20 Best Sci-Fi Movies On Hulu

Hulu's stock in trade may be television, but it's also the home of a healthy selection of feature films. While it doesn't boast as many essential titles as HBO Max or the sheer volume of Netflix or Amazon Prime, Hulu maintains a steady rotation of recent releases from major studios to bolster its library of independent films and forgotten gems. If you filter through to the Sci-Fi Movies section of Hulu this month, you'll find underrated franchise sequels, international critical darlings, and a few bulletproof classics, plus a handful of hip titles gained from Hulu's partnership with indie distributor Neon. Hulu's sci-fi offerings tend to be geared toward a more mature audience, but within those parameters there's a fair amount of variety to be found, from grim space epics to goofy tongue-in-cheek comedies.

Updated on December 22, 2021: Hulu's movie offerings change frequently, so we'll be keeping our list up to date with the latest arrivals and departures. Check back each month to see what box office hits and festival darlings have come to the big green streaming machine.

Meet David, the first-ever android with the capacity to perfectly emulate — perhaps even experience — love. Given the form and emotional maturity of an 11-year old boy, David embarks on a quest to reunite with his "mother," the human woman who he's programmed to love unconditionally. Divisive for its often misunderstood ending and for being by far the most bleak feature in Steven Spielberg's filmography, "A.I." is nevertheless fascinating for its unsettling post-climate change future, its unique style synthesis of Spielberg and his late friend Stanley Kubrick, and its haunting lead performance by young actor Haley Joel Osment.

• Starring: Haley Joel Osment, Jude Law, Frances O'Connor
• Director: Steven Spielberg
• Year: 2001
• Runtime: 145 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
  
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 75%

In the futuristic dystopia of Neo-Tokyo, a street punk named Tetsuo is abducted by a government agency seeking to unlock his psychokinetic potential. Kaneda, Tetsuo's surrogate older brother from their motorcycle gang, is determined to rescue him, but if Tetsuo is as powerful as he seems, then no force on Earth may be able to save him from himself. "Akira" is a monumental achievement in animation, one of the best-designed and best-rendered films of all time. Its influence has reverberated throughout animation, cinema, and pop culture in general for decades.

• Starring: Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama
• Director: Katsuhiro Otomo
• Year: 1988
• Runtime: 124 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 90%

When an enormous asteroid threatens all life on Earth, humanity's only hope lies in the cooperation between NASA scientists and a team of quirky deep-core oil drillers. Is the premise ridiculous? Oh, yes. Is the execution over the top? Most definitely. There are definitely reasons why "Armageddon" was rejected by critics as a loud, dumb action movie. But between its all-star ensemble, director Michael Bay's visual flair, and a big, cheesy Aerosmith song, it's also a hard movie not to love. Don't just take our word for it — "Armageddon" earned a place in the coveted Criterion Collection, alongside far more lauded and less commercial works of cinematic art.

• Starring: Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, Liv Tyler
• Director: Michael Bay
• Year: 1998
• Runtime: 150 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
  
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 38%

Spacecraft have landed across the planet carrying visitors so alien that communication seems impossible. The US military recruits Dr. Louise Banks, one of the world's most brilliant linguists, to establish an understanding before international tensions boil over into full-scale war.

"Arrival" was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography. The film impresses with its grounded, convincing approach to interspecies communication, but it's as much an emotional exercise as an intellectual one. Amy Adams delivers a compelling lead performance that is only more impressive on repeat viewings.

• Starring: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker
• Director: Denis Villeneuve
• Year: 2016
• Runtime: 116 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

A group of old friends throw a dinner party on the night that a comet is set to pass overhead. Soon, a strange phenomenon begins to unravel their reality, as well as their relationships with each other. "Coherence" is a truly unique sci-fi thriller, produced on a tiny budget in a single location with no script, only a detailed outline to which even the actors had limited access. A mind-bending, semi-improvised narrative unfolds that is best experienced fresh and unspoiled, and while we don't think it's too hard to follow, don't worry — there are charts out there to explain what happens.

• Starring: Hugo Armstrong, Emily Baldoni, Nicholas Brendon
• Director: James Ward Byrkit
• Year: 2013
• Runtime: 89 minutes
• Rating: Not Rated
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

Magazine writer and party girl Gloria has burned up all her money and goodwill in New York, and is forced to move back to the small town where she grew up. It's all shaping up to be a charming but run-of-the-mill dramedy, until Gloria realizes that walking across her old playground at a certain hour of the day causes a giant monster to appear in Seoul, South Korea and mimic her exact actions. "Colossal" is more than it appears on the surface. It's a comic fantasy, but it's also a heartfelt, sometimes very tense drama about the damage people inflict on each other and how to find redemption and self-worth.

• Starring: Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis, Austin Stowell
• Director: Nacho Vigalondo
• Year: 2016
• Runtime: 110 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 81%

Mega-City One is a cruel, nightmarish metropolis where rampant violent crime is met with equally brutal policing. Judge Dredd, a cop empowered to convict and execute criminals at will, brings psychic trainee Cassandra Anderson on a mission to a massive tenement building ruled by vicious drug lord Ma-Ma. "Dredd" is a dark, damp ultra-violent visual spectacle, inspired by its satirical comic book source material and enhanced with remarkable slow-motion effects that draw unsettling beauty from unreserved carnage.

• Starring: Karl Urban, Olivia Thirlby, Lena Headey
• Director: Pete Travis
• Year: 2012
• Runtime: 96 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 79%

Like her mother Bo before her, Ruth was born with uncanny telekinetic abilities. Unlike Bo, Ruth has never gained control of her powers, and the terrifying earthquakes she creates have forced her into a life of isolation and despair. When a malevolent scientist attempts to capture her, Ruth has no choice but to return to her childhood home and face Bo and her own estranged daughter. "Fast Color" is like a great, character-driven issue of "X-Men," an intimate exploration of family, otherness, hope, and loss — but with superpowers.

• Starring: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lorraine Toussaint, Saniyya Sydney
• Director: Julia Hart
• Year: 2018
• Runtime: 110 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 81%

A huge amphibious monster created by American scientific negligence runs wild in Seoul, eating several people and capturing adolescent girl Park Hyun-Seo. Hyun-Seo's family must put aside years of drama and band together to get her home safely, contending with both the monster and the United States military along the way. "The Host" is a grand slam — scary, funny, heartbreaking, and exciting, each in good measure. "The Host" was the international breakthrough for director Bong Joon-ho, who would later helm the sci-fi thriller "Snowpiercer" and win unmatched acclaim for "Parasite."

• Starring: Song Kang-ho, Byun Hee-bong, Park Hae-il
• Director: Bong Joon-ho
• Year: 2006
• Runtime: 120 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

In order to attain funding for her research, anthropologist Dr. Alma Felser must beta-test Tom, a lifelike android who's designed to be her perfect mate. While she's initially uninterested in engaging with him at all, Tom's gradual evolution from awkward automaton to a self-aware being inspires her to re-evaluate her own life. 

"I'm Your Man" is a kind, sensitive romantic dramedy that examines the nature of love and attachment through a pair of excellent performances. Maren Eggert anchors the film in an emotional reality while Dan Stevens transforms from a clumsy simulacrum of a human into a "real" person so gradually that you could almost miss it. In 2021, Germany selected "I'm Your Man" as their official entry into the Oscar race for Best International Feature.

• Starring: Dan Stevens, Maren Eggert, Sandra Hüller
• Director: Maria Schrader
• Year: 2021
• Runtime: 105 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

The world is struck by a pandemic that destroys memory, afflicting people of all ages with symptoms similar to Alzheimer's disease. When music photographer Jude contracts the sickness, he and his wife Emma find themselves fighting to save a relationship that one of them may soon forget ever happened. "Little Fish" is a beautiful, heart-wrenching romance that would have been compelling in any era but it is remarkably poignant in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Little Fish" may be the most emotionally arresting sci-fi drama since "Children of Men," likely to bring all but the most cynical of viewers to tears.

• Starring: Olivia Cooke, Jack O'Connell, Soko
• Director: Chad Hartigan
• Year: 2021
• Runtime: 101 minutes
• Rating: Not Rated
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Once the famous superhero known as Wolverine, Logan has become a depressed limo driver who cares for his sick, aged mentor, Charles Xavier. With most of their fellow mutants gone, Logan and Charles find hope in Laura, a young mutant who may also be Logan's biological daughter. "Logan" is a dark, quiet epilogue to the "X-Men" film saga that has more in common with "Children of Men" than "Days of Future Past." Stellar performances from all three leads take this film to new heights of superhero pathos. It's not exactly a feel-good affair, but it's an earnest and emotional final effort that closes out Hugh Jackman's 17-year tenure with grace.

• Starring: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen
• Director: James Mangold
• Year: 2017
• Runtime: 137 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%

Every time Nyles wakes up, it's November 9, the day of his girlfriend's friend's wedding. It's one of those infinite time loop situations you might have heard about. Now Sarah, the sister of the bride, has also been caught in the loop, and they're stuck reliving the same day over and over together for all eternity — that is, unless one of them can find a way out. Brought to life by terrific performances from Andy Samberg and the often undervalued Cristin Milioti, "Palm Springs" lends a fresh comedic sensibility and a "buddy movie" twist to the time loop concept.

• Starring: Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, J.K. Simmons
• Director: Max Barbakow
• Year: 2020
• Runtime: 90 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Tasya Vos is a specialized assassin who kills her targets by hijacking the bodies of someone close to them. The physical and emotional toll of the job is slowly destroying Tasya's life, but she's pressured to continue, taking on another demanding contract that may well claim her sanity as well as her victims' lives. "Possessor" is a cruel and unsettling psychological thriller, a grim portrait of contemporary work culture painted in blood.

• Starring: Andrea Riseborough, Christopher Abbott, Tuppence Middleton
• Director: Brandon Cronenberg
• Year: 2020
• Runtime: 102 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

Frank Weld is an elderly, retired jewel thief living alone in upstate New York. Concerned that his solitude is contributing to his poor mental and physical health, Frank's son buys him a live-in robotic health aide who Frank simply calls Robot. At first, Frank sees Robot as a nuisance, but he comes around when he realizes that he can teach his new companion to help him pull off a daring heist. "Robot and Frank" is fairly light viewing, a cute, quiet comedy about age, memory, and relationships.

• Starring: Frank Langella, Peter Sarsgaard, Susan Sarandon
• Director: Jake Schreier
• Year: 2012
• Runtime: 90 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%

Cassius "Cash" Green thrives at his new job as a telemarketer for a massive corporation where there is definitely more going on than meets the eye. As he climbs the ladder, he becomes privy to more and more of the bizarre world of the rich and powerful and the terrifying inner workings of our increasingly exploitative economic system. "Sorry to Bother You" is a snappy, surreal comedy that goes to some truly wild places that we don't dare spoil here. Don't look it up, just watch, and keep your mind open — and your head on a swivel.

• Starring: LaKeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Jermaine Fowler
• Director: Boots Riley
• Year: 2018
• Runtime: 75 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Over a decade ago, intrepid space explorer James T. Kirk marooned the despotic superhuman Khan and his genetically engineered followers on an uninhabited planet. Now, Khan has escaped, and his quest for revenge threatens the survival of entire worlds. "The Wrath of Khan" is an exciting and emotionally charged space adventure, easily the most approachable chapter in the original "Star Trek" film series. Watching the classic episode "Space Seed" (also on Hulu) beforehand is recommended but not required.

• Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Ricardo Montalbán
• Director: Nicholas Meyer
• Year: 1982
• Runtime: 113 minutes
• Rating: PG
  
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%

Years into their mission to explore deep space, life has gotten pretty routine aboard the USS Enterprise, so much so that the intrepid Captain James T. Kirk is thinking about hanging it up and taking a desk job. When the Enterprise is dispatched on an urgent rescue mission, Kirk and his crew must rediscover the spirit of adventure and save the galaxy one more time. "Star Trek Beyond" is a lively space opera that combines the exciting visuals of the previous J.J. Abrams-directed "Star Trek" films with the sweetness and charm of the original television show. "Beyond" is best enjoyed if you've already seen the 2009 "Star Trek" film, but there are no other franchise prerequisites.

• Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban
• Director: Justin Lin
• Year: 2016
• Runtime: 122 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%

Sarah Connor has spent decades hunting down killer robots from the future who've been sent to our present to give the machines an advantage in a war yet to come. Now, the reclusive Sarah has to learn to play nice with a cybernetically enhanced future soldier and an aged but familiar-looking Terminator to protect an unassuming auto worker the machines have marked for death. While it may not touch the quality of the first two "Terminator" films (clearly, nothing is going to), "Dark Fate" is the best big-screen attempt so far at making a satisfying sequel to "Judgment Day." "Dark Fate" features the return of Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor and series co-creator James Cameron as guiding creative hand, plus some undeniably cool action and visual effects.

• Starring: Linda Hamilton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mackenzie Davis
• Director: Tim Miller
• Year: 2019
• Runtime: 128 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes score: 70%

Martian spaceships land on Earth with the goal of complete global conquest. Can Dr. Clayton Forrester and the world's combined military might put a stop to them? This adaptation of H.G. Wells' 1897 novel features still-spectacular visual effects and a potently brutal depiction of war. "The War of the Worlds" is also an intriguing artifact of Cold War anxiety — its reverence for authority and religion exists in stark contrast to the source material. As a time capsule of 1950s culture and a sci-fi classic, it's tough to beat.

• Starring: Gene Barry, Ann Robinson, Les Tremayne
• Director: Byron Haskin
• Year: 1953
• Runtime: 85 minutes
• Rating: G
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%