Netflix continues to make sci-fi one of its priorities. Sci-fi blockbusters, adventures, and mysteries frequently populate the genre, keeping fans and large audiences entertained for a long time.
This month, the latest movie in the Transformers series, Rise of the Beasts, is one of our top picks for September. Another highlight is E.T., one of the defining films of the 1980s. Keep reading for more sci-fi selections.
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We also have guides to the best new movies to stream, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, and the best movies on Amazon Prime Video.
Limitless (2011)
If there were a drug that improved your lifestyle, would you take it? That’s the dilemma that Eddie Morra (Bradley Cooper) faces in Limitless. Eddie is a struggling writer whose life is falling apart. After being introduced to the drug, NZT-48, Eddie’s life improves dramatically. The drug unlocks Eddie’s brain, giving him a photographic memory and an innate ability to problem-solve.
When a finance mogul (Robert De Niro) wants to use Eddie to make a fortune, the drug’s side effects kick in, which threatens Eddie’s livelihood. Limitless is an intriguing thriller that showcases Cooper’s leading-man potential.
Stream Limitless on Netflix.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts felt like a return to form for the franchise. The two Mark Wahlberg movies were worse than the Shia LaBeouf trilogy. Rise of the Beasts, and Bumblebee before it, used the ’80s and ’90s settings to their advantage.
Ex-military expert Noah Diaz (Anthony Ramos) and museum intern Elena Wallace (Dominique Fishback) are thrust into the battle between the Autobots and Terrorcons. To aid in their fight, the Autobots team up with the Maximals, who are the “beasts” from the title.
Stream Transformers: Rise of the Beasts on Netflix.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Steven Spielberg crafted the quintessential sci-fi family movie with E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. After aliens are forced to leave Earth by government agents, one of the creatures stays behind. This lifeform, nicknamed E.T., finds shelter at the home of a young boy named Elliott (Henry Thomas).
At first, Henry and his siblings consider E.T. a pet. When E.T. gets sick, Elliot realizes that the only way for the alien to get better is to return home. Spielberg’s thematic depictions of family and childhood will leave you in tears.
Stream E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial on Netflix.
The Running Man (1987)
Later this year, Glen Powell will star in Edgar Wright’s The Running Man, an adaptation of the Stephen King novel. Before Powell, there was Arnold Schwarzenegger, the star of 1987’s The Running Man. In a dystopian United States, the No. 1 television program is The Running Man, a game show where criminals (“runners”) attempt to earn their freedom by running away from stalkers (“hunters”).
Ben Richards finds himself stuck in the game, and host Damon Killian (Richard Dawson) plans to keep it that way. Think The Most Dangerous Game with Schwarzenegger, but funnier.
Stream The Running Man on Netflix.
Timecop (1994)
From 1988 through the 1990s, Jean-Claude Van Damme was one of Hollywood’s most recognizable action stars. Timecop was Van Damme’s foray into sci-fi. Van Damme plays Walker, a police officer recruited to join the Time Enforcement Commission — a time-traveling agency that prevents altercations in the past. Walker joins after the death of his wife (Mia Sara).
However, Walker gets a chance to save his wife by thwarting the plans of a greedy senator (Ron Silver). Even with some plot holes, Timecop is a lesser Terminator (compliment) and arguably Van Damme’s best acting performance.