The Sci-Fi Space Oddity That Briefly Toppled 'Titanic' Is a Surprise Streaming Sensation

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Published Feb 8, 2026, 12:40 PM EST

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

Back in the 1990s, you couldn't go to the multiplex without seeing a poster or a trailer for an adaptation of a TV show from the 1960s and '70s. Boomer nostalgia was peaking, and the reruns of yore were coveted IPs. Some were hits, like The Flintstones and The Brady Bunch Movie; others disappeared without a trace, like Car 54, Where Are You? and The Mod Squad. And some, like Lost in Space, dethroned the biggest box office hit of all time (at the time). Now, it's having success on streaming, as it recently hit #10 on free, ad-supported streamer Tubi's charts.

Lost in Space didn't make $2 billion USD, like Titanic. But it was the first movie to take the #1 spot at the box office after James Cameron's nautical disaster epic spent fifteen consecutive weeks at the top. The film was adapted from producer Irwin Allen's signature TV hit; itself loosely based on Johann David Wyss' 1812 novel The Swiss Family Robinson, it ran for three seasons between 1965 and 1968. It detailed the adventures of the Robinson family — parents John (Guy Williams) and Maureen (June Lockhart), plus kids Judy (Marta Kristen), Judy (Angela Cartwright), and Will (Bill Mumy), plus Space Corps Major Don West (Mark Goddard) and their faithful robot (Dick Tufeld). They were supposed to be on a mission to colonize a distant planet, but sabotage by the theatrical malcontent Dr. Zachary Smith (Jonathan Harris) left them...well, you can probably guess from the title. Never a hit with the critics, the series was fondly remembered by science fiction fans, and got the big-budget remake treatment courtesy of director Stephen Hopkins (Predator 2) and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman (I Am Legend).

What Happens in 'Lost in Space'?

The year is 2058, and Earth is in trouble from both pollution and the mutant terrorists of Global Sedition. Workaholic scientist John Robinson (William Hurt) plans to travel to a distant planet in an experimental starship with his family in tow to secure Earth's future; his science whiz kids Judy (Heather Graham) and Will (Jack Johnson) are thrilled, but social butterfly middle daughter Penny (Lacey Chabert) isn't happy to leave Earth, and neither is long-neglected wife Maureen (Mimi Rogers). Military man Don West (Matt LeBlanc) doesn't love his assignment to babysit the family, either. Of course, it all becomes moot when Global Sedition sends saboteur Zachary Smith (Gary Oldman) to destroy the ship; he fails, but he, West, the Robinsons, and their robot (Tufeld again) get, well, you can guess. In short order, they run into nasty space spiders, a wacky alien that becomes Penny's pet, and a future incarnation of Will (Jared Harris).

Lost in Space wasn't the last time Goldsman's path crossed with Irwin Allen. He's currently working on reboots of three of Allen's other classic science fiction TV shows: Land of the Giants, Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, and The Time Tunnel.

Lost in Space is streaming for free on Tubi. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.