Though this might predict that dire times are right around the corner, there’s no denying that we’re living in a good time for Science Fiction.
If you already love Sci-Fi, or if the Fallout TV series has awakened in you a love for Sci-Fi so deep that not even a list of the best Fallout-like Sci-Fi movies will keep you full, then it’s time to share a list of the most hype-worthy Sci-Fi films that’ll come out this year.
Alien: Romulus (Aug 16)
Alien sequels are hit-and-miss… and miss. Still, if there’s a person for the job, that’s likely Fede Álvarez of the Evil Dead remake and Don’t Breathe fame. The man can do intimate horror, tension, and claustrophobia — much more than we’ve had in the past like five Alien movies if you count the AVP ones and Prometheus. Cailee Spaeny of Civil War leads a cast of little-known names. This casting route is akin to the one taken by the original Alien, which is great as I believe it’s likely to get us to believe in and empathize with these characters — even though they’re likely all about to die in horrible ways.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (May 8)
After a solid and successful reboot trilogy, the Nu Apes saga will continue with Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes, starring Freya Allan of The Witcher TV series fame. Maze Runner series helmer Wes Ball is directing, and the studio has already boasted about having shot the movie almost entirely on location. That’s a breath of fresh air in the green screen and “The volume”-saturated movie landscape of today, and also just plain cool that they took the entire cast and crew to shoot on a planet that’s not Earth — right?
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (May 24)
Okay, here’s one that’ll likely be a hit among Fallout fans. The legendary George Miller is back in the director’s chair to follow up on the glorious Mad Max: Fury Road and tell the early days of Furiosa, Immortan Joe’s coolest general.
This is a prequel, so instead of Charlize Theron, we’re getting the younger Anya Taylor-Joy in the main role as we likely learn how she got her metal arm. The film will also star Chris Hemsworth as a seemingly show-stealing villain, and the trailer makes it look as promising as the trailers for Fury Road did ten years ago.
Megalopolis (TBA)
While it’s true that Francis Ford Coppola hasn’t made a widely-beloved movie in a while, he’s the guy behind Apocalypse Now, Bram Stoker’s Dracula, The Conversation, and the Godfather duology, so I think we should at least keep an ear out for the movie he’s spent 40 years of his life trying to get made. Though we still don’t have a confirmed release date, Coppola states that his Sci-Fi epic starring Adam Driver as an architect trying to rebuild New York City after a cataclysmic event will come out sometime this year.
Atlas (May 24)
If the mix of Sci-Fi and Jennifer Lopez strikes you as weird, you should consider adding The Cell from 2000 to your watchlist ASAP. Though she’s mostly remembered for her romantic films, J Lo can absolutely carry a Sci-Fi film, so I can easily say I’m hyped to see what she’ll bring to the genre nearly twenty-five years after her first outing. Atlas revolves around an AI hellbent on ending humanity, and is helmed by Rampage and San Andreas director Brad Peyton. At the very least, this should be a fun time in your Netflix home theater.
Borderlands (August 4)
I’m the first to admit I didn’t much care for the Borderlands movie adaptation when I first saw the trailer, but I also thought the Fallout TV series would bomb hard and we all know how that turned out.
Director Eli Roth has had far from a spotless career, but he enjoyed quite the resurgence with the gruesomely fun Thanksgiving, so he might really be the one to pull this off. On-screen, we have Cate Blanchett and the voice of Jack Black, who are entertaining to watch even in the crappiest movie imaginable, so I have to say my hopes for this one are fully renewed.
Mars Express (May 3)
Mars Express is a French Sci-Fi detective story set in the relatively close 23rd century. Its director, Jérémie Périn, is mostly unknown in the US — for now — but he made the Internet airwaves some years ago with one of the most puzzlingly wicked music videos of all time. Unlike most other movies on this list, there’s no longer the need to wonder if Mars Express is good, as it has already come out in France where it met an overwhelmingly positive reception.
The Electric State (TBA)
Can the Russo brothers return to the heights of the Endgame and Winter Soldier days after the tumble that was The Gray Man? The Electric State, the duo’s first foray into the genre, might prove the comeback they need. This adaptation of the graphic novel of the same name tells the story of a boy and a robot friend who must venture through the evil robot-infested US West Coast in search of the boy’s brother. It features names such as Ke Huy Quan, Chris Pratt, Stanley Tucci, and Millie Bobby Brown in the main cast.
Kalki 2898 AD (May 9)
Kalki is an upcoming Sci-Fi blockbuster from India set in a post-apocalyptic world based on Hindu mythology. The Nag Ashwin-directed movie was shot in 2022, but the pandemic got it postponed to early 2024, and the need for extra post-production work further delayed it to May 9. The trailer looks cool, so there’s no way I’ll risk missing out on telling our readers about what could turn out to be the next RRR.
Star Wars Episode 1
I’m sorry to tell you that no, you didn’t just wake up from a coma and have been in 1999 all along. It’s just that Star Wars Episode 1 is coming back to theaters on May 3 to celebrate its 25th anniversary. It’s on the list because this is a multi-generational moment of truth waiting to happen.
For nearly two decades, Star Wars fans have loathed this film. Then, in what I assume was a knee-jerk reaction to the sequel trilogy, many began talking about how the prequels were good, actually. I don’t know about that, but there’s probably no better way to learn the truth than by counting the number of happy faces and comparing it to the number of sobbing ones as they leave the theater.
