Entertainment
The Greatest Sci-Fi Movies Of All Time
List Rules
Which science fiction films are the best? Vote up your favorites and add any that aren't already on the list.
What are the greatest sci-fi movies of all time? These good science fiction films are among the most popular movies in cinematic history, with films like Star Wars and Aliens keeping audiences on the edge of their collective seats for decades. This list includes these classics, and many more, so get ready to vote for your favorite sci-fi movies of all time.
Want to see more of the best Sci-Fi? Here are the Best Sci-Fi TV Shows of All Time.
Great sci-fi films include stories of extraterrestrial life, time travel, space travel, robots and more. Some of these amazing science fiction movies are more fantasy-oriented, while others are a bit closer to reality. Either way, sci-fi films keep audiences rapt with tales of science and technology, combined, at times with the supernatural.
Some sci-fi films are based on classic novels or short stories by such heavyweight authors as H.G. Wells (War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man) or Philip K. Dick (Blade Runner, Minority Report).
What are the best sci-fi movies of all time? This list of the best sci-fi films is also crowd ranked, meaning you can rerank your own greatest sci-fi movies. Your reranks can change the overall order of the films on the list! Also, if you love sci-fi, check out this list of the best new sci-fi shows of the last few years.
Ranked by
- 1Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
- Released: 1980
- Directed by: Irvin Kershner
The adventure continues in this "Star Wars" sequel. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) face attack by the Imperial ...more - 2Sigourney Weaver, Carrie Henn, Michael Biehn
- Released: 1986
- Directed by: James Cameron
After floating in space for 57 years, Lt. Ripley's (Sigourney Weaver) shuttle is found by a deep space salvage team. Upon arriving at LV-426, the marines find only one survivor, a nine year old girl ...more - 3Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn
- Released: 1984
- Directed by: James Cameron
Disguised as a human, a cyborg assassin known as a Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) travels from 2029 to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton). Sent to protect Sarah is Kyle Reese (Michael ...more - 4Tom Skerritt, Sigourney Weaver, John Hurt
- Released: 1979
- Directed by: Ridley Scott
In deep space, the crew of the commercial starship Nostromo is awakened from their cryo-sleep capsules halfway through their journey home to investigate a distress call from an alien vessel. The ...more - 5Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young
- Released: 1982
- Directed by: Ridley Scott
Deckard (Harrison Ford) is forced by the police Boss (M. Emmet Walsh) to continue his old job as Replicant Hunter. His assignment: eliminate four escaped Replicants from the colonies who have ...more - 6Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss
- Released: 1999
- Directed by: Lilly Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
Neo (Keanu Reeves) believes that Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), an elusive figure considered to be the most dangerous man alive, can answer his question -- What is the Matrix? Neo is contacted by ...more - 7Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
- Released: 1977
- Directed by: George Lucas
The Imperial Forces -- under orders from cruel Darth Vader (David Prowse) -- hold Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) hostage, in their efforts to quell the rebellion against the Galactic Empire. Luke ...more - 8Arnold Schwarzenegger, Carl Weathers, Jesse Ventura
- Released: 1987
- Directed by: John McTiernan
Dutch (Arnold Schwarzenegger), a soldier of fortune, is hired by the U.S. government to secretly rescue a group of politicians trapped in Guatemala. But when Dutch and his team, which includes ...more - 9Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum
- Released: 1993
- Directed by: Steven Spielberg
In Steven Spielberg's massive blockbuster, paleontologists Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern) and mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) are among a select group chosen to tour ...more - 10Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong
- Released: 1991
- Directed by: James Cameron
In this sequel set eleven years after "The Terminator," young John Connor (Edward Furlong), the key to civilization's victory over a future robot uprising, is the target of the shape-shifting T-1000 ...more - 11Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher
- Released: 1983
- Directed by: Richard Marquand
Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) battles horrible Jabba the Hut and cruel Darth Vader to save his comrades in the Rebel Alliance and triumph over the Galactic Empire. Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and ...more - 12Bruce Willis, Gary Oldman, Ian Holm
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: Luc Besson
In the 23rd century, a New York City cabbie, Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), finds the fate of the world in his hands when Leeloo (Milla Jovovich) falls into his cab. As the embodiment of the fifth ...more - 13Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, T.K. Carter
- Released: 1982
- Directed by: John Carpenter
In remote Antarctica, a group of American research scientists are disturbed at their base camp by a helicopter shooting at a sled dog. When they take in the dog, it brutally attacks both human beings ...more - 14Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester
- Released: 1968
- Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
An imposing black structure provides a connection between the past and the future in this enigmatic adaptation of a short story by revered sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke. When Dr. Dave Bowman (Keir ...more - 15Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista
- Released: 2014
- Directed by: James Gunn
Brash space adventurer Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the quarry of relentless bounty hunters after he steals an orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain. To evade Ronan, Quill is forced ...more - 16Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson
- Released: 1985 - 1990
- Directed by: Robert Zemeckis
The Back to the Future franchise is an American science fictioncomedy film series written and directed by Robert Zemeckis, produced by Bob Gale and Neil Canton for Steven Spielberg's Amblin ...more - 17Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone
- Released: 1990
- Directed by: Paul Verhoeven
Douglas Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is a bored construction worker in the year 2084 who dreams of visiting the colonized Mars. He visits "Rekall," a company that plants false memories into people's ...more - 18William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Ricardo Montalban
- Released: 1982
- Directed by: Nicholas Meyer
As Adm. James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Capt. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) monitor trainees at Starfleet Academy, another vessel from the United Federation of Planets is about to try out the ...more - 19Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter
- Released: 1968
- Directed by: Franklin J. Schaffner
Complex sociological themes run through this science-fiction classic about three astronauts marooned on a futuristic planet where apes rule and humans are slaves. The stunned trio discovers that ...more - 20Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain
- Released: 2014
- Directed by: Christopher Nolan
In Earth's future, a global crop blight and second Dust Bowl are slowly rendering the planet uninhabitable. Professor Brand (Michael Caine), a brilliant NASA physicist, is working on plans to save ...more - 21Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk
- Released: 2016
- Directed by: Gareth Edwards
Former scientist Galen Erso lives on a farm with his wife and young daughter, Jyn. His peaceful existence comes crashing down when the evil Orson Krennic takes him away from his beloved family. Many ...more ![Ghostbusters]()
22Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis- Released: 1984
- Directed by: Ivan Reitman
After the members of a team of scientists (Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray) lose their cushy positions at a university in New York City, they decide to become "ghostbusters" to wage a ...more- 23Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig
- Released: 2015
- Directed by: Ridley Scott
When astronauts blast off from the planet Mars, they leave behind Mark Watney (Matt Damon), presumed dead after a fierce storm. With only a meager amount of supplies, the stranded visitor must ...more - 24Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Brendan Gleeson
- Released: 2014
- Directed by: Doug Liman
When Earth falls under attack from invincible aliens, no military unit in the world is able to beat them. Maj. William Cage (Tom Cruise), an officer who has never seen combat, is assigned to a ...more - 25Tommy Lee Jones, Will Smith, Linda Fiorentino
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: Barry Sonnenfeld
Did you love this Will Smith movie?
They are the best-kept secret in the universe. Working for a highly funded yet unofficial government agency, Kay (Tommy Lee Jones) and Jay (Will Smith) are the Men in Black, providers of immigration ...more
