15 Sci-Fi Movies Like Dune You Must Add To Your Watch List

From the unforgettable Star Wars franchise to the modern-day Christopher Nolan classics, the boundaries of what’s possible in the sci-fi genre have radically evolved. As thrilling franchises like Denis Villeneuve’s Dune lead the charge with marvellous storytelling and visual spectacles in modern times, sci-fi blockbusters, especially the ones with extraterrestrial elements, have once again captured the attention of audiences.

Dune, a timeless tale of political intrigue, mysticism and epic battles, has enthralled viewers for a long time now. Initially adapted for the silver screen by David Lynch in 1984, the original Dune movie was praised for its ambitious vision but faced challenges in translating the intricacies of Frank Herbert’s groundbreaking novel to film. Fast forward to 2021, director Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part One, the first in a franchise of three epic movies, reignited the excitement, promising a visually stunning reimagination of Herbert’s complex universe.

Now, Dune: Part Two, aka Dune 2, is arriving in theatres on 1 March 2024, where Timothee Chalamet is back to headline a talented ensemble featuring Zendaya, Florence Pugh, Rebecca Ferguson, Dave Bautista, Austin Butler and Anya Taylor-Joy.

As fans celebrate the return to Arrakis, the fantastical universe of Paul Atreides, here are some of the best sci-fi movies like Dune to add to your binge list for space travel, intergalactic battles and more.

15 movies like ‘Dune’ to add to your watchlist if you like science-fiction classics

Interstellar (2014)

Directed by: Christopher Nolan

Hailed as one of Christopher Nolan’s greatest films, Interstellar is set in the distant future when widespread crop blight and a second Dust Bowl are slowly making Earth increasingly uninhabitable. In response, Professor Brand (Michael Caine), an astute physicist at NASA, is formulating strategies to ensure humanity’s survival. His plan involves utilising a wormhole to facilitate the relocation of Earth’s populace to a new habitable world.

To pave the way, Brand assembles a group, led by former NASA pilot Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), to travel to the enigmatic wormhole and navigate through distant galaxies. Their mission? To assess three potential planets and find out which one holds the key to humanity’s survival.

IMDb rating: 8.7/10

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick

Based on Arthur C. Clarke’s short story, 2001: A Space Odyssey follows the discovery of a mysterious black monolith and its influence on human evolution. As astronaut Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea) and team embark on a cryptic mission, HAL 9000, their spaceship’s computer, exhibits odd behaviour that leads to a tense man versus machine clash.

With a stunning exploration of human-technology dynamics, the film delves into the connections between mankind, futuristic machines and the universe.

IMDb rating: 8.3/10

Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

Directed by: George Miller

Mad Max: Fury Road is set in a desolate wasteland where water and resources are scarce in the post-apocalyptic world. The tyrannical Immortan Joe controls the Citadel and enslaves the survivors, using them as a source of fuel and breeding.

Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron), a skilled warrior, rebels against Immortan Joe, leading a daring escape with his five wives. Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy) becomes entangled in Furiosa’s mission after being captured and used as a blood donor by the War Boys, Immortan Joe’s loyal followers. Max and Furiosa form an uneasy alliance as they start off a high-speed chase across the desert in the heavily armoured War Rig.

IMDb rating: 8.1/10

Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve

Officer K (Ryan Gosling) is a new-generation blade runner, who unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to disrupt society. As K investigates this revelation, he commences on a quest to find Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former blade runner who has been missing for 30 years. K’s journey takes him deep into the dystopian and decaying world of Los Angeles in the year 2049.

Along the way, he encounters various characters, including Joi (Ana de Armas), a holographic companion and Luv (Sylvia Hoeks), a ruthless replicant.

IMDb rating: 8/10

Arrival (2016)

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve

Arrival follows linguistics professor Louise Banks (Amy Adams), who heads a specialised team, responding to enormous alien vessels that land across the globe. As international tensions escalate, she races against time to decipher communication with the extraterrestrial visitors. Amid the brink of war, she takes the risky step of trying to comprehend their language, potentially jeopardising her life and humanity’s fate in the process.

Besides Adams, the film’s cast also includes Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker, Michael Stuhlbarg and Tzi Ma.

IMDb rating: 7.9/10

Prometheus (2012)

Directed by: Ridley Scott

If you love watching stories about cults and their implications, then Prometheus will be right up your alley as it combines space and cosmic horror.

One of the best movies like Dune, Prometheus tells the tale of scientists Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) as they interpret a discovery as an invitation from the creators of mankind. As a result, they decide to lead an expedition to find these beings in the universe’s depths. Upon arrival, they encounter horrors surpassing their expectations. Driven by religious and scientific motivations, the crew faces unimaginable threats as they find out more about the origins of humanity.

IMDb rating: 7/10

Oblivion (2013)

Directed by: Joseph Kosinski

Jack Harper (Tom Cruise) is a drone repairman stationed on Earth in the year 2077, which has been ravaged by war with an alien race known as the Scavs. Humanity has won the war but Earth is left largely uninhabitable and the remaining population has relocated to Titan, Saturn’s moon. Jack’s job is to repair drones that extract essential resources from the Earth’s surface that are needed for the human colony on Titan.

However, Jack begins to question his reality when he discovers a crashed spacecraft containing human survivors, including a mysterious woman named Julia (Olga Kurylenko), who triggers memories in him that seems to contradict with his current life.

IMDb rating: 7/10

The Creator (2023)

Directed by: Gareth Edwards

In 2070, a decade and a half following a nuclear explosion in Los Angeles triggered by artificial intelligence (AI), Joshua (John David Washington), a former special forces agent, is enlisted to track down and eliminate the Creator, the mastermind behind advanced AI. The Creator has devised a weapon capable of terminating both the war and the entire human race.

As Joshua and his team of highly skilled operatives penetrate enemy-held zones, they realise that the apocalyptic weapon is an AI in the form of a young child.

IMDb rating: 6.8/10

The Green Knight (2021)

Directed by: David Lowery

The Green Knight revolves around Sir Gawain (Dev Patel), who is King Arthur’s nephew. The story begins during a Christmas celebration at the court of King Arthur (Sean Harris). A mysterious figure known as the Green Knight (Ralph Ineson) arrives and proposes a game. He challenges anyone in the court to strike him, with the condition that they must seek him out and receive an equal blow in return one year later.

Young Gawain, eager to prove himself, beheads the Green Knight. To his surprise, the Green Knight picks up his severed head and leaves, reminding Gawain of their pact in a year. As the year passes, Gawain quests to confront the Green Knight and honour his agreement.

IMDb rating: 6.6/10

Ad Astra (2019)

Directed by: James Gray

Ad Astra follows astronaut Roy McBride (Brad Pitt) taking up a mission to Neptune to find his missing father, Clifford, a space explorer who is presumed dead. As he journeys across the solar system, he uncovers hidden truths about the Lima Project, which harbours significant implications for humanity. As a result, Roy’s space trip becomes a reflection of human nature, identity and the mysteries of the universe.

Along with Pitt, the film boasts an impressive cast including Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Liv Tyler and Donald Sutherland.

IMDb rating: 6.5/10

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017)

Directed by: Luc Besson

Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevingne) are two special operatives in the 28th century who go off on a mission to the space station Alpha. Alpha is a colossal metropolis where diverse species from a thousand planets coexist, sharing knowledge and cultures. Chaos begins when a mysterious force threatens the harmony of the space station.

The duo must navigate through the vast city, encountering various alien species and environments, to uncover the truth behind the menace. As they investigate, they discover a dark conspiracy that jeopardises not only the future of Alpha but the stability of the entire universe.

IMDb rating: 6.4/10

Alienoid (2022)

Directed by: Choi Dong-hoon

Alienoid is a Korean sci-fi film that narrates an exceptional tale of a temporal gate opening, connecting the late Goryeo era with the contemporary world in 2022. In the Goryeo dynasty, Taoists attempt to seize a mysterious sword, while in the present day, Earth witnesses the arrival of aliens. The emergence of a time portal linking the late Goryeo period to the contemporary era results in a series of chaotic events.

It stars Ryu Jun-yeol, Kim Woo-bin and Kim Tae-ri.

IMDb rating: 6.2/10

Rebel Moon (2023)

Directed by: Zack Snyder

Rebel Moon unfolds in a make-believe galaxy dominated by the imperialistic Motherworld. The Imperium, Motherworld’s military force, poses a threat to a farming colony situated on the moon of Veldt. Kora (Sofia Boutella), a former soldier of the Imperium, embarks on a mission to assemble warriors from different parts of the galaxy. Their goal is to resist the Imperium and prevent their return to Veldt, where they pose a danger to the farming settlement.

Along with Boutella, the cast features Djimon Hounsou as Titus, Ed Skrein as Atticus Noble, Michiel Huisman as Gunnar, Doona Bae as Nemesis, Ray Fisher as Darrian Bloodaxe, Charlie Hunnam and Anthony Hopkins as Kai and Jimmy, respectively.

IMDb rating: 5.6/10

Moonfall (2022)

Directed by: Roland Emmerich

In Moonfall, Earth faces imminent destruction as an unknown power dislodges the moon from its usual orbit, propelling it towards a collision. Just weeks before the impending catastrophe, astronaut Jocinda ‘Jo’ Fowler (Halle Berry), an executive at NASA, joins forces with another astronaut Brian Harper (Patrick Wilson) and K.C. Houseman (John Bradley), a conspiracy theorist.

Together, they begin an impossible space mission to rescue humanity from this impending disaster.

IMDb rating: 5.1/10

Jupiter Ascending (2015)

Directed by: Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski

Our list of movies like Dune concludes with the sci-fi adventure of Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis), a young woman who works as a cleaner. When she discovers she has a significant destiny beyond Earth, she is targeted by powerful forces across the universe due to her genetic signature, which marks her as the reincarnation of the matriarch of an incredibly powerful alien dynasty. As a result, she becomes the target of a cosmic conflict involving intergalactic royalty.

Caine Wise (Channing Tatum), a genetically engineered ex-military hunter, becomes Jupiter’s protector. Together, they navigate a complex and visually stunning interplanetary world.

IMDb rating: 5.3/10

(Hero and feature image credit: IMDb/Dune)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

-Which are the best movies like Dune?
Interstellar, Arrival, Moonfall, Blade Runner 2049 and The Green Knight are some of the best movies like Dune.

-Which movie is available on Netflix similar to Dune?
Interstellar, Mad Max: Fury Road, Arrival and Oblivion are movies similar to Dune available on Netflix.