Let’s be honest: talking about the best sci-fi movies on Netflix is like promoting "the best affordable apartments in New York City." While Netflix boasts a variety of excellent shows and films, finding quality sci-fi movies on one of the best streaming platforms can be a challenge.
Nevertheless, we’ve created a list of solid sci-fi movies you can stream on Netflix right now. We've made sure not to blur the lines between sci-fi and fantasy. Some of these movies may lean more lightly on the sci-fi elements than others — they can’t all be “Star Trek” — but each one brings something unique to the genre. So, without further ado, here are the best sci-fi movies on Netflix that are definitely worth your time.
‘What Happened to Monday’ (2017)
"What Happened to Monday" is set in a future where overpopulation has led to a strict one-child policy enforced by the government. Families with multiple children face severe penalties, and extra siblings are put into cryosleep. This story follows seven identical sisters, all played by Noomi Rapace, who are named after the days of the week. To avoid detection by the authorities, they assume a single shared identity, "Karen Settman," and each sister is allowed to go outside only on her designated day. The system works until one day, Monday, fails to return home. So, what happens next? Well, exactly what the title says: the sisters must find out what happened to Monday.
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‘Looper’ (2012)
Ready for a sci-fi thriller next? "Looper" is set in a dystopian future where time travel exists but is illegal and controlled by criminal organizations. When these organizations want to eliminate someone, they send the target back in time to be killed by "loopers," assassins paid to dispose of people sent from the future. We follow Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) in the story, a looper who is confronted with a difficult situation when his future self, played by Bruce Willis, is sent back in time as a target. Instead of killing his future self, Joe hesitates, allowing him to escape. This sets off a chain of events that forces both versions of Joe to confront their choices and consequences.
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‘Upgrade’ (2018)
Moving into something that’s just like Black Mirror when it comes to a dark story. "Upgrade" takes place in a near-future world where advanced technology, including AI and cybernetic enhancements, is prevalent. The story follows Grey Trace (Logan Marshall-Green), a technophobe who becomes paralyzed after a brutal mugging that also results in his wife's death.
Grey is given a second chance at life when a reclusive tech mogul offers to implant him with an experimental AI chip called STEM. This chip not only allows Grey to walk again but also grants him enhanced physical abilities and combat skills. With STEM's help, Grey embarks on a mission to seek revenge on those responsible for his wife's murder and his paralysis. If you enjoy hardcore fighting sequences, you’ll definitely like this badass sci-fi watch.
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‘The Adam Project’ (2022)
Fighter pilot Adam Reed (Ryan Reynolds) has the ultimate mission: save the world by traveling back in time. Unfortunately, he makes a mistake on his trajectory and winds up in 2022, where he finds the younger version of himself (Walker Scobell), who needs help with his own life.
While it definitely smells like a cross between "Back to the Future" and a big action movie, "The Adam Project" is its own movie. The latest collaboration between Reynolds and director Shawn Levy (who will reunite on Deadpool 3), "The Adam Project" is a winner thanks to Reynolds and Scobell's performances and chemistry. — HC
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‘Black Mirror: Bandersnatch’ (2018)
Unlike any other movie on this list, "Black Mirror: Bandersnatch" is actually interactive. The plot begins relatively simply, as video game programmer Stefan (Fionn Whitehead) is seeking to adapt one of the classic interactive "choose your own adventure" books into a game.
But as the public's reception of the game doesn't meet Stefan's dreams, you are given the option to try again. This begins the dark path that Stefan goes down, where he starts to become concerned about someone (you) controlling him. — HC
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‘The Platform’ (2020)
A sci-fi movie where the futuristic elements are a little more minimal and subtle, The Platform is a dystopian horror movie where jails have become even less humane. Food is distributed via a large floating platform that descends through a series of cells that are stacked on top of each other. Two people share each cell, and this system is so broken that the prisoners on the lower levels — who get food last — are driven to risk it all. The Platform feels like what could happen if a Black Mirror episode were even more depressing. — HC
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‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ (2022)
"Everything Everywhere All at Once" stars Michelle Yeoh as Evelyn Wang, an overwhelmed and exhausted Chinese-American woman who runs a struggling laundromat with her husband, Waymond (Ke Huy Quan). The story begins with Evelyn facing a tax audit from the IRS and dealing with numerous family issues, including her strained relationship with her daughter, Joy (Stephanie Hsu), and her elderly father, Gong Gong (James Hong).
During a meeting with an IRS agent (Jamie Lee Curtis), Evelyn is suddenly thrust into a multiverse adventure when she discovers that she is the key to saving countless parallel universes from a powerful and chaotic force. And yes, it’s as crazy as it sounds, but it’s an enjoyable and entertaining experience nonetheless.
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‘Freaks’ (2019)
"Freaks" follows a seven-year-old girl named Chloe (Lexy Kolker), who has been kept in isolation by her paranoid father, Henry (Emile Hirsch). Henry warns Chloe about the dangers outside their house, particularly from people who want to harm them. As Chloe grows more curious about the outside world, she begins to discover the truth about her father's fears and her own unique abilities. I won’t go into too much detail about this narrative since it’s one you should experience for yourself without prior knowledge.
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‘Don't Look Up’ (2021)
Some would call "Don't Look Up" — a comedy about the world's farcical response to a planet-threatening crisis that feels similar to how climate change has played out so far — more science than fiction. Either way, this ensemble comedy proved popular when it dropped on Netflix, painting targets on everyone's back, to highlight how complicit everyone can be. Things get odder, though, when a billionaire decides that we can't destroy the comet heading for Earth, because it can be mined for trillions of dollars of rare elements. So, he pitches using unproven technology to break the comet into pieces, which supposedly won't be devastating once they enter our orbit Divisive, as some find its humor deft and others see it as ham-fisted. "Don't Look Up" is the kind of science fiction that those plugged into the news may want to watch. — HC
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