![Godzilla strikes an impressive pose in Godzilla Minus One.](https://uat.www.digitaltrends.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Godzilla-Minus-One.jpg?fit=720%2C405&p=1)
Netflix does so many genres well that it’s a little disheartening that sci-fi and fantasy don’t get the same kind of attention that thrillers and rom-coms do. This has often led to long dry spells between new sci-fi movies on Netflix, and an overreliance on older films from other studios. Netflix has made a few big swings in sci-fi, including Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon movies. But given the tepid response those films received, Netflix doesn’t have much incentive to try something that big again.
In the meantime, the latest additions to our roundup of the best sci-fi movies on Netflix include Godzilla Minus One, The Matrix Reloaded, and Lucy. If you want more options, just keep scrolling down.
In need of a few more suggestions? We’ve curated guides to the best sci-fi movies on Amazon Prime Video and the best sci-fi movies on Hulu, too.
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Godzilla Minus Onepg-13 2023
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The Matrix Reloadedr 2003
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Lucyr 2014
Godzilla Minus One (2023)
Why 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.
The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
When The Matrix Reloaded hit theaters two decades ago, fans of the original hoped that the Wachowskis could put together a sequel that could match the original. In hindsight, they could not. But Reloaded is a lot better than the two Matrix sequels that followed, and the action is incredible, especially during the chateau scene and the attack of the infinite Smiths.
Neo (Keanu Reeves) is basically Superman in this film, as his mastery of the Matrix makes him almost invincible. The machines aren’t willing to surrender, and in under three days, the last human city, Zion, may fall. Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) believes that Neo, Trinity (The Acolyte‘s Carrie-Anne Moss), and the rest of their allies can end the war against the machine by reaching the source of the Matrix. But Neo may not like what he finds there.
Lucy (2014)
Because Lucy came out when Scarlett Johansson was still playing Black Widow in the MCU, it was easy to assume that this movie was also some kind of superhero tale. In the actual film, Lucy Miller (Johansson) isn’t a heroine, and she’s rapidly losing her humanity after she is unwillingly turned into a drug mule and exposed to an experimental drug.
The drug gives Lucy incredible abilities and vastly increased brain capacity. However, Lucy’s superhuman powers come at a high cost, and she’s running out of time before her body will simply disintegrate and fade away.
Upgrade (2018)
The 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.
Starship Troopers (1997)
There are plenty of unintentionally funny sci-fi movies, but Starship Troopers is well-aware that it’s a satire. Sometimes, it’s the audience of this movie that doesn’t realize director Paul Verhoeven is adding subversive humor to Robert A. Heinlein’s novel that might be flying over their heads.
In the relatively near future, Johnny Rico (Casper Van Dien) follows his girlfriend, Carmen Ibanez (Denise Richards), into military service only to find disgrace. But just as Johnny is about to walk away, massive alien bugs attack Earth. This rallies Johnny and his fellow troops for an all-out war in space. Unfortunately for humanity, the bugs are intelligent and far more powerful than anyone initially believed.
Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver (2024)
It 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.
The Matrix (1999)
Nothing the Wachowskis have done in the last 25 years has come anywhere close to recapturing the magic of The Matrix, and that includes all three of the sequels. The first film is just about as close to perfect as a sci-fi action film can get. Keanu Reeves solidified his action hero persona as Neo, a talented hacker who is trapped in a dead-end office job.
That’s not all Neo is trapped in, especially once Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) offer Neo the answer to the question that’s been haunting him for years: “What is the Matrix?” Once he learns the truth, Neo may be forced to face his own morality as part of a prophecy that he doesn’t believe in.
Spaceman (2024)
Alien’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.
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
2022’s Oscar winner for Best Picture, Everything Everywhere All at Once, is simultaneously a sci-fi fantasy adventure and a relationship drama. Evelyn Quan Wang (Michelle Yeoh) used to have a happy life, but now her husband, Waymond Wang (Ke Huy Quan), is on the verge of leaving her, their daughter, Joy Wang (Stephanie Hsu), barely speaks to them, and now the IRS is auditing their business.
That’s when another version of Waymond from across the multiverse takes over his body and warns Evelyn about a threat that could destroy everything. To save all of reality, Evelyn has to learn how to navigate the multiverse and also repair her relationships with the people whom she loves.
Looper (2012)
Murder’s a messy business in Looper, and that’s why the future is sending its dirty work back in time. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a contract killer known as a Looper because he kills targets sent to the present on behalf of criminals from the future. At the end of his contract, Joe is supposed to murder his older self to close the loop on his life.
Old Joe (Bruce Willis) has other ideas when it’s his turn to be sent back. After overpowering the younger Joe and changing the timeline, Old Joe begins looking for a kid who will grow up to be a feared crime boss. But thanks to Old Joe’s actions, Joe becomes a target in the present and his future is no longer in his control.
Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023)
Zack 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)
Very 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)
65 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)
Captain 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)
McG’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)
Warriors of Future (2022)
Spiderhead (2022)
The Adam Project (2022)
Stowaway (2021)
Synchronic (2020)
The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021)
The Swarm (2020)
Army of the Dead (2021)
Oxygen (2021)
Spectral (2016)
The Midnight Sky (2020)
Outside the Wire (2021)
The Discovery (2017)
The Wandering Earth (2019)
Mirage (2018)
Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (2018)
Advantageous (2015)
Project Power (2020)
Bird Box (2018)
See You Yesterday (2019)
Beyond Skyline (2017)
Okja (2017)
I Am Mother (2019)
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