The Absolute Best Sci-Fi Movies on Prime Video (2023)

Paramount

Upping the action, thrills and setups, this sequel to John Krasinski's horror sci-fi goes for the requisite upgrades, without sacrificing its essential heart. The Abbott family -- played by Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds and Noah Jupe -- continue their journey of survival across the alien ravaged Earth, searching for other humans. One such person isthe grizzled Emmett (Cillian Murphy).

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Haven't seen RoboCop yet? The '80s classic has been referenced in everything from Ready Player One to Community to Sailor Moon. It centers on a police officer who's brutally murdered, only to come back as a cyborg on a crime-stopping rampage.

Warner Bros/Screenshot by CNET

For a solid, well-made Steven Spielberg movie, check out Artificial Intelligence. Set in a futuristic society, A.I. Artificial Intelligence follows an android programmed with the ability to love. Intriguingly, the film was initially developed by Stanley Kubrick, before Spielberg took over. Check it out for the curio of the two directors' touches.

Tri-Star Pictures

It wouldn't be a best sci-fi list without multiple Arnie movies. The Running Man centers on a gameshow where criminals must attempt to escape from professional killers.

Universal Pictures/YouTube screenshot

Don't be a cynic and watch this ridiculously charming sci-fi romance. No, its time travel concept doesn't make watertight sense. Domhnall Gleeson stars as Tim, a lawyer who inherits his father's (Bill Nighy) ability to go back in time -- mostly backward -- and relive moments of his life. He uses this ability for one thing only: to get a girlfriend. Rachel McAdams plays Mary, his love interest who works where else but in publishing. It's impossible not to fall in love with this Richard Curtis (Love Actually) world.

It kind of seemed like the finale of the Jurassic World trilogy would plunge us into a hellish dystopia fully overrun by ancient monsters. The characters would have to survive rampages and live by fires burning in oil barrels. Jurassic World Dominion is mainly about swarms of giant locusts that are decimating US crops. The gang -- Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill -- have to stop this. Dominion might be a disappointment, but it makes this list because it's still an improvement over Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

Focus Features

Eternal classic, not much else to say. A couple -- Clementine (Kate Winslet) and Joel (Jim Carrey) -- undergo a medical procedure to have their worst moments together erased.

Paramount Pictures

Basically Stranger Things set in the '70s. Super 8 follows a group of teens who are filming their own movie when a train derails and a dangerous presence begins stalking their town.

Universal Pictures

The '80s adaptation of Stephen King's sci-fi horror didn't draw rave reviews, so this 2022 reboot from horror movie factory Blumhouse took another stab. The results? Not good. Firestarter scored even worse than the original, but it does offer the intrigue of seeing Zac Efron take the lead in a horror flick. He plays a father who attempts to keep his daughter -- who can use pyrokinesis -- out of the hands of a shadowy federal agency.

Tollywood

How cool and intriguing is that title? Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes is a low-budget time travel comedy from Japanese filmmaker Junta Yamaguchi. The wild premise: A café worker discovers his TV can show him what happens 2 minutes into the future. There's obviously a lot more to that and the results are as creative and trippy as you can expect underthe constraints of indie filmmaking. A gem.

Paramount

Just watched Prey and looking for another sci-fi flick starring a heroic pup? Love and Monsters lives up to its name, centered on Joel (Dylan O'Brien), a survivor in a post-apocalyptic world where mutated monsters roam the Earth. On his search for his ex-girlfriend Aimee (Jessica Henwick), he encounters a stray dog named "Boy." This is when the real romance begins. Catch this enjoyable monsterpocalypse adventure, which will leap out at you with a few surprises and hitall the right emotional beats.

Gravitas Ventures/YouTube screenshot

This French sci-fi horror isn't one for the claustrophobic. Meander follows Lisa, a woman who ends up in a stranger's car, then trapped in a frightening network of vent-like tubes. The different sections hold different dangers. Plus, Lisa has a timer strapped to her wrist, counting down to even more horrors. This effective, tense thriller plays out in a slick 90 minutes. A perfect shot of adrenalin.

Paramount Pictures

The second Star Trek movie in the rebooted franchise beams up a terrific adventure with a memorable villain in Benedict Cumberbatch's Khan. The gang on the USS Enterprise travels to the forbidden zone in space to rescue an endangered species. While a little dated -- a gratuitous underwear scene and a change in ethnicity for Khan -- Into Darkness is a rollicking trip.

Amazon Prime Video

It's hard to leave The Tomorrow War off this list, because it's Prime Video's big sci-fi actioner starring Chris Pratt. It follows a schoolteacher who's drafted into a war with aliens -- in the future. An easily digestible flick that you can watch while looking at your phone.

Vertigo Releasing/YouTube/CNET Screenshot

Vivarium is an interesting one. It might frustrate a lot of viewers with its surreal aspects, but it's still a compelling film. A young couple becomes trapped in a labyrinthine suburban neighborhood of identical houses. While trying to escape, they find themselves taking care of a mysterious baby.

This British sci-fi comes from Gareth Edwards, who went on to direct Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and 2014's Godzilla. His mastery of atmosphere, wonder and beauty is on show here, all on a shoestring budget. Monsters follows a couple attempting to cross an "Infected Zone" teeming with giant tentacled monsters.

Mr. Nobodyis the kind of movie that nails the ending, making the entire journey well worth it. It helps to know that this story explores the consequences of choices and why you shouldn't worry about making the perfect one. By the end, it leaves you on a wonderfully thoughtful note to ponder.

Amazon Studios

This low-budget indie has surprisingly high production values, impressive performances and inventive camerawork to help tell the story of two teenagers in '50s New Mexico. The resourceful pair chase down the potentially extraterrestrial origins of a mysterious audio frequency.

Amazon Studios/YouTube/CNET Screenshot

For those missing Black Mirror, this will go some way to filling that gap. Black Box follows a father who tries to piece his life back together after a car accident. He agrees to an experimental procedure that leads him to the darkest recesses of his mind.

Oscilloscope Laboratories/YouTube/CNET Screenshot

Coherence doesn't need an Avatar-size budget to craft a compelling story. The low-budget indie film follows friends at a dinner party who start noticing bizarre occurrences after a comet passes. Even more unsettling because of its grounded setting, Coherence nails the brief of true indie gem.

Alameda Entertainment/YouTube/CNET Screenshot

Intriguing premise? Check. Low budget? Check. Twist in the end? Check. This indie sci-fi mystery from Travis Milloy solidifies its place in the Google Search quest for "best indie sci-fi gems." Infinity Chamber's complex story focuses on a man held in an automated detention facility. He must fight superior technology to escape, an immensely tricky feat.

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