These space films share no story, so watch them in release order from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), or in pairs: Apollo 13 with First Man, Interstellar with The Martian.
- Titles
- 18
- Films
- 18
- Watch time
- 39 hours
- Box office
- $5.37 billion
- Avg IMDb
- 7.3
Space movies in release order
Here is every Space title in the order it came out, 1968 to 2026: 18 films.
| # | Title | Year | Type | Runtime | IMDb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2001: A Space Odyssey | 1968 | Film | 2h 29m | 8.3 |
| 2 | Apollo 13 | 1995 | Film | 2h 20m | 7.7 |
| 3 | Contact | 1997 | Film | 2h 30m | 7.5 |
| 4 | Event Horizon | 1997 | Film | 1h 36m | 6.6 |
| 5 | Deep Impact | 1998 | Film | 2h 2m | 6.3 |
| 6 | Armageddon | 1998 | Film | 2h 31m | 6.7 |
| 7 | Mission to Mars | 2000 | Film | 1h 54m | 5.7 |
| 8 | Space Cowboys | 2000 | Film | 2h 10m | 6.5 |
| 9 | Sunshine | 2007 | Film | 1h 48m | 7.2 |
| 10 | Moon | 2009 | Film | 1h 37m | 7.8 |
| 11 | Gravity | 2013 | Film | 1h 31m | 7.7 |
| 12 | Interstellar | 2014 | Film | 2h 49m | 8.7 |
| 13 | The Martian | 2015 | Film | 2h 21m | 8 |
| 14 | Passengers | 2016 | Film | 1h 56m | 7 |
| 15 | Hidden Figures | 2016 | Film | 2h 7m | 7.8 |
| 16 | First Man | 2018 | Film | 2h 21m | 7.3 |
| 17 | Ad Astra | 2019 | Film | 2h 3m | 6.5 |
| 18 | Project Hail Mary | 2026 | Film | 2h 37m | 8.2 |
Space timeline: movies in chronological order
The same titles in story order, by when they take place, with the year or era each one is set in.
| # | Title | Set in | Released |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hidden Figures | 1961 | 2016 |
| 2 | First Man | 1961–1969 | 2018 |
| 3 | Apollo 13 | 1970 | 1995 |
| 4 | Contact | Present day | 1997 |
| 5 | Deep Impact | Present day | 1998 |
| 6 | Armageddon | Present day | 1998 |
| 7 | Space Cowboys | Present day | 2000 |
| 8 | 2001: A Space Odyssey | 2001 | 1968 |
| 9 | Gravity | Low Earth orbit | 2013 |
| 10 | Mission to Mars | 2020 | 2000 |
| 11 | Ad Astra | The near future | 2019 |
| 12 | Project Hail Mary | The near future | 2026 |
| 13 | The Martian | 2035 | 2015 |
| 14 | Moon | The near future | 2009 |
| 15 | Event Horizon | 2047 | 1997 |
| 16 | Sunshine | 2057 | 2007 |
| 17 | Interstellar | A dying Earth | 2014 |
| 18 | Passengers | The far future | 2016 |
Release or chronological: which order is best?
Release order and story order disagree on 15 titles here. In release order you start with 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968); in story order you start with Hidden Figures, set in 1961, which came out 48 years later.
First time through, watch in release order. That is how the twists, returning characters and callbacks were built to land, and later entries assume you have seen the earlier ones. On a rewatch, try story order. It turns Space Movies into one continuous story and makes the prequels play as setup instead of backstory.
Where to start
Start with 2001: A Space Odyssey and go in release order.
The whole thing is 39 hours. At two hours a night that is about 20 evenings.
The three highest rated: Interstellar (8.7), 2001: A Space Odyssey (8.3), and Project Hail Mary (8.2).
Every Space movie, explained
One entry per title in release order: what it is about, why it matters to the bigger story, who is in it and how it did.
No. 01 · 1968 · Film · 2h 29m · 8th in story order
2001: A Space Odyssey
Humanity finds a mysterious object buried beneath the lunar surface and sets off to find its origins with the help of HAL 9000, the world's most advanced super computer.
Why it matters: Kubrick's odyssey with HAL 9000.
- Starring
- Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, and William Sylvester
- Director
- Stanley Kubrick
- Box office
- $72 million on a $12 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 90%
No. 02 · 1995 · Film · 2h 20m · 3rd in story order
Apollo 13
The true story of technical troubles that scuttle the Apollo 13 lunar mission in 1970, risking the lives of astronaut Jim Lovell and his crew, with the failed journey turning into a thrilling saga of heroism. Drifting more than 200,000 miles from Earth, the astronauts work furiously with the ground crew to avert tragedy.
Why it matters: "Houston, we have a problem."
- Starring
- Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon
- Director
- Ron Howard
- Box office
- $355 million on a $52 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 92%
No. 03 · 1997 · Film · 2h 30m · 4th in story order
Contact
A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and reality.
Why it matters: A signal from Vega.
- Starring
- Jodie Foster, Matthew McConaughey, and James Woods
- Director
- Robert Zemeckis
- Box office
- $171 million on a $90 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 69%
No. 04 · 1997 · Film · 1h 36m · 15th in story order
Event Horizon
In 2047, a group of astronauts are sent to investigate and salvage the starship Event Horizon which disappeared mysteriously seven years before on its maiden voyage. However, it soon becomes evident that something sinister resides in its corridors.
Why it matters: A ship that came back from somewhere.
- Starring
- Laurence Fishburne, Sam Neill, and Kathleen Quinlan
- Director
- Paul W. S. Anderson
- Box office
- $27 million on a $60 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.6 · Rotten Tomatoes 37%
No. 05 · 1998 · Film · 2h 2m
Deep Impact
A seven-mile-wide space rock is hurtling toward Earth, threatening to obliterate the planet. Now, it's up to the president of the United States to save the world. He appoints a tough-as-nails veteran astronaut to lead a joint American-Russian crew into space to destroy the comet before impact. Meanwhile, an enterprising reporter uses her smarts to uncover the scoop of the century.
Why it matters: A comet on a collision course.
- Starring
- Robert Duvall, Téa Leoni, and Elijah Wood
- Director
- Mimi Leder
- Box office
- $349 million on a $75 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 45%
No. 06 · 1998 · Film · 2h 31m
Armageddon
When an asteroid threatens to collide with Earth, NASA honcho Dan Truman determines the only way to stop it is to drill into its surface and detonate a nuclear bomb. This leads him to renowned driller Harry Stamper, who agrees to helm the dangerous space mission provided he can bring along his own hotshot crew. Among them is the cocksure A.J. who Harry thinks isn't good enough for his daughter, until the mission proves otherwise.
Why it matters: Drillers save the world.
- Starring
- Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, and Ben Affleck
- Director
- Michael Bay
- Box office
- $554 million on a $140 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 42%
No. 07 · 2000 · Film · 1h 54m · 10th in story order
Mission to Mars
When the first manned mission to Mars meets with a catastrophic and mysterious disaster after reporting an unidentified structure, a rescue mission is launched to investigate the tragedy and bring back any survivors.
Why it matters: A rescue mission finds a secret on Mars.
- Starring
- Gary Sinise, Tim Robbins, and Don Cheadle
- Director
- Brian De Palma
- Box office
- $111 million on a $90 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 5.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 24%
No. 08 · 2000 · Film · 2h 10m · 7th in story order
Space Cowboys
Frank Corvin, ‘Hawk’ Hawkins, Jerry O'Neill and ‘Tank’ Sullivan were hotdog members of Project Daedalus, the US Air Force's test program for space travel, but their hopes were dashed in 1958 with the formation of NASA and the use of trained chimps. They blackmail their way into orbit when Russia's mysterious ‘Ikon’ communications satellite's orbit begins to degrade and threatens to crash to Earth.
Why it matters: Retired pilots finally go to space.
- Starring
- Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, and Donald Sutherland
- Director
- Clint Eastwood
- Box office
- $129 million on a $65 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 78%
No. 09 · 2007 · Film · 1h 48m · 16th in story order
Sunshine
Fifty years into the future, the sun is dying, and Earth is threatened by arctic temperatures. A team of astronauts is sent to revive the Sun — but the mission fails. Seven years later, a new team is sent to finish the mission as mankind’s last hope.
Why it matters: A mission to reignite the Sun.
- Starring
- Cillian Murphy, Rose Byrne, and Chris Evans
- Director
- Danny Boyle
- Box office
- $35 million on a $50 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 77%
No. 10 · 2009 · Film · 1h 37m · 14th in story order
Moon
With only three weeks left in his three-year contract, Sam Bell is eager to return to Earth. Stationed alone at a Moon-based facility with his computer assistant GERTY, an unexpected accident sets off a series of unsettling events that shake his isolation.
Why it matters: A lone worker on the far side of the Moon.
- Starring
- Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey, and Dominique McElligott
- Director
- Duncan Jones
- Box office
- $10 million on a $5 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 90%
No. 11 · 2013 · Film · 1h 31m · 9th in story order
Gravity
Dr Ryan Stone, an engineer on her first space mission, and Matt Kowalski, an astronaut on his final expedition, have to survive in space after they are hit by debris while spacewalking.
Why it matters: Stranded in orbit.
- Starring
- Sandra Bullock, George Clooney, and Ed Harris
- Director
- Alfonso Cuarón
- Box office
- $723 million on a $105 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 96%
No. 12 · 2014 · Film · 2h 49m · 17th in story order
Interstellar
The adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.
Why it matters: Through a wormhole to save humanity.
- Starring
- Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, and Michael Caine
- Director
- Christopher Nolan
- Box office
- $747 million on a $165 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.7 · Rotten Tomatoes 73%
No. 13 · 2015 · Film · 2h 21m
The Martian
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive.
Why it matters: Stranded on Mars, science the way home.
- Starring
- Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, and Kristen Wiig
- Director
- Ridley Scott
- Box office
- $631 million on a $108 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8 · Rotten Tomatoes 91%
No. 14 · 2016 · Film · 1h 56m · 18th in story order
Passengers
A spacecraft traveling to a distant colony planet and transporting thousands of people has a malfunction in its sleep chambers. As a result, two passengers are awakened 90 years early.
Why it matters: Woken 90 years too early.
- Starring
- Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt, and Michael Sheen
- Director
- Morten Tyldum
- Box office
- $303 million on a $110 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7 · Rotten Tomatoes 30%
No. 16 · 2018 · Film · 2h 21m · 2nd in story order
First Man
A look at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong, and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.
Why it matters: Neil Armstrong's road to the Moon.
- Starring
- Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, and Jason Clarke
- Director
- Damien Chazelle
- Box office
- $106 million on a $70 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 87%
No. 17 · 2019 · Film · 2h 3m · 11th in story order
Ad Astra
The near future, a time when both hope and hardships drive humanity to look to the stars and beyond. While a mysterious phenomenon menaces to destroy life on planet Earth, astronaut Roy McBride undertakes a mission across the immensity of space and its many perils to uncover the truth about a lost expedition that decades before boldly faced emptiness and silence in search of the unknown.
Why it matters: A son searches for his father at Neptune.
- Starring
- Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, and Liv Tyler
- Director
- James Gray
- Box office
- $127 million on a $88 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.5 · Rotten Tomatoes 83%
No. 18 · 2026 · Film · 2h 37m · 12th in story order
Project Hail Mary
Science teacher Ryland Grace wakes up on a spaceship light years from home with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory returns, he begins to uncover his mission: solve the riddle of the mysterious substance causing the sun to die out. He must call on his scientific knowledge and unorthodox ideas to save everything on Earth from extinction.
Why it matters: A lone astronaut saves the Sun.
- Starring
- Ryan Gosling, Sandra Hüller, and James Ortiz
- Director
- Phil Lord and Christopher Miller
- Box office
- $685 million on a $200 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 8.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 95%
Space box office and budgets
The 18 Space films with reported numbers have grossed $5.37 billion worldwide on about $1.51 billion in combined budgets, roughly 3.6 times what they cost. The biggest is Interstellar at $747 million, 14% of the franchise's total on its own, followed by Gravity ($723 million) and Project Hail Mary ($685 million).
Measured against what it cost, the best return belongs to Hidden Figures, which made 9.4 times its $25 million budget. The weakest was Event Horizon at 45% of its $60 million budget. As a rule of thumb, a film needs about two and a half times its budget at the box office to cover marketing and the theaters' cut.
The best and worst rated Space movies
Across 18 rated titles, Space Movies averages 7.3 on IMDb. The top of the list is Interstellar at 8.7, then 2001: A Space Odyssey (8.3) and Project Hail Mary (8.2). At the bottom: Mission to Mars (5.7) and Deep Impact (6.3).
- Interstellar8.7 · RT 73%
- 2001: A Space Odyssey8.3 · RT 90%
- Project Hail Mary8.2 · RT 95%
- The Martian8 · RT 91%
- Moon7.8 · RT 90%
- Hidden Figures7.8 · RT 93%
- Apollo 137.7 · RT 92%
- Gravity7.7 · RT 96%
- Contact7.5 · RT 69%
- First Man7.3 · RT 87%
Who appears in the most Space movies
Benedict Wong leads with 3 appearances as Trey and Thompson, ahead of Gary Sinise (2) and Ed Harris (2). Counted from each title's top-billed cast.
| Actor | Role | Titles | First and latest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benedict Wong | Trey / Thompson | 3 | Sunshine (2007) to The Martian (2015) |
| Gary Sinise | Ken Mattingly / Jim McConnell | 2 | Apollo 13 (1995) to Mission to Mars (2000) |
| Ed Harris | Gene Kranz / Mission Control | 2 | Apollo 13 (1995) to Gravity (2013) |
| Kathleen Quinlan | Marilyn Lovell / Peters | 2 | Apollo 13 (1995) to Event Horizon (1997) |
| Matthew McConaughey | Palmer Joss / Cooper | 2 | Contact (1997) to Interstellar (2014) |
| William Fichtner | Kent / Willie Sharp | 2 | Contact (1997) to Armageddon (1998) |
| Laurence Fishburne | Miller / Gus Mancuso | 2 | Event Horizon (1997) to Passengers (2016) |
| James Cromwell | Alan Rittenhouse / Bob Gerson | 2 | Deep Impact (1998) to Space Cowboys (2000) |
| Liv Tyler | Grace Stamper / Eve | 2 | Armageddon (1998) to Ad Astra (2019) |
| Tommy Lee Jones | Hawk Hawkins / H. Clifford McBride | 2 | Space Cowboys (2000) to Ad Astra (2019) |
| Donald Sutherland | Jerry O'Neill / Thomas Pruitt | 2 | Space Cowboys (2000) to Ad Astra (2019) |
| Loren Dean | Ethan Glance / Donald Stanford | 2 | Space Cowboys (2000) to Ad Astra (2019) |
Space directors and creators
19 filmmakers have directed or created Space Movies.
- Stanley Kubrick2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
- Ron HowardApollo 13 (1995)
- Robert ZemeckisContact (1997)
- Paul W. S. AndersonEvent Horizon (1997)
- Mimi LederDeep Impact (1998)
- Michael BayArmageddon (1998)
- Brian De PalmaMission to Mars (2000)
- Clint EastwoodSpace Cowboys (2000)
- Danny BoyleSunshine (2007)
- Duncan JonesMoon (2009)
- Alfonso CuarónGravity (2013)
- Christopher NolanInterstellar (2014)
- Ridley ScottThe Martian (2015)
- Morten TyldumPassengers (2016)
- Theodore MelfiHidden Figures (2016)
- Damien ChazelleFirst Man (2018)
How long it takes to watch every Space movie
All 18 titles add up to 39 hours. That is about 20 two-hour evenings, or 4 days of ten-hour binges. The longest film is Interstellar at 2h 49m.
The 4 best rated films: Interstellar, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Project Hail Mary, and The Martian.
Everything takes about 6 weeks.
Track what you've watched on the timeline and it counts the hours left.
Common questions
What order should I watch the Space movies in?
These space films share no story, so watch them in release order from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), or in pairs: Apollo 13 with First Man, Interstellar with The Martian.
How many Space movies and shows are there?
There are 18 titles in the Space Movies franchise: 18 films and 0 series, released from 1968 to 2026.
How long does it take to watch all the Space movies?
About 39 hours for all 18 titles, counting every episode.
What is the first Space title in chronological order?
Hidden Figures, set in 1961. In release order the first is 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).
What is the best Space movie?
By IMDb score, Interstellar (2014) at 8.7, followed by 2001: A Space Odyssey at 8.3.
What is the highest-grossing Space movie?
Interstellar (2014), with $747 million worldwide. Space Movies films have made $5.37 billion in total.
Who has appeared in the most Space movies?
Benedict Wong, in 3 of them as Trey.
What is the longest Space movie?
Interstellar, at 2h 49m.
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