Total Nerd The Best Alien Movies Ever Made  

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204.5k votes 17.6k voters 1.5M views 206 items

List Rules Movies must feature extra-terrestrials

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The best alien movies, ranked by fans of space and sci-fi genres. Alien movies can take several forms. What are the best alien movies? Many films about extraterrestrials, alien abductions, or visitors from other planets turn them into traditional horror villains. These "alien war" movies tend to follow a simple pattern: 1) UFOs arrive on Earth, 2) a misunderstanding or outright evil intent sparks a war between aliens and humanity, 3) with massively destructive and terrifying results. If you find you want more ideas then check out the best action movies on Netflix, best movies on Netflix instant and our list of scary movies on Netflix. 

Whether the movies are funny, scary, or totally crazy, there are plenty of parallels to be found between them. Consider the similarities of the recent Battle: LA, Steven Spielberg's War of the Worlds, and even Tim Burton's genre parody, Mars Attacks. However, there are also films in which aliens are not an interstellar threat but a boon to humanity, or at least well-intentioned explorers. E.T. is the classic example of the "friendly alien" genre – and the xenomorphs in the Alien franchise stay in outer space, so that's good for humans, too. E.T. is also one of the best alien kids movies ever made.

What are the best alien films of all time? Often in these films, the aliens are tragically misunderstood, and it's the primal nature of human beings that spark conflict. Finally, there are numerous films about aliens which attempt to "realistically" depict what might happen if humans and extraterrestrials interacted. These include Close Encounters of the Third Kind (another Spielberg film!), District 9, and even abduction films purportedly based on "true stories," such as Fire in the Sky.

While this list does not include all alien movies ever made, it is a list of the best alien films. What do you think are the greatest alien movies of all time? Vote up the good alien movies you'd watch over and over, and down-vote the ones that aren't worth your time.

 

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1
4,545 1,668
Alien is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Sigourney Weaver, John Hurt, Ian Holm Alien is a 1979 science-fiction horror film directed by Ridley Scott, and starring Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, Veronica Cartwright, Harry Dean Stanton, John Hurt, Ian Holm and Yaphet Kotto. ...more

2
4,404 1,417
Aliens is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Sigourney Weaver, Bill Paxton, Michael Biehn Aliens is a 1986 American science-fiction action horror film written and directed by James Cameron, produced by his then-wife Gale Anne Hurd, and starring Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael ...more

3
3,918 1,274
Predator is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jesse Ventura, Carl Weathers Predator is a 1987 American science fiction action film directed by John McTiernan and was distributed by 20th Century Fox. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Elpidia Carrillo, Bill ...more

4
3,309 1,482
Star Wars is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill Star Wars is a 1977 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. The first release in the Star Wars franchise, it stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter ...more

5
2,711 1,670
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Drew Barrymore, Erika Eleniak, Debra Winger E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is a 1982 American science fiction-family film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Melissa Mathison, featuring special effects by Carlo ...more

6
3,459 1,679
Independence Day is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, Vivica A. Fox Independence Day is a 1996 American science fiction disaster film co-written and directed by Roland Emmerich. The film stars Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell, Judd Hirsch, ...more

7
3,106 1,155
Star Wars Episode V: The Empir... is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill The Empire Strikes Back is a 1980 American epic space opera film directed by Irvin Kershner. Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan wrote the screenplay, with George Lucas writing the film's story ...more

8
2,843 1,295
Men in Black is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Will Smith, Sylvester Stallone, Steven Spielberg Men in Black is a 1997 American science fiction action comedy film directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, produced by Walter F. Parkes and Laurie MacDonald and starring Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith. ...more

9
2,637 1,223
Close Encounters of the Third ... is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Richard Dreyfuss, Teri Garr, Carl Weathers Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a 1977 science fiction film, written and directed by Steven Spielberg and featuring Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, ...more

10
2,381 1,080
Star Wars: Episode VI – Return... is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi is a 1983 American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand, and the third and final film in the original Star Wars trilogy. After a daring ...more

11
2,989 1,081
The Fifth Element is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Milla Jovovich, Bruce Willis, Gary Oldman The Fifth Element is a 1997 English-language French science fiction action film directed and co-written by Luc Besson. It stars Bruce Willis, Gary Oldman and Milla Jovovich. Mostly set in the ...more

12
1,987 1,124
Total Recall is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside Total Recall is a 1990 American science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, and Sharon Stone. The film is loosely based on the Philip ...more

13
3,181 1,284
District 9 is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Sharlto Copley, Jed Brophy, Vanessa Haywood District 9 is a 2009 science fiction film directed by Neill Blomkamp, released August 13, 2009. It takes place in Johannesburg, South Africa. District 9 is based on Alive in Joburg, a short film ...more

14
2,465 1,366
Prometheus is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Charlize Theron, Michael Fassbender, Idris Elba Prometheus is a 2012 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, written by Jon Spaihts and Damon Lindelof, and starring Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, Logan ...more

15
1,970 1,084
2001: A Space Odyssey is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Arthur C. Clarke, Leonard Rossiter, Ed Bishop 2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 epic science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick. The screenplay was written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, and was partially inspired by ...more

16
2,172 918
Stargate is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Kurt Russell, James Spader, Djimon Hounsou Stargate is a 1994 French-American adventure science fiction film released through Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Carolco Pictures. Created by Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich, the film is the first ...more

17
2,303 1,290
Signs is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, Abigail Breslin Signs is a 2002 American science fiction thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. Executive producers for the film comprised Shyamalan, Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy and Sam ...more

18
2,043 1,043
Contact is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Matthew McConaughey, Jodie Foster, Jay Leno Contact is a 1997 American science fiction drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis. It is a film adaptation of Carl Sagan's 1985 novel of the same name; Sagan and his wife Ann Druyan wrote the ...more

19
1,709 1,021
The X-Files is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, Blythe Danner The X-Files is a 1998 American science fiction film written by Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz, and directed by Rob Bowman. It is the first feature film based on The X-Files series created by ...more

20
2,108 1,179
Starship Troopers is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Neil Patrick Harris, Denise Richards, Amy Smart Starship Troopers is a 1997 American military science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Edward Neumeier. The story follows a young soldier named Johnny Rico and his ...more

21
2,469 1,169
Avatar is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez Avatar is a 2009 American epic science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron, and starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez, Joel David Moore, Giovanni ...more

22
1,828 987
Pitch Black is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell, Keith David Pitch Black is a 2000 science fiction horror film co-written and directed by David Twohy. The film stars Vin Diesel, Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, and Keith David. Dangerous man Richard B. ...more

23
1,347 849
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kha... is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Kirstie Alley, William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is a 1982 sci-fi film written by Jack B. Sowards and Nicholas Meyer adn directed by Nicholas Meyer.

24
1,326 786
Star Trek is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Zoe Saldana, Jennifer Morrison, Winona Ryder Star Trek is a 2009 science fiction film directed by J. J. Abrams, written by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, and produced by Damon Lindelof and Bryan Burk. It is the eleventh film based on the ...more

25
1,683 995
WALL-E is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list The Best Alien Movies Ever Made
Sigourney Weaver, Laraine Newman, Kathy Najimy WALL-E is a 2008 American computer-animated science-fiction comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Andrew Stanton, the story follows a ...more