip is that he has to steal some files directly from the brain of his ex-boss, John Carlyle (William Fichtner). By going through with that heist, Max has unwittingly involved himself in a coup attempt on Elysium by Jessica Delacourt (Jodie Foster). To prevent her plans from being exposed, Jessica sends a dangerous killer, Agent M. Kruger (Sharlto Copley), to silence Max long before he can get off Earth.
A Quiet Place Part II (2021)
71%
7.2/10Oppenheimer‘s Cillian Murphy steps into the world of John Krasinski’s sci-fi/horror franchise in A Quiet Place Part II. The prologue briefly brings back Krasinski’s Lee Abbott and establishes Murphy’s Emmett as a friend of the family just in time for the alien invasion that wrecked the planet. After the events of the first movie, Evelyn Abbott (Emily Blunt) is the last one standing alongside her children, Regan (Millicent Simmonds) and Marcus (Noah Jupe), when the Abbotts run into Emmett again.
Emmett isn’t the only survivor who has figured out how to remain relatively undetected by the aliens. Djimon Hounsou plays the unnamed leader of a group of humans who may offer the Abbotts sanctuary. But is anywhere on Earth truly safe from the invaders? Have the Abbotts unwittingly put their trust in the wrong men?
Ender's Game (2013)
51%
6.6/10Before he went on to star in Netflix’s Sex Education, Asa Butterfield headlined the adaptation of Orson Scott Card’s sci-fi novel Ender’s Game, alongside Haile Steinfeld, who also went on to greater things. In the future, humanity’s war with an alien race is so encompassing that children like Andrew “Ender” Wiggin (Butterfield) are recruited for the conflict based on their aptitude for space combat.
Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) recognizes Ender’s talent, but he doesn’t do him any favors by putting the harsh spotlight on him while alienating his fellow recruits. Only one recruit, Petra Arkanian (Steinfeld), takes the time to befriend and help Ender. Ender’s choices in battle could determine the fate of both humanity and the alien race they’re fighting against.
Godzilla Minus One (2023)
81%
7.9/10Why is Godzilla Minus One so much better than the American MonsterVerse movies? There are two reasons. First, Godzilla has no redeeming qualities in Minus One. He is simply a monstrous force of nature. The second reason is that Minus One has a human story that resonates through Kōichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki).
Shikishima should have died twice, first as a kamikaze pilot in the last days of World War II, and then during his initial encounter with Godzilla. Because he fails to act or give up his life, Shikishima views himself as a coward… and that’s a view shared by others. Noriko Ōishi (Minami Hamabe), a woman who lives with Shikishima, sees him as the man he could be. She gives him something to live for, even if it means he may ultimately have to die.
Upgrade (2018)
67%
7.5/10The R rating for Upgrade doesn’t fully prepare you for just how brutal the fights in this movie can be once Grey Trace (Logan Marshall-Green) becomes a lethal weapon of vengeance. It’s not what he wanted to become, of course. But without STEM (Simon Maiden), Grey would still be trapped inside his own paralyzed body following an attack that claimed the life of his wife.
Billionaire Eron Keen (Harrison Gilbertson) offered STEM to Grey to give him back his life. Yet instead of a dream, it’s becoming a nightmare as the AI STEM takes more and more control over Grey’s body.
Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver (2024)
6.3/10It took Zack Snyder two movies to retell the story of The Magnificent Seven in space, which is essentially what Rebel Moon is. Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire introduced Kora (Sofia Boutella), and revealed her personal connection to Motherworld, the heart of the empire that dominates the known universe. It also established that Kora is the title character in the sequel, Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver.
Kora and her remaining allies triumphed in the first part of the film when they survived an Imperium trap. But now the real challenge begins, because the Imperium is marshaling its forces to conquer Veldt, Kora’s adopted home. And she’ll do anything to protect her people, even if it kills her.
Spaceman (2024)
56%
5.8/10Alien’s promo line infamously states that “in space, no one can hear you scream.” Spaceman isn’t a horror film, so there’s not much suspense about whether astronaut Jakub Procházka (Adam Sandler) will survive. But since Jakub is alone in deep space, no one can hear or see just how badly he is being consumed by his loneliness, his inner turmoil, and his failing marriage to Lenka Procházka (Carey Mulligan). No one except Hanuš (Paul Dano), an alien spider that Jakub encounters on his journey.
Hanuš sees and knows everything in Jakub’s mind, often to the detriment of Jakub himself. Reliving painful memories isn’t something Jakub wants, and yet he’s so desperate for any kind of companionship that the prospect of Hanuš leaving him behind is absolutely devastating to him.
Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023)
32%
8.6/10Zack Snyder’s space opera, Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, should be familiar to fans of Star Wars and other sci-fi epics. It takes place in a universe that is ruled by Motherworld and its intergalactic army, the Imperium. Kora (Sofia Boutella), an ex-member of the Imperium, sought to redeem herself by starting a new life out of Motherworld’s reach on a moon called Veldt.
When the Imperium finally arrives on Veldt, Kora can’t run anymore. To defend her adopted homeworld, Kora recruits a former Imperium general, Titus (Djimon Hounsou), as well as Kai (Charlie Hunnam), Gunnar (Michiel Huisman), Tarak (Staz Nair), Nemesis (Doona Bae), and more. But even this assortment of warriors may not be enough to withstand a full assault by the Imperium.
They Cloned Tyrone (2023)
75%
6.7/10Very early on in They Cloned Tyrone, a drug dealer named Fontaine (John Boyega) is brutally murdered in front of one of his clients, Slick Charles (Foxx), and one of his Slick’s girls, Yo-Yo (Teyonah Parris). But much to the surprise of Slick Charles and Yo-Yo, Fontaine shows up the next day without any memory of what happened to him.
While investigating the mystery of Fontaine’s apparent resurrection, the trio uncover a clone conspiracy that has very troubling implications for their lives and their future. And if they want to save themselves, Fontaine, Slick Charles, and Yo-Yo need to fight back.
65 (2023)
40%
5.4/1065 doesn’t try to hide its sci-fi premise. It’s about a pilot named Mills (Adam Driver), a man who accepts a long-term gig as a pilot to provide for his family. But when his starship crash lands on Earth 65 million years ago, Mills is left with no way to reunite with his wife, Nevine (Chloe Coleman), and their daughter, Alya (Nika King).
The only thing that gives Mills the will to live is Koa (Ariana Greenblatt), a young girl who is the only other survivor. When Mills discovers a potential escape from prehistoric Earth, he escorts Koa across a landscape that is filled with very ravenous and very dangerous dinosaurs.
Captain Nova (2021)
5.5/10Captain Nova (Anniek Pheifer) has come from the future to save the past in the Dutch sci-fi movie that shares her name. Unfortunately, for Nova, the trip back in time has also changed her into a 12-year-old child. And young Nova (Kika van de Vijver) soon realizes that her mission is now nearly impossible because of this unforeseen side effect.
With few other viable options, Nova teams up with a kid named Nas (Marouane Meftah) as she attempts to rewrite the future by taking on a greedy corporation. And if Nova fails, her future is destined to unfold in the same way that it did before.
Rim of the World (2019)
5.2/10McG’s Rim of the World takes its inspiration from the kid-centric sci-fi films that Steven Spielberg produced and directed in the 1980s. At the Rim of the World summer camp in California, Alex (Jack Gore) is a boy who is still grieving the loss of his father when he starts bonding with his fellow social rejects, ZhenZhen (Miya Cech), Dariush (Benjamin Flores Jr.), and Gabriel (Alessio Scalzotto).
Much to their collective surprise, Alex and his new friends discover that they are in the midst of an alien invasion. And they may be the only ones left who can deliver the key to victory to NASA … if they can live long enough to escape.
What Happened to Monday (2017)
47%Warriors of Future (2022)
Spiderhead (2022)
54%The Adam Project (2022)
55%
6.7/10Stowaway (2021)
63%
5.6/10Synchronic (2020)
64%
6.2/10The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021)
80%
7.7/10The Swarm (2020)
5.3/10Army of the Dead (2021)
57%
5.8/10Oxygen (2021)
67%
6.5/10Spectral (2016)
6.3/10The Midnight Sky (2020)
58%
5.6/10Outside the Wire (2021)
45%
5.4/10The Discovery (2017)
54%
6.3/10The Wandering Earth (2019)
57%
6.0/10Mirage (2018)
7.4/10Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (2018)
61%
7.1/10Advantageous (2015)
59%
6.2/10Project Power (2020)
51%
6/10Bird Box (2018)
51%
6.6/10See You Yesterday (2019)
74%
5.2/10Beyond Skyline (2017)
46%
5.3/10Okja (2017)
75%
7.3/10I Am Mother (2019)
64%
6.7/10
