The sci-fi genre has given us some of the most acclaimed films of all time, ranging from exciting action adventures to deeply philosophical dramas. Using scientific (and science-adjacent) concepts to explore various aspects of the human condition, these films are an integral part of the global cinematic landscape. But while many sci-movies are universally beloved, there are also quite a few that have caused very mixed reactions from viewers and critics.
Sometimes these movies are divisive because they lean too heavily into the science of it all, leading to a dense story that isn’t easily palatable to the general audience. Other times, it’s simply because they faltered in execution or failed to fulfill the expectations of their fan base. Whatever the reasons may be, the one thing all these films share is the fact that they’re not meant for everyone, but they can still be enjoyable to certain audiences. Read on to discover our ranked selection of the most divisive sci-movies of all time.
8 ‘The Core’ (2003)
Image via Paramount PicturesA sci-fi disaster film, The Core follows a group of scientists on an impossible mission to save the world. When the planet’s molten inner core inexplicably stops spinning, it prompts a team of daring people to take up an experimental mission to drill to the core and set off nuclear explosions that they hope will restart the core’s rotation. The film features an ensemble cast led by Aaron Eckhart and Hilary Swank, with Delroy Lindo, Stanley Tucci, D.J. Qualls, Richard Jenkins, Tcheky Karyo, Bruce Greenwood, and Alfre Woodard in key roles.
The Core premiered in March 2003 to highly negative reviews and was a box office flop, drawing widespread criticism for being one of the most scientifically inaccurate Hollywood movies of all time. The fact that it’s a terrible film is almost universally accepted, but while some viewers consider it unwatchable garbage, others regard it as a deliciously campy movie that’s so bad it’s good. Again, it’s not a good film, but its combination of ridiculous self-seriousness and a highly unrealistic plot makes it an entertaining watch for fans of absurd unintentional comedy.
7 ‘War of the Worlds’ (2005)
Image Via Paramount PicturesBased on H. G. Wells' eponymous 1898 novel, Steven Spielberg’s War of the Worlds is a 2005 science fiction action-thriller starring Tom Cruise as an American dockworker who must protect his children during an alien invasion. The film follows his attempts to keep his family safe and reunite them with their mother while the mysterious extraterrestrials cause devastation across the world using seemingly indestructible war machines. Besides Cruise, the movie also stars Dakota Fanning, Justin Chatwin, Miranda Otto, and Tim Robbins, with narration by Morgan Freeman.
War of the Worlds was critically and commercially successful at the time of its release, but it still divided audiences because of its ending. On the one hand, the film is a faithful adaptation of the novel that captures the suspense of its story while enhancing the action with modern special effects, but it’s that same faithfulness that proves its downfall, as the book’s ending is quite anticlimactic and unsatisfying. It’s one of the rare cases where a movie adaptation would have been better off straying a bit more from its source material, but it’s still a pretty entertaining experience nonetheless.
6 ‘Solaris’ (2002)
Image via 20th Century StudiosAdapted from Polish author Stanislaw Lem’s eponymous 1961 novel, Solaris is a psychological science fiction drama set aboard a space station orbiting the titular planet. George Clooney stars as psychologist Dr. Chris Kelvin, who is invited to the station to investigate some mysterious phenomena. The film also stars Natascha McElhone, Viola Davis, Jeremy Davies, Ulrich Tukur, and John Cho in key roles.
Solaris premiered in 2002 to positive reviews but an underwhelming box office performance, which has been largely attributed to its slow pacing and meditative storytelling. The film isn’t as concerned with the usual sci-fi space tropes as the general audience might like, focusing more on an intimate exploration of grief and memory. Ultimately, it’s not a movie that’s exciting or really even that entertaining, but it does have some great performances and a compelling philosophical narrative.
Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive? The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars
Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you'd actually make it out of alive.
💊The Matrix
🔥Mad Max
🌧️Blade Runner
🏜️Dune
🚀Star Wars
TEST YOUR SURVIVAL →
01
You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do? The first instinct is often the truest one.
APull on every thread until I understand the system — then figure out how to break it. BStop asking questions and start stockpiling — food, fuel, weapons. Questions don't keep you alive. CKeep my head down, observe carefully, and trust no one until I know who's pulling the strings. DStudy the patterns. Every system has a rhythm — learn it, and you learn how to survive it. EFind the people fighting back and join them. You can't fix a broken galaxy alone.
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02
In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely? What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.
AKnowledge. If you understand the system, you don't need resources — you can generate them. BFuel. Everything else — movement, power, escape — runs on it. CTrust. In a world of fakes and informants, a truly reliable ally is rarer than any commodity. DWater. And after water, information — the two things empires are truly built on. EShips and credits. The galaxy is big — you survive it by being able to move through it freely.
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03
What kind of threat keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you're honest about what you're actually afraid of.
AThat reality itself is a lie — that everything I experience has been constructed to keep me compliant. BA raid. No warning, no mercy — just the roar of engines and then nothing left. CBeing identified. Once someone with power decides you're a problem, you're already out of time. DBeing outmanoeuvred — losing a political game I didn't even know I was playing. EThe Empire tightening its grip until there's nowhere left to run.
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04
How do you deal with authority you don't trust? Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.
ASubvert it from the inside — learn its rules well enough to weaponise them against it. BIgnore it and stay out of its reach. The further from any power structure, the better. CAppear to comply while doing exactly what I need to do. Visibility is the enemy. DManoeuvre within it carefully. You can't beat a system you refuse to understand. EResist openly when I have to. Some things are worth the risk of being seen.
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05
Which environment could you actually endure long-term? Survival isn't just tactical — it's physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.
AUnderground bunkers and server rooms — cramped, artificial, but with access to everything that matters. BOpen wasteland — brutal sun, no shelter, constant movement. At least the threat is honest. CA dense, rain-soaked city where you can disappear into the crowd and nobody asks questions. DMerciless desert — extreme heat, no water, and something enormous living beneath the sand. EThe fringe — backwater planets and busy spaceports where the Empire's attention rarely reaches.
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06
Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart? The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.
AA tight crew of believers who've seen behind the curtain and have nothing left to lose. BOne or two people I'd trust with my life. Any more than that and someone talks. CNobody, ideally. Alliances are liabilities. I work alone unless I have no choice. DA community bound by shared hardship and mutual survival — people who need each other to last. EA ragtag team with wildly different skills and total commitment when it counts.
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07
Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all? Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they're actually made of.
AI won't harm the innocent — even the ones who'd report me without hesitation. BI do what I have to to protect the people I've chosen. Everything else is negotiable. CThe line shifts depending on who's asking and what's at stake. DI draw a long-term line — nothing that compromises my people's future, even if it'd help now. ESome lines, once crossed, can't be uncrossed. I know which ones they are.
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08
What would actually make survival worth it? Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.
AWaking others up — dismantling the illusion so no one else has to live inside it. BFinding somewhere — or someone — worth protecting. A reason to keep moving. CAnswers. Understanding what I am, what any of this means, before time runs out. DLegacy — shaping the future in a way that outlasts me by generations. EFreedom — for myself, for others, for every world still living under someone else's boot.
REVEAL MY WORLD →
Your Fate Has Been Calculated You'd Survive In…
Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.
The Matrix
You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You're a systems thinker who can't help but notice the seams in things.
- You're drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
- You'd find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines' worst nightmare.
- You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
- The Matrix built an airtight prison. You'd be the one probing the walls for the door.
Mad Max
The wasteland doesn't reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That's you.
- You don't need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
- You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you're good at all three.
- You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
- In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.
Blade Runner
You'd survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.
- You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
- In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
- You're not a hero. But you're not lost, either.
- In Blade Runner's world, that distinction is everything.
Dune
Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.
- Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they're survival tools.
- You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
- Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You'd learn its logic and earn its respect.
- In time, you wouldn't just survive Arrakis — you'd begin to reshape it.
Star Wars
The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn't have it any other way.
- You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
- You'd gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire's grip can be broken.
- You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn't something you're capable of.
- In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.
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5 ‘About Time’ (2013)
Image via Universal PicturesA romantic science fiction comedy-drama, About Time follows a young man who inherits a family ability to time travel and decides to use this power to find love. With the guidance of his father, he embarks on a life-long journey of self-discovery and romance, helping the people he cares about in any way he can, but not everything goes according to plan. The movie stars Domhnall Gleeson in the lead, with Rachel McAdams, Lydia Wilson, Lindsay Duncan, Richard Cordery, Bill Nighy, and more in supporting roles.
About Time premiered in the United Kingdom in 2013 to a mixed critical reception, but it had a solid box office run and has developed a dedicated fan following in the years since. The film has proven somewhat divisive due to its shaky time travel rules, and some audience members have found the protagonist’s use of time travel for romance to be problematic. However, it’s also a warm, sentimental film with a heartwarming story and great performances, making it a great watch for fans of slice-of-life sci-fi movies that explore the value of human connection through sci-fi tropes.
4 ‘Don’t Look Up’ (2021)
Image via NetflixA satirical black comedy film, Don't Look Up stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence as two astronomers who discover a comet on a collision course with Earth that would wipe out life on the planet. However, the government refuses to accept this, driven by corporate interests, and encourages the public to deny their impending extinction. Besides DiCaprio and Lawrence, the film also stars an ensemble supporting cast that includes Rob Morgan, Jonah Hill, Mark Rylance, Tyler Perry, Timothée Chalamet, Ron Perlman, Ariana Grande, Kid Cudi, Cate Blanchett, and Meryl Streep.
A biting allegory about climate change, Don’t Look Up premiered in 2021 to a highly mixed reception. Though the movie was praised for its performances and production, writer-director Adam McKay’s approach left critics divided between those who found it insightful and intelligent and those who thought McKay was just being smug and holier-than-thou. Whether the film’s satire is cynical or thought-provoking is really a matter of personal opinion, but the movie is undoubtedly well-made and has a very important core message, and it earned numerous accolades, including four Academy Award nominations and four Golden Globe nominations.
3 ‘Eternals’ (2021)
Image via Marvel StudiosThe 26th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), Eternals follows an ancient group of immortals tasked with protecting the Earth and humanity from violent, invasive entities called Deviants. The film charts their story over thousands of years and follows their attempts to deal with a world-ending event in the present day that turns them against each other. The movie features an ensemble cast led by Gemma Chan, with Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, and Angelina Jolie in key roles.
Released in theaters in 2021 as part of the MCU’s Phase Four, Eternals was the first film in the franchise to receive largely negative critical reviews. A unique combination of Marvel’s bombastic superheroics and director Chloé Zhao’s intimate, artful storytelling, the movie was highly polarizing as it didn’t give the fans of either camp what they truly wanted. Despite its divisive storytelling choices, the film did receive praise from some viewers and critics for its inventive deconstruction of superhero tropes, touching emotional beats, and stunning visuals.
2 ‘Tenet’ (2020)
Image via Warner Bros.Tenet is a sci-fi action thriller that takes a unique approach to time-travel stories. The film stars John David Washington as a former CIA agent who is recruited into the titular secret organization and tasked with thwarting a complicated conspiracy involving objects that are traveling backward through time. Besides Washington, the movie also features Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, and Kenneth Branagh in key roles.
A highly layered work of science fiction, Tenet was the first major Hollywood film to open in theaters during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have contributed to its critical and commercial failure. The film was highly divisive, largely because its extremely dense plot was far too confusing for most critics and audience members. It’s not an easy movie to understand, but it’s arguably the most ambitious film Christopher Nolan has ever made, and while it may not be to everyone’s tastes, it’s still an important work of cinema with intricate sci-fi storytelling and amazing visual effects.
1 ‘Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi’ (2017)
Image via Walt Disney StudiosThe second film in the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi is an epic space opera adventure film that picks up immediately after the end of 2015’s The Force Awakens. Starring Daisy Ridley as new Force user Rey, the film follows her attempt to seek the aid of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) in the fight against the villainous First Order. The movie also stars Adam Driver, John Boyega, Oscar Isaac, Andy Serkis, Kelly Marie Tran, and more, with Carrie Fisher featured posthumously.
The Last Jedi premiered to a positive critical reception and was a massive box office success, becoming the second-highest-grossing film in the franchise. However, it was highly polarizing among Star Wars fans, largely because its climactic twist broke the expectations set by the previous film. The situation got even uglier as angry fans resorted to racist and misogynistic harassment of actress Kelly Marie Tran. Despite the division the film caused in the fanbase, it’s arguably one of the best movies in the franchise, taking bold risks and presenting a genuinely entertaining story that prioritizes thematic development over fan service, a choice that was disastrously reversed with the 2019 sequel Rise of Skywalker.
Release Date December 13, 2017
Runtime 152 minutes
Director Rian Johnson
Writers Rian Johnson
Producers Kathleen Kennedy, Ram Bergman, Leifur B. Dagfinnsson
English (US) ·