time travel movies space

Best time travel movies of all time

Journey through cinema and science fiction history as we run down the best time travel movies of all time, from simple trips to other eras to time loops.

Mankind has been fascinated by the possibility of travelling to a different age for over a century. This hypothetical activity, now widely recognized in philosophy and fiction, was popularized by H.G. Wells’ 1895 novel The Time Machine. But it was cinema that made it a recurring science fiction premise in mainstream works. Such movies have kept evolving and taking time travel in wildly different directions, so we have ventured across time and space to bring you our ranked list of the best time travel movies of all time.

A good time travel movie doesn’t need to try too hard to take the subject seriously, as the core concept itself and the mechanics surrounding it remain a mystery and purely hypothetical. Of course, there are stories that leave massive plot holes throughout, but even time travel movies which go for more “realistic” approaches have to make up their own sets of rules. As a result, our list covers both movies that are steeped in the science of the genre and those which simply use time travel as a vehicle for shenanigans. One-way trips through black holes ? Parallel timelines ? Mind-bending paradoxes? It’s got a bit of everything.

For other great sci-fi genres, check out our guides to the best alien invasion movies , the best zombie movies , the best disaster movies , and the best giant monster movies of all time. If you’re in the mood for hands-on time travel fun, our list of the best time travel video games you can play right now is a must-read too. 

15. The Time Traveler’s Wife 

• Release date: August 14, 2009
• Cast: Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, Ron Livingston

The original marketing of The Time Traveler’s Wife, based on the novel of the same name, was billed as a sappy romance movie akin to anything from Nicholas Sparks. While it does have its romantic moments, the movie’s commitment to a deep, compelling story of a man who cannot control his own movements through time is a well thought out original take on the concept. Think of it more as a romantic sci-fi drama.

As Henry DeTamble (Bana) travels through time, he cannot control when or where he appears. Luckily, at least, he often is among the same people, specifically, his future/present wife, Clare Abshire (McAdams). Their relationship develops and is bruised by his time shifts, which creates strain as well as successes for both of them throughout the movie. 

The Time Traveler’s Wife takes its premise seriously. It allows for the concepts of paradoxes by only ensuring that he directly affects what would, in theory, already occur. Henry is more enacting a prescribed timeline, rather than trying to fight it. It works, and it’s great.

• Release date: October 8, 2004
• Cast: Shane Carruth, David Sullivan, Casey Gooden

Primer is the quintessential movie for any fan of time travel. With a low budget of only $7,000, it grossed over $800,000 at the box office, making it one of the most successful independent movies of all time. It deserves its success as well, as it brings hard science to audiences in a way that, at first, seems impenetrable, but worms its way into our minds and keeps us analyzing the movie long after it’s over. 

When two engineers accidentally create a time travel apparatus during their own experiments, they begin using it for personal gain. As their ideologies on the preservation of time begin to diverge, however, their relationship is pushed to its limits alongside the fraying timeline they alter. 

Primer demands multiple viewings, each one illuminating hidden moments throughout the movie that hint at its own finale. Audiences looking for a dense, no-frills look at what time travel would mean if given to an average (albeit genius) Joe, will find it in Primer.

• Rent or buy Primer on Amazon.

13. Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure

• Release date: February 17, 1989
• Cast: Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin

The Bill and Ted franchise are considered family hits for a reason. With the charm of two goofy leads that bumble their way through major historical moments, the movies rely on the time travel conceit to build out and support their silly sense of humor. While the historical moments are considered overly cliché by some, and it’s true that they often misrepresent the moments they are based on, the point of the movie is not to relish in accuracy, but to parody those that try to stick to history all too closely. 

In order to ensure a future utopian society created by the titular characters, Rufus travels back in time to the 1980s to help Bill and Ted pass a history class. In order to understand the perspective of the historic figures they are supposed to be researching, the trio travel through time to meet each of them. 

Without going into spoilers, decisions made by the pair of heroes as well as Rufus would, if not for the movie completely ignoring them, destroy history as it is known. While this is frustrating for anyone looking for a movie that takes paradoxes seriously, that doesn’t keep Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure from being a fun, engaging flick that should be watched with brains mostly turned off.

12. Deadpool 2

• Release date: May 18, 2018
• Cast: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Morena Baccarin

While many movies are poorly received due to their failure to properly respect their own laws of time, Deadpool 2 was given generally positive reviews from critics for intentionally doing the same. In true fashion of the character, Deadpool 2 pokes fun at time travel clichés and tropes, finding ways to both incorporate as well as deride them. 

After Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool joins the X-Men they take a young mutant, Russell, under their care. However, his actions in the future lead the mutant cyborg Cable to travel back in time in order to kill Russell and prevent his own tragedy from occurring. 

Multiple fourth-wall breaking jokes are made about the villains striking similarities to a certain futuristic machine that is mentioned later in this list. And also similarly, the movie strikes a balance in approaching the anti-hero trope that is often associated with these androids from the future. We’re looking at you Dragon Ball Z.

11. Source Code

• Release date: April 1, 2011
• Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga

Source Code is an exciting sci-fi thriller which shows a lot of restraint despite the sheer audacity of its premise: Army Captain Colter Stevens finds himself in someone else’s body and quickly discovers he’s part of an experimental US government program that wants him to find the person behind the bombing of the train where he wakes up. The catch is that he can only be there for the last 8 minutes before the bomb goes off, being stuck in that loop until he can catch the bomber.

Director Duncan Jones had already wowed sci-fi aficionados with the remarkable Moon (2009), so expectations surrounding Source Code were quite high. While the final result might not be a masterpiece, it ranks easily among the most interesting time travel flicks in recent times. It’s also relatively easy to follow despite its kooky premise thanks to its limited scale.

10. 12 Monkeys

• Release date: January 5, 1996
• Cast: Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt

Let’s be honest, if someone were to run up to you on the street and say they were from the future and had come back to stop a society-destroying virus, would you believe them? Well, at this point, we probably would too. But, that certainly wasn’t the case when 12 Monkeys came out in the 90s. 

When James Cole (Willis) is sent back in time from 2030 to stop a devastating virus from ever being spread, he is immediately captured and committed to an insane asylum, because that’s what would realistically probably happen. There he meets Brad Pitt’s Jeffery Goines, who is a staunch anti-corporate activist and an environmentalist. You can see where this is probably going.

With plenty of back and forth time travel for Cole, and a sincerely harrowing story about the dangers of trying to intervene in the development of a horrific future, 12 Monkeys creates a narrative that looks at the actual implications of time travel. It’s a must see for any action-thriller science-fiction fan.

9. Groundhog Day

• Release date: February 12, 1993
• Cast: Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott

There’s always been discussion surrounding Groundhog Day and whether it’s really a time travel movie, but you know what? It doesn’t really matter. A simple time loop can be more interesting than a straight-up time-travelling odyssey. In fact, this movie is more of a fantasy comedy that poses the question of what would a regular person do if trapped inside a time loop they cannot explain nor fix.

It's an endearing movie that, despite many creative differences behind the scenes, ended up resonating with audiences thanks to its smaller scale and impeccable comedic timing, all built around a script which is undoubtedly clever, but lacks pretension. Many movies in this list are downbeat or serve as cautionary tales, so we thought it’d be great to inject a healthy dose of optimism.

8. Predestination

• Release date: August 28, 2014
• Cast: Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook, Noah Taylor

Predestination might be one of the most overlooked sci-fi movies in recent years, mainly because it didn’t get a very wide international release following its global premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas. Fanatics of time travel movies and loopy sci-fi thrillers made sure as many people as possible heard about it though.

The movie is based on the 1959 short story “All You Zombies” by Robert A. Heinlen, and follows a temporal agent as he pursues one criminal that has eluded him throughout time. The chase quickly turns into a mind-bending exploration of love, fate, and identity that questions the very foundations of time travel as explained in-universe. This one’s a big head-scratcher that requires your full attention, but it’s also far from a slog due to its (mostly successful) action thriller ambitions.

7. Tenet 

• Release date: August 26, 2020
• Cast: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki

We’re still trying to wrap our heads around some of the wilder mechanics featured in Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi thriller, so that alone gives Tenet some weight among the genre’s best. It’s true that some of the character arcs aren’t as fleshed out as they could’ve been, plus its spy-movie villain – played by Kenneth Branagh – can often be unintentionally funny, but it’s hard to find a bolder big-budget action thriller in recent times.

The story follows a former CIA agent who must learn to master “time inversion” and prevent a renegade Russian oligarch from starting World War III. The problem is the attack will come from the future. As the plot unfolds, weirder concepts come into play, and everything isn’t what it seems at first glance. This is a time travel movie unlike anything we had seen before, mainly because it takes a while to adjust to the mind-bending mechanics of its universe and how they play out in parallel to regular action.

6. Edge of Tomorrow 

• Release date: June 6, 2014
• Cast: Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton

Edge of Tomorrow was one of the biggest surprises of 2014 thanks to a tight, action-packed script which masterfully mixed the alien invasion subgenre with time-travel shenanigans, so you’re killing two birds with one stone if you choose to watch this banger for the first time.

Based on Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s novel All You Need Is Kill, Edge of Tomorrow presents a near future in which most of Europe has been taken over by a hostile and unstoppable alien species. Major William Cage, a PR officer, is forced to join an operation against the aliens, only to end up experiencing a time loop that could be the key to defeating the invaders if he can convince the right people. Edge of Tomorrow is both funny and dark, but above all, a true rollercoaster ride.

5. Interstellar

• Release date: November 7, 2014
• Cast: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain

Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, the man behind other “I lost my wife” movies such as Inception, The Prestige, and the more recent Tenet, Interstellar is a time travel movie that uses theoretical laws of physics to alter the perception of time for its protagonists. While Tenet may be a more direct time travel movie, Interstellar surpasses it in its writing, emotional character beats, and the spectacle of its space travel. 

After food sources on Earth have been depleted, Cooper (McConaughey) and a team of astronauts go out in search of a habitable planet beyond the solar system. During their journey, time shifts with them depending on the planets they are on, or how close they are to the black hole at the center of their travels. 

While none of the characters go back in time, they do experience time travel by how fast or slow their own perception of time is compared to the characters back home. And a particularly interesting point using the black hole does allow information and communication to be sent backwards, which we think totally counts.

• Release date: September 28, 2012
• Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt

Bruce Willis’ most recent foray into time travel, Looper is a mind-bending movie that attempts to tackle the grandfather paradox. Although it falls a bit short of this lofty goal, it still maintains a good narrative that builds to an intense climax that uses the universe’s rules against the main villain in unique ways. 

Time travel is ubiquitous in the world of Looper. Unfortunately, a crime syndicate has figured out a way to use this to “lose bodies” by sending their victims back in time to be killed by employees working in the past (or present, if you’re the employee). When Joe, played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, is hired to kill his older self, played by Bruce Willis, he fails to do so, setting off an intense chase for JGL to correct his mistake.

Ultimately, the movie sets out its own rules for time travel. When young Joe gets a cut, a scar appears on old Joe. This concept progresses through the movie to an ending that may not be temporally possible, but that works to bring closure to the loop.

• Rent or buy Looper on Amazon.

3. Avengers: Endgame

• Release date: April 26, 2019
• Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo

As the culmination of a storyline spanning over 20 movies, Avengers: Endgame had a serious amount of great moments to look back on in its finale of the Avengers’ stories. After having gone through far-flung cosmic adventures, as well as into subatomic realms, there was only one novel place the Avengers could go: Back in time. 

After Thanos wipes out half of all life in the universe with the Snap (or the Blip) in Infinity War, he destroys the Infinity Stones before being killed by a vengeful Thor. With the stones destroyed, the remaining Avengers travel back in time to collect them from various points in the timeline, so that they may restore the universe to what it once was. 

During their travels, the Avengers are met with spectacular fight scenes, heart-wrenching deaths, and great callback moments that reward long-time fans of the series. While it can be viewed just alongside Infinity War as a sequel, it needs to be seen after having watched all of the MCU in order to appreciate just how far the Avengers have come.

2. Terminator 2: Judgment Day

• Release date: July 3, 1991
• Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong

When it comes to famous time travel action movies,  Terminator 2: Judgment Day is the best of them all. With cutting-edge effects for the time that still hold up today, James Cameron’s sequel took what made the original great and expanded on it in ways that only few other sequels have ever managed to do. 

When a new Terminator, the T-1000, is sent back in time to kill John Connor, the one person responsible for protecting humanity’s future, the futuristic resistance also sends back Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator to protect him. Now there’s a great premise.

Schwarzenegger was able to bring humanity and empathy to the cruel, menacing robot that he had characterized in the first movie. Plus, Robert Patrick’s T-1000 became a villain that, to this day, is synonymous with the idea of unrelenting pursuit. The movie is pure blockbuster thrills bookended by a time travel story that could change the future of all humankind.

• Watch Terminator 2: Judgment Day free on Pluto TV.

1. Back to the Future

• Release date: July 3, 1985
• Cast: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson

We gotta go back! Back to when time travel as a concept was still fresh in popular cinema. Back when it hadn’t yet become a TV and movie trope that is often used as a plot device when all other options have been exhausted. Back to when the concept was held with reverence as well as with glee. 

Robert Zemeckis’ 1985 classic follows Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) as he travels back in time to the 1950s in order to rescue his mentor, Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd). After Marty is accidentally rescued by his own mother in her teenage years, he has to work to ensure that not only can he make it back to the present, but that his parents get together so he’ll even exist. 

Back to the Future is full of time travel twists that wind their way into a viewer’s brain and beg to be dissected. This is a movie that’ll appeal to everyone – it has a nostalgic pull for older adults and it’s a great, fun way for a younger generation to connect to the sci-fi genre.

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The 23 best time travel movies of all time

From Back to the Future to Looper to Palm Springs, the time travel narrative traverses the film spectrum. Here are EW’s picks for 23 of the best. 

Despite time travel being considered more of a science fiction trope, there is something positively enchanting about the idea of being able to go back to another time or forward into the future, even if just for a moment. While this list deals with a mix of films, some of which consider the hazards of time travel (mostly through time loops), for the most part, these films see time travel as a net positive. Time travel is also a sphere that is mostly occupied by television, thanks to shows like Doctor Who , Quantum Leap , and Lost , even though the number of time travel movies has shot up over the past two decades or so.

Unfortunately, the earliest this list goes is 1962; while there are some time travel movies from the Old Hollywood days, they lack a lot of the imagination and thoughtfulness about the nature of time that the movies on this list bring. This list is a mix of straight dramas, killer action, rollicking comedies, and heartfelt romance — and sometimes, all of those elements exist in a single movie. This list is unranked, and mostly grouped together according to each movie's particular "genre" of time travel: conventional time machines, time loops, magical circumstances, and missions to save the past and the future at the same time. These are 23 of the best time travel movies of all time.

La Jetée (1962)

Kicking off an unranked list of time-travel movies chronologically seems like a good place to start, actually. La Jetée is also probably the most experimental of the films on this list. A French Left Bank short film set in a post-nuclear apocalypse future told through narration and photographs, this is not the first time-travel film by any means, but its impact on the time-travel movies that came after, like 1995's 12 Monkeys , cannot be understated.

A young prisoner (Davos Hanich) is forced to undergo torturous experiments to induce time travel by using impactful memories — and unlike those who came before him, he succeeds, but he ends up discovering a time loop in the process. This is an incredibly stylish telling of what is now a familiar type of story, but in 1962, it was absolutely revolutionary. Honestly, because of its unique technical and visual elements, it still is.

Watch La Jetée on Criterion Channel

Time After Time (1979)

Nicholas Meyer is behind not one, but two brilliant time-travel movies that made this list. For this particular film, he not only wrote the screenplay but also made his directorial debut. The tale of two 19th-century former friends, H.G. Wells ( Malcolm McDowell , unusually wide-eyed and adorable) and John Leslie Stevenson a.k.a. Jack the Ripper ( David Warner , never more menacing yet charming), as they chase each other through 1979 San Francisco thanks to Wells' time machine, Time After Time doesn't spend too much time on the science of time travel, and it's better for it.

This is, in essence, a romantic thriller, as Wells falls for quirky bank clerk Amy ( Mary Steenburgen , delightfully independent) while in search of his old friend turned enemy. It has chase scenes, interrogation sequences, gory murder (courtesy of Jack), and a delightful sense of humor as Wells learns to navigate the future. He thought it would be a utopia; instead, he finds a world in sore need of his idealism, kindness, and dedication to justice.

Where to rent or buy Time After Time

The Back to the Future trilogy (1985, 1989, 1990)

While it's true that the first Back to the Future movie is probably one of the greatest time-travel movies of all time, with its two sequels living in its shadows, all three are essential to understanding the character of Marty McFly ( Michael J. Fox ). The Back to the Future trilogy is an '80s version of a bildungsroman about a teenager who has to learn that there's much more to life than being, well, a teenager. The first film, confidently directed by Robert Zemeckis , is imbued with so much humor and heart, it's all too easy to get sucked into a plot that should be convoluted, but that works so awfully well.

Back to the Future Part II evokes a bit less feeling than the original, and it's significantly grittier, but it's still " another fantastic voyage " as EW's Ira Robbins wrote, flinging Marty and Doc Brown ( Christopher Lloyd ) into a slightly prescient future version of 2015. Back to the Future Part III , meanwhile, restores the heart, but its story is slighter as it wraps up Marty's saga, sending Doc off on a brand new adventure all his own. While the first Back to the Future movie is required viewing for any time travel enthusiast, stick around for the rest of the trilogy, too: Even if this franchise's view of time travel is riddled with potential paradoxes, they are entertaining paradoxes nonetheless.

Watch the Back to the Future trilogy on Tubi

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)

"Be excellent to each other" is the reigning philosophy of Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure , the adventurous, fun-loving, stoner time-travel comedy that spawned a franchise, including a third installment released in 2020. Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves absolutely triumph in the roles of lackadaisical teenagers Bill and Ted, respectively, as they journey through time to bring back legends in order to pass their history class.

If the film seems silly, that's because it is meant to be. Whereas the Back to the Future franchise intended to craft a legend, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure kicks off the journey with George Carlin as the duo's time travel guide and mentor, Rufus, who intends to enlighten the pair on their mission and destiny. In any other film, the two budding legends, with their free-wheeling ideals and misadventures, would bring down the fabric of time and space itself. However, Excellent Adventure is not a time-travel film that forces you to think too hard about its premise; instead, it invites you to just kick back and have a good time.

Watch Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure on Amazon Prime Video

Meet the Robinsons (2007)

Meet the Robinsons received mixed reviews when it first debuted, but of the 3-D animated movies that came out of Disney Animation in the 2000s, it's probably the most imaginative and outstanding of the bunch. Following a young orphan as he goes on a fantastic voyage into the future with another young boy who is a time traveler (kind of), Robinsons is stylish to a point and is filled with heart. It's probably also the most kid-friendly entry on this list, but its good-natured humor and complicated emotional palette will appeal to adults, too.

It also fits neatly into a more classic genre of time travel, with time machines, eccentric inventors, and kids looking to make an impact — not just on their time, but on the time they find themselves in, be it the near future or the distant past.

Watch Meet the Robinsons on Disney+

Run Lola Run (1998)

This is, in many ways, the time loop movie; debuting in 1998 to rave reviews, Run Lola Run , a German experimental thriller, is one you will not be able to shake, long after you've finished a viewing (or even a second, to catch what you missed the first time). The protagonist, Lola (Franka Potente, in a punishingly physical performance), is forced to relive a scenario, again and again, involving saving her boyfriend Manni (Moritz Bleibtreu) from certain death.

Potente's performance alone is worth the watch, and of the films on this list, Run Lola Run is actually one of the shorter ones, using its 80-minute runtime to its full advantage. The other time loop movies on this list are also worthy viewing experiences in a lot of ways, but for a pure shot of adrenaline, you can't miss the film EW deemed "a masterful pop piece, humming with raw romance, youth, and energy." If you're interested in more of director Tom Tykwer 's work, he also codirected 2012's Cloud Atlas with the Wachowskis , which, while not a pure time-travel movie, certainly plays with the intertwined nature of time and memory.

Where to rent or buy Run Lola Run

Source Code (2011)

Duncan Jones made a splash with his 2009 feature directorial debut Moon , a moody, philosophical insight into possible lunar labor practices in the future. He followed that thoughtful film up with Source Code , which, while not a movie that could always be described as "thoughtful," could certainly be described as moody. Hitchcockian in a sense, Source Code follows the misadventures of a U.S. Army pilot ( Jake Gyllenhaal ), as he attempts to stop a terrorist attack on a Chicago commuter train — repeatedly.

Source Code does have something to say about the commodification of bodies and minds in the service of the so-called "greater good"; while Gyllenhaal's Captain Stevens' services are no doubt helpful, are they necessary, the film asks. Is it really a good idea to force someone to relive an incredibly stressful idea, over and over again? The movie has its funny moments, even in the thick of all the intense chase scenes through the train; EW noted back in 2012, "The director finds moments of humor in unlikely corners of that train of fools." Indeed. If you enjoyed a film like The Commuter (2018), but thought it could use a time loop and the potential of alternate realities, Source Code is your next mandatory viewing.

Watch Source Code on Showtime

Looper (2012)

Before Rian Johnson introduced us to Benoit Blanc or journeyed to a galaxy far, far, away , he made the tangled time-travel film fittingly called Looper . Starring Bruce Willis , Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a younger Bruce Willis, and Emily Blunt , Looper tells the tale of a contract killer sent after his next target: himself. This is a complicated film, and it is imperfect in a lot of ways, but its brutal appraisal of a possible dystopian future, and the efforts one man takes to prevent that future, are worth the amount of head-scratching you might find yourself doing throughout.

That Johnson likes his narratives to be impenetrable Gordian knots that only his designated protagonist can solve can perhaps be frustrating to the audience. However, if there's one thing that the Knives Out franchise seems to have reinforced, it's that not trying to unpack the mysteries of his work might work to your advantage as a viewer, because Johnson will probably have someone explain what just happened by the end, anyway. Like most of his films, Looper has a social conscience lurking within it as well. As EW's Lisa Schwarzbaum noted , "It's time to wipe the drops from our eyes or else get stuck in a loop, an endless cycle, a rut" about Looper 's core tenet back in 2012. It's a worthy takeaway from a film obsessed with self-fulfilling prophecies people find themselves within.

Watch Looper on Freevee

Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

Time loop movies need some incredible editing in order to really succeed, and Doug Liman 's enthralling Edge of Tomorrow certainly does so on that point. While Tom Cruise is the lead as a cowardly lion–turned–near-super soldier, all eyes are on Emily Blunt as Rita Vrataski, who rules this movie as one of the few heroes this dystopian, post-alien invasion world actually has left. While the quest Cruise and Blunt go on may be a bit convoluted, the film is so incredibly entertaining because it's so sharply cut, keeping up the pace even as we see similar things over and over and over again.

A tip of the hat must, of course, go to the action, which is as compelling as you would expect from a mega-star who seems determined these days to do all of his own stunts. In an era of often depressing science fiction, Edge of Tomorrow , as EW's Chris Nashawaty mentioned , is a fun, "deliciously subversive kind of blockbuster" to immerse your senses in for two hours, if nothing else.

Watch Edge of Tomorrow on Max

Interstellar (2014)

While this film might technically be considered more of a space opera than a time-travel movie, there's no reason it can't be both. Christopher Nolan 's Interstellar is a dazzling portrait not just of space travel, but of the love between a father and daughter that stretches over the thin fabric of both time and space. Matthew McConaughey as the astronaut father has never been so serious, but acclaim needs to go to Jessica Chastain and Anne Hathaway as Nolan's strongest women characters to date.

Interstellar varies between being almost too tense to stand, and, at other points, utterly relaxed. As a cinematic experience, it feels all-encompassing, using every possible outstanding special effect to draw its viewers in before the script hits them with emotional truth. While Nolan can certainly be considered " cold and clinical " as EW noted, his space-journeying meditation on the intersection between love and time is anything but.

Watch Interstellar on Paramount+

Palm Springs (2020)

Releasing a time loop movie during a global pandemic where life felt increasingly repetitive and bizarre was certainly a strategy for Hulu and Neon with Palm Springs , but it paid off. While the film was certainly developed long before COVID-19, the scenario of two wedding guests trying to escape the situational loop they've found themselves definitely resonated at the time, and it still does. Palm Springs may seem serious from the above description, but it is actually a fun sci-fi-tinged tale that is largely driven by the comedic skills of leads Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti .

EW noted that the movie avoids " true discomfort comedy ," and honestly, it's all the better for it. If Palm Springs had been angrier, it wouldn't hit home so hard, and it also wouldn't be nearly as entertaining. Instead, it's an often sweet rom-com that doesn't take itself or its completely made-up time loop physics too seriously. It was a Sundance darling for a reason, never quite letting up on the wild ride it takes its characters or its viewers on over the course of its 90 minutes.

Watch Palm Springs on Hulu

Somewhere in Time (1980)

Somewhere in Time might employ one of the strangest methods of time travel of all the movies on this list: time travel by hypnosis, of all things. (And self-induced hypnosis, for that matter.) Time travel on such shaky ground can't possibly hold up, and it somewhat doesn't, in the end. Science fiction great Richard Matheson adapted his own novel into a lackadaisical screenplay for this film, starring Christopher Reeve in a perfectly tragic role as the young man who gives his all for a woman (Jane Seymour) he can never really have.

In many ways, Somewhere in Time feels like a curio of the era from which it came, serving as a time capsule of how stories were told in the late-'70s and early-'80s. That is actually not a mark against it; this is a film that is just a peak tragic romance in a lot of ways; special nods must also go to Christopher Plummer as the young woman's cynical mentor, who seems to possess a certain foresight about the impossibility of Reeve's character. If you want a time-travel movie that is beautifully romantic, from its iconic score to its grand cinematography, you shouldn't stray from Somewhere in Time .

Watch Somewhere in Time on Tubi

Peggy Sue Got Married (1986)

The tale of a grown, about-to-be-divorced woman forced to relive her high school days and her courtship with a dorky-cool musician, Peggy Sue Got Married might be one of Francis Ford Coppola 's most small-scale movies, but it decidedly has the most soul of his catalog of mostly epics. Peggy Sue ( Kathleen Turner , in an Oscar-nominated performance) just wants to leave Charlie (Nicolas Cage) behind, but her time-traveling coma dream conspires against her to force her to reconsider. (It forces Charlie to become a better person, too.)

The film combines the cynicism of a rightfully embittered '80s housewife with the unbridled idealism of a '60s teenager to make one heck of a sincere cinematic concoction. That the film starts at a high school reunion could mean it becomes awkward very quickly, but instead, it's completely joyful. Whether Peggy Sue Got Married started a tradition of "person has some sort of crisis and subsequently ends up in another time" movies is unclear, but it does have a rather clear descendant in one of our next entries.

Where to rent or buy Peggy Sue Got Married

Kate & Leopold (2001)

Doesn't everyone want a young Hugh Jackman from the 19th century to fall out of the sky and into their lives? Leopold (Jackman) is a foppish and geeky, if not perfect, gentleman who quickly has Kate ( Meg Ryan ) falling for him despite her modern understanding of the world. That so many time-travel movies somehow end up in romantic territory is an interesting phenomenon, but one that does make sense. There is something appealing about falling for someone whose time is not your own.

Kate & Leopold is decidedly not a perfect film, although it is the first of director James Mangold 's and Jackman's collaborations (see 2017's Logan for the much grittier future fruits of their labor). It's fluffy, it's light, and it creates a paradox without even really acknowledging it. Someone looked at the Meg Ryan comedies of the '80s and '90s and asked, "But what if we made them science fiction?" It works in spite of itself, with Jackman's physical comedy as he plays " a doll of a boyfriend " and Ryan's sardonic tone carrying the day.

Watch Kate & Leopold on Paramount+

13 Going on 30 (2004)

When a 13-year-old girl is crushed after being tricked at her own birthday party, she makes a wish to be "30, flirty, and thriving," quickly waking up the next day to find herself just that, in the body of Jennifer Garner . Instead of traveling back to the past à la the protagonist of Peggy Sue Got Married , Jenna (Garner, Christa B. Allen) ends up in a potential future, where she is all the things she wished for, but definitely not as happy as she thought she would be.

The 2004 rom-com is a magical time travel tale — there's literally "magic wishing dust" — but that doesn't take away from the hilarity that comes with a 13-year-old trying to navigate an adult woman's life. Of course, in the end, Jenna learns her lesson — it's okay to just be young, for a little bit longer — but the journey she goes on as she discovers not just herself but also her true love ( Mark Ruffalo ) is worth all the silliness in the end.

Watch 13 Going on 30 on Max

Mirai (2018)

This lovely little gem directed by Japanese animation visionary Mamoru Hosoda tells the story of a little boy who unhappily gets a baby sister and ends up learning a lot of lessons about the past and the future. Kun (Moka Kamishiraishi) gets a chance to meet not only the grown, future version of his sister Mirai (Haru Kuroki) but also members of his family at different points in their lives. Mirai is a delightfully imaginative film with some gorgeous animation that contains some " mind-boggling visuals " as EW's Christian Holub pointed out.

It is also a genuinely heartwarming tearjerker; while all ends well for little Kun, the meditations this film offers on the nature of family bonds over the course of multiple generations might just leave you in a state of reflection on your own ties that bind. While many time-travel movies tell their stories from the perspective of youth, few unveil them through the eyes of a rambunctious preschooler, and gaining that perspective, in this case, allows for a truly precious journey.

Where to rent or buy Mirai

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

If you know anything about Star Trek , you know the fourth film is "the one with the whales," but if you don't know anything about the franchise, you probably also know that this one is "the one with the whales." Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home often gets acclaim as the funny Star Trek movie, but it brings a lot more than just comedy. The original crew of the Enterprise fling themselves back in time to save humpback whales in the past in order to save the future from a strange probe that threatens Earth...and will stop, but only if it hears some natural whalesong.

The crew finds themselves in 1986 San Francisco, so it's great that Time After Time's Nicholas Meyer returned to the franchise not as director (he helmed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan ), but as a screenwriter. Watching these characters from a literal utopia navigate a world not designed for them creates not only dynamic humor but great tension as well. As they almost always do, the Enterprise team breaks all the rules in order to save the future as well as the whales. Or, as EW noted in a tribute to the film: "It has heart, and passion — Save the Whales! — and a tremendous sense of fun."

Watch Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home on Max

Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

Star Trek: First Contact doesn't particularly feel as much like a Star Trek movie as Voyage Home does, and EW, in fact, says it harnessed "a sleek, confident style fully independent of its predecessors." As a Trekkie, this may not be the most complimentary way of looking at it, but as a film fan, however, it might be the highest honor someone could bestow upon a movie within this franchise. Captain Jean-Luc Picard ( Patrick Stewart ) turns from a peace-loving diplomat to a Borg-slaying action star while the rest of his crew tries to get the inventor of the Warp Drive (the technology upon which the future relies) to stop drinking so much and actually invent the thing. James Cromwell, as the inventor, Zefram Cochrane, serves as the comedic relief for a remarkably serious and often scary film.

The Borg, '90s Star Trek 's biggest villain, are the main antagonists here, and they do provide some chilling action, even if the introduction that they can easily time travel would really wreck things for some future Trek series. Stewart manages the transition from his mild-mannered diplomat to traumatized warrior well, turning in one of his most ferocious performances. Star Trek: First Contact also gives us a look at a post-apocalyptic world in the midst of a recovery, and in that respect, it makes it both a thoughtful entry in the Trek canon and a time travel action-thriller with a brain.

Watch Star Trek: First Contact on Max

The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

What would a best time-travel films list be without including at least one of the Terminator movies? While an often brutal franchise with diminishing returns after James Cameron 's first two installments, the misadventures of an evil cyborg-turned-good (played to physical perfection by Arnold Schwarzenegger ) in a consistently dangerous world are always thrilling and entertaining.

Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor, mother of the future's savior (and much, much more), is also due an acknowledgment; while the films are remembered for Schwarzenegger's portrayal of the T-800, Hamilton is the heart of this franchise a great deal of the time, as she refuses to die or let her son face the same fate, either. The first two Terminator films are so much more than "scary robots take over the world, everybody dies" – they're action-packed, bloody thrillers with startling narratives, pioneering visual effects, and, of course, time travel as the catalyst.

Watch The Terminator on Max

Where to rent or buy Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

"Wanted: Somebody to go back in time with me. This is not a joke...I have only done this once before. SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED": This is part of the joke classified ad from which this movie was inspired. You might inspire a more risky movie from the tone of the ad, but what you get is a light comedy that served as the first leading film role for Aubrey Plaza . This Colin Trevorrow -directed film isn't so much about time travel as it is about the cultural assumptions that surround the concept, and those who think it might be possible.

In that sense, it's a meta-narrative on nearly every time travel story which has come before it, and quite possibly, that will come after it. EW called it " a fable of 'redemption' "; redemption, and the acts of salvaging something, anything, for the benefit of the future, is a regular time travel theme, from all those time machines to all those time loops. Safety Not Guaranteed manages to explore these themes with a lot of irony and a splash of heart.

Where to rent or buy Safety Not Guaranteed

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The ars guide to time travel in the movies, we picked 20 time-travel movies and rated them by scientific logic and entertainment value..

Jennifer Ouellette and Sean M. Carroll - Nov 24, 2023 12:30 pm UTC

Since antiquity, humans have envisioned various means of time travel into the future or the past. The concept has since become a staple of modern science fiction. In particular, the number of films that make use of time travel has increased significantly over the decades, while the real-world science has evolved right alongside them, moving from simple Newtonian mechanics and general relativity to quantum mechanics and the notion of a multiverse or more exotic alternatives like string theory.

But not all time-travel movies are created equal. Some make for fantastic entertainment but the time travel makes no scientific or logical sense, while others might err in the opposite direction, sacrificing good storytelling in the interests of technical accuracy. What we really need is a handy guide to help us navigate this increasingly crowded field to ensure we get the best of both worlds, so to speak. The Ars Guide to Time Travel in the Movies is here to help us all make better, more informed decisions when it comes to choosing our time travel movie fare.

This is not meant to be an exhaustive list; rather, we selected films that represented many diverse approaches to time travel across multiple subgenres and decades. We then evaluated each one—grading on a curve—with regard to its overall entertainment value and scientific logic, with the final combined score determining a film's spot on the overall ranking. For the “science” part of our scoring system, we specifically took three factors into account. First and foremost, does the time travel make logical sense? Second, is the physical mechanism of time travel somewhat realistic? And third, does the film use time travel in narratively interesting ways? So a movie like Looper , which makes absolutely no sense if you think about it too hard, gets points for weaving time paradoxes thoroughly into the fabric of the story.

(Many spoilers below in the interest of meaningful analysis.)

What modern science has to say about time travel can be summed up thusly: You can travel to the future, but you probably can’t travel to the past, although to be honest, we’re not really sure. Einstein’s theory of general relativity—which says that space and time are unified into “spacetime” and the curvature of spacetime gives rise to gravity—at least lets us contemplate the possibility of time travel in a scientifically plausible context. A “ closed timelike curve ” is a path through spacetime on which someone can move forward in time as far as their local perspective is concerned and nevertheless end up visiting their own past. Such a context, however, would involve astrophysically massive gravitational fields, possibly wormholes, and negative energies or something equally exotic. Essentially none of the films we will discuss even attempt to portray physically realistic time travel (with one exception, Interstellar , which is only a partial exception).

Even without scientific accuracy, we can still ask for logical consistency. Alas, that is also pretty thin on the ground, although in this case, there are true exceptions. The most straightforward way for travel to the past to make sense is if you can visit but you can’t actually change anything—“ Whatever happened happened ,” in the memorable formulation of fictional physicist Daniel Faraday in the TV show Lost . Physicists have dubbed this the “ Novikov self-consistency principle ,” but it can really just be summed up as “making sense." Somewhat more ambitiously, we can imagine one or more alternative parallel timelines that are created by a sojourn into history. For the most part, however, our cinematic heroes make a cheerful hash of logic and narrative sense as they traipse through their pasts.

Here are our 20 representative picks, discussed in chronological order of their release to highlight how the understanding and treatment of time travel in Hollywood has evolved over the decades. There are some truly delightful entries here (plus a few stinkers for balance), but our deep dive into the topic has convinced us that the perfect time travel movie has yet to be made. That's a worthy goal for future filmmakers to strive for.

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Total Recall

15 must-see time travel movies, with mr. peabody & sherman hitting theaters, we run down some of the most memorable journeys across time and space..

Back to the Future

Great Scott! On one hand, Back to the Future is quintessentially 1980s — you’ve got Huey Lewis on the soundtrack, Michael J. Fox in the lead, and a DeLorean for a time machine — but on the other, it’s a charmingly old-fashioned comedy that sends its hero back in time as much to save his own father from growing up to be a schmuck as it does to laugh along with the audience at the many ways in which American pop culture changed between 1955 and 1985. The sequels had their moments, but it’s the original that still really hits the spot; as Adam Smith wrote for Empire Magazine, “To put it bluntly: if you don’t like Back to the Future , it’s difficult to believe that you like films at all.”

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure

Two teenage idiots, George Carlin, and a magic phone booth. They don’t sound like the most likely ingredients for cinematic glory, but then there’s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure , starring Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves as our two non-intrepid heroes, a pair of high school buddies destined for greatness — but only if they can pass an upcoming history test. They get a little extra help courtesy of Rufus (Carlin), a citizen of the future utopian society inspired by the music Bill & Ted go on to record, who travels back in time to help them study by giving them some most excellent face time with historical figures like Napoleon, Socrates, Billy the Kid, and Abraham Lincoln. Not the most serious fare ever spun from the time-travel premise, but it works; as Larry Carroll wrote for Counting Down, “This is the rare kind of movie that you could watch along with your kids and actually feel like you’re teaching them something.”

Donnie Darko

Time travel, a falling jet engine, and a dude in a bunny suit: From these disparate ingredients, writer-director Richard Kelly wove the tale of Donnie Darko , a suburban teenager (played by Jake Gyllenhaal) charged with repairing a rift in the fabric of our dimension. Or something. To call Darko “open to interpretation” would be understating the case a bit — it’s been alternately confounding and delighting audiences since it was released in 2001 — but its dense, ambiguous plot found stronger purchase with critics, who cared less about what it all meant than about simply having the chance to see an American movie that took some substantial risks. Though a few reviewers were confused and/or unimpressed (Staci Lynne Wilson of Fantastica Daily called it “derivative,” and Joe Leydon dismissed it as “a discombobulating muddle” in his write-up for the San Francisco Examiner), overall critical opinion proved a harbinger of the cult status the film would eventually enjoy on the home video market; as Thomas Delapa wrote for the Boulder Weekly, “If the sum total of Donnie Darko is hard to figure, there’s no questioning that its separate scenes add up to breathtaking filmmaking.” Despite a paltry $4.1 million gross during its original limited run, Darko returned to theaters in 2004 with a director’s cut — one whose 91 percent Tomatometer actually improved upon the original’s.

Groundhog Day

Under the right circumstances, time travel sounds like quite a bit of fun. Finding yourself trapped in a time loop in Punxsutawney, PA, on the other hand, is a living nightmare — at least for Phil Connors (Bill Murray), the obnoxious newscaster at the heart of director Harold Ramis’ classic 1993 comedy Groundhog Day . But for the audience, Connors’ torment is an invitation to cinematic bliss — first courtesy of Murray’s perfectly deadpan depiction of the callous Connors, then through his progressively more unhinged reaction to the discovery that he’s doomed to repeat the same 24 hours of his life seemingly forever, and then finally in his expected (but no less sweet) moments of self-discovery in the final act. “ Groundhog Day may not be the funniest collaboration between Bill Murray and director Harold Ramis,” admitted the Los Angeles Times’ Kenneth Turan. “Yet this gentle, small-scale effort is easily the most endearing film of both men’s careers, a sweet and amusing surprise package.”

Hot Tub Time Machine

The 1980s got kind of a bum rap at the time, but that hasn’t stopped those of us who grew up during the decade from giving in to nostalgia during the 21st century, or from fetishizing the era’s best films — which is why it was such a winkingly self-referential treat to see 1980s hero John Cusack lead an ensemble cast through Hot Tub Time Machine , director Steve Pink’s ribald comedy about a group of schlubby friends given a surprise chance (via magic hot tub, natch) to revisit the best years of their lives. It’s an unabashedly goofy premise, but screenwriter Josh Heald manages to leave the whimsy with a few dashes of surprising poignancy; as Laremy Legel wrote for Film.com, “Well played, Hot Tub Time Machine , well played. You defied expectations, in a good way, and managed to evolve from ‘potentially silly concept’ to ‘fairly funny film.'”

Plenty of people would love to take the opportunity to travel back in time and see our younger selves, but Rian Johnson’s Looper takes this premise and adds a nasty twist. When a hit man (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) realizes his latest quarry is his older self (Bruce Willis) — an event known among his peers as “closing the loop” — he muffs the job, allowing him(self) to escape and setting in motion a high-stakes pursuit that puts a widening circle of people in danger. Tense, funny, and surprisingly heartfelt, Looper may suffer from some of the same scientific story flaws as other time travel movies, but it also manages to turn its by-now-familiar basic ingredients into an uncommonly affecting and thought-provoking sci-fi drama. “ Looper imagines a world just near enough to look familiar,” mused Entertainment Weekly’s Lisa Schwarzbaum, “and just futuristic enough to be chillingly askew.”

Like any genre, science fiction has its share of clichés — and anything relating to time travel probably belongs on that list. But few films have ever dealt with time travel — or the many personal and ethical questions that could arise from ownership of the technology — with the level of intelligence that Shane Carruth’s ultra low-budget Primer brought to the table. The story of two garage scientists who accidentally build a time machine, Primer eschews whiz-bang special effects for a nuts-and-bolts look at the science behind the device, and a cold, hard look at how quickly and easily a friendship can be torn asunder by unchecked power and bottomless greed. It certainly isn’t for everyone — the reams of technical dialogue prompted critics such as the BBC’s Matthew Leyland to dismiss it as “one of the most willfully obscure sci-fi movies ever made” — but if you can absorb the material, it’s uncommonly gripping. Time Out’s Jessica Winter was appreciative, saying “this film imagines its viewers to be smart, possessed of a decent attention span and game for a challenge. It doesn’t happen all that often.”

Somewhere in Time

Time travel has been used as a plot device to set up all kinds of stories, but rarely has it been employed with the sort of three-handkerchief weepie abandon brought to bear on 1980’s Somewhere in Time . Starring Christopher Reeve as a starry-eyed playwright accosted by a mysterious older woman who pleads with him to “come back to me” before pressing a locket into his hand and disappearing, Time slowly morphs into a fantastical tale about coming unmoored in time via self-hypnosis in order to be with the one you love — even if that love is inspired by a portrait of someone you don’t remember ever knowing. A divisive cult classic, Time has always been dismissed by less patient or romantically inclined viewers, but for others, it’s well worth watching. “Above all,” argued Apollo Guide’s Ryan Cracknell, “this film captures a romantic part of the imagination that is often left unexplored.”

Star Trek IV – The Voyage Home

Having explored the outer limits of space, Star Trek spent much of its fourth cinematic installment in decidedly more familiar environs — namely, the America (specifically the San Francisco bay area) of 1986, thanks to a storyline, conceived by returning director Nimoy, that had the crew of the Enterprise traveling 600 years back in time to retrieve a humpback whale in order to… Well, it isn’t important, really; what mattered — at least to the folks who helped Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home to a $133 million worldwide gross — was that it lived up to Nimoy’s goal of showing audiences “a great time” with a feature that played up the lighter side of a franchise whose humor was often overshadowed by its big ideas. Weathering a number of pre-production storms — including William Shatner’s refusal to come back without a raise and the chance to direct the next sequel — Voyage triumphantly emerged as what Roger Ebert referred to as “easily the most absurd of the Star Trek stories — and yet, oddly enough… also the best, the funniest and the most enjoyable in simple human terms.”

The Terminator

It was made with a fraction of the mega-budget gloss that enveloped its sequels, but for many, 1984’s The Terminator remains the pinnacle of the franchise — not to mention one of the most purely enjoyable movies of the last 30 years. Subsequent entries would get a little hard to follow, but the original’s premise was simple enough: A scary-looking cyborg (Schwarzenegger) travels back in time to kill a woman (Linda Hamilton) before she can give birth to the child who will grow up to lead the human resistance against an evil network of sentient machines. Tech noir at its most accessible, Terminator earned universal praise from critics such as Sean Axmaker of Turner Classic Movies, who wrote, “Gritty, clever, breathlessly paced, and dynamic despite the dark shadow of doom cast over the story, this sci-fi thriller remains one of the defining American films of the 1980s.”

Time After Time

What if H.G. Wells really built a time machine — and what if Jack the Ripper used it to flee into the future? That’s the intriguing premise behind Nicholas Meyer’s Time After Time , starring Malcolm McDowell as Wells and David Warner as the killer. After Jack travels to 1979, Wells pursues him, setting in motion a cat-and-mouse thriller, culture-clash comedy, and love story all in one, with a dash of sharp social commentary thrown in for good measure. “ Time After Time is still a fun fish-out-of-water flick that deserves more attention than it has received in the thirty years following its release,” wrote Simon Miraudo for Quickflix. “But there’s still plenty of time for that.”

Time Bandits

Terry Gilliam and time travel: A match made in cinematic heaven. Years before he proved it for a second time with the much darker 12 Monkeys , Gilliam directed a far sillier — and visually dazzling — venture into the genre with 1981’s Time Bandits , uniting a stellar cast (including Shelley Duvall, John Cleese, Katherine Helmond, Ian Holm, and Sean Connery) in service of a deceptively thought-provoking caper about an 11-year-old history buff (Craig Warnock) on a journey through time with a group of dwarves. A solid critical and commercial hit, Bandits proved a favorite for writers like Roger Ebert, who pronounced it “amazingly well-produced” and applauded, “The historic locations are jammed with character and detail. This is the only live-action movie I’ve seen that literally looks like pages out of Heavy Metal magazine.”

In a career dotted with cult classics, 1994’s Timecop manages to stand out as one of the cultiest. And okay, so it’s hard to call a movie that raked in more than $100 million worldwide a “cult” picture — but if you’ve seen the way Timecop takes a cool premise (time travel, natch) and renders it both impenetrably complicated and irrelevant to the action, you know it’s essentially the very definition of the term. (Also, it stars Ron Silver.) The plot is full of holes, but as the filmmakers knew, once you accept the notion of Jean-Claude Van Damme as an officer of the Time Enforcement Commission, you can buy into pretty much anything, and by the time you get to Timecop ‘s final act — in which past and future versions of Van Damme battle past and future versions of Silver — you’ve reached that wonderful place where the laws of logic no longer exist. The highest-grossing movie of Van Damme’s career, Timecop spun off a sequel, a short-lived television show, and even a series of books. Not bad for a movie that Roger Ebert described as “the kind of movie that is best not thought about at all, for that way madness lies.”

The Time Machine

This isn’t the only time Hollywood’s tried adapting H.G. Wells’ classic story, but it’s definitely the best. Starring Rod Taylor as the Victorian time-traveling scientist George and featuring Oscar-winning special effects from Gene Warren and Tim Baar, director George Pal’s version of The Time Machine might seem somewhat quaint by today’s standards; still, whatever it lacks in modern-day visual pizzazz, it more than makes up in the stuff that matters — right down to Wells’ vision of a distant post-human future populated by docile creatures and the monstrous Morlocks who use them for food. It’s “Somewhat dated, and not quite up to the source material,” admitted Luke Y. Thompson of New Times, “but still some good retro fun.”

Any time director Terry Gilliam manages to wrangle one of his films through the studio system, it’s a cause for celebration — and that goes double for a picture like 12 Monkeys , which almost seamlessly weds Gilliam’s signature flights of fancy with good old-fashioned commercialism to produce a knotty time travel story starring a pair of matinee idols (Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt) in an apocalyptic thriller that never stops asking questions — or forcing the audience to answer their own as they hustle to keep up with the unfolding drama. “There’s always overripe method to his madness,” observed Janet Maslin for the New York Times, “but in the new 12 Monkeys Mr. Gilliam’s methods are uncommonly wrenching and strong.”

Take a look through the rest of our Total Recall archives . And don’t forget to check out Mr. Peabody & Sherman .

Finally, here’s what happened when Peabody and Sherman met Ludwig Van Beethoven:

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• Entertainment
• 11 Time-Travel Movies to Watch After Netflix’s <i>The Adam Project</i>

11 Time-Travel Movies to Watch After Netflix’s The Adam Project

I n Netflix’s The Adam Project , Ryan Reynolds plays Adam Reed, a fighter pilot from 2050 who heads back in time to stop the development of time travel. His mission only gets harder after he crash-lands in his childhood backyard in the year 2022 and is forced to team up with his video game-loving 12-year-old self (portrayed by Walker Scobell).

This isn’t Back to the Future : There are no DeLoreans or high-flux capacitors in sight. (Though Mark Ruffalo , as Adam’s inventor dad, does make for a worthy Doc Brown surrogate.) Instead, Adam hops into a wormhole and traverses the space-time continuum to let his preteen self know that the ability to time-hop is a privilege, not a right. It’s a rather heady concept for a family film, but most time-travel movies are about more than just joyriding through history. Whether it’s Joseph Gordon-Levitt playing a time-jumping hitman in Looper or Jennifer Garner aging 17 years with help from magic fairy dust in 13 Going on 30 , movies featuring transtemporal travel often show why we should err on the side of caution when spanning time and space.

If you’re craving more time travel, here’s a list of 11 movies to watch after The Adam Project . A couple quick notes: Since Back to the Future is undeniably the greatest time-travel movie of all time , it’s omitted from this list to make room for lesser-known choices. The prototypical time-loop film Groundhog’s Day was also passed over in lieu of a more recent selection.

You won’t need a science degree to enjoy any of the movies included here. But you might walk away from your viewing experience feeling as if the future is coming sooner than you think.

13 Going on 30 (2004)

Jennifer Garner gives Tom Hanks a run for his money in this Big -esque coming-of-age dramedy about a girl who wakes up from her traumatic 13th birthday party to find she’s 30, flirty, and thriving. She quickly learns growing up is hard to do, especially when you do it overnight.

Rent it on Amazon Prime Video

Donnie Darko (2001)

After Jake Gyllenhaal ’s titular sad boy narrowly survives a freak accident, he’s left with disturbing visions of a 6-foot-tall rabbit named Frank, who tells him the world is going to end in 28 days. If you don’t totally understand this time-bending film, don’t worry: its stars don’t either . Donnie Darko ’s perplexing final moments are part of its charm.

Watch it on HBO Max

Looper (2012)

Rian Johnson ’s sci-fi action thriller takes place in a not-so-distant future where mobsters punish those they don’t like by sending them back in time to be killed by a futuristic assassin known as a “looper.” When one of those hired guns (a prosthetic nose-wearing Joseph Gordon-Levitt) comes face-to-face with his older self ( Bruce Willis ), he ends up on a wild goose chase to save his future without unraveling his past.

Watch it on Netflix

About Time (2013)

When Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) learns he has the power to travel back in time, he can’t resist making a few tiny tweaks to his past. He soon discovers that even the smallest changes have big consequences in this weepy Brit rom-com directed by Love Actually helmer Richard Curtis .

Happy Death Day (2017)

In this slasher film, often described as “ Groundhog’s Day meets Scream ,” a college student, played by Jessica Rothe, must solve her own murder if she wants to live to see the next day.

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

Bill (Alex Winter) and Ted ( Keanu Reeves ) hurtle through time and space in a cosmic phone booth, meeting historical dudes who can help them ace their high school history paper. The best part is that when you’re done with this one, you can keep the adventure going with its sequels: 1991’s Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey and 2020’s Bill & Ted Face the Music . Pretty excellent, right?

Run Lola Run (1998)

Lola (Franka Potente) —who stands out with fire engine-red hair—only has 20 minutes to secure enough money to save her boyfriend from a Berlin crime boss. This German experimental thriller isn’t your typical time-loop film, but Lola’s ability to learn from her past mistakes to save her love will make you happy that she’s running a marathon, not a sprint.

See You Yesterday (2019)

In this Spike Lee -produced film, high schooler C.J. Walker (Eden Duncan-Smith) uses a backpack time machine to save her brother from being killed by a police officer. But altering the events of the past have consequences that not even a science prodigy can anticipate.

Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

This sweet sci-fi rom-com starts with a classified ad from Kenneth (Mark Duplass), a grocery-store worker looking for a partner to travel back in time with. “Safety not guaranteed,” he warns. While some write him off as crazy or paranoid, disillusioned college grad-turned-alt weekly intern Darius ( Aubrey Plaza ) might be willing to risk it all for a chance to roam the universe with him.

Arrival (2016)

Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi drama , which stars Amy Adams as a celebrated linguist trying to communicate with an intelligent alien race, plays with time in ways we won’t dare spoil here. Suffice to say that the film’s twist ending will make you rethink the entire movie.

Watch it on Hulu

Palm Springs (2020)

Nyles (Andy Samberg) and Sarah (Cristin Milioti) found love in a hopeless place: a Palm Springs wedding that they’ve been forced to relive over and over again after getting stuck in a time loop. Both darkly hilarious and sweetly nihilistic, Palm Springs is a unique rom-com for those who don’t want to admit they like rom-coms.

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The 20 best time-travel movies – ranked!

As Adam Driver accidentally winds up 65m years ago , facing not just dinosaurs but an asteroid, we count down the best films about going backwards, or forwards, through the ages

20. Timecop (1994)

Regardless of what anyone says, I believe in my heart that Timecop was greenlit because someone showed a studio executive a picture of Jean-Claude Van Damme and said the word “Timecop” out loud, at which point they had to throw a script together as quickly as possible. Nothing about Timecop makes sense. It is the most 90s film ever made.

19. Tenet (2020)

I have to be careful here, because Tenet might not be a time-travel movie. Certainly time passes in it and some of the people are going backwards in time in it. But I’ve seen this movie twice now, and it mainly just seems to be about people mumbling everything, except for Kenneth Branagh, who gets to shout very loudly three times. Anyway, here it is.

18. Cavegirl (1985)

Finally, a film that uses time-travel for the correct reason; to allow a horny 1980s high school student to go back to prehistory so that he can convince a smoking hot, bikini-wearing cavegirl to have it off with him. You will note I’ve ranked this above Tenet .

17. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)

Weird to think that Austin Powers was originally a fish-out-of-water comedy, in which the promiscuous titular character had to navigate the (then) uptight world of the 1990s. That all fell apart for the sequel, where Powers was sent back to the 60s to shout his catchphrases at people who actually appreciated them. That makes it a time-travel movie, right?

16. The Butterfly Effect (2004)

God, this film. In summary: Ashton Kutcher plays a man who experiences blackouts, only to learn some years later that he can travel back in time and inhabit his younger self’s mind during the blackouts. But in doing so, he unleashes a world of unintended consequences. He becomes a murderer and loses limbs. Seek out the director’s cut if you can, because it ends with Kutcher’s character deliberately strangling himself in the womb with his umbilical cord. No, really.

15. The Tomorrow War (2021)

Wherein Chris Pratt is drafted into a war that takes place 26 years later, because the invading aliens have already killed all the soldiers who were alive at the time. It’s a great premise for a film – we all pay the price for the actions of other generations – let down by a truly confusing ending. Admit it, you forgot this film even existed, even though it cost $200m to make and only came out 18 months ago.

14. The Time Travelers (1964)

A 1964 movie made on the cheap with genuinely terrible effects, The Time Travelers is about a group of scientists who travel to the future, fight some mutants and then return. What sets it apart, though, is its crazed ending. The film ends with the scientists venturing into the distant future, whereupon the film plays through again, faster and faster and faster until it cuts away to a still of the galaxy. Are they trapped in a loop? Is free will an illusion? Did the producers just run out of money? We may never know.

13. The Adam Project (2022)

In which a young boy’s life is turned upside down when he is visited by an older version of himself from the future. The good news? He grows up to be a fighter pilot. The bad news? He also grows up to have all the cadences and surface-level snarky patter of Ryan Reynolds. What follows is a buddy movie where the two buddies are the same person.

12. Hot Tub Time Machine (2010)

So seminal that it was namechecked in Avengers: Endgame . A flat-out comedy that primarily exists to allow a bunch of middle-aged men to act like teenagers, Hot Tub Time Machine is a film about an enchanted Jacuzzi that sends people back to the mid-1980s. Possibly a bit too bawdy for its own good, there’s a hint of a message about the unreliability of nostalgia here.

11. Flight of the Navigator (1986)

This family film involves a young boy who goes missing in a Fort Lauderdale ravine, only to show up eight years later having not aged. There are UFOs and rubbery little creatures and whatnot, but there’s a real emotional wallop to the moment when the boy realises that the world has moved on without him, right down to the scene (that plays out like a horror movie) where the boy realises that his parents have become unrecognisably ancient, even though they are probably only in their early 40s.

10. Primer (2004)

Some see Shane Carruth’s Primer as the gold standard of what a time-travel film should be. It’s the sort of movie that seems unnervingly realistic, from the down-at-heel engineers to the unshowy nature of time travel itself, where people in effect just get in and out of some boxes. Almost entirely unwilling to explain itself, for years Primer fans have come to rely on a series of graphs and charts to figure out what the film actually is.

9. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

A time-travel movie that may or may not have any actual time-travel in it, Colin Trevorrow’s Safety Not Guaranteed is a delicate wonder of a thing. A man places an ad in a magazine asking for a time-travel companion – “Must bring your own weapons. I have only done this once before” – and the respondents slowly come to realise that all is not quite as it seems.

8. Planet of the Apes (1968)

If you haven’t seen Planet of the Apes, then the fact that I’ve put it on a list of time-travel movies is probably quite a heavy spoiler, and for that I’m sorry. But what a reveal this is – what seems at first like a silly movie about Charlton Heston being persecuted by some monkeys quickly becomes something darker and much more sinister. That new Adam Driver movie probably could have achieved something similar, if it hadn’t blabbed its big secret in the trailer.

7. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Endgame is a lot, so much so that it is effectively a time-travel movie bookended by two entirely separate movies. And, yes, it takes a lot of liberties with time-travel, from Tony Stark’s “Huh, I did it” invention to the lazy referencing of other time-travel movies as a shorthand for what the characters can do. Nevertheless, when they get to it, the film nails it. The Battle of New York is the obvious highlight, with Captain America fighting Captain America and the Hulk embarrassed by his unreconstructed former self, but the heart of the film really comes when Tony meets his father as a man and learns to let go of the past.

6. Interstellar (2014)

Interstellar is also a lot. But at its core is a simple ethical quandary: would you try to save the world if it meant missing your children’s entire lives? Matthew McConaughey has to touch down on a planet during a space trip. The problem is that every hour he spends there is equal to seven years on Earth. Is the trip important enough for him to miss seeing the wonder of his children grow into adults? Technically, if you want to be fussy about this, Interstellar is a time dilation movie rather than a time-travel movie. But it gets a pass, largely because McConaughey sells the agony of the moment so beautifully.

5. Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

There are times when Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure feels like it was written by a toddler off his face on pop. But that’s a deliberate ploy, a way to camouflage all the careful rigour that underpins the script. The lead characters are initially reluctant to embark on their time-travel adventure, until they’re visited by versions of themselves from the near future who compel them to do it; a beautiful and hilarious example of predestination in action. Extra points are awarded thanks to the film’s total lack of interest in consequences. Swiping Abraham Lincoln and Napoleon from their respective eras has no bearing on world history whatsoever, which is probably quite lucky.

4. Looper (2012)

One problem with time-travel movies is that the rules always need to be explained upfront. In lesser hands, this can lead to all manner of clunky, stilted exposition. But when Rian Johnson dabbled in the genre with Looper , he gave us a masterclass in “show, don’t tell”. The sequence where poor Paul Dano’s character is tortured at two different points in time simultaneously, with the older version following instructions carved into the younger version’s arm, is arguably one of the most inventive uses of time-travel in the entire history of cinema. All that plus this is Bruce Willis’s last truly great performance.

3. The Terminator (1984)/Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

The lure of the first two Terminator movies were the killer robots running around murdering everyone. But they were very smartly built around a framework of pure time-travel. We only see the future in brief flashes, but what’s important is the present. It is very, very important that Kyle Reese (a guy from the future) has sex with Sarah Connor (a woman from the present), because only that will save humanity as we know it. It’s a hell of a pickup line, but the device also elevates what could have simply been a shonky B-movie into the realm of the classics.

2. Idiocracy (2006)

The smartest time-travel movies use the device as a mirror, telling us more about the times we live in now than the times the characters visit. Enter Idiocracy, Mike Judge’s stinging satire about modern times. An average person is cryogenically frozen and wakes up in the future, shocked to discover that the global IQ has fallen off a cliff in the intervening years. Surrounded by aggressive stupidity, he single-handedly saves the US from famine by suggesting that they use water – and not an electrolyte drink – to grow crops. We are conservatively 15 years from this happening in real life.

1. Back to the Future (1985)/Back to the Future Part II (1989)

The only conceivable first choice. The first two Back to the Future films (the third, which is basically just a western, is far less imaginative) have come to define time-travel as a genre. They deliver a complex set of hard sci-fi rules about what can and cannot happen during time-travel and – miraculously – manage to do it in a way that kids can understand. Good music, cool clothes, a million catchphrases and, in the case of the second film, an unnervingly prescient prediction of how Donald Trump would turn out. Just perfect.

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Future Tense: The 20 Best Time-Travel Movies

By Gavin Edwards

Gavin Edwards

“Time travel hasn’t been invented yet. But it will be,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt says at the beginning of  Looper. That’s the thing about time travel: Once you invent a time machine, you just have to use it to travel back to the U.S. Patent Office on the first day it opened, so you can register your invention and serve as inspiration for an endless stream of movies. For decades, Hollywood has been treating the space-time continuum like it’s just the daily rushes for editors to cut together.

Over the past few summers, for example, X-Men: Days of Future Past sends Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine back in time 50 years, while Edge of Tomorrow puts Tom Cruise in a temporal loop, letting him relive the same battle over and over. So crank up your flux capacitor and check out 20 of the best time-travel movies.

[Editor’s Note: A version of this list was originally published in 2014]

‘Donnie Darko’ (2001)

“Do you believe in time travel?” Jake Gyllenhaal, in his breakout role, plays a disturbed teenager who starts getting warnings about the end of the world from a guy in a rabbit costume. This cult film by Richard Kelly is a puzzle about alternate universes and suburban vortexes; no matter which cut you watch, you still get a moody, trippy slice of high-school alienation and the best use ever of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World.”

‘The Lake House’ (2006)

This romance scores by having one of the weirdest time-travel gimmicks ever: Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock send letters to each other via a mailbox at a rental house — even though she is writing and reading them exactly two years after he is. (Many time-travel movies don’t make sense if you think about them too hard; this one doesn’t make sense if you have an autonomic nervous system.) Reeves and Bullock are appealing together, although it seems like a missed opportunity not to put them on a bus that, should it go over or under 50 mph, travels back to the Renaissance Era or something.

‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’ (2004)

The best Harry Potter movie happens to be the one with the most time travel. Coincidence? Hermione has been granted special permission to use a Time Turner because she wants more hours in the day to take a heavier courseload. But the climax of the story is Hermione and Harry’s mission back in time a few hours to save Sirius Black and a hippogriff — revising what we’ve seen before like a crack film editor splicing in new material with Final Cut Pro.

‘Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me’ (1999)

In the second installment of Mike Myers’ James Bond spoof, groovy secret agent Austin Powers has to go back to his native environment, the swinging Sixties, in pursuit of Dr. Evil. Since Powers goes cross-eyed (literally) when he tries to consider time-travel paradoxes, nobody in the movie takes the premise too seriously. Austin’s description of the 1990s to Felicity Shagwell (Heather Graham): “Everyone has their own flying car, entire meals come in pill form, and the Earth is run by damn dirty apes.”

‘The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey’ (1988)

Trying to escape the Black Plague in 1348, English villagers dig a tunnel and end up in 20th-century New Zealand, switching from black-and-white to color like Dorothy traveling to Oz. (If you object to the notion of 14th-century villagers finding a way to travel forward in time 600 years…well, in the present day, we haven’t invented time machines either.) Suffused with surrealism and religious faith, the movie succeeds in making clear how strange our modern world actually is.

‘Peggy Sue Got Married’ (1986)

This Francis Ford Coppola movie, dismissed by some as a rehash of Back to the Future ( both feature a protagonist traveling back to the doo-wop era) is actually a small gem, rueful and thoughtful. Kathleen Turner finds herself transported back to 1960, her senior year of high school, trying to figure out how her choices as a teenager helped form her identity as an adult — and hoping she can turn “She Loves You” into a hit before Lennon and McCartney get around to writing it.

‘Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure’ (1989)

There are many other goofy time-machine journeys through the past, from A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court to Mr. Peabody & Sherman;  none of those, however, have brilliantly slack-jawed performances by Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves. The premise: Two SoCal teens need to locate famous figures of Western civilization so they won’t fail history and their band, the Wyld Stallyns, can stay together and become the musical foundation of a future utopia. The most inspirational moment comes when Ted (Reeves) philosophizes with Socrates by quoting Kansas: “All we are is dust in the wind, dude.”

‘Safety Not Guaranteed’ (2012)

Mark Duplass plays the grocery clerk who’s invented a time machine and places a classified ad looking for somebody to travel back in time with him; Aubrey Plaza plays the magazine intern who shows up on an assignment to investigate that ad. Guess who forges an unlikely connection? This indie movie explores the enduring fantasy of time travel: you get to live your life again, only better. What gives the film life — aside from great performances by Duplass and Plaza — is that it’s not clear until the end whether they’re indulging that fantasy, or whether his time machine actually works.

‘Galaxy Quest’ (1999)

You may remember Galaxy Quest as a genius Star Trek parody featuring the cast of a cheesy outer-space TV show (Tim Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Alan Rickman) thrust into a real interstellar adventure — and not as a time-travel movie. But one of the central pieces of technology in the film is the Omega 13 device, which turns out to be a time machine, albeit not a particularly flexible one: It sends its user 13 seconds into the past. That may be the smallest increment of time travel in any movie, but it turns out to be just enough time to save the day.

‘Planet of the Apes’ (1968)

If you need a spoiler alert for a 45-year-old movie with one of the most famous plot twists in history, you may want to build your own time machine and head back to an era before this movie was released. (Remember to bring your copy of Grays Sports Almanac. ) Everyone else knows that the brilliance of the Statue of Liberty scene is the revelation that yes, this Charlton Heston sci-fi classic is actually a time-travel movie: Charlton Heston’s astronaut has not journeyed to a galaxy far, far away, but only two millennia into Earth’s future. (The time-travel elements of the franchise became even more pronounced in the sequels: in 1971’s Escape from the Planet of the Apes, three future apes travel back to 1973 and end up testifying at a presidential commission.)

‘Time Bandits’ (1981)

Terry Gilliam’s relentlessly inventive time-travel caper stars a young boy and six dwarfs who have swiped a map of the universe and are using it to steal everything they can. Best cameos: Sean Connery as Agamemnon and John Cleese as a daffily aristocratic Robin Hood. God was played by the distinguished British actor Ralph Richardson, who got so into the role that he rejected some of his dialogue, telling Gilliam, “God wouldn’t say that.”

‘Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home’ (1986)

The Star Trek franchise, both on TV and on the big screen, has featured so many time-travel stories, working every possible angle, that eventually the Deep Space Nine show had to introduce a Department of Temporal Investigations just to keep everything straight. This romp was one of Starfleet’s best journeys through time: Kirk and the Enterprise crew head to 1980s San Francisco to bring a humpback whale to the future, and are befuddled by 20th-century concepts such as punk rock, computer keyboards, and exact change.

‘Run Lola Run’ (1998)

The crimson-haired Lola (Franka Potente) gets a phone call from her boyfriend: He’s lost a bag with 100,000 deutschemarks, and if he doesn’t find it or replace it in the next 20 minutes, his criminal boss will kill him. So Lola runs through Berlin, dodging bicyclists, causing car accidents, provoking flash-forward sequences of the destiny of various pedestrians, trying to find a way out. Each time she fails, the 20-minute time loop starts again — it seems to be powered by love and the absence of cash.

‘Hot Tub Time Machine’ (2010)

Probably the funniest time-travel movie ever made: John Cusack, Rob Corddry, Craig Robinson, and Clark Duke head back to the 1980s while at a ski resort, revisiting a time when hair was big, outerwear was neon, and Poison was a big headlining band. (It’s also a time when Cusack was a much bigger movie star; the movie sidesteps that.) Best scene: Robinson having sex in a bathtub so he won’t disrupt the timeline, weeping because he feels guilty about cheating on his wife, even though she’s only nine years old in 1986.

‘Looper’ (2012)

“I’m a sucker for the time-travel genre,” director Rian Johnson told Rolling Stone. “If you’re a nerd like I am, it’s really fun to work out the map of how everything is going to work.” But he made sure this movie, about contract killers snuffing people sent back in time 30 years, didn’t feel like “algebra homework”;  instead, Looper has an aging hitman (Bruce Willis) confronting his younger self (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). For all its sci-fi inventiveness and thrills, the best scene is the two leads meeting at a diner: a young man looking his older self in the eye, determined not to turn into him.

‘Primer’ (2004)

A rigorous, graduate-level time-travel movie, full of confusing plot twists, technical jargon, and duplicate versions of characters trying to outfox each other. But it’s also a thrilling mind-bender, and as soon as you’re done watching it, you want to see the whole thing again to see if it actually makes sense. (It does). Made for an astonishingly low $7,000, director Shane Carruth’s debut is also one of the best movies ever about a tech start-up: When some engineer friends make a working time machine, they skip right over the ethical consequences in favor of the financial rewards.

‘Back to the Future’ (1985)

Funny, thrilling, unbelievably Oedipal: When Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) travels to 1955 and accidentally prevents his parents from getting together, his mother transfers her affections to him instead. Fortunately, Fox doesn’t have to pluck out his eyes — instead, he labors to make his parents fall in love, so that he will actually be born. Best subtle joke: McFly knocks down a tree in 1955; back in 1985, a shopping center has changed its name from the Twin Pines Mall to the Lone Pine Mall.

‘Terminator 2: Judgement Day’ (1991)

The original Terminator (1984) had a great premise: Arnold Schwarzenegger is a killer cyborg (just the way you like him) coming from the future to kill waitress Linda Hamilton so she can’t give birth to the eventual leader of the human resistance. But seven years later, director James Cameron upped the stakes with this sequel — not just blowing out retinas with bigger explosions and more CGI, but wrestling with the philosophical paradox of whether knowing the future removes humanity’s free will.

‘La Jetée’ (1962)

A gorgeous 28-minute film, told in a montage of black-and-white still photographs and narrated in French, about a man sent back in time to avert an apocalyptic war. He’s obsessed with his childhood memories of a beautiful woman and seeing a man die — inevitably, he gets tangled in the silken cords of time travel. This novella of a movie is pretty much perfect, which didn’t stop Hollywood from making a big-budget feature-length version: 12 Monkeys  (1995), directed by Terry Gilliam, and starring Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt.

‘Groundhog Day’ (1993)

Time travel doesn’t have to span hundreds of years to be a significant plot element in a movie, of course: it can be hours, or a handful of seconds. Characters can be caught in a loop, or spawn alternate universes, or even kill their grandfathers, depending on the rules the filmmakers set up: at press time, actual time travel was still fictional. The time travel in this Bill Murray comedy, while limited to a single day, still plays into one of the most fundamental reasons for its persistence: the notion that if we had a chance to do our lives over, we could do it better the second time. The movie’s great subversion of that fantasy is the lesson that you could begin your do-over right now, in the present tense, on February 3rd and beyond.

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The 35 Best Time Travel Movies

Ready for 1.21 gigawatts of sci-fi greatness?

These are the 35 best sci-fi films that explore the fluidity of time.

🤯 You love mind-bending science. So do we. Let’s nerd out over it together.

35. Timecop

Jean-Claude Van Damme is a cop who polices time. Don’t need to say more, but I guess I will. In 1994, time travel becomes a favorite pastime of criminals, and timecops like Van Damme must catch any chronal abusers and bring them to justice. As is often the case, Van Damme’s own time-muckery with the past creates different and divergent timelines that not even Doc Brown’s chalkboard could work out. But Timecop isn’t exactly a film that’s going for narrative clarity here.

34. The Final Countdown / The Philadelphia Experiment

Although most people would file this film under “flop,” The Final Countdown contains such an amazing premise it has to be recognized. The crew of the U.S.S. Nimitz enters a storm vortex and is transported to Pearl Harbor in 1941, turning a favorite imaginary war-game scenario into real life. Although the actual film elements aren’t necessarily memorable, it does give us an incredibly good look at the Nimitz (the film was shot on the actual carrier).

We tossed in The Philadelphia Experiment at the same spot, since it’s essentially the reverse of The Final Countdown .

33. Men in Black 3

By the time director Barry Sonnenfeld directed Men in Black 3 in 2012, the franchise was 15 years removed from its fun and campy original, and Men in Black 2 had sucked out much of the charm. That’s why MiB 3 , despite its faults, is still a surprising underdog of a film.

Agent J (Will Smith) goes back in time to stop an alien from mucking up the past and killing Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones/Josh Brolin). The film recaptures much of the original’s fun, and Josh Brolin’s portrayal of a young Tommy Lee Jones playing Agent K is simply awe-inspiring. Honestly, that acting work alone earns this spot for MiB 3.

32. Flight of the Navigator

Sort of like E.T. , but with time travel. What Flight of the Navigator lacks in a substantial plot, it more than makes up for in charm.

David Scott Freeman falls into a ravine and is knocked unconscious—for eight years. Although he doesn’t age, everyone he knows does, and he soon finds he’s part of something much larger. It’s a fun film that will never outshine any Spielberg classics, but its campiness is too genuine to ignore.

31. Time After Time

H.G. Wells, Jack the Ripper, and time travel ... that’s it . Just click the arrow.

30. Timecrimes

A film with perhaps the lowest budget on this list, Timecrimes is a Spanish-language movie that follows a typical time travel trope (many copies of one person causing major problems) but creates 92 minutes of truly enjoyable cinema. The fun moments of Timecrimes are the reveal after reveal after reveal, which snowballs into a fascinating plot.

29. Source Code

Source Code is like Groundhog Day and Edge of Tomorrow with a twist. Instead of going back in time as himself, Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) enters the body of someone else as he tries to stop a mass murder attempt. What the film lacks in depth, it more than makes up for in pulse-pumping action, and the premise itself is a refreshing take on the usual time travel idea.

It will likely never be considered an example of high science fiction, but as far as time travel goes, it gets good grades.

28. Donnie Darko

Perfect amounts creepy and perplexing, Donnie Darko is another strange example of time travel, which is why it belongs on this list all the more. Darko (Gyllenhaal again) is a high school kid with a less-than-sunny disposition. But when he begins seeing frightening hallucinations of a deranged and grotesque rabbit, things slowly begin to unravel, going from bad to weird pretty quickly.

For such a small-budget film (that was almost released straight to home video!) it’s made an outsized impact on science fiction and indie filmmaking. It’s a great movie, but also a polarizing one.

27. Safety Not Guaranteed

Director Colin Trevorrow’s debut film Safety Not Guaranteed follows three journalists—well, one journalist and two interns—on a road trip to meet the eccentric Kenneth (Mark Duplass), who placed an ad in a local newspaper looking for a time-travel companion. Although at its heart a romantic comedy, the film explores human perception of time and the indelible regrets, traumas, and even fantasies that fill our memories. Although the idea of actual time travel plays a significant role in the film, it’s used mostly as a symbol to analyze the importance of being present and always looking with hope toward the future.

26. X-Men: Days of Future Past

Smashing together the old X-Men guard with the new is what makes X-Men: Days of Future Past one of the more successful cinematic outings for the mutant team.

In the film, Kitty Pryde sends Wolverine back through time to stop apocalyptic events from unfolding. Maybe that’s not the most original plot, but it’s one that’s too fun to resist (if only for the Quicksilver scene alone ).

25. Predestination

Based on Robert Heinlein’s sci-fi short story “All You Zombies,” Predestination is a head trip, like any proper time travel film should be. With a strong performance from Ethan Hawke and a script that will keep you guessing, the film is one of the more solid time travel entries in recent years and is a film that garners a rewatch so you can catch every detail.

24. Star Trek: First Contact

The Next Generation ’s big screen outings are a mixed bag, to put it nicely, but the best film by far is the time-bending Star Trek: First Contact . Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the USS Enterprise-E travel to the past to prevent the cybernetic Borg from mucking with Earth’s history. It’s a good film all by itself, but even more excellent if you’re an invested Star Trek fan. We get to see huge, never-before-seen moments in the Star Trek universe, like humanity’s first encounter with the Vulcans, and the Borg are just an excellent adversary.

23. Army of Darkness

“Shop Smart. Shop, S-Mart.”

Depending on who you ask, Sam Raimi’s Army of Darkness is either the best sequel to any film ever, or the worst—there isn’t much room in between. The chainsaw-toting Ashley “Ash” Williams is tossed back to medieval times where he must fight off a horde of undead monstrosities with only his ingenuity and his “boom stick.”

Even though it’s slapstick comedy with wonderfully B-movie action sequences, it remains an absolute joy to watch.

22. Doctor Strange

In this Marvel sleeper hit , Stephen Strange (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) becomes the Sorcerer Supreme, and in typical Marvel fashion, is tasked with saving the world. Although the visuals alone are worthing giving this movie a shot, its manipulation of time as a superpower rather than a world-altering plot device is what sets it apart from the rest.

21. Sleeper

Although not technically time travel (long stretches of cryo-sleep instead), Sleeper is Woody Allen’s sci-fi comedy that’s absurd, hilarious, and strangely poignant. Miles Monroe is a jazz musician and health-food-store owner who wakes up in the 22nd century after a botched gall bladder operation. The world is, as you’d expect, quite different, and Monroe is a hilarious character to explore it with.

Tenet is an “A for effort” addition to this list. The film has all the trappings of a Christopher Nolan flick—stunning cinematography, a star-studded cast, head-scratching plot points, etc., etc. And Tenet does take time travel movies one step further with the introduction of time inversion, the idea that objects and people can travel into the past at the same temporal pace that they can travel into the future. Although a fascinating concept, it’s also a confusing one, which is why Nolan spends much of the film’s 150-minute runtime explaining what’s going on. Tenet is a fascinating time travel story though ultimately one a bit lost in its own exposition.

19. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

This 2006 award-winning anime is a coming-of-age time travel story that even rivals Back to the Future . After schoolgirl Mokoto Konno discovers a time travel device that gives her the power to leap through time, she uses her new gifts for mundane high school stuff, passing tests, avoiding awkward conversations, and to address her chronic lateness.

When she learns what her time traveling does to others around her, and as the seriousness of her time jumping becomes more apparent, the film blossoms into an important story about loss and friendship.

Crime noir meets science fiction in Rian Johnson’s Looper , and the match is magical. In a future where time travel is invented and immediately made illegal, crime syndicates use the technology for time-hopping assassinations. But to tie off some temporal inconsistencies, the assassin must eventually become the target—and that’s where things get interesting. This isn’t flawless sci-fi, but it’s certainly inventive.

17. Run Lola Run

On its surface, the German film Run Lola Run is about a blazingly red-headed woman running through the streets of Berlin in an attempt to save her boyfriend’s life. However, the twist is that once Lola reaches a dead-end (sometimes literally) in one of her runs, the film starts over from the beginning and Lola runs through Berlin once again, only this time small changes in her path create largely divergent outcomes by the film’s end. Although time is more of a thematic device than a strictly plot-driven one in Run Lola Run, its ruminations on time and the exploration of the Butterfly Effect , the idea that small incidents can have lasting repercussions, makes Run Lola Run one of the most unique films on this list.

16. Avengers: Endgame

What happens when the big purple monster man annihilates half the population? Time travel, baby. Tony Stark and gang concoct a convoluted plan that’ll save the universe from being cleaved in two, including some very inventive scenes that play with time travel. Like most time travel plots, Endgame creates more questions than it answers, but it’s best to just sit back and enjoy.

Darren lives in Portland, has a cat, and writes/edits about sci-fi and how our world works. You can find his previous stuff at Gizmodo and Paste if you look hard enough. 

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19 of the best sci-fi movies about time travel: 'Back to the Future,' 'The Terminator'

The 15 Best Time Travel Movies Ever Made, Ranked

Trigger Warning: There are two 'Back to the Future' movies on this list.

Making a great time-travel movie, as it turns out, is not very easy. Quite a few films have tried and failed for a variety of reasons. There’s the logic, obviously, which can become an issue, but oftentimes a story might rest too heavily on the plot device, resulting in a lack of rich or memorable characters. But there are some truly phenomenal movies involving time travel that seize upon the premise and craft unforgettable and inventive stories, many of which have long stood the test of time.

With that in mind, I’ve looked back at the lexicon of films involving time travel and curated a list of the best of the best. Some are silly, some are sweet, and some are just a hell of a lot of fun. As with all lists, this one’s subjective, and there will undoubtedly be one or two of your favorites that don’t make this cut, but I’ve done my best to make the case for why these 15 films, in particular, are the best time-travel movies ever made.

RELATED: The Best Sci-Fi Movies of the 21st Century So Far

Most time-travel movies try to keep the actual mechanics of the time-travel simple, but that’s definitely not true of writer/director/star Shane Carruth ’s head-spinning 2004 film Primer . The indie drama revolves around two engineers who accidentally discover a mechanism of time travel while tinkering with entrepreneurial tech projects. Carruth doesn’t “dumb down” any of the science of the movie, and indeed charts have been made to explain the exact mechanics of what’s going on in this film, but it nevertheless remains one of the most scientifically intense time-travel movies ever made.

14. The Terminator

I mean, this has to be on the list right? Director James Cameron ’s groundbreaking 1984 sci-fi action flick is far more grounded and low-key than its sequel, but The Terminator still packs a punch all these years later. With a truly inventive premise, charismatic performance from Linda Hamilton , and proof that Arnold Schwarzenegger could act, The Terminator ’s influence reaches far and wide.

13. About Time

About Time is certainly the most emotional entry on this list. Writer/director Richard Curtis had previously melted hearts with Love Actually and Pirate Radio , but About Time brought the filmmaker back to his Four Weddings and a Funeral roots (which he didn’t direct, but he did write). The time-travel genre offers the opportunity to wax philosophical about death and regret, and About Time seizes it in a unique way by focusing on a very earnest relationship between a father and a son. The romantic comedy portion between Domhnall Gleeson and Rachel McAdams is the hook, but the relationship between time-traveling father and son Gleeson and Bill Nighy is this film’s tearjerking heart.

12. Back to the Future Part II

There are people who say Back to the Future Part II is a bad movie, and those people are wrong. Director Robert Zemeckis ’ original is untouchable, but for the first sequel the notoriously ambitious filmmaker doubles down on the time travel premise while also echoing the first movie in a brilliant way. First, we get a kitschy, Easter Egg-filled vision of the future, then we get to see the events of the first film recontextualized as Marty McFly has to go back in time once again to save the future—all while avoiding his other time-traveling self. It’s a tight rope walk of an extremely difficult sort, and one that only a director with this much vision and guts could pull off.

11. Idiocracy

You know, that movie that was ridiculous fiction until it kind of became reality. Filmmaker Mike Judge couldn’t have predicted just how spot-on Idiocracy would be over a decade after its release, but indeed Judge and co-writer Etan Cohen certainly had their finger on the pulse of what was happening in America at the time—enough to hit upon ugly truths that remain relevant today. While the central premise of a man being “frozen” for hundreds of years has been done before, the comedic precision with which Judge executes his dumbed-down vision of America’s future is what makes Idiocracy endure. And also the batin’ jokes.

Whether it’s in an indie noir-like Brick or a massive blockbuster like Star Wars: The Last Jedi , writer/director Rian Johnson has always showcased an impeccable mix of ambition and meticulousness, never allowing his reach to exceed his grasp. Looper marked Johnson’s first foray into the sci-fi genre, and he did so with vigor, offering up a twisty time-travel story rooted in character first and foremost. The film takes the premise of, “What would you do if you went back in time and met your younger self?” and spins it on its head, adding in terrifically tense action sequences and heady moral quandaries for good measure.

9. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

As the best movie in the franchise (fight me), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban also stands as one of the best time-travel movies ever made. Director Alfonso Cuarón shook up the aesthetic and narrative approach to the adaptation of J.K. Rowling ’s beloved book series, and while the foundation of the storytelling is all Rowling, Cuaron’s execution really makes this thing soar. From tremendous cinematography to aural motifs that clue the audience in to the shifting time scenarios, Azkaban is full of wonder, curiosity, and danger, and it’s an absolute joy to behold.

8. Star Trek (2009)

Director J.J. Abrams ’ 2009 reboot of the Star Trek franchise sidestepped the problem of “erasing” the legacy of the films/TV shows that came before by using one specific device: time-travel. This genius idea allows Abrams’ wildly entertaining film to both exist in the same universe as the previous Star Trek movies with Kirk and Spock and the whole gang, while also opening up new possibilities for the future—even though Abrams’ Trek focuses on Young Kirk, he exists in a new and changed timeline, so the future is not 100% set. That the film is able to explain this concisely while also serving as an incredibly entertaining adventure all its own is the minor miracle that is Star Trek (2009) , and while the sequel Star Trek Into Darkness hampered some of that goodwill, Abrams’ initial film still stands as one of the most effortlessly rewatchable blockbusters of the 21st century.

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7. 12 Monkeys

While filmmaker Terry Gilliam is no stranger to time travel ( Time Bandits just missed the cut on this list), his 1995 film 12 Monkeys remains one of the most memorable entries in the genre. The sci-fi drama combines Gilliam’s more odd sensibilities with gritty and grounded time-travel, resulting in a dirty and unforgettable experience. Brad Pitt delivers a pretty phenomenal performance as a maybe-crazy mental institution patient while Bruce Willis plays a future prisoner sent back in time to discover the origins of a deadly virus that ravaged the Earth. Never one for the traditional, Gilliam keeps things delightfully strange throughout.

6. Edge of Tomorrow

Edge of Tomorrow is the perfect cocktail—a dash of Tom Cruise action, a sprinkle of Emily Blunt strength, a swirl of writer Christopher McQuarrie ’s unique sensibilities, and a heavy helping of director Doug Liman ’s wild ambition. Many have tried and failed to imitate the “stuck in a loop” premise of Groundhog Day , but Edge of Tomorrow takes that nugget and runs with it, keeping every single scene fresh even if we’re watching the same day play out over and over again. The secret sauce is having Tom Cruise play an out-and-out coward, which stands in contrast to the public perception of his onscreen persona and results in a wonderfully refreshing viewing experience. Edge of Tomorrow is the White Whale of Hollywood: a genuinely unique and wildly entertaining blockbuster.

5. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure

1989’s Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure combined the sci-fi genre with the teen comedy to result in a wonderfully inventive—and hilarious—adventure. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter are perfect as a pair of burnouts who use a time machine to complete a history report. The whole thing is an incredibly silly affair, but it’s made with such affection for its characters that it’s impossible not to love. There are terrific jokes aplenty, especially involving historical figures, and George Carlin ’s Rufus remains an icon to this day. It’s a movie that probably shouldn’t work, but totally does. Be excellent to each other, indeed.

4. Planet of the Apes

So Planet of the Apes is technically a time-travel movie, even though audiences who first laid eyes on the 1968 film didn’t know it until that final, jaw-dropping scene. Charlton Heston ’s astronaut Taylor hasn’t simply stumbled upon a planet made of apes, he’s traveled into a future Earth where apes have actually taken over the planet. The film is rife with socio-political commentary, which continued throughout its underrated sequels, and features one of the best Jerry Goldsmith scores ever created. But that ending, which paints the rest of the film in a whole new light, is what solidifies it as a classic.

3. Terminator 2: Judgment Day

We should have known, given Aliens and The Abyss , that director James Cameron ’s Terminator 2 wouldn’t just be any old sequel. Indeed, the ambitious filmmaker made a very different movie than the original Terminator , weaving in shades of a buddy comedy, PTSD drama, and family story into this sci-fi actioner. Terminator 2 is a minor miracle of a film, turning its own premise on its head to present a time-travel story that’s similar to the first Terminator , but different in key ways. It also feels positively epic. This one ticks all the boxes.

2. Groundhog Day

Star Bill Murray and director Harold Ramis famously butted heads while making Groundhog Day . Murray reportedly wanted the film to be more philosophical, while Ramis was always pushing the comedy. But it’s the push-and-pull between these two ideas that makes Groundhog Day a stone-cold classic. It’s hilarious, featuring some of Murray’s best comedic moments, but it’s also profoundly sad. The film doesn’t disregard the inherent loneliness of the premise—being stuck in the same day over and over again. It goes to some surprisingly dark places, but Murray’s humanity always shines through, and Andie MacDowell does some terrifically understated work as his foil. It’s a classic, full-stop.

1. Back to the Future

But there’s really nothing like Back to the Future , is there? Filmmaker Robert Zemeckis ’ 1985 original takes a universal idea—the fact that we’re never able to truly know what our parents were like when they were our age—and adds his usual dash of insane ambition by playing that out as a time-travel story. And given the hardships during production, it’s crazy the movie turned out as great as it did. Michael J. Fox is a revelation, Christopher Lloyd is perfect, and Lea Thompson is so good you forget she’s actually playing Marty’s mom. It’s hilarious and new and different and inventive, but it’s also rooted in universal truths that make it so relevant throughout the decades. And yes, it’s also a movie about trying not to bone your mom.

The 15 Best Time Travel Movies Ever Made

Turn back the clock

In Netflix’s “The Adam Project,” a fighter pilot from the future named Adam (Ryan Reynolds) accidentally crash lands in 2022, and has to team up with his 12-year-old former self (Walker Scobell) in order to have a chance at a future victory. But while Adam physically journeys to his own past, other time travel movies have seen objects, communication, and even consciousness skip back and forth along the timeline to affect their stories.

Below, we look at 15 of the very best movies centered around time travel, each putting its own unique spin on the concept of characters who, in some way, manage to traverse time. 

“Time After Time” (1979)

While none of the cinematic adaptations of the prolific works of 19th century science-fiction writer HG Wells are on this list, the writer himself is (or at least a fictionalized version of him) in the time hopping murder mystery “Time After Time.” Malcolm McDowell plays Wells, who takes to his newly invented time machine after realizing that notorious serial killer Jack the Ripper (David Warner) is not only someone he considered a friend, but has also used his machine to travel to the future. Feeling partially responsible for the harm Jack will inflict, Wells follows him to the late 1970s, where both men set their sights on bank teller Amy Robbins (Mary Steenburgen, who also appears later on this list in “Back to the Future III”), although for very different reasons. While viewers may come to “Time After Time” for the time-hopping cat and mouse chase, as Wells races to stop Jack from killing again, they’ll stay for the sweet romance that blooms between Wells and Amy along the way. 

“Terminator” and “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (1984, 1991)

After the second (and arguably superior) film, the “Terminator” franchise gets a bit uneven, but James Cameron’s first two installments still hold up, with one of the coolest premises in the time travel genre. In a war-torn future where humans are locked in a battle with intelligent machines, a cyborg assassin called a Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is sent back to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), the woman fated to give birth to the eventual hero of mankind. Meanwhile, humans also send back one of their own to protect her. The result is a tense and action-packed adventure that capitalizes on its paradoxical premise by delivering some truly jaw-dropping twists. The sequel, “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” sees Sarah’s son, now a teenager, still in danger from time-traveling machines, but this time protected by a reprogrammed Terminator sent back to save him.

“Back to the Future” trilogy (1985, 1989, 1990)

Still the gold standard for time travel movies nearly four decades later, the “Back to the Future” trilogy has been the entry point to concepts like temporal paradoxes, causal loops, and the space-time continuum for multiple generations of viewers. While the first movie is commonly considered the best, all three are a ton of fun, due in large part to knockout comedic performances from Christopher Lloyd and Michael J. Fox as Doc, the man who invents time travel, and Marty, the high school student who accidentally uses it to break his own timeline, respectively. “Back to the Future II” sees Marty catastrophically changing his own present by getting greedy to the future, while “Back to the Future III” finds Doc and Marty stranded in the Old West and pressed to figure out a way to escape before Doc’s time runs out. 

“Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” (1986)

The Star Trek franchise is no stranger to time travel stories, and there are numerous Star Trek films that would make solid additions to this list. But for our money, “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” is the best of them. After an alien probe starts vacuuming up all of Earth’s oceans in 2286 in an attempt to make contact with a then-extinct species, it’s up to Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and the crew of the starship Enterprise to travel back in time to retrieve a pair of humpback whales from 1986 and save the future. Is the premise a little silly when you spell it out? Yes. But it’s also a ton of fun, giving the original Star Trek cast a chance to stretch their comedic muscles after a few much more dramatic outings, while still delivering the type of earnest, optimistic storytelling that has always defined Star Trek at its best. “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” also stars Catherine Hicks as the 20th century scientist who aids Kirk on his mission, who you may also remember from the other big time travel film of 1986, “Peggy Sue Got Married.” 

“Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” (1989)

There are some time travel movies that challenge everything you thought you knew about reality, and then there are movies like “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.” We’ll never pretend that this ridiculous romp through history to save the GPAs of a couple high school goofballs (Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter) destined to write a song that will save the world is exactly what you’d call smart. Its premise alone would be bound to give Doc Brown a migraine. But there’s something undeniably joyous about watching these two kindhearted and enthusiastic doofuses get to interact with some of the most notable figures from history. Just don’t think too hard about it (Bill and Ted certainly don’t) and enjoy the ride. 

“Groundhog Day” (1993)

One of the most fascinating sub genres of time travel is the time loop story , in which a character gets stuck repeating the same stretch of time over and over. But while many movies have come along to play with this idea, the reigning champion continues to be “Groundhog Day,” which sees Bill Murray as a cantankerous weatherman destined to cover the same Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania Groundhog Day festival every day ad infinitum, unless he can figure out a way to stop it. “Groundhog Day” hilariously takes every approach imaginable to the idea of repeating the same day for all eternity, from the macabre to the benevolent and everything in between. It’s a romcom, it’s a drama, it’s a fantasy, and it’s some of Bill Murray‘s best work that will leave you and stitches no matter how many times you watch it.

“12 Monkeys” (1995) 

Sometimes time travel movies have a bit of a wacky idea of what the future might look like, which is definitely the case with “12 Monkeys,” which sees humanity driven underground in the wake of a civilization-ending virus. Bruce Willis plays a low level criminal named James Cole who is presented with the opportunity to wipe his record clean in exchange for traveling to the past and gathering information about the virus. But of course, you can’t just show up in the mid-’90s ranting about being from the future without consequences, and Cole quickly finds himself committed to a mental institution, where he crosses paths with a good-natured psychiatrist (Madeleine Stow) and a fellow patient (Brad Pitt), who finds Cole’s ideas of the future very intriguing. The tone of “12 Monkeys” starts off feeling a little bizarre and off kilter (thanks to director Terry Gilliam), which only increases as the film progresses, helping put the viewer in Cole’s shoes as he begins to question his sense of reality. Like several others on this list, “12 Monkeys” enjoys challenging our perceptions of linear cause-and-effect, having a lot of fun as it tosses Bruce Willis back and forth between a bizarre future and a doomed past, daring us to guess where it’s going.

“Donnie Darko” (2001)

“Do you believe in time travel?“ That’s asked early on in brooding high school drama “Donnie Darko,” although it takes a while for viewers to fully understand why that question is so central to the story. The film follows Donnie, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, a moody high schooler who begins seeing visions of a man in a nightmarish bunny costume with warnings about the imminent end of the world. Soon, Donnie starts experiencing premonitions that he uses to guide his actions, kicking off a series of events that invites questions of predetermination, free will, and inevitability. “Donnie Darko” doesn’t feel like a typical time travel film, forgoing the typical tropes of the genre in lieu of an unconventional coming-of-age tale focused far more on teen angst, mental health, and social dynamics than questions of temporal causality and metaphysics. Still, the film is predicated on fascinating ideas about the malleability of time, and although it doesn’t provide all the answers, the questions alone are worth it. 

“Primer” (2004)

No film has ever been less interested in interpreting its scientific jargon for lay people than Shane Carruth’s “Primer,” a film which focuses on a pair of engineers who accidentally invent a time machine in their garage. After initially being overjoyed with their groundbreaking discovery, the pair finds themselves at odds over implications of their invention. Unlike many films about scientific innovation, “Primer” makes zero effort to translate the technical and scientific vernacular used by its characters for the audience; Unless you have PhDs in mechanical engineering and theoretical physics, you’ll just just have to pay attention to context clues and hope for the best. (And if you have to watch the film more than once to figure out what’s going on, that’s okay, too. Most people do.) But whether or not you can fully follow the intricate mechanics of the film’s time travel, the intriguing conflict between the two central characters — one of whom sees time travel as a shortcut to prosperity, while the other views it as a Pandora’s box of potentially disastrous consequences — should be more than enough to keep you invested.

“About Time” (2013)

While many time travel movies tend to deal with world-threatening stakes or adrenaline-fueling adventures, “About Time” is a quieter entry into the genre that simply asks what you might do if you had the ability to revisit any moment in your life. Domhnall Gleeson plays Tim, who finds out on his 21st birthday that the men in his family have the ability to travel back to points in their own past. From then on, Tim uses his ability to undo embarrassing moments, relive fond memories, and find true love with Mary (Rachel McAdams). Although Tim experiences his fair share of thrilling moments in his non-linear life, his journeys through time are much more about learning what gives life meaning, what moments matter, and accepting that there are some types of pain that even time travel can’t circumvent. Bring tissues for this tear-jerker from Richard Curtis, the filmmaker behind “Love, Actually” and “Four Weddings and a Funeral.”

“Edge of Tomorrow” (2014)

While “Groundhog Day” trapped Bill Murray in a humdrum small town holiday, “Edge of Tomorrow” finds Tom Cruise stuck in a far more precarious loop when an alien infection gives him the ability to reset back to 24 hours before that infection every time he dies. And he dies a lot, since unfortunately he got infected in the midst of a doomed battle with massive insect-like aliens invading London. Fortunately, along for the ride is Emily Blunt, whose character Rita Vrataski has experienced the same ability, and has some ideas about what to do with it. Featuring awesome creature design, impressive visual effects, and an action-packed storyline that makes great use of its premise, “Edge of Tomorrow” delivers a thrilling blend of sci-fi action and time bending twistyness that, despite having seen the same day dozens of times by the time the movie ends, leaves us yearning for more.

“Interstellar” (2014)

It takes a while before Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” truly reveals itself as a time travel movie, but the pieces are there from the beginning. After learning that the Earth is dying, former pilot Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) gets recruited on a mission to travel to another star system in the hopes of finding a planet to which humanity can flee. The journey takes Cooper and his crew to uncharted regions of space and fascinating new worlds, and along the way, the astronauts are faced with questions of relativity, our perception of time, and faith in the unknown. But it’s not until the final act of the film that it fully addresses the idea of sending something through time, although the seed of that idea is planted much earlier. The film’s approach to time travel is more philosophical than scientific, asking what sorts of things transcend the limits of time, and what they might give us the power to do.

“Predestination” (2014)

If the age old question of the chicken in the egg were a time travel movie, it would be “Predestination, a mind-scrambling exploration of cause-and-effect that will make your brain feel like it just ran a marathon. Sometime in the future, a time agent played by Ethan Hawke is on the hunt for a temporal terrorist responsible for killing hundreds of people throughout the timeline. His investigation leads him to cross paths with a person with their own interesting story to tell, and the way their story intersects with Hawke’s will leave your head spinning. It’s impossible to say much more about “Predestination” without spoiling some of the film’s many surprising twists, but suffice it to say that if you like your time travel challenging and accompanied by a hefty helping of existential wrestling, this is the film for you.

“Your Name” (2016)

Many animated films have delved into the world of time travel, but the Japanese film “Your Name” is perhaps one of the most impressive of the bunch. The story follows a rural teen girl named Mitsuha, who lives in a remote village and yearns for a more exciting life in the city, and Taki, a teenage boy from Tokyo, after the two inexplicably begin waking up some mornings in each other’s bodies. For the first half of the film, the two teens work to navigate their bizarre situation so that their daily lives are disrupted as little as possible, before it eventually becomes clear that not only are they swapping bodies; they’re also swapping times. From there, it becomes a race against the clock as they hurtle towards a cataclysmic event that is in the past for one, and the future for the other. Yet despite the compelling time travel element, it’s Mitsuha’s and Taki’s unlikely relationship with each other that gives the film its heart, and lingers with viewers afterwards. 

“Avengers: Endgame” (2019) 

After the snap heard round the universe at the end of “Avengers: Infinity War,” there was really no place for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes to go other than back in time. Once the Avengers figure out that the only way to save the day is to retrieve the all-powerful Infinity Stones from various points in their past, “Avengers: Endgame” becomes a delightful tour through the Marvel Cinematic Universe, revisiting plots and places from over a decade’s worth of films in a way that pays off years of careful and expansive world building. It’s a plot that could only work within a long-running franchise, but in addition to being an excellent capper for the first three phases of the MCU, it’s also a satisfying time travel adventure in its own right, nodding to the many time travel films that have come before while also presenting its own unique spin on the genre.

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The 25 Best Time Travel Movies of All Time, Ranked

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Time travel movies have been done to death, and many time travel movies suck because they rehash the same old predictable tropes and cliches. But there's still a lot of potential left to be mined in the genre!

Despite the vast number of lackluster time travel movies, there have also been many notable films that came out in the past few decades—and that's on top of the sci-fi classics that still hold up.

At the end of the day, all movies are meant to deliver an entertaining experience for the viewer. With that in mind, here are what I consider to be the best time travel movies of all time.

Warning: I hate spoilers as much as anyone, so I've taken care to exclude spoilers from all movie descriptions in this article. However, knowing that a movie involves time travel could itself be a spoiler! Read on at your own risk.

25. Project Almanac (2015)

Directed by Dean Israelite

Starring Jonny Weston, Sofia Black-D'Elia, Virginia Gardner

Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi (1h 46m)

6.3 on IMDb — 38% on RT

Project Almanac is an underrated time travel movie that probably flew under your radar. Don't let the fact that it seems like a teen drama deter you from checking it out.

A group of high schoolers find something strange in an old home video, which spurs them to investigate—and uncover secrets plans for a time machine. They build it, of course, and that's when the trouble starts.

24. ARQ (2016)

Directed by Tony Elliott

Starring Robbie Amell, Rachael Taylor, Shaun Benson

Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller (1h 28m)

6.3 on IMDb — 43% on RT

A strange energy-providing device causes a couple to be stuck in a time loop while being forced to defend the device against a group intent on stealing it. The setup is strange, the ending is stranger.

This low-budget film is really nothing more than a popcorn flick, but it's a fun ride as long as you don't think too deeply about it. Compared to other thought experiment-type time travel movies, this one's pretty good.

23. Click (2006)

Directed by Frank Coraci

Starring Adam Sandler, Kate Beckinsale, Christopher Walken

Comedy, Drama, Fantasy (1h 47m)

6.4 on IMDb — 34% on RT

Using a magical universal remote, a workaholic finds himself able to skip ahead or rewind back to various points in his life. During those skipped times, his body continues to live on autopilot.

Don't be turned away by the fact that this is an Adam Sandler movie. In one of his best performances ever, Sandler effectively carries this funny-but-heart-wrenching story on his back.

22. Time Lapse (2014)

Directed by Bradley King

Starring Danielle Panabaker, Matt O'Leary, George Finn

Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi (1h 44m)

6.5 on IMDb — 74% on RT

When three friends discover a machine that can take photos 24 hours in the future, things take a dark turn as each photo reveals more than they could've anticipated.

Smart writing makes up for the mediocre performances in Time Lapse . If you go into this indie film without much in the way of expectations, you'll be pleasantly surprised.

21. The Endless (2017)

Directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead

Starring Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson, Callie Hernandez

Drama, Fantasy, Horror (1h 51m)

6.5 on IMDb — 92% on RT

Sci-fi horror done well tends to be pretty rare, but The Endless is a shining example of when it goes right.

The film centers on two brothers who used to belong to an alleged UFO death cult when they were young. Years later, after they'd escaped, they both have different memories of what the cult was like—so they agree to return for one day to set the record straight.

What they find is that the supposed UFO death cult is nothing like how either of them imagined, and they end up embroiled in all kinds of mysterious happenings, including a time loop.

20. The Adam Project (2022)

Directed by Shawn Levy

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Walker Scobell, Mark Ruffalo

Action, Adventure, Comedy (1h 46m)

6.7 on IMDb — 67% on RT

The Adam Project stars Ryan Reynolds as Adam Reed, a man from the future who goes back in time to save his wife. He's injured and takes refuge in his childhood home, but is accidentally discovered by his younger self. They work together to complete Adam's mission of saving his wife.

It's a simple story with Ryan Reynolds basically playing Ryan Reynolds—which is great, if you're into that—but what sets The Adam Project apart is the deeply moving emotional threads that undergird the characters and weave together into a surprisingly cathartic climax.

19. Primer (2004)

Directed by Shane Carruth

Starring Shane Carruth, David Sullivan, Casey Gooden

Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller (1h 17m)

6.8 on IMDb — 73% on RT

Four entrepreneurs accidentally invent a time travel machine, which ends up ruining their lives when they decide to give it a spin. Primer is the quintessential time travel film and a must-see movie for time travel fans who love poring over the tiniest details.

It's short (only 77-minute runtime) but insanely dense—the kind of movie you have to watch multiple times to really understand what actually happened, and even then you may not fully get it.

18. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

Directed by Colin Trevorrow

Starring Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, Jake Johnson

Adventure, Comedy, Drama (1h 26m)

6.9 on IMDb — 91% on RT

Safety Not Guaranteed is a comedy romance film centering on three magazine staffers who go out to interview a strange man who's looking for a partner for his upcoming time travel mission. They think it's all a joke, but the truth slowly shows itself to be something more.

While the actual act of time traveling doesn't play a huge role, Safety Not Guaranteed is a must-watch for anyone who's looking for a heartfelt drama that's well-written and infused with depth by a solid cast.

17. Triangle (2009)

Directed by Christopher Smith

Starring Melissa George, Joshua McIvor, Jack Taylor

Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi (1h 39m)

6.9 on IMDb — 80% on RT

In the wake of a yachting accident, a group of friends are rescued by what appears to be a mysteriously empty cruise ship. As they further explore the ship's interior, they encounter horrors unknown.

Again, well-done science fiction horror films are hard to come by, and Triangle stands out for its premise and execution, particularly in how time travel is revealed and incorporated. There's nothing groundbreaking here, but it's certainly interesting and memorable.

16. The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)

Directed by Robert Schwentke

Starring Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, Ron Livingston

7.1 on IMDb — 39% on RT

In The Time Traveler's Wife , Henry is a man who has a genetic anomaly that causes him to time travel. The thing is, he can't control when or where he travels to, and thus struggles to keep his marriage alive.

Based on the novel by the same name, The Time Traveler's Wife may not be able to capture the full magic that made the book so great—there's just too much content to fit into one movie—but it's still a stirring romantic drama with several twists and moving moments.

15. Timecrimes (2007)

Directed by Nacho Vigalondo

Starring Karra Elejalde, Candela Fernández, Bárbara Goenaga

Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi (1h 32m)

7.1 on IMDb — 90% on RT

In the Spanish-language Timecrimes , an average man accidentally travels back in time one hour, unleashing a series of disastrous events. That's all you really want to know about this film before diving in.

More to the tune of mystery than action, Timecrimes is a flawless example of a "What actually happened?" narrative that asks you to puzzle things together as events unfold before you. The twists are plentiful here.

14. Palm Springs (2020)

Directed by Max Barbakow

Starring Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, J. K. Simmons

Comedy, Fantasy, Mystery (1h 30m)

7.4 on IMDb — 94% on RT

Palm Springs takes place at a wedding in Palm Springs, California. Two guests inadvertently get stuck in a time loop, reliving the same exact wedding day over and over, and try to find a way to escape.

The premise may not seem like anything special, but the performances by Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti elevate this film to new heights. Infused with comedy, drama, and romance, Palm Springs makes full use of its time loop situation to tell an impactful story.

13. Predestination (2014)

Directed by Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig

Starring Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook, Noah Taylor

Action, Drama, Sci-Fi (1h 37m)

7.4 on IMDb — 84% on RT

A time-traveling agent's final assignment is to track down the one criminal who he's never been able to capture. But the further down the rabbit hole he goes, the more mind-bending the truths become.

Predestination isn't just a time travel film. What sets this film apart from most sci-fi movies is how deftly it handles its deeper themes, how deep it's willing to go with its characters, and how expertly the narrative unfolds. It's truly one of the most complex time travel movies ever made.

12. The Butterfly Effect (2004)

Directed by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber

Starring Ashton Kutcher, Amy Smart, Melora Walters

Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller (1h 53m)

7.6 on IMDb — 34% on RT

A man discovers he has the ability to change the present by traveling back into the mind of his younger self, but around every corner await unintended consequences.

You've heard of "the butterfly effect" before, and The Butterfly Effect effectively takes that concept and turns it into a dark thriller. Ashton Kutcher stars in this film against type and delivers a surprisingly great performance in this gripping film about regret and control.

11. About Time (2013)

Directed by Richard Curtis

Starring Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy

Comedy, Drama, Fantasy (2h 3m)

7.8 on IMDb — 70% on RT

A man who can travel through time decides to use his power to woo the girl of his dreams, but things aren't as easy as they seem—and the limits of his power cause him to make a tough and important decision.

With Domhnall Gleeson and Rachel McAdams taking the lead, About Time ends up being a romantic comedy that's far better than it has any right to be, complete with a superbly moving ending that's completely earned.

10. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)

Directed by Alfonso Cuarón

Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint

Adventure, Family, Fantasy (2h 22m)

7.9 on IMDb — 90% on RT

It's Harry Potter's third year at Hogwarts and this time Lord Voldemort isn't his main concern. Instead, Sirius Black—the one who was suspected as betraying his parents—has escaped from Azkaban Prison and rumor has it that he's coming to finish Harry off.

Often praised as the best film in the Harry Potter franchise—thanks to impeccable direction by Alfonso Cuaron— The Prisoner of Azkaban isn't just a standout for its time travel subplot but also for its cohesive narrative that combines numerous themes with stellar cinematography.

9. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

Directed by Doug Liman

Starring Tom Cruise, Emily Blunt, Bill Paxton

Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi (1h 53m)

7.9 on IMDb — 91% on RT

In the face of an alien invasion, a soldier somehow ends up reliving the same day over and over every time he dies. He must somehow use this to his advantage and defeat the invading aliens while also finding a way to escape the endless loop in which he's trapped.

As far as time loop movies go, Edge of Tomorrow is one of the better executed ones. Not only is the tight story well-paced, but stars Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt put in excellent performances that carry the narrative forward from start to finish.

8. The Man From Earth (2007)

Directed by Richard Schenkman

Starring David Lee Smith, Tony Todd, John Billingsley

Drama, Fantasy, Mystery (1h 27m)

7.8 on IMDb — 100% on RT

During a retirement party, an aging professor reveals that he's been alive longer than his colleagues can imagine.

The Man From Earth is best described as a "play caught on camera," delivering an engaging mystery that's built on the foundation of an interesting thought experiment.

Not many dialogue-only films are this riveting, which is why you should definitely give this one a watch.

7. Arrival (2016)

Directed by Denis Villeneuve

Starring Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker

Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi (1h 56m)

7.9 on IMDb — 94% on RT

When aliens arrive on Earth, a linguist is brought to the frontlines to decipher their language and establish communications.

Easily one of the most cerebral science fiction movies ever made, Arrival takes things to the next level by exploring deep themes and ideas that few other films have dared to touch. You won't ever forget this one.

6. 12 Monkeys (1995)

Directed by Terry Gilliam

Starring Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt

Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller (2h 9m)

8.0 on IMDb — 88% on RT

In the year 2035, a convict is sent back in time to 1996 with one mission: to investigate the cause of a man-made virus that decimated the world. But his mission is sidetracked when he's sent back to the wrong time period and ends up in a mental hospital.

Featuring one of Bruce Willis's best performances, 12 Monkeys starts off slow but ends with a bang. There's a lot to love about this mind-bending movie if you can get through the slow but necessary setup.

5. Donnie Darko (2001)

Directed by Richard Kelly

Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Jena Malone, Mary McDonnell

Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi (1h 53m)

8.0 on IMDb — 87% on RT

A high schooler begins to see visions of a man in a deranged bunny suit who warns him that the world is going to end in a few days—and convinces him to commit all sorts of crimes and unsavory deeds to prevent the oncoming apocalypse.

Donnie Darko is a strange film with time travel elements that aren't as overt as in other time travel films. But if you're itching for a uniquely surreal film experience, it doesn't get much weirder than Donnie Darko .

4. Groundhog Day (1993)

Directed by Harold Ramis

Starring Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott

Comedy, Drama, Fantasy (1h 41m)

8.0 on IMDb — 94% on RT

An insufferable weatherman finds himself caught in a time loop, reliving the same mundane day over and over again with seemingly no way out of it—and after thousands of repeats, it starts to take its toll on him.

Groundhog Day is a hilarious comedy that's also surprisingly deep if you're willing to unpack it, acting as a lesson in what really brings about happiness and self-improvement. If you're a fan of Bill Murray and haven't seen this yet, what have you been waiting for?!

3. Your Name (2016)

Directed by Makoto Shinkai

Starring Michael Sinterniklaas, Stephanie Sheh, Kyle Hebert

Animation, Drama, Fantasy (1h 46m)

8.4 on IMDb — 98% on RT

One day, a high school boy in Tokyo and a high school girl in the countryside start swapping bodies, seemingly at random but only when they go to sleep. But then the swapping stops. The boy is compelled to find the girl, but investigating leads to a heartbreaking answer.

Your Name isn't just one of the best animated movies of all time, nor simply one of the best Japanese movies of all time, but one of the best, period. It's incredibly heartfelt with a climax that'll hit you in the gut.

2. Back to the Future (1985)

Directed by Robert Zemeckis

Starring Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson

Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi (1h 56m)

8.5 on IMDb — 93% on RT

A teenage boy from 1985 accidentally goes back in time thirty years with his mad scientist friend. Not only does he need to find a way home, but he accidentally puts his own existence in danger and must make sure his future parents end up falling in love.

Back to the Future is a classic time travel movie and you owe it to yourself to make it the next movie you watch if you've never seen it. Look past the 1980s cheesiness and you'll see an engaging story beneath it all.

1. Interstellar (2014)

Directed by Christopher Nolan

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain

Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi (2h 49m)

8.7 on IMDb — 73% on RT

With Earth on the brink of extinction, a team of astronauts must travel through a wormhole to find a new planet for humans to colonize. But journeying through outer space comes with all kinds of complications, and finding a habitable planet isn't going to be so easy.

For all its flaws, Interstellar packs a thrilling story on top of dazzling visuals and one of the most moving soundtracks of any film, period. This is the kind of film that'll have you thinking long after the credits roll, and for many reasons beyond just time travel.

The 20 Best Time Travel Movies to Stream Right Now (That Aren’t ‘Back to the Future’)

Ask anyone about the best time travel movies of all time and, nine times out of ten, they’ll instantly mention the 1985 classic, Back the Future . And with good reason. Considered one of the best films ever made, this sci-fi flick paved the way for countless other time travel films that followed. But as much as we do enjoy following Marty McFly’s adventures with Doc, there are other great time travel flicks that deserve our attention, from Somewhere in Time to The Butterfly Effect .

Whether you’re looking for new titles that explore different time travel theories or you’re just in the mood for a good fantasy, here are 20 other stellar time travel films you can stream right now.

This Fantasy Adventure Series Quickly Jumped to the #1 Spot on Netflix

1. ‘tenet’ (2020)

John David Washington stars as a skilled CIA agent who can manipulate time in this fast-paced sci-fi thriller. Throughout the film, we follow the agent as he attempts to protect the world from future threats that want to destroy it. The film was directed by Christopher Nolan, best known for Memento and Inception , so prepare to be wowed.

2. ‘déjà Vu’ (2006)

As if we needed any more proof that talent runs in the Washington family, Denzel Washington gives a noteworthy performance in this action film, which follows an ATF agent who travels back in time to stop a domestic terrorist attack and save the woman he loves. Sit back and prepare to be amazed, thanks in no small part to other stellar performances from Paula Patton, Val Kilmer, Erika Alexander and Elle Fanning.

3. ‘will You Be There?’ (2016)

This South Korean fantasy revolves around a surgeon who doesn't have much time left to live because of his deteriorating health. His dying wish? To be able to see his true love, who passed away 30 years ago. Fortunately for him, he receives 10 pills that allows him to travel back in time.

4. ‘24’ (2016)

When Sethuraman (Suriya), a brilliant scientist, invents a watch that allows people to time travel, his evil twin brother wastes no time in trying to get his hands on it. When it falls into the hands of Sethuraman’s son, Mani (Suriya), he has no choice but to go up against his devious uncle. Expect a whole lot of action sequences (and a few musical numbers too!).

5. ‘interstellar’ (2014)

To be fair, this one feels more like a sci-fi space movie, but it does have some time travel elements and viewers will be blown away by the thrilling scenes and thought-provoking plot. Set in the year 2067, where humanity is struggling to survive, Interstellar tells the story of a group of volunteers who travel through a wormhole near Saturn, hoping to find a safer world in a distant galaxy. The star-studded cast includes Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Matt Damon.

6. ‘12 Monkeys’ (1995)

Nearly four decades after a deadly virus gets released, destroying nearly all of humankind, James Cole (Bruce Willis), a criminal from the future, is chosen to travel back in time and help scientists create a cure. Inspired by Chris Marker's 1962 short film, La Jetée , the movie also stars Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt and Christopher Plummer.

7. ‘your Name’ (2016)

Yes, anime time travel films are definitely worth your while if you're really into this concept. Your Name (also called Kimi no na wa ) is about two teenagers in Japan who discover that they're connected to one another in the most bizarre way. We won’t spoil it by giving too many details away, but if you need more reason to watch: It currently holds a perfect five-star rating from more that 15,000 viewers on Amazon Prime.

8. 'donnie Darko’ (2001)

Fair warning, you'll probably never look at rabbits the same way after you see this. The cult classic follows a troubled, sleepwalking teenager who barely escapes a jet engine crashing into his room. But after the accident, he has several visions of a creepy, giant rabbit who claims to be from the future and reveals that the world will end soon.

9. ‘the Call’ (2020)

Psychological thriller meets time travel in this haunting South Korean film, which centers on two women from completely different time periods who connect through a single phone call.

10. ‘41’ (2012)

In this remixed version of The Butterfly Effect , a man stumbles upon a hole in the ground that takes him back to the previous day. Not many are familiar with this low-budget indie film, but it’s a fun watch for anyone who genuinely enjoys exploring time travel theories.

11. ‘mirage’ (2018)

In this two-hour feature, Vera Roy (Adriana Ugarte) manages to save the life of a boy 25 years in the past, but she winds up losing her daughter in the process. Can she get her child back?

12. ‘somewhere In Time’ (1980)

It's smart, it's charming and it's required viewing for literally anyone who enjoys a passionate romance. Christopher Reeve plays Richard Collier, a writer who’s so smitten by a vintage photo that he travels back in time (through self-hypnosis!) to meet the woman in it. Unfortunately for him, striking up a romance isn’t as easy with her manager around.

13. ‘don't Let Go’ (2019)

OK, so this is technically more of a murder mystery, but it weaves in the time travel concept so well. Selma star David Oyelowo plays Detective Jack Radcliff, who's stunned to receive a call from his murdered niece, Ashley (Storm Reid). Will this mysterious new connection help him figure out who murdered her?

14. ‘timecrimes’ (2007)

A testament to how messy and complicated time travel can be, Timecrimes follows a middle-aged man named Héctor (Karra Elejalde), who accidentally travels back an hour in time while trying to escape an attacker.

15. ‘about Time’ (2013)

When Tim discovers that the men in his family share a special gift—the ability to time travel— he decides to use the ability to his advantage by going back in time and getting the girl of his dreams. This comedy will have you cackling all the way through.

16. ‘the Infinite Man’ (2014)

Josh McConville is Dean, a clever scientist who tries to relive a romantic weekend with his girlfriend, Lana (Hannah Marshall). When Lana's ex-boyfriend shows up and ruins the mood, Dean attempts to fix this by going back in time, but things don’t go according to plan...

17. ‘the Butterfly Effect’ (2004)

The Butterfly Effect brilliantly explores the concept where the smallest change can trigger a series of events and lead to much bigger consequences. Evan Treborn (Ashton Kutcher), who experienced a number of blackouts throughout his childhood, realizes that he can travel back in time by revisiting those same moments. Naturally, he tries to fix everything that went wrong, but this plan backfires.

18. ‘the Girl Who Leapt Through Time’ (2006)

Inspired by Yasutaka Tsutsui's novel of the same name, the film follows a high school girl who uses her newfound ability to time travel for her own gain. But when she sees the negative impact that this has on those around her, she's determined to make things right. Not only is it filled with lovable characters, but it also tackles themes like bullying, friendship and self-awareness.

19. ‘primer’ (2004)

Although this film was made on a small budget (just $7,000), Primer is one of the smartest and most thought-provoking time travel films you’ll ever see. Two engineers, Aaron (Shane Carruth) and Abe (David Sullivan), accidentally invent a time machine, causing them to experiment with a technology that allows humans to time travel. However, it’s only a matter of time before they realize the consequences of their actions.

20. ‘the Time Machine’ (1960)

Based on H. G. Wells's novella of the same title, this Oscar-winning film follows George Wells (Rod Taylor), an inventor who builds a time machine and journeys hundreds of years into the future. Definitely a must-watch for any time-travel fanatic.

The 50 Best Movies on HBO Max

Associate Editor, News and Entertainment

50 Best Space Movies Of All Time Ranked

Space is the final frontier, and, of course, the place where no one can hear you scream. As a setting for movies, space has provided endless opportunities for incredible films, ones that showcase humanity's fascination with places unknown, epic journeys, weird and wonderful creatures, and alien technology. Sitting within the realm of science fiction, it's a subgenre that continues to surprise and delight audiences.

As few of us will be able to experience the wonders of space for ourselves, movies are the thing that can transport us there. Some convey the awe and wonder of other worlds and planets, whereas others take a distinctly darker approach, portraying space as something to be feared, full of things that humans should perhaps not meddle with.

From a 1902 silent film about the moon to modern planet-hopping blockbuster behemoths, the genre has something to offer everyone, with possibilities almost as vast as the universe itself. While many of these films focus on people traveling to other planets –- both real and fictional –- or visitors from other worlds coming to Earth, others are much more grounded in reality, taking inspiration from real-life events and space missions. With a whole galaxy of films to choose from, these are the very best space movies. (Warning: There are spoilers below.)

Updated on July 6, 2022 : Space stretches on forever, which means there's plenty of room for more space movies. As otherworldly films take their place in the cosmos, we'll be sure to add any instant classics to our list.

50. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Based on the book of the same name by Douglas Adams, this 2005 film adaptation of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" certainly retains the offbeat (and very British) humor of the source material and boasts a starry cast that includes Martin Freeman, Zooey Deschanel, Bill Nighy, Sam Rockwell, and Stephen Fry, to name but a few. 

The film's hero is Arthur Dent (Freeman), who finds himself whisked away from Earth when an alien construction crew invades. At times, the film feels a little like a fever dream, and those unfamiliar with the tone of Adam's book may find themselves alienated by how madcap it feels. However, if you're a fan of stuff like "Monty Python," this film is a real treat and a palette cleanser to some of the more serious space movie offerings. As Peter Travers in his review for Rolling Stone puts it, "Adams would be pleased."

49. Elysium

Following the incredible "District 9" was no easy feat for director Neill Blomkamp, and while "Elysium" doesn't reach the heights of that film, it's still one that's worth a watch. "Elysium" continues some of the themes set out in Blomkamp's previous movie, particularly examining the idea of class inequality. Set in the year 2154, there are vast wealth divisions in humanity, with the mega-rich living on a luxury space station called Elysium and the rest living hand-to-mouth in what remains of the Earth. The future hangs in the balance as Max Da Costa (Matt Damon) seeks to bring equality between the groups, but Secretary Delacourt (Jodie Foster) stands in his way as she endeavors to protect the prosperous population of Elysium.

While the film performed well at the box office , Blomkamp himself had some regrets about its script, saying, "I just didn't make a good enough film is ultimately what it is" ( via Uproxx ). However, we think the guy is being a little hard on himself. After all, it was well-received by critics, including Amon Warmann for CineVue , who called it "one of those rare blockbusters that manages to be entertaining while also having something relevant to say."

48. Armageddon

It may have been critically panned, but "Armageddon" taps into exactly what makes space movies so entertaining, focusing on a catastrophic apocalyptic event, with Earth's only hope being a team of underdogs. When an asteroid the size of Texas is on course to destroy the world, NASA recruits a team of oil drillers to drill a hole in the asteroid and plant a bomb inside to break it apart. Heading up this team of unlikely heroes is blue-collar driller Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis), a guy who, rather than train the astronauts in how to drill, insists upon taking his own ragtag team into space to complete the mission.

Despite some scathing critic reviews — including Stephen Hunter for the Washington Post who said, "It leaves no stone unturned in its search for the perfect cliche" — the film pulled in huge numbers at the box office. Making over $553 million worldwide, "Armageddon" was the highest-grossing film of 1998 , ahead of big hitters such as "Saving Private Ryan" and Roland Emmerich's "Godzilla." And hey, it was good enough to find a place in the Criterion Collection , so it's good enough for us.

47. Europa Report

Our fascination about whether life exists on other planets is frequently the subject of movies, like this underrated 2013 film. Partially filmed in a found-footage style, "Europa Report" follows a group of astronauts as they embark on a mission to Europa –- one of the moons of Jupiter –- to search for signs of life. Using this filming technique helps to ground the film in a strikingly realistic way, as well as adding to the claustrophobic and tense atmosphere.

Space movies aren't often praised for their sense of realism, but "Europa Report" was an exception to this, with Space.com saying it "just might be the most realistic — and harrowing — depiction of space travel on the big screen in years." Without a major distributor behind it, the film had a limited release and even more limited box office takings, but it boasts an impressive 'fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics such as Michael D. Lemonick for Time calling it "brisk, thrilling and ultimately terrifying."

46. Serenity

Despite only running for one season, Joss Whedon's sci-fi series "Firefly" proved to be a huge cult hit, with a passionate fanbase who are still calling for its return. While Whedon might not have been able to get another season off the ground, he did manage to get the backing for a feature film as a continuation of the story, and in 2005, "Serenity" was released. The film –- which also marked Whedon's feature directorial debut –- saw the cast returning for a new adventure, as the crew of the Serenity spacecraft takes on two fugitives while the ominously named "The Operative" (Chiwetel Ejiofor) pursues them.

Of course, fans of "Firefly" absolutely adored "Serenity," and it proved to be the making of Joss Whedon's directorial career (for better and for worse), as his next feature film was 2012's "The Avengers." As for the film itself, in follows in the "Firefly" mold of making space like the landscape of the Wild West — grungy, dangerous, and untamed. "Serenity" was also favorably received by critics, with Nick Funnell of Time Out saying, "The settings and tone are hyper-real, yet the human behavior is grounded and credible, the moral conflicts complex and involving."

45. Deep Impact

While "Armageddon" –- the other  space-themed disaster movie that came out in 1998 -– eventually dwarfed "Deep Impact" in terms of overall box office, "Deep Impact" is arguably the stronger film, and it had a better opening weekend to its counterpart , beating it by just over $5 million . In the movie, an 11km wide comet is on course to collide with Earth with catastrophic consequences. While a heroic team of astronauts is sent out to try and decimate the comet in orbit, the film focuses more heavily on the human impact, as those on Earth face their possible extinction.

Unlike "Armageddon," "Deep Impact" has been lauded for being a much more realistic depiction of what would happen when a comet is on a collision course with Earth. For example, n an interview with BuzzFeed , astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson praised the film, saying that it "had really good science going there."

44. Zathura: A Space Adventure

A decade after the original "Jumanji," another board game-based adventure arrived in the form of "Zathura: A Space Adventure." With a considerable advancement in special effects from its jungle-themed counterpart, "Zathura" tells the story of two brothers who are transported into space by a game that they discover in their basement. As you might expect, the film follows a lot of similar beats to "Jumanji," but it's a thrilling and fun film in its own right, with a surprisingly touching story about two bickering siblings who eventually learn how to play nice.

With competition from Disney's latest animated film "Chicken Little," and "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," "Zathura" had a disappointing turnout at the box office . Despite this, the film was well-received by critics, including Desson Thomson for the Washington Post who said it "salutes the low-tech magic that lurks inside a board game -– that hidden ability to bring people together."

43. Event Horizon

Space frequently provides a terrifying backdrop for films that finely toe the line between sci-fi and horror, and one of the most nightmare-inducing examples is 1997's "Event Horizon." When a spaceship that previously disappeared into a black hole comes back into orbit, a rescue crew is deployed to investigate, unaware that something dark and sinister has found its way on board. "Event Horizon" plays out like a haunted house movie in space, with a certain debt owed to films such as "The Shining" and "Alien" in terms of creating that feeling of paranoia and claustrophobia.

"Event Horizon" was plagued by a troubled production, and upon its release, not only was it a box office flop but it was torn apart by critics like Jonathan Rosenbaum for Chicago Reader , who called it "the pits." However, in a similar trajectory to 1982's "The Thing," it became a cult hit following its release on home video and has subsequently been re-assessed as an underrated example of the genre.

42. Mars Attacks!

With a star-studded cast and Tim Burton at the peak of his powers, "Mars Attacks!" –- the director's loving homage to sci-fi B-movies –- proved to be divisive upon its release. It is, however, a film that's improved over time, and its cutting satirical anti-establishment themes mean it's remained surprisingly relevant. 

Based on the trading card series of the same name, "Mars Attacks!" sees hordes of little green men arrive on planet Earth, while the world's assembled powers wait to see if their intentions are peaceful. Whether it is the aliens' hilarious way of speaking or the femme fatale "Martian Girl" (Lisa Marie) with her iconic bouffant blonde wig, "Mars Attacks!" is packed with moments that make it unlike any other alien invasion film you'll see.

While the unique and zany nature of the film didn't necessarily connect with American audiences , it performed much better in Europe, cementing its status as a future cult classic. The mixed reactions of cinemagoers are also reflected in the critical reception , with Empire's Mark Salisbury praising the film , calling it "giddily madcap, surreal, sardonic satire," while Peter Stack for the San Francisco Chronicle said it "blows most of its inspired moments with its mean-spirited mentality." As for us, we definitely agree with Salisbury — "Mars Attacks!' just might be Tim Burton's most underrated movie.

The story may be a familiar one –- a crew on board a spaceship finds a rapidly evolving life-form that threatens their existence –- but 2017's "Life" proves that this oft-repeated concept is still one that can draw in an audience . Largely bolstered by a starry cast that includes Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, and Ryan Reynolds, "Life" focuses on a small crew on the International Space Station who uncover evidence of life on Mars. What's particularly terrifying about this film is we see the evolution of the life form –- which our heroes name "Calvin" –- as it adapts and changes into something that doesn't just pose a threat to the crew members but to all life on Earth.

While it treads familiar ground and instantly leads to comparisons with the much superior "Alien," "Life" has some well-timed and effective moments of body horror, with a particularly bleak twist ending that will haunt you as the credits roll. As with many of the films of this ilk, the characters aren't particularly well-developed, but the concept itself is scary enough to keep your interest.

40. Independence Day

"Master of Disaster" Roland Emmerich shamelessly borrows from pretty much every other alien invasion film in existence, but there's still something unabashedly entertaining about "Independence Day." With a cast that includes '90s movie stalwarts such as Will Smith, Jeff Goldblum, and Bill Pullman, the film wears its patriotic heart on its sleeve –- the clue is in the title after all –- and for many, it has become the mainstay movie of the holiday, along with classics like "Jaws."

It may have been Steven Spielberg that invented the blockbuster with the aforementioned "Jaws," but Emmerich ushered in a new era, with movies featuring wanton destruction of major landmarks proving to be big business. Spielberg even reportedly said to Emmerich, "This movie will do more to change blockbuster summer movies than any movie before" ( via Deadline ). The numbers certainly reflect how huge "Independence Day" was, bringing in a whopping $817 million worldwide and becoming the highest-grossing film of 1996 .

39. Treasure Planet

Directors Ron Clements and Jon Musker had been floating the idea of "Treasure Island in Space" for almost two decades. While the directing duo enjoyed success in the meantime with films such as "The Little Mermaid" and "Aladdin," their passion project finally came to fruition in 2002, rebranded as "Treasure Planet." While the film was a huge flop for Disney, it's hugely imaginative and marked a big leap forward in terms of blending CGI animation techniques with the more traditional hand-drawn style.

The film focuses on Jim Hawkins (voiced by Joseph Gordon-Levitt), a rebellious teen who's bequeathed a treasure map, and along with a cyborg John Silver (Brian Murray) as his mentor, he embarks on the journey to find the hidden loot. Despite the poor box office takings, "Treasure Planet" received many positive reviews, including from critic Ed Gonzalez for Slant Magazine who said, "The film is alive with a rollicking sense of adventure." It may not match some of Disney's other films in terms of longevity, but based on sheer spectacle, it's one of the very best.

38. Contact

Movies about aliens tend to go one of three ways: over-the-top and explosive spectacle, horror and paranoia, or quiet and contemplative reflections about life on this planet. "Contact" fits into the latter, alongside films such as "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "Arrival." The film focuses on scientist Dr. Ellie Arroway (Jodie Foster), who dedicates her life to listening for signs of life from other worlds. When a coded message is received from outer space, Ellie deciphers it and discovers it reveals the schematics for a single-occupant transporter, one that will later take her face to face with the aliens that sent the message.

The thing that stands out about "Contact" is that it isn't the sort of film you might expect it to be. Like 2016's "Arrival," "Contact" examines a character's personal and emotional journey as they seek to communicate with those beyond. Set against the backdrop of space, it probes into life's big unanswered questions and the role that religion and science perhaps play in our understanding of the wider universe. It's an undoubtedly powerful film and a truly underrated example of the genre.

37. Starship Troopers

Set in the 23rd century, "Starship Troopers" sees humanity locked in a brutal battle against giant alien bugs. And as this entertaining cult classic comes from director Paul Verhoeven ("RoboCop," "Total Recall"), you know it's going to be a truly wild ride. As well as some brilliantly brutal battle scenes, "Starship Troopers" satirizes extreme militarism through the bombastic, overly nationalistic propaganda news reports.

As is often the case with satire, "Starship Troopers" wasn't particularly well-received by critics when it was released. However, more recent reappraisals have seen a new appreciation for some of the film's evergreen themes and its biting wit. Writing for The Atlantic , Calum Marsh said, "If you're open and attuned to it ... you'll get the joke 'Starship Troopers' is telling. And you'll laugh." Slant Magazine also chimed in with the praise, labeling Verhoeven's misunderstood gem as "one of the greatest of all anti-imperialist films."

36. The Fifth Element

While they may not be the most practical fashion choices, '90s sci-fi films were almost unbeatable when it came to iconic looks, and just two years before Neo's long black coat made waves in "The Matrix," there was Milla Jovovich as Leeloo in her unforgettable "thermal bandages" in Luc Besson's ambitious 1997 film, "The Fifth Element." Beginning in Egypt in 1914 and rocketing ahead 300 years to a futuristic New York, the film sees Leeloo join forces with an unsuspecting cab driver, Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis), to protect the world from the Great Evil –- a giant sentient burning space sphere –- and the ruthless Zorg (Gary Oldman).

The film proved to be polarizing among critics when it opened the Cannes Film Festival, with Roger Ebert for the Chicago Sun-Times calling it "one of the great goofy movies," while Todd McCarthy for Variety said it was "ultimately a mess of diverse ingredients that sorely could have used a rigorous screening process to eliminate all the chaff." There's a strong argument on both sides for why this film could fall under the "so bad it's good category," but it is certainly one that needs to be experienced.

35. Silent Running

The theme of environmentalism crops up in space movies perhaps more often than you might think, and the idea that the fragility of life and Earth's ecosystem can so easily be disrupted by a catastrophic global event provides the perfect framing for a story. It's something that seems distant yet also completely possible — and certainly more believable than alien invaders. This idea is explored in 1972's "Silent Running," where ecologist and botanist Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern) tends to what remains of Earth's plant life, now preserved in enormous domes in space.

With a scaled-back cast, the focus of the film is on the character of Lowell and his particularly charming relationship with two robots, Dewey and Louie. It wears its eco themes on its sleeve, yet it never feels condescending or preachy, and the influence of "Silent Running" is particularly clear in Pixar's "WALL-E," which came more than 35 years later. It isn't as flashy as a lot of other space films, and it lacks the technical prowess of films such as "2001: A Space Odyssey," but there's an undeniable charm to "Silent Running" and a potency to its themes that seems to become more and more relevant over time.

34. Prometheus

The sequels to 1979 classic "Alien" have varied in terms of quality, but one that was favorably received was 2012's "Prometheus." Serving as an origin story of sorts, the film sees a crew embark on a journey to the dark reaches of the universe, hoping to uncover the origins of humanity itself but instead discovering something terrifying. Seeking to answer some of the questions from "Alien" while still retaining enough suspense to keep things interesting, "Prometheus" works as both a highly effective prequel and an entertaining sci-fi horror film that's capable of standing on its own merit.

While it slots neatly into the timeline of the other films in the franchise, "Prometheus" has its own mythology, and it draws its thematic exploration of humanity's relationship with its creators from the Greek Titan that gives the film its name. Utilizing the body horror and well-executed scares that made the original film so iconic, "Prometheus" is a more than worthy inclusion in the franchise.

33. War of the Worlds

It may be a story that's been told over and over again, but Steven Spielberg's adaptation of the H.G. Wells classic retains the sense of paranoia and uncertainty from the source material while also delivering a fresh take in terms of action movie thrills and sheer drama. The destructive capabilities of the imposing alien structures are seen through the eyes of everyman Ray Ferrier (Tom Cruise), who desperately tries to save his family from the threat.

Spielberg's previous dalliances with aliens in his films saw them depicted as passive and communicative in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and even downright lovable in "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial." It's particularly thrilling therefore to see him focus on a more powerful and violent alien race, while never losing the emotional resonance that made the aforementioned films so memorable. Speaking about his approach to the film, Spielberg said, "I wanted this to be a very personal story about a family fleeing for its life. And a father trying to protect his two kids" ( via USA Today ). With heart and undeniable spectacle, "War of the Worlds" proves once again that no one does it better than the man who invented the blockbuster.

32. Sunshine

The rug-pull of Danny Boyle's "Sunshine" from a relatively straightforward sci-fi epic to a slasher film in space is the thing that elevates it above other similar offerings, and it remains one of the best examples of genre-bending in cinema. The film is set in the year 2057, where the Earth is freezing due to the sun dying, and a group of astronauts is tasked with re-igniting the star and saving the world. While the "mission to save humanity" aspect of "Sunshine" is familiar, the turn that the film takes is what sets it apart.

This duality to the film was also something that turned some critics off, as they found the tonal shift jarring. San Francisco Chronicle critic Mick Lasalle  was particularly scathing, opening his review by saying, "After watching it for 20 minutes, you really don't care if the sun is cooling and all human life is doomed to destruction. Actually, it sounds like a great idea –- anything to end the movie." While the film may have been a difficult sell at the time –- something reflected in the box office takings –- the audacity of Boyle to make a film that sits closer to "2001: A Space Odyssey" than it does "Armageddon" has to be commended.

31. Super 8

This 2011 thriller from director J.J. Abrams lovingly pays tribute to nostalgic classics such as "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" and "Stand by Me," while also being a celebration of the art of moviemaking in itself. In the film, a group of friends are shooting their own zombie movie when they witness a horrific train crash and an alien creature emerging from the chaos. While the action in "Super 8" may take place on Earth, the focus is on the alien invaders and particularly how this is seen through young eyes.

With excellent performances from Elle Fanning and Joel Courtney in particular, "Super 8" evokes the feeling of some of Steven Spielberg's early work, (the director has a producer credit for this film) giving equal importance to blockbuster spectacle and genuine heart and warmth. The film proved to be a surprise commercial success, making over $260 million at the box office, and was praised by critics, including Total Film critic Jamie Graham who remarked, "Only a young Spielberg at the top of his game could beat it."

30. Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood

Few directors capture a moment in time as well as Richard Linklater, and in this charming animated film, he turns his attention to 1969's moon landing. Like most people of the time, Stanley (Milo Coy and Jack Black) is caught up in Apollo fever, and fantasizes about being trained by NASA for a secret lunar visit. Memories of his Houston childhood intertwine with his fanciful dreams of becoming a pint-sized astronaut, tied together by Jack Black's warm narration.

Stan's space adventures might be pure fantasy, but "Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood" taps into the very real wonder of space and this moment in time, which brought so many cultural and scientific possibilities to light. What results is a deeply personal, totally relatable, and wholly different space movie which speaks to universal fascination with worlds beyond our own and all that humanity might achieve.

29. Total Recall

From Paul Verhoeven, the director of "RoboCop" and "Starship Troopers," "Total Recall" is another brain-busting, brutal sci-fi epic. Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a construction worker Douglas Quaid, who decides to have a virtual vacation to Mars by visiting the company "Rekall" -– a corporation that plants false memories into people. However, all does not go to plan, and Quaid discovers life as he knows it is false, and the people who put his memories there want him dead.

Based on the short story "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale" by Philip K. Dick, the film explores the themes of memory and identity and –- as all of the best sci-fi films tend to do –- leaves the audience with more questions than answers. The movie's ambiguous ending leaves us wondering if what we've seen is real or not, and this is just one of the many things that give the film its staying power. In the '80s and '90s, Schwarzenegger was one of the most bankable box office stars, and this was reflected in the numbers for "Total Recall," making an impressive $261 million worldwide.

28. Planet of the Apes (1968)

Not to be confused with the much-maligned remake , the 1968 version of "Planet of the Apes" stars Charlton Heston and sees a team of astronauts crash-landing on what appears to be a desolate planet. However, they soon discover a society of highly intelligent apes ... who've assumed dominance over the humans that also live there. With people at the mercy of their new ape overlords, the film offers a chilling vision of a future as the humans' fight to survive and escape. And without saying too much for those who've avoided spoilers, the film's now-iconic ending is one of the best movie moments of all time.

Critically acclaimed when it was released, "Planet of the Apes" was also nominated for two Oscars for Costume Design and Best Original Score, and it won an honorary award for John Chambers for Outstanding Make-up Achievement. The legacy and impact of the film were also recognized in 2001 when it was one of the 25 films inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress .

27. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Widely considered by many as the best "Star Trek" movie , 1982's "The Wrath of Khan" is also one of the rare movie sequels that manages to surpass the original. Retaining the spirit –- and the cast –- of the '60s TV show, "The Wrath of Khan" sees the return of an old nemesis who's escaped from exile to get revenge on Kirk (William Shatner). Previously appearing in "Space Seed" -– the 22nd episode of the first season of the original series –- Ricardo Montalbán reprises his role as the legendary villain Khan Noonien Singh. 

"The Wrath of Khan" saw a huge departure from 1979's slow-moving "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," which had not been well-received , and marked the beginning of a quasi-trilogy that concluded with 1986's "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home." The decision to make "The Wrath of Khan" more in tune with what made the original series so popular undoubtedly worked, and the film opened to a positive critical response and an impressive box office, earning $95 million worldwide. In a retrospective review for Empire, critic Angie Errigo credited "The Wrath of Khan" with being the film "that put the franchise on the right track."

26. First Man

Following up the multi-award-winning "La La Land" was no easy feat for Damien Chazelle, who became the youngest person to pick up the Best Director Oscar in the process. Before "First Man" in 2018, all of his films had also had a connection to music, but his biopic of astronaut Neil Armstrong saw him blasting off in a completely different direction. Chazelle's camera expertly captures the awe and quiet majesty of space, as well as the frightening, shaky, deafening realism of being an astronaut, putting us right in the throes of Armstrong and his colleagues. At the same time, it also zeroes in on Armstrong's very personal story, outside of the achievements everyone recognizes him for.

Neil Armstrong -– beautifully portrayed by Ryan Gosling –- is grief-stricken following the loss of his daughter, and this is something he carries with him to those memorable first steps. The film may not have enjoyed the same success that "La La Land" did, but critics raved about it, including Owen Gleiberman for Variety , who called it "revelatory in its realism, so gritty in its physicality, that it becomes a drama of hellbent danger and obsession."

25. Dune (2021)

Before adapting Frank Herbert's seminal sci-fi novel, director Denis Villeneuve had proven his credentials in the genre with "Arrival" and "Blade Runner 2049," making him more than qualified to tackle the gargantuan story –- previously adapted for the big screen by David Lynch in 1984. While 2021's "Dune" only tells half of the story -– the sequel is poised for release in 2023 –- it does a remarkable job of establishing the unique desert world of Arrakis and the importance of the central hero, Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet).

Paul is the heir to the noble House of Atreides, who's thrown into an interplanetary war centered around Arrakis –- the only place where the precious resource known as "spice" can be found. The scope of "Dune" is undoubtedly huge, and while the world-building is a little dizzying at times, the visual spectacle more than makes up for the dense plot. "Dune" proved to be a big box office success, making just shy of $400 million off a budget of $165 million, all while during the COVID-19 pandemic and as the film was simultaneously released on HBO Max. In other words, it's incredibly impressive that it only narrowly missing out on being in the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2021.

24. Ad Astra

Directed by James Gray, 2019's "Ad Astra" sees astronaut Roy McBride (Brad Pitt) embarking on a personal mission across the universe to investigate the source of mysterious power surges that are seemingly linked to the "Lima Project" –- started by his father almost 30 years previously to find intelligent life. While the title, which translates as "to the stars" in Latin, might suggest that the film is about an epic journey through space, it's instead about a much more internal and human journey, focusing on a man reconciling with his absent dad.

The tone of the film perhaps might've surprised some people, and while it hit the right notes critically, the moviegoing public wasn't so taken with it, resulting in a big discrepancy between the critic and audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes . However,  Peter Travers for Rolling Stone spoke particularly favorably about "Ad Astra," saying it has "a grand scope and intimate sense of empathy that is nothing less than enthralling."

Son of the "Starman" David Bowie himself, Duncan Jones made an instant impression on the film world with his impressive debut movie, "Moon," in 2009. Sam Rockwell stars as Sam Bell, a solitary astronaut working on the moon, with Kevin Spacey as the voice of his robot companion GERTY. Along with the astonishing practical effects and a haunting score from Clint Mansell, "Moon" is notable for effectively conveying the loneliness of space. Its focus on the "one man and his robot story" evokes the feeling of films such as "Silent Running," and the calming tones of GERTY call to mind the infamous HAL 9000 from "2001: A Space Odyssey."

While inspired by these space movie greats, "Moon" succeeds in its own way, anchored by a superb performance by Sam Rockwell, whom Jones wrote the part for . With a modest budget of just $5 million , it also proved that a highly effective and emotionally driven space film could be created without the need for a large ensemble cast or expensive special effects, and critic Roger Ebert called it "a superior example of that threatened genre, hard science-fiction."

22. A Trip to the Moon

The oldest film on the list by quite some way, 1902 French silent film, "Le Voyage dans la Lune" ("A Trip to the Moon") is considered by many to be the earliest science fiction film, and it remains one of the most singularly influential pieces of filmmaking to date. 

In part inspired by the writings of Jules Verne, Georges Méliès' 13-minute film sees a group of astronomers who launch themselves at the moon. The anthropomorphization of the moon and the iconic shot of the astronomer's capsule hitting him directly in the eye is perhaps the image most people associate with this film. It also appears to have provided direct inspiration for the character of "the Moon" in surreal British comedy series  "The Mighty Boosh," as well as appearing in Martin Scorsese's "Hugo."

The narrative may be simple, but the film's groundbreaking special effect techniques and its commitment to pure out-of-this-world fantasy are what we have to thank for the array of science fiction films we have today. In the book "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die," Chiara Ferrari says that the film "deserves a legitimate place among the milestones in world cinema history."

21. Galaxy Quest

While many space films bear a resemblance to their counterparts, "Galaxy Quest" wears its identity of a loving and hilarious pastiche of "Star Trek" proudly. In this meta sci-fi comedy, the cast of the canceled fictional TV show "Galaxy Quest" find themselves in a real intergalactic adventure when some visiting aliens believe their show is a documentary. "Galaxy Quest" is so closely aligned with "Star Trek" that in 2013, Trekkies voted it as one of the best "Star Trek movies, with IGN commenting , "While not technically a 'Star Trek' movie, one can certainly see how it could make the cut. It's more 'Star Trek' than a couple of the actual 'Star Trek' movies even."

With references to other movies such as "The Day The Earth Stood Still" and "Event Horizon," the film became a cult classic amongst sci-fi fans, making around $90 million at the box office . "Galaxy Quest" also received favorable reviews from critics including Joe Leydon for Variety , who said the film "remains light and bright as it races along, and never turns nasty or mean-spirited as it satirizes the cliches and cults of 'Star Trek.'"

20. The Martian

Stranded on the red planet, alone and with dwindling resources, botanist Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is forced to use all of his skills to survive while those back on Earth try to figure out a way they can bring him home. Grounded by a superb performance by Matt Damon , "The Martian" showcases the unshakable strength of the human spirit as we see Watney –- through a series of video diaries –- work out how to grow food, travel, and communicate with the limited things available to him on Mars.

What's perhaps surprising about "The Martian" is how funny it is. Experiencing the film largely through these diary entries allows the audience into the headspace of Watney, a character whose dry sense of humor makes him distinctly likable and engaging, with much of the film's focus on his solo survival mission. As well as being a hit with critics and audiences, "The Martian" also achieved recognition at the 88th Academy Awards, picking up seven nominations .

19. Guardians of the Galaxy

Compared to the big-hitters of the Hulk and Captain America, this obscure gang of space misfits wasn't as well-known in the Marvel Universe, and yet their debut big-screen adventure proved to be a huge hit. The motley crew that makes up the "Guardians of the Galaxy" consists of a half-human smuggler, a raccoon-like bounty hunter, and a living humanoid tree amongst others, but there was something about the strange dynamics and the retro space-opera adventure style of the film that just seemed to click.

One of the highlights of "Guardians of the Galaxy" was the killer soundtrack –- almost a character in its own right within the film and the perfect accompaniment to its offbeat tone. With its unique blend of zany humor and fun action set pieces, the Guardians easily slotted into the MCU, providing a refreshing palate cleanser for some of the more serious superheroes. As is to be expected with most Marvel films, "Guardians of the Galaxy" was a huge box office success , making more than $773 million worldwide and spawning a number of sequels and appearances for the characters in the wider MCU.

18. Solaris (1972)

Far superior to the 2002 Hollywood remake directed by Steven Soderbergh , the 1972 version of "Solaris" directed by Andrei Tarkovsky remains a benchmark of the sci-fi genre and one of the best space movies of all time. The film focuses on Kris Kelvin (Donatas Banionis), a psychologist who's tasked with exploring a space station above the planet Solaris and assessing the remaining crew members who've started to display erratic behavior.

While "Solaris" is frequently compared with "2001: A Space Odyssey –- with the two films being just four years apart –- there are vast differences between them, with "Solaris" favoring a more emotional and human approach. The film expertly tackles themes such as grief, loss, memory, and the nature of what it means to exist. This thematic existentialism, set against the backdrop of space, is somehow even more potent, and Tarkovsky masterfully directs his film with the time set aside to contemplate its weighty themes. The pace is slow, and while this may prove frustrating for some, if you have the patience for "Solaris," it's an incredibly rewarding experience.

17. Thor: Ragnarok

While you could make the case for any of Thor's big-screen adventures being included in this list, the spaciest of them all is undoubtedly "Thor: Ragnarok." With director Taika Waititi at the helm, "Thor: Ragnarok" seems to take its cues from "Guardians of the Galaxy" and successfully conveys the goofiness of the character. In a severe turn from the almost Shakespearean seriousness of the previous two "Thor" films, Waititi instead leans into the weirdness, and the result is a highly entertaining superhero flick.

Most of the film takes place on the planet Sakaar, where Thor (Chris Hemsworth) crash-lands after the arrival of his malevolent sister, Hela (Cate Blanchett), who quickly assumes power over Asgard. Described as a "garbage planet," Sakaar is ruled by the eccentric Grandmaster (the incomparable Jeff Goldblum), who forces Thor to compete in his Contest of Champions to earn his freedom. The change of direction from Waititi proved to be a hit with critics, including Sheri Linden for The Hollywood Reporter , who called it "engaging enough to hold the attention of even those uninitiated in the lore of the Nine Realms."

16. Hidden Figures

While almost none of this film takes place in space, it does however focus on the lesser-seen –- but equally important -– people working behind the scenes at NASA, who are just as deserving of the spotlight as the astronauts. The unlikely heroes at the center of "Hidden Figures" are three Black women working for NASA as mathematicians, and it's based on the book of the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly. Starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, and Janelle Monáe, the film is set in the 1960s, during the Space Race, and focuses on the women's struggles and challenges in dealing with racial and gender segregation, with every day a fight to prove themselves worthy.

"Hidden Figures" is a truly inspirational story, and while the film takes some artistic liberties with the true story , it remains a powerful tribute to these trailblazing women. The film proved to be a massive commercial success, making just under $236 million at the box office , and it was recognized at the 89th Academy Awards , with nominations for Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress (for Octavia Spencer), and Best Adapted Screenplay.

15. Arrival

With a second entry for director Denis Villeneuve, 2016's "Arrival" is a film that focuses on Earth, yet it deals with the concept of an alien invasion in a way that feels so fresh and innovative that it is absolutely worthy of a place on this list. Based on "Story of Your Life" by Ted Chiang, the film sees 12 imposing extraterrestrial structures arrive at key locations across the globe. While the towering spacecraft look threatening, there's no immediate sign of attack from whatever is on board, so linguistics expert Louise Banks (Amy Adams) is one of the people enlisted to make contact with the creatures and establish their intent.

The film is also peppered with scenes of Louise and her daughter, who tragically dies from a terminal disease. However, as the narrative progresses, it becomes evident that the events we're witnessing aren't perhaps as linear as we had been lead to believe, with the cryptic opening line "I used to think this was the beginning of your story" suggesting that time is a fluid concept within the film. "Arrival" is a very different kind of alien invasion story, with a reflective, meditative, and existential tone in place of explosions and heavy action scenes. While Amy Adams' quietly devastating performance was unfortunately overlooked by the Academy, "Arrival" did pick up eight Oscar nominations and one win for Best Achievement in Sound Editing.

14. Star Trek (2009)

Under the watchful eye of director J.J. Abrams, 2009 saw the reboot of the "Star Trek" series with this new film version. Later going on to direct two of the movies in the "Star Wars" sequel trilogy, Abrams is one of the few to have dipped a toe in both of these major sci-fi universes, although he admits he was not a "Trekkie" growing up. Speaking to The Guardian , Abrams said, "['Star Trek'] always felt like a silly, campy thing. I remember appreciating it, but feeling like I didn't get it."

What Abrams does manage with his version of "Star Trek" is to offer an entry point for complete newcomers, resetting the timeline so that the existing, complex continuity doesn't need to come into play, all while staying true to the original series and movies –- even going as far to feature legendary cast member Leonard Nimoy as Spock Prime. As Abrams himself put it in the aforementioned interview, "I was trying to make a movie, not trying to make a 'Trek' movie." In doing so, he created arguably the best "Star Trek" movie, something that was formally acknowledged at the 82nd Academy Awards where it won the Oscar for Best Achievement in Makeup –- and in doing so, becoming the first "Star Trek" movie to win a golden statue.

13. The Right Stuff

While it may take dramatic deviations from the true story that inspired it, "The Right Stuff" tells the stirring tale of the Mercury Seven, the military pilots who trained as astronauts for the first human spaceflight. These seven men had a rough and ready approach, and their daring attitudes and significance in the early stages of the Space Race led to them being treated almost like rock stars. The film also doesn't shy away from the emotional and mental toll they experienced from being willing to risk their lives and the pressures that came from being thrust into the spotlight during an event in history that was as much about politics as it was technical innovation.

It seems surprising given the subject matter, but the film was a box office flop when it came out, making just over $21 million off a budget of around $27 million. It proved to be a hit with the critics, however, with Roger Ebert giving it a perfect four-star rating and naming it as one of the very best films of the 1980s . The movie also received eight nominations at the 56th Academy Awards , winning for Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, Best Sound, and Best Sound Effects Editing.

12. Interstellar

If there's one director who can be relied upon to create a mind-blowing space epic, it's Christopher Nolan. "Interstellar" is set in a dystopian future where the crops are failing and drastic changes in the weather pose a real threat to the planet's survival. When Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) discovers some strange patterns –- which he deduces are coordinates -– in the dust in his daughter's bedroom, his life-altering journey begins. Following the coordinates, he finds Professor John Brand (Michael Caine), who heads up a secret facility trying to investigate wormholes in space that may provide the hope humanity needs to survive.

With a small crew, Cooper pilots the spacecraft Endurance to discover if a habitable planet exists beyond their own. Of course, this being a Christopher Nolan movie, there's a lot more going on besides this seemingly straightforward journey, and the film takes us to unknown dimensions and has us questioning the very nature of reality and time. Beyond the spectacle, "Interstellar" is also a highly emotional journey, with the oft-memed clip of Cooper breaking down in tears being one of the most devastating scenes in a sci-fi film. Accompanied by the unforgettable score by Hans Zimmer, "Interstellar" is a film like no other  and one that's incredibly rich in thematic content.

11. The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

Alien invasion movies frequently depict the arriving creatures as menacing and a threat to humanity's existence. While there is a place for this sort of film –- and they are undeniably fun to watch –- there's also something to be said for films that take a much more peaceful approach, such as 1951's "The Day the Earth Stood Still." When humanoid extraterrestrial Klaatu (Michael Rennie) and robot Gort (Lock Martin) arrive on Earth, it's not with their weapons directed at the humans, but instead, they come with a cautionary message about the dangers of war and the threat humanity poses to itself if people don't heed their warning.

Set against the backdrop of the Cold War, "The Day the Earth Stood Still" speaks to the suspicion and distrust that existed between people at the time, while also providing a message that's surprisingly relevant to society today. The film's emphasis on receptiveness and the importance of speaking and listening to those who are perhaps different to us is also seen in films such as "Arrival" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," and despite its dated special effects, "The Day the Earth Stood Still" remains one of the greatest alien films of all time.

10. Gravity

Anchored by a powerful and committed performance from Sandra Bullock, "Gravity" is effectively a survival drama, expertly conveying the feelings of isolation and loneliness that are even more potent given the space setting. Bullock plays Dr. Ryan Stone, who -– in an astonishingly dramatic sequence -– is left adrift in space when some debris hits her shuttle during a routine spacewalk. At times, we see things directly from Dr. Stone's point of view, something that is highly effective, as well as occasionally nauseating and claustrophobic. Director Alfonso Cuarón crafts a singularly personal story, himself describing it as "a drama of a woman in space" ( via BBC ) more than a sci-fi film in the truest sense.

"Gravity" proved to be a huge box office success, earning more than $723 million worldwide , and it became one of the highest-grossing sci-fi films outside of a major franchise. At the 86th Academy Awards , "Gravity" had a staggering 10 nominations and won seven, including the coveted Best Director for Cuarón. "Gravity" remains one of the most visually stunning space movies, with its focus on a sole surviving character giving the film the emotional resonance it needs to stay with you for a long time afterward.

9. Forbidden Planet

There's something incredibly tactile about early science fiction, with the limited special effects, besuited actors in the place of robots and aliens, and elaborate and imaginative set designs. 1956's "Forbidden Planet" is one such film, a ground-breaking sci-fi masterpiece that's frequently cited as one of the most influential of the genre. The film has several "firsts" credited to it, including being the first film to be set entirely on a different planet and the first Hollywood film to have an all-electronic score ( via FilmSite ).

Loosely based on Shakespeare's "The Tempest," "Forbidden Planet" is set in the 23rd century, and the film depicts a team of astronauts sent to explore the planet Altair IV, where a colony was established 20 years prior. They discover only two humans remaining — a scientist and his beautiful daughter – plus Robby the Robot, a figure so significant in the film he's even credited as his character name. Robby marked a huge leap forward both in terms of the extortionate cost to build the prop and the distinct personality he was given. Reportedly costing around $125,000 to build , Robby ended up being a necessary cost as he became "the film's most memorable character and responsible for the cult status the movie enjoys" (via Robot Hall of Fame ). "Forbidden Planet" may look dated now compared to the slick space movies we are accustomed to, but it's campy fun and a must-watch for any fan of the genre.

8. Close Encounters of the Third Kind

Fresh off the back of their grueling shoot together on "Jaws," Steven Spielberg and Richard Dreyfuss teamed up once again for "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Spielberg's fascination with worlds beyond our own was something that started from a young age and shaped many of his films, including "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," "War of the Worlds," and of course, this 1977 sci-fi masterpiece. In a 2005 interview, Spielberg said, "I first became aware of the sky when my father pointed out the Perseid meteor shower to me when I was about 6 years old. ... My father really held the key to the universe, which unlocked my imagination" (via The Spokesman-Review ).

Richard Dreyfuss plays Roy Neary, an everyman whose encounter with a UFO leads to an obsession that sees him willing to risk it all to pursue what he saw and make contact. Even at this early point, the music of composer John Williams was already becoming synonymous with Spielberg's films, with "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" marking the third collaboration between them. Not only is Williams' score as wonderful as you'd expect, but it plays an important part in the narrative itself during the memorable sequence when the aliens communicate with the humans through light and sound. Perhaps influenced by Spielberg's childhood fascination with the cosmos, "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" refreshingly depicts the aliens as peaceful and benevolent, resulting in a film that's as optimistic as it is awe-inspiring. Spielberg has rarely been better than this.

7. Apollo 13

As this list proves, there's a huge amount of choice when it comes to films about humanity's desire for space exploration, with a number of them being based on true stories. Arguably the most well-known movie that falls into this category is "Apollo 13," based on the troubled mission of the same name in 1970. Directed by Ron Howard, the film stars Tom Hanks, Bill Paxton, and Kevin Bacon as the team of astronauts whose lives are at risk when their spacecraft is damaged, forcing them to shift their focus to making it safely home rather than their original lunar destination.

While the film made some minor changes to the story, director Ron Howard was also determined to make the film as technically accurate as possible , including making an exact replica of the Mission Control room where the ground staff communicated with the astronauts. While this is a nitpick few people would ever realize, they did slightly alter the famous "Houston, we have a problem" line, with NASA records stating that what was actually said was, "Houston, we've had a problem." Semantics aside, "Apollo 13" proved to be a huge hit with critics and audiences , with the Rotten Tomatoes consensus saying, "Apollo 13 pulls no punches: It's a masterfully told drama from director Ron Howard, bolstered by an ensemble of solid performances."

6. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)

There is considerable merit to the 1978 remake, but it's the original 1956 "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" that stands as one of the greatest space movies of all time, and it achieves this by never leaving the planet and hardly showing the invading alien forces at all (well, at least in their "true" form anyway). In the fictional town of Santa Mira, Dr. Miles Bennell (Kevin McCarthy) is alerted to reports from people convinced that their relatives are imposters. As the number of reports grows, Dr. Bennell and his old flame, Becky (Dana Wynter), discover some mysterious seed pods, with each one holding the terrifying ability to produce an identical copy of the human they "invade."

While other films on this list involve traveling to different planets in search of alien life, "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" not only brings the discovery to Earth but adds a terrifying dimension with the concept that the "aliens" look exactly like humans. The film offers some timely commentary on the post-war paranoia that existed in America at the time, particularly the fear surrounding covert espionage from people planted with deliberate intentions of blending in while acting as enemy spies. The 1978 remake leans much further into body horror, but the 1956 version still blurs this line, expertly conveying a sense of dread and quiet horror. In the closing moments, Dr. Bennell runs hysterically along the highway before looking straight into the camera with an ominous warning, in one of the most chilling and effective movie moments of all time.

A sequel rarely manages to match its predecessor, but many consider 1986's "Aliens" to be the best example of this. And indeed, there's only 1% that separates their Tomatometer ratings on Rotten Tomatoes . Where "Alien" could be classed as science fiction horror, "Aliens" sits much closer to a science fiction action flick, with returning hero Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) joining forces with colonial marines on a mission to destroy the aliens who took the lives of the Nostromo crew. Along the way, Ripley encounters an abandoned young girl nicknamed Newt, (Carrie Henn), who she becomes fiercely protective of –- even stepping in to defend her against the ferocious alien queen, which is a scene that gives the film one of its most memorable quotes.

As well as the shift of genres from horror to action, "Aliens" saw a change in director as well, with James Cameron brought on board following his success with "The Terminator" in 1984. Like Cameron's other wildly successful films at the time, "Aliens" took the box office by storm, earning just over $131 million –- around $25 million more than "Alien" made. The success of "Aliens" even extended to the Oscars, where it was nominated for seven awards , including a Best Actress nomination for Sigourney Weaver when films of this genre were rarely recognized by the Academy. While she didn't win, it did pick up prizes for Sound Effects Editing and Visual Effects.

Released in 2008, Pixar's animated adventure about possibly the universe's most adorable robot has proved to be one of the studio's most enduring features. Set in the year 2085, the Earth has been abandoned, and all humans now reside on giant luxury starliners where their every need is catered for and they never need to lift a finger. In contrast, back on Earth, a small trash-compacting robot called WALL-E is tasked with the mammoth job of cleaning up the mess humans left behind after decades of consumerism depleted all natural resources. When another robot named EVE arrives, WALL-E becomes quite enamored with her and shows her a tiny green sapling he found -– something that provides the tiniest shred of hope that life may still be able to exist on Earth.

With the first part of the film largely silent, "WALL-E" relies on our wonderfully expressive robot duo to establish this world. According to the film's director Andrew Stanton, the team achieved this by watching "a [Charlie] Chaplin film and a [Buster] Keaton film and sometimes a Harold Lloyd film every day at lunch" ( via The A.V. Club ) as inspiration for how to tell their story visually. "WALL-E" succeeds in taking an idea that's familiar in the space movie genre and making it palatable enough for children while also engaging enough for adults, with the environmental message at its core being handled with such care that it is impossible not to be charmed by it.

Released in 1979, "Alien" has easily one of the greatest movie taglines, with this ominous warning: "In space, no one can hear you scream." To this day, "Alien" remains one of the best examples of movie genre hybrids, with its pitch-perfect blend of horror and science fiction being incredibly effective. Set on board the space tug Nostromo, a small crew faces unimaginable horror when an alien lifeform begins to attack. In one of the most memorable scenes in the film –- and one that has a certain degree of infamy based on audience reactions –- an alien bursts out of the chest of Kane (John Hurt), much to the surprise of even the cast members as they were deliberately kept in the dark about the effects until it came to shooting.

As well as this landmark, stomach-churning moment, "Alien" gave us one of the greatest screen heroines in the iconic Ripley, (Sigourney Weaver), who remained the lynchpin of the subsequent sequels, even as they began to decline in quality. Surprisingly, when "Alien" was first released, the critical reception was a little mixed, with legendary critic Roger Ebert calling it one of the few "real disappointments" of the genre on a 1980 episode of "Sneak Previews."  However, Ebert was one of the many who reassessed the film decades later, calling it one of "the most influential of modern action pictures" and saying it "still vibrates with a dark and frightening intensity."

2. Star Wars

"Star Wars" fans may continue to argue amongst themselves about the greatest film in the "Skywalker Saga," and while arguably "The Empire Strikes Back" is the best –- at least based on its critical consensus –- it's the first installment in the series that earns a place on this list. Without the original, later re-named as "Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope," there would be no other "Star Wars" films after all. As our first experience of "a galaxy far, far away," "Star Wars" is pretty much unbeatable, introducing us to plucky hero Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and his quest to save the galaxy from the formidable Darth Vader (voiced by James Earl Jones).

It's easy to forget given how huge the "Star Wars" universe now is, but this film operates effectively as a standalone space romp, wrapping things up neatly enough that it could've easily been the beginning and the end of the story. Of course, that wasn't to be the case, and "Star Wars" completely obliterated box office records, grossing more than $307 million on initial release, and it still stands as the second highest-grossing film of all time when adjusted for inflation. Luke's story is told across the nine-film "Skywalker Saga," but the "Star Wars" universe stretches far beyond this, encompassing books, television series, comics, merchandise, spinoff movies, and so much more. "Star Wars" as an entity is a genuine pop culture phenomenon — one that shows absolutely no signs of stopping anytime soon, and it all started here.

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey

When it comes to space movies, it's hard to find one better than Stanley Kubrick's 1968 magnum opus. Taking us from the dawn of time to "beyond the infinite," the film focuses on man's exploration further into the depths of space, accruing new knowledge about the universe and achieving huge advancements in technology. In what's now one of the most famous match cuts in cinema history, we are hurtled from our ancestors discovering how to use rudimentary tools into space, where people are now able to travel with relative ease across the cosmos. The most well-known segment of the film sees us on board the spacecraft Discovery One on their Jupiter mission. It's here that we meet HAL 9000, who's little more than a red light and a calming voice and yet is one of the scariest film villains –- hugely influential in other films such as "WALL-E" and "Moon."

It isn't surprising that the film was divisive when it was released. Some were quick to call it one of the best films ever made, while others simply didn't understand it. The film's star Keir Dullea said that 250 people walked out of the New York premiere ( via The Hollywood Reporter ). The ending may leave you scratching your heads, but there's no doubt that "2001: A Space Odyssey" is the greatest space movie ever made. Often imitated, frequently parodied, and still influential to this day, it's the film that many aspire to but few can surpass.

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The 25 Greatest Time-Travel Movies Ever Made

It must say something, surely, about humans, how often time-travel movies are about returning to the past rather than jumping to the future. As Mark Duplass’s forlorn character says in Safety Not Guaranteed , “The mission has to do with regret.” With all the potential to explore the unknown world of the future, so often when our minds conspire to bend the rules of time it’s instead to rehash the old. It’s compelling to watch a character in a movie do what we cannot — right past wrongs or uncover the reason for or meaning behind the events in their lives, whether they be emotionally catastrophic or merely geopolitically motivated.

So absent is the future from the canon, in fact, that when it is involved, typically future dwellers are leaving their own time to come back to the present. Back to the Future Part II aside, it seems as if there’s something about going forward in time that just doesn’t track for humans. (Of course, you could argue that this is because the present-day concept of bidirectional time travel would infinitely multiply or change beyond recognition any future that may occur, but that’s a knot for another article.)

In any case, the time-travel stories deemed worthy of Hollywood budgets aren’t always straightforward in their mechanics. Some films on this list barely qualify as time-travel movies at all; others could hardly qualify as anything else. There are movies about trips through time but also ones about the bending and fracturing and muddying thereof; then there are those about, as Andy Samberg aptly puts it in Palm Springs , “one of those infinite time-loop situations you might have heard about.” There’s even a movie in which we get only 13 seconds’ worth of time travel, when it functions more like a joke whose punch line hits at the film’s climax.

What these films all do have in common is a fascination with changing the way time works. That being said, the list leaves out movies in larger, more extended franchises in which time meddling is a one-off dalliance thrown into a sequel with little by way of foreshadowing: think Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban , Avengers: Endgame , and Men in Black III . (It also leaves off perhaps the Ur-time-travel movie, Primer , and the quite good Midnight in Paris because their directors don’t deserve the column inches.) We’re looking at self-contained stories using time mechanics from the start, with preference given to those that involve themselves more intently with the ins and outs of time travel; that ask questions about time, aging, memory and so forth; and that try to succeed at it in new and interesting ways. So let’s get to it.

25. Galaxy Quest (1999)

Does Galaxy Quest really count as a time-travel movie? Some compelling reasons argue that it doesn’t: Time travel isn’t a major factor in the plot, and the time traveling that does occur is, yes, only a 13-second jump. But its use of time travel is meaningful insofar as the movie itself is a loving spoof of Star Trek , which makes use of time travel in three films ( one of which made this list ), not to mention dozens of episodes across its various TV iterations. Tacking on time travel as a deus ex machina for the actors in a Star Trek– like show pressed into service as an actual space crew by an endangered alien race is the exact right amount of ribbing in a movie that’s as on point as it is hilarious.

Galaxy Quest is available to rent on Amazon .

24. Happy Death Day (2017)

Pick away at the surface of a time-loop movie and you find a horror movie. Most of the entries on this list are covered in enough feel-good spin to land as comedies, but Happy Death Day stares the horror of the time-loop phenomenon right in the face. (It’s also quite funny.) Reliving the same day over and over is an unimaginably potent form of psychological torture, and adding murder to the equation does little to dull that edge. The film follows a college-age protagonist struggling to escape from a masked slasher hell-bent on killing her again and again while she tries to solve the mystery of how she got stuck in a time loop.

Happy Death Day is available to rent on Amazon .

23. Back to the Future Part II (1989)

Seriously, this may be the only good movie in which the film’s whole focus is using a time machine to travel into the future. The fact that it’s a sequel is telling — the characters already traveled into the past in the first movie , and the filmmakers decided to save “traveling even further into the past“ for the third film in the trilogy. Still, Back to the Future Part II is a fun time that makes great use of sight gags and references, recasting scenes from the first film in the distant future year of 2015 with all its hoverboards and self-lacing Nikes.

Back to the Future Part II is available to rent on Amazon .

22. See You Yesterday (2019)

It’s a dirty little secret of time-travel movies that they tend to be, well, pretty white. Tenet ’s Protagonist aside, if Hollywood’s sending someone through time, they’re almost certainly not a Black person, and for obvious reasons: Most of post-contact North American history is deeply unfriendly to people of color, and the problems a person running around out of time and place is going to encounter are deeply compounded if they’ll likely be the target of racist abuse or violence — which makes See You Yesterday all the more compelling. Produced by Spike Lee and featuring one of filmdom’s most famous time travelers in a cameo role, it follows a Black teenage science prodigy who uses a time machine to try to save her brother from being killed by a police officer.

See You Yesterday is streaming on Netflix .

21. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

No offense to the Back to the Future franchise, but time travel never looks more fun on film than it does in the first Bill & Ted movie. It’s a concept that feels distinctly of a different era, so pure is its zaniness, that it’s hard to imagine anyone concocting it today. The titular duo, Californian high-school students in the ’80s, travel through the past looking for historical figures in order to ace a history project, then bring them all back to the present. High jinks ensue! We get Genghis Khan in a sporting-goods store and Mozart on an electric keyboard. What more could you want?

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure is streaming on HBO Max .

20. Source Code (2011)

Time-travel-film aficionados know this won’t be Jake Gyllenhaal’s only stop on this list, but no matter. Source Code finds him repeating the same eight minutes over and over as he struggles to find the culprit in a train bombing — with each replay ending in his own death by explosion. For some reason, a romantic subplot is shoehorned into this, along with a bunch of frankly unnecessary technical mumbo-jumbo, but the core idea is a compelling mix of the time-loop movie and the train whodunit that Gyllenhaal is a perfect fit for.

Source Code is available to rent on Amazon .

19. 12 Monkeys (1995)

Some sort of law of nature dictates that every genuinely good idea and/or piece of true art has to at some point be turned into a Hollywood movie. Thank God La Jetée was adapted into something that can stand on its own feet artistically. 12 Monkeys may not retain its source material’s black-and-white look or stripped-down, static-image presentation, but it is a rollicking good time nonetheless. That’s in no small part due to director Terry Gilliam getting the best out of Bruce Willis and a young Brad Pitt, and recasting World War III as a planet-decimating virus. Which, like at least one other movie on this list , “speaks to the present moment,” or whatever.

12 Monkeys is available to rent on Amazon .

18. Run Lola Run (1998)

Unlike almost all of the other films on this list, the terms time travel and time machine don’t show up anywhere in Run Lola Run . Rather, it’s a sort of de facto time-loop scenario in which the protagonist tries repeatedly to pay a ransom to save her boyfriend’s life. In fact, if not for a few key details, it could easily be characterized (and often has been) as an alternate-endings movie rather than a time-travel film. But the fact that Lola seems to be learning from her past attempts with each successive one suggests that she is, indeed, using knowledge gained from previous loops to bring a satisfactory end to this situation.

Run Lola Run is available to rent on Amazon .

17. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)

One of the most striking things about Groundhog Day is the mutability and replicability of its core conceit. Perhaps the best case in point is Edge of Tomorrow , sometimes known as Live. Die. Repeat. after its original tagline. It’s the kind of physically grueling movie only an actor as genuinely unhinged as Tom Cruise could pull off. A noncombatant thrust into a war against invading aliens, Cruise’s character finds himself reliving day one of combat over and over, slowly but surely refining his techniques in order to survive the extraterrestrial onslaught. Like the central twosome in the much less violent Palm Springs , he winds up with a partner in (war) crime, teaming up with the similarly time-trapped Emily Blunt, and the explanation for the replay glitch here is actually pretty satisfying.

Edge of Tomorrow is streaming on Fubo TV .

16. Star Trek (2009)

If you could create some sort of an advanced stat to measure controversy generated per unit of interesting filmmaking decisions, J.J. Abrams would have to be near the top in terms of his ability to rig up movie drama from almost nothing. This is a guy whose filmography is like Godzilla rip-off, Spielberg homage, safe reboot of cherished IP, repeat. Star Trek may be his best film, though, a sure-footed reinvention of a dorky sci-fi franchise that made it, well, cool. Somehow, the beauty of Spock and Kirk’s bromance being woven through chance encounters with future selves kind of … works?

Star Trek is available to rent on Amazon .

15. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)

There’s a relative dearth of time travel in animated film, which perhaps is a function simply of the fact that it’s less impressive to stage in a world that’s already unreal. If you can Looney Tunes your way through physics, what’s so special about grabbing the flow of time and tying it into a bow? Still, the original Girl Who Leapt Through Time deserves mention here. It’s a beautiful story that interlaces the complexity of time leaping with the intensity of teenage emotion and the thorny process of growing up where the opportunity to redo things leads, over time, to growth — a less shitty Groundhog Day , in a way.

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time is available to rent on Amazon .

14. Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

She may not be the most famous, decorated, or emulated actress of her generation, but Aubrey Plaza is someone whose personality spoke to the irony-soaked 2010s in a way that simply could not be denied. Her character on Parks and Recreation , April Ludgate, was, by all accounts, created specifically to channel Plaza’s real-life personality to the screen, and she plays essentially the same character in Safety Not Guaranteed . Here, she’s a sarcastic intern at a magazine working on a story about a would-be time traveler and using her feminine wiles to slowly gain his trust. The chemistry between Plaza and Mark Duplass is probably the film’s high point; the subplot about the FBI feels like it was clipped out of a bad X-Files episode.

Safety Not Guaranteed is streaming on Tubi .

13. La Jetée (1962)

At only a 28-minute run time, La Jetée is arguably too short to merit inclusion on this list. However, what it lacks in content (and in, well, moving images; it’s almost exclusively a collection of static black-and-white shots set to voice-over), it more than makes up for in inventiveness and influence, and it would be a travesty to leave it out in favor of more recent by-the-book fare. Tracing the tale of a man held prisoner in post-WWIII Paris being used in time-travel experiments as his captors seek to remedy the postapocalyptic state of the world, he’s sent into both the future and the past and ends up unraveling a lifelong personal mystery while he’s at it.

La Jetée is streaming on the Criterion Channel .

12. Planet of the Apes (1968)

Unlike the worse but more straightforwardly time-traveling Tim Burton remake, the relationship between the original Planet of the Apes and time travel is inexact — technically, the astronaut crew that lands on the titular planet does travel forward 2,000 years, but it’s not done via a time machine. The travel isn’t instantaneous: It literally does take them 2,000 years to get there; they’re just unconscious and on life support. Still, the way the film’s ending handles the iconic reveal is exactly in line with the best of the time-travel canon, the telescoping, mise en abyme feeling of the world shifting in front of your very eyes without your moving an inch.

Planet of the Apes is available to rent on Amazon .

11. Groundhog Day (1993)

The famous Bill Murray vehicle essentially invented the infinite-time-loop genre (and it’s hardly a movie that succeeds on the strength of its concept alone), but the idea at its core is so steeped in the casual misogyny of late-’80s and early-’90s cinema that it’s hard to watch today without cringing. Murray’s character employing what amounts to PUA-style techniques over and over and over in a desperate bid to fuck his hapless co-worker just doesn’t hit the way it did back then. If the story arc didn’t present a guy detoxifying himself of the worst aspects of masculinity in order to be worthy of a woman’s love as the primary way for a 20th-century white man to achieve full personhood, this would be much higher on the list.

Groundhog Day is streaming on Starz .

10. Predestination (2014)

This is probably the most complicated film on the list. Following a “temporal agent” (played by Ethan Hawke) who’s trying to prevent a bombing in 1970s New York, it’s based on a Robert A. Heinlein short story and features Shiv Roy herself, Sarah Snook, in a star-making turn as someone with a complicated backstory and a secret. Like the best sci-fi, the film’s premise raises all kinds of fascinating questions about the titular concept and throws in some interesting musings on sex, gender, and the self in the process.

Predestination is streaming on Tubi .

9. Looper (2012)

Wes Anderson gets a lot of flak for his overwrought twee visuals, but Rian Johnson has a knack for making movies that feel and function like dioramas even if they don’t look it. Narratively speaking, everything here is constructed just so — and there’s a certain beauty in that — but who ever had a profound experience of art by looking at a diorama? Looper was probably Johnson’s least precious pre– Star Wars film, which is nice because the temptation to drastically overmaneuver the mechanics of a time-travel story can lead to disaster. The tech used to Bruce Willis–ify Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s face is distracting, and the third act’s retreat from the postapocalyptic city of the future to the postapocalyptic corn farm of the future is a brave choice that the film struggles to land. Still, Johnson’s vision of a future in which organized crime runs time travel is compelling and well worth a watch.

Looper is streaming on Netflix .

8. Donnie Darko (2001)

Donnie Darko is a bit of a genre mash-up. Part high-school movie, part sci-fi flick, part bleak meditation on the soullessness of late-’80s America, it’s nevertheless a weirdly successful piece of filmmaking that makes fantastic use of a young Jake Gyllenhaal, a great supporting cast (Maggie Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Jena Malone, and Patrick Swayze among others), and an absolutely iconic haunting cover of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World.” Watching high schoolers navigate parallel universes, wormholes, and time travel is a dicey proposition, but director Richard Kelly makes it work, somehow.

Donnie Darko is streaming on HBO Max .

7. Back to the Future (1984)

While it’s clearly superior to the sequel (and leagues ahead of the final film in the trilogy), the original Back to the Future is a bit of a mess (John Mulaney was right , to be honest). Its racial and gender politics are cringey, and the incest subplot is weird (“It’s your cousin Marvin. Marvin Pornhub . You know that new plot element you’ve been looking for?”), but there’s a clear interest in time travel beyond its shimmering surface: the very real addressing of the “grandfather problem” in time travel via the slow disappearance of Marty from his family photo, the accidental invention of rock music, and a genuine curiosity about the nuts-and-bolts mechanics of time machines. Ahh, what the hell. It’s a romp.

Back to the Future is available to rent on Amazon .

6. Palm Springs (2020)

No offense to Gen-Xers and boomers, but the best time-loop movie of all time is Palm Springs . The film isn’t without its missteps, but it’s much more curious about life than Groundhog Day was through the eyes of Murray’s misanthrope. Cristin Milioti and Andy Samberg‘s characters, stuck in the loop together, are a perfect comedic match, and their shared humanity makes for a beautiful arc. The film raises questions about what’s worth doing in life when nothing lasts and how to stay sane when every day is the same. Of course, as a sort of polar opposite of Tenet , it benefited from coming out during the pandemic by speaking, as it does, to the experience of lockdown.

Palm Springs is streaming on Hulu .

5. Tenet (2020)

Interstellar wasn’t enough for Chris Nolan, apparently. Tenet ’s legacy may end up being little more than that of the COVID action movie no one saw — a bloated thriller that Nolan fought to get into theaters and bar from home viewing reportedly to swell the size of his own pockets. It really did suffer from bad timing, though, because this is genuinely a quintessential big-screen popcorn movie whose absurdity is all the more palatable when it’s given the audiovisual bombast it deserves. Ambitious in scope as it traces a war on the past by the future (yes, you read that right), Tenet is as enamored of action tropes as it is in bucking them, and its investment in rendering visible the brain-bendingly knotty mechanics of moving through time is laudable, even when the movie itself remains opaque — as impenetrable as the future, as hazy as the past.

Tenet is streaming on HBO Max .

4. The Terminator (1984)

A partner to Blade Runner in the mid-’80s invention of sci-fi noir, The Terminator is a stunning film in many ways, despite the third act’s now-iffy visual effects. While it’s not James Cameron’s debut, and it would go on to be bested by its sequel , it functions as an incredible showcase for an emerging young director who would exclusively make big stories for the rest of his career. Arnold Schwarzenegger is perfectly cast as the relentless, unemotional killer cyborg sent back from the future to terminate the mother of the eventual resistance leader, and the film’s romantic subplot has just the perfect amount of time-travel-induced cheesiness for it to work.

The Terminator is streaming on Amazon Prime Video .

3. Interstellar (2014)

It’s not inaccurate to say Christopher Nolan is a director who’s more interested in scale and scope than in expressing the minutiae of the human experience in its purest form. But in Interstellar, a Nolan movie in its titular ambitions, there’s a core element of time travel wrought not as sci-fi fireworks but as a paean to the sheer force and will of the power of love. It both does and doesn’t work, depending on your capacity for cheese in space, but even besides that, Nolan’s use of time as story arc — the way Miller’s planet functions, in particular — is conceptually masterful in the best kind of time-travel-movie way.

Interstellar is streaming on Paramount+ .

2. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

Whereas the franchise’s first movie spends more time on the question of time travel, in the second it takes a bit of a back seat to the action itself. It’s hard to fault director James Cameron for this decision; T2 remains one of the best action movies of the ’90s and — along with Jurassic Park and The Matrix — one of the decade’s best when for special effects. The groundbreaking T-1000 would honestly be enough to get this movie on the list; a tween John Connor grappling with questions of predestination and the fact that he is vicariously responsible for his own conception feel almost like icing on the time-travel cake. Much as in 12 Monkeys , time travel here is mistaken for delusion, as valiant Sarah Connor, in a Cassandra-esque nightmare, has to battle against the future only she knows is coming. Of course, Cassandra never had access to any firepower stored in underground desert arsenals.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day is streaming on Netflix .

1. Arrival (2016)

It’s fair to wonder whether Arrival really is, in fact, a time-travel movie. The Ted Chiang short story it’s based on isn’t about time travel per se; rather, it’s an exploration of alternate forms of temporal understanding. The linguist protagonist, played by Amy Adams, doesn’t travel through time so much as come to experience it differently. Still, the plot ends up hinging on foreknowledge that she is granted not via visions but by actually experiencing her future simultaneously with her present and past. For our purposes, though, that’s time fuckery enough to merit inclusion, and boy howdy does the film deliver in overall quality. Partly, that’s simply a question of the source material. Chiang is arguably the most talented (and possibly the most decorated) American sci-fi writer of his generation. But the source story is not especially Hollywood friendly, and director Denis Villeneuve has adopted it lovingly, borrowing a plot device from another of Chiang’s stories, the more straightforwardly time-travel-based “The Merchant and the Alchemist’s Gate,” in order to add some third-act blockbuster flavor. The result is a beautiful meditation on love, choice, and courage that packs art-film ethos into a genuine sci-fi blockbuster.

Arrival is streaming on Hulu and Paramount+ .

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Is Time Travel Possible?

We all travel in time! We travel one year in time between birthdays, for example. And we are all traveling in time at approximately the same speed: 1 second per second.

We typically experience time at one second per second. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA's space telescopes also give us a way to look back in time. Telescopes help us see stars and galaxies that are very far away . It takes a long time for the light from faraway galaxies to reach us. So, when we look into the sky with a telescope, we are seeing what those stars and galaxies looked like a very long time ago.

However, when we think of the phrase "time travel," we are usually thinking of traveling faster than 1 second per second. That kind of time travel sounds like something you'd only see in movies or science fiction books. Could it be real? Science says yes!

This image from the Hubble Space Telescope shows galaxies that are very far away as they existed a very long time ago. Credit: NASA, ESA and R. Thompson (Univ. Arizona)

How do we know that time travel is possible?

More than 100 years ago, a famous scientist named Albert Einstein came up with an idea about how time works. He called it relativity. This theory says that time and space are linked together. Einstein also said our universe has a speed limit: nothing can travel faster than the speed of light (186,000 miles per second).

Einstein's theory of relativity says that space and time are linked together. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

What does this mean for time travel? Well, according to this theory, the faster you travel, the slower you experience time. Scientists have done some experiments to show that this is true.

For example, there was an experiment that used two clocks set to the exact same time. One clock stayed on Earth, while the other flew in an airplane (going in the same direction Earth rotates).

After the airplane flew around the world, scientists compared the two clocks. The clock on the fast-moving airplane was slightly behind the clock on the ground. So, the clock on the airplane was traveling slightly slower in time than 1 second per second.

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Can we use time travel in everyday life?

We can't use a time machine to travel hundreds of years into the past or future. That kind of time travel only happens in books and movies. But the math of time travel does affect the things we use every day.

For example, we use GPS satellites to help us figure out how to get to new places. (Check out our video about how GPS satellites work .) NASA scientists also use a high-accuracy version of GPS to keep track of where satellites are in space. But did you know that GPS relies on time-travel calculations to help you get around town?

GPS satellites orbit around Earth very quickly at about 8,700 miles (14,000 kilometers) per hour. This slows down GPS satellite clocks by a small fraction of a second (similar to the airplane example above).

GPS satellites orbit around Earth at about 8,700 miles (14,000 kilometers) per hour. Credit: GPS.gov

However, the satellites are also orbiting Earth about 12,550 miles (20,200 km) above the surface. This actually speeds up GPS satellite clocks by a slighter larger fraction of a second.

Here's how: Einstein's theory also says that gravity curves space and time, causing the passage of time to slow down. High up where the satellites orbit, Earth's gravity is much weaker. This causes the clocks on GPS satellites to run faster than clocks on the ground.

The combined result is that the clocks on GPS satellites experience time at a rate slightly faster than 1 second per second. Luckily, scientists can use math to correct these differences in time.

If scientists didn't correct the GPS clocks, there would be big problems. GPS satellites wouldn't be able to correctly calculate their position or yours. The errors would add up to a few miles each day, which is a big deal. GPS maps might think your home is nowhere near where it actually is!

In Summary:

Yes, time travel is indeed a real thing. But it's not quite what you've probably seen in the movies. Under certain conditions, it is possible to experience time passing at a different rate than 1 second per second. And there are important reasons why we need to understand this real-world form of time travel.

If you liked this, you may like:

Screen Rant

9 hints that kingdom of the planet of the apes involves space travel.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has been heavily teasing the introduction of space travel, and here's why it could be getting set up.

• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes hints at space travel, expanding beyond California to explore a futuristic world.
• Director Wes Ball kicks off an entirely new Apes trilogy, with a young ape named Noa going on a surprising journey.
• The trailers suggest a focus on human technology, with hints at space exploration and time-travel elements in the film.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is just around the corner, and here are nine hints from the marketing campaign that point to the film involving space travel. The modern Planet of the Apes trilogy has a massive scope, with it exploring the downfall of the entirety of human civilization. Despite this, the films have mostly taken place in California, giving very little time to locations beyond the state. However, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes may be set to change things, taking the story not only beyond California, but also beyond Earth.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the highly anticipated continuation of Matt Reeves' modern Planet of the Apes trilogy, with the film set to bring the franchise into an entirely new era. Director Wes Ball is helming Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes , kicking off an entirely new Planet of the Apes trilogy that takes place during the same timeline as Matt Reeves' trilogy. The film will take place many years in the future, with apes having enslaved the now-feral humans. However, a young ape named Noa goes on a surprising journey with one special human.

9 The Original Planet Of The Apes Movies Used Space Travel

Although the modern Planet of the Apes trilogy may seem like it would have nothing to do with space travel, bringing it back now actually makes a lot of sense, as space travel was present in the original movie. The original Planet of the Apes sees astronaut George Taylor come back from a space mission to find himself on the titular ape world, falsely believing it to be an alien planet. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has already been similar to the original film in several ways, and space travel could continue this trend.

Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes' Timeline Makes A Lot More Sense Now

8 space travel could allow kingdom of the pota to introduce time travel.

While space travel is integral to the Planet of the Apes franchise, time travel is even more so, and introducing space can allow Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes to explore time as well. In the original film's twist ending, George Taylor learns that he isn't on an alien planet, with him actually returning to a future Earth after having spent centuries in space . It is implied that a wormhole is what allowed him to time travel, meaning that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes could bring these time-traveling wormholes back.

7 The Trailers Hint At “Human Technology”

Although it is vague, the trailers for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes spend a lot of time talking about human technology, with the apes being jealous of humanity's use of tech. The trailers don't reveal exactly what human technology the apes are talking about, but it would make a lot of sense for it to be space travel. Firstly, space travel is one of the most advanced achievements that humanity has accomplished, meaning that it would be of note to a future civilization. Plus, the space motif throughout the marketing campaign reinforces this idea.

6 The Smarter Humans Could Be The Product Of Time Travel

One of the most commonly mentioned parts of the upcoming film is that one human is much smarter than the rest, with this being Freya Allen's Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes character . This is what kicks off her friendship with Noa, but it is never revealed exactly why she is so smart . It is possible that Freya isn't simply smarter than the other feral humans, with her instead being a time-traveling astronaut like George Taylor. The trailers have kept a lot of secrets around her character, so this is a distinct possibility.

5 The Apes Explore An Abandoned Machine In The Trailers

One shot in the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes trailer shows a group of apes inside a giant abandoned machine, with this most likely being the product of humans. It isn't revealed what location the apes are in, with it looking like a giant factory or some sort of other industrial plant. However, it could also be that this is the inside of a spaceship, setting up Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes ' space travel.

4 The Kingdom Of The POTA Trailer Shows A Planetarium

Although the previous entries on this list have only pointed out the implied connections to space, one shot in the trailer explicitly draws this comparison. In one shot in the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes trailer, a character can be seen exploring an abandoned planetarium, equipped with a massive telescope and all. This shows that the apes are becoming increasingly interested in space, with them possibly making their way there before the end of the film.

3 Noa Plays With A Space Crib Mobile

Another shot in the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes trailer sees Noa playing with a space-themed crib mobile, further reinforcing the motif of space in the film's marketing campaign. Although this is obviously just an item that can be found on Earth, it is a clear tease that space will play a bigger role in the story and character arcs going first.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes: Release Date, Cast, Story, Trailer & Everything We Know

2 the apes want to achieve the same technological success as humans.

Rather than focusing on the apes, the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Superbowl trailer actually focuses on the legacy of human civilization, with the apes discussing some of humanity's greatest achievements. Although space travel isn't explicitly mentioned, this speech shows that some of the apes want to achieve the same technological success as their predecessors , and making it to space would be one of the biggest ones. This, combined with the exploration of things like planetariums, proves that the apes might be on their way to the stars.

1 The POTA Reboot Trilogy Has Already Teased George Taylor

One of the biggest reasons that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes could finally include space and time travel is that Matt Reeves' Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy has already teased George Taylor . Although Taylor's time travel storyline hasn't made it into the Planet of the Apes reboot series yet, a newspaper confirms that Taylor's ship did go missing, meaning that it could return in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes . Although this is just an Easter egg in the movie that it appears in, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes could tie this back in.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Set several years after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the next installment in the Apes saga. Ape clans have taken up residence in the oasis that Caesar sought to colonize, but humans have reverted to their animalistic nature in their absence. Now battling between enslavement and freedom, outliers in the Ape clans will take sides in a newly burgeoning society.

Giant Freakin Robot

Time Travel Equation Solved By Astrophysicist

Posted: March 25, 2024 | Last updated: March 25, 2024

After a lifetime of pursuing the idea, Physics Professor Ronald Mallett at the University of Connecticut has potentially figured out the theoretical aspects of time travel. Professor Mallett believes that black holes, rotating light, and gravitational pulls may hold the key to exploring time, but it’s all theoretical for now. There are still a lot of hurdles and limitations to handle before time travel can have real, practical applications.

A Life Spent Thinking About Time Travel

Love and loss pushed Professor Mallett into an obsession with time and space. When he was 10 years old, his father passed away from a heart attack. It was his father who nourished his love of science, but H.G. Wells’ book The Time Machine pushed him towards a focus on time travel.

He was hooked from the very first paragraph of the book, “Scientific people know very well that Time is only a kind of Space. And why cannot we move in Time as we move about in the other dimensions of Space?”

That paragraph never left him, and the professor let that time travel question guide him through school and into the Professor Emeritus of Physics position at the University of Connecticut.

Einstein And Black Holes

As he grew up, Professor Mallett spent much of his time on Albert Einstein’s theories about black holes. While his interest in time travel only continued to grow, a potential solution never showed itself. At least, not until the professor ended up in a hospital with a heart condition.

There, lying in the hospital bed, inspiration hit him. Black holes and the gravitational fields they created were the answer to time travel. These gravitational fields had the potential to lead to time loops, which then theoretically could allow people and objects to travel back in time.

Black Holes Manipulating Gravity

While this idea offered an ability to manipulate time, the other problem was how to use these time loops for time travel.

Professor Mallett found this time travel solution much easier than the first problem. Strong and continuous beams of light, like a ring of lasers, with a particular rotation could be used to manipulate gravity and mimic the distorting effects of a black hole.

Though the details are rather complicated, the big time travel picture is a lot simpler to grasp. The professor offers a comparison to help people understand. “Let’s say you have a cup of coffee in front of you. Start stirring the coffee with the spoon. It started to spin, right? That’s what a spinning black hole does. In Einstein’s theory, space and time are related to each other. That’s why it’s called space-time. So when the black hole spins, it will actually cause time to shift.”

Much To Figure Out

Professor Mallett may now have a theory on time travel and a machine to use to make it possible, but that doesn’t mean it will be here in the next few decades.

There’s still a lot to figure out to make such travel practical, such as where the insane amount of energy such a machine would require could come from, and how big the machine would need to be.

There’s also a major constraint on the machine. According to his theories, time travel would only be possible to the very beginning of when the machine was first built. In this way, it’s more like a one-way message service. You can potentially go forward quite a distance, but going back in time is limited by the machine’s creation.

Theoretical Aspects Of Time Travel

The professor has made a huge leap in figuring out the theoretical aspects of time travel, but there’s a lot more to discover and quite a few hurdles and paradoxes to figure out before scientists practically start messing around in time.

Still, the theory is a step in the right direction and does suggest that people can push past what science currently considers possible.

Source: Earth.com

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Advertisement

How the Key Bridge Collapsed in Baltimore: Maps and Photos

By Weiyi Cai ,  Agnes Chang ,  Lauren Leatherby ,  Lazaro Gamio ,  Leanne Abraham and Scott Reinhard

On Tuesday, a major bridge in Baltimore collapsed into the water seconds after it was struck by a cargo ship, sending vehicles on the bridge into the river below. The ship lost power and issued a mayday call shortly before it hit the bridge.

The ship, a 948-foot-long cargo vessel called Dali, was about a half hour into its journey toward Colombo, Sri Lanka, when it hit a main pillar of the bridge. All crew members are safe, according to the ship’s owners.

Follow our live coverage .

A mayday call from the ship gave officials enough time to stop traffic at both ends of the bridge. The waters where the bridge collapsed are about 50 feet deep. By Tuesday morning, six construction workers who had been fixing potholes on the bridge remained missing as divers and other emergency workers on boats and helicopters continued to search for them. Two others had been rescued, and one was in the hospital.

Francis Scott

Patapsco River

The ship left the Port

of Baltimore around

1 a.m. on Tuesday.

Where impact occurred

Direction of the ship

The ship hit the

bridge at 1:28 a.m.

The ship hit the bridge at 1:28 a.m.

Where impact

Source: Spire Global

The New York Times; satellite image by Google Earth

The lights of the ship flickered on and off as it lost power in the minutes before the ship changed bearing and hit the bridge.

Ship approached from

the Port of Baltimore

Road repair crews

Ship changed heading

as it neared pillar

Ship hit pillar

Southern and central spans

of bridge began to collapse within

seconds of impact

Northern span began to

collapse seconds later

Within 30 seconds of impact,

the central part of bridge had

entirely collapsed.

Source: StreamTime Live via YouTube

Timestamps are from StreamTime Live video.

The New York Times

The Francis Scott Key Bridge was opened in 1977 and carried more than 12.4 million vehicles last year. The bridge was one of the three major ways to cross the Patapsco River and formed part of Baltimore’s beltway.

The Port of Baltimore is a major trade hub that handled a record amount of foreign cargo last year. It is an especially important destination — the nation’s largest by volume last year — for deliveries of cars and light trucks.

Ship impact

To Chesapeake Bay

Sources: Maryland Port Administration, OpenStreetMap, MarineTraffic

Note: Ship positions are as of 2:46 p.m. Eastern time.

Overall, Baltimore was the 17th biggest port in the United States in 2021, ranked by total tons, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The bridge collapse brought marine traffic there to a standstill, with seven cargo or tanker ships stranded in the harbor as of Tuesday afternoon.

Gov. Wes Moore declared a state of emergency for Maryland and said that his office was in close communication with Pete Buttigieg, the U.S. transportation secretary. The White House issued a statement saying that President Biden had been briefed on the collapse.

Erin Schaff/The New York Times

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SPACE and TIME TRAVEL Romantic Movies

• Movies or TV
• IMDb Rating
• In Theaters
• Release Year

1. About Time (I) (2013)

R | 123 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

At the age of 21, Tim discovers he can travel in time and change what happens and has happened in his own life. His decision to make his world a better place by getting a girlfriend turns out not to be as easy as you might think.

Director: Richard Curtis | Stars: Domhnall Gleeson , Rachel McAdams , Bill Nighy , Lydia Wilson

Votes: 384,103 | Gross: $15.32M

2. Midnight in Paris (2011)

PG-13 | 94 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

While on a trip to Paris with his fiancée's family, a nostalgic screenwriter finds himself mysteriously going back to the 1920s every day at midnight.

Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Owen Wilson , Rachel McAdams , Kathy Bates , Kurt Fuller

Votes: 448,747 | Gross: $56.82M

3. If Only (2004)

PG-13 | 92 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

It takes a tragedy to teach the young businessman Ian to put love ahead of work and open up to his musician girlfriend Samantha.

Director: Gil Junger | Stars: Jennifer Love Hewitt , Paul Nicholls , Tom Wilkinson , Diana Hardcastle

Votes: 33,729

4. The Lake House (2006)

PG | 99 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

A lonely doctor who once occupied an unusual lakeside house begins to exchange love letters with its former resident, a frustrated architect. They must try to unravel the mystery behind their extraordinary romance before it's too late.

Director: Alejandro Agresti | Stars: Keanu Reeves , Sandra Bullock , Christopher Plummer , Ebon Moss-Bachrach

Votes: 157,320 | Gross: $52.33M

5. Click (2006)

PG-13 | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

A workaholic architect finds a universal remote that allows him to fast-forward and rewind to different parts of his life. Complications arise when the remote starts to overrule his choices.

Director: Frank Coraci | Stars: Adam Sandler , Kate Beckinsale , Christopher Walken , David Hasselhoff

Votes: 355,337 | Gross: $137.36M

6. The Time Traveler's Wife (2009)

Henry DeTamble, a librarian, possesses a unique gene that lets him involuntarily travel through time. His wife, Claire Abshire, finds it difficult to cope with it.

Director: Robert Schwentke | Stars: Eric Bana , Rachel McAdams , Ron Livingston , Michelle Nolden

Votes: 157,605 | Gross: $63.41M

7. Kate & Leopold (2001)

PG-13 | 118 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

An English Duke from 1876 is inadvertently dragged to modern day New York where he falls for a plucky advertising executive.

Director: James Mangold | Stars: Meg Ryan , Hugh Jackman , Liev Schreiber , Breckin Meyer

Votes: 88,892 | Gross: $47.12M

8. The Family Man (2000)

PG-13 | 125 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

A fast-lane investment broker, offered the opportunity to see how the other half lives, wakes up to find that his sports car and girlfriend have become a mini-van and wife.

Director: Brett Ratner | Stars: Nicolas Cage , Téa Leoni , Don Cheadle , Jeremy Piven

Votes: 119,090 | Gross: $75.79M

9. The Science of Sleep (2006)

R | 105 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

A man entranced by his dreams and imagination is love-struck with a French woman and feels he can show her his world.

Director: Michel Gondry | Stars: Gael García Bernal , Charlotte Gainsbourg , Miou-Miou , Alain Chabat

Votes: 70,810 | Gross: $4.66M

10. Somewhere in Time (1980)

PG | 103 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

A Chicago playwright uses self-hypnosis to travel back in time and meet the actress whose vintage portrait hangs in a grand hotel.

Director: Jeannot Szwarc | Stars: Christopher Reeve , Jane Seymour , Christopher Plummer , Teresa Wright

Votes: 32,369 | Gross: $9.71M

11. Happy Accidents (2000)

R | 110 min | Comedy, Romance

New Yorker Ruby Weaver believes she has found the man of her dreams in Sam Deed, who is her best catch in some time--except that he assures her that he came from the future.

Director: Brad Anderson | Stars: Marisa Tomei , Vincent D'Onofrio , Holland Taylor , Mick Weber

Votes: 10,208 | Gross: $0.69M

12. Orlando (1992)

PG-13 | 94 min | Biography, Drama, Fantasy

After Queen Elizabeth I commands him not to grow old, a young nobleman struggles with love and his place in the world.

Director: Sally Potter | Stars: Tilda Swinton , Billy Zane , Quentin Crisp , Jimmy Somerville

Votes: 18,641 | Gross: $5.29M

13. Twice Upon a Yesterday (1998)

R | 91 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

A shambling, out-of-work actor, desperate to win back the affections of his ex-girlfriend, unexpectedly stumbles upon a way to turn back the clock.

Director: Maria Ripoll | Stars: Lena Headey , Douglas Henshall , Penélope Cruz , Gustavo Salmerón

Votes: 2,773 | Gross: $0.26M

14. Il Mare (2000)

105 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

In 1999, a voice actor moves from Il Mare, a seaside house, and leaves a Christmas card in its (magical) mailbox. An architecture student receives it in 1997, and a friendship separated by 2 years begins.

Director: Hyun-seung Lee | Stars: Lee Jung-jae , Jun Ji-hyun , Mu-saeng Kim , Jo Seung-yeon

Votes: 9,433

15. I Love You, I Love You (1968)

91 min | Drama, Sci-Fi

After attempting suicide, Claude is recruited for a time travel experiment, but, when the machine goes haywire, he may be trapped hurtling through his memories.

Director: Alain Resnais | Stars: Claude Rich , Olga Georges-Picot , Anouk Ferjac , Alain MacMoy

Votes: 3,244 | Gross: $0.06M

16. 13 Going on 30 (2004)

PG-13 | 98 min | Comedy, Fantasy, Romance

Unpopular schoolgirl Jenna Rink makes an unusual wish on her birthday. Miraculously, her wish comes true and the 13-year-old Jenna wakes up the next day as a 30-year-old woman.

Director: Gary Winick | Stars: Jennifer Garner , Mark Ruffalo , Judy Greer , Andy Serkis

Votes: 215,539 | Gross: $57.23M

18. Forever Young (1992)

PG | 102 min | Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi

During a cryogenics test, a pilot frozen in 1939 awakes in 1992 but time is running out, as his body starts to age rapidly.

Director: Steve Miner | Stars: Mel Gibson , Jamie Lee Curtis , Elijah Wood , Isabel Glasser

Votes: 49,940 | Gross: $55.96M

19. The Two Worlds of Jennie Logan (1979 TV Movie)

96 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance

Jennie Logan discovers an antique dress in her attic that allows her to travel back in time. Soon she's torn between life with her philandering husband and a romance with a handsome artist who was murdered at the turn of the century.

Director: Frank De Felitta | Stars: Lindsay Wagner , Marc Singer , Alan Feinstein , Linda Gray

20. The Love Letter (1998 TV Movie)

Unrated | 99 min | Fantasy, Romance

20th century computer games designer Scott exchanges love letters with 19th century poet Elizabeth Whitcomb through an antique desk that can make letters travel through time.

Director: Dan Curtis | Stars: Campbell Scott , Jennifer Jason Leigh , David Dukes , Estelle Parsons

Votes: 2,374

21. Possession (2002)

PG-13 | 102 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance

A pair of literary sleuths unearth the amorous secret of two Victorian poets only to find themselves falling under a passionate spell.

Director: Neil LaBute | Stars: Gwyneth Paltrow , Aaron Eckhart , Jeremy Northam , Jennifer Ehle

Votes: 13,699 | Gross: $10.10M

22. Sliding Doors (1998)

PG-13 | 99 min | Comedy, Drama, Fantasy

After personal and professional setbacks, a woman experiences an alternate reality.

Director: Peter Howitt | Stars: Gwyneth Paltrow , John Hannah , John Lynch , Jeanne Tripplehorn

Votes: 71,337 | Gross: $11.88M

23. Déjà Vu (1997)

PG-13 | 117 min | Drama, Romance

L.A. shop owner Dana and Englishman Sean meet and fall in love at first sight, but Sean is married and Dana is to marry her business partner Alex.

Director: Henry Jaglom | Stars: Victoria Foyt , Stephen Dillane , Vanessa Redgrave , Glynis Barber

Votes: 957 | Gross: $0.82M

24. Vanilla Sky (2001)

R | 136 min | Fantasy, Mystery, Romance

A self-indulgent and vain publishing magnate finds his privileged life upended after a vehicular accident with a resentful lover.

Director: Cameron Crowe | Stars: Tom Cruise , Penélope Cruz , Cameron Diaz , Kurt Russell

Votes: 284,910 | Gross: $100.61M

25. Me Myself I (1999)

R | 104 min | Comedy, Romance

Pamela Drury is unhappy and alone. On her birthday she stumbles across a photo of Robert Dickson and wonders what would've happened had she said yes to his proposal. A freak accident causes... See full summary  »

Director: Pip Karmel | Stars: Rachel Griffiths , David Roberts , Sandy Winton , Yael Stone

Votes: 2,666 | Gross: $0.57M

26. Blast from the Past (1999)

PG-13 | 112 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance

A naive man comes out into the world after spending 35 years in a nuclear fallout shelter.

Director: Hugh Wilson | Stars: Brendan Fraser , Alicia Silverstone , Christopher Walken , Sissy Spacek

Votes: 71,306 | Gross: $26.49M

27. Reconstruction (2003)

PG-13 | 90 min | Drama, Romance

A young man who thought himself already in love with a nice girl is drawn into a literary drama when he is captured by a deep and stimulating love affair.

Director: Christoffer Boe | Stars: Nikolaj Lie Kaas , Maria Bonnevie , Krister Henriksson , Klaus Mulbjerg

Votes: 7,609 | Gross: $0.07M

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March 26, 2024 - Baltimore Key Bridge collapses after ship collision

By Helen Regan , Kathleen Magramo , Antoinette Radford, Alisha Ebrahimji , Maureen Chowdhury , Rachel Ramirez , Elise Hammond , Aditi Sangal , Tori B. Powell , Piper Hudspeth Blackburn and Kathleen Magramo , CNN

Our live coverage of the Baltimore bridge collapse has moved here .

Crew member on DALI said everyone on board was safe hours after bridge collapse, official says

From CNN’s Amy Simonson

A crew member on the DALI cargo ship sent a message hours after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed Tuesday saying everybody on board was safe, according to Apostleship of the Sea director Andy Middleton.

Middleton, who spent time with the captain of the DALI Monday, told CNN’s Laura Coates he reached out to a crew member after hearing about the incident Tuesday morning. 

He said there were 22 members aboard the ship from India who were setting sail earlier Tuesday morning and were heading toward Sri Lanka.

“I was able to reach out to a crew member very early this morning around 5:30 (a.m. ET) or 6 (a.m. ET) and get a message to them asking if they were OK,” he said. “That crew member responded within just a few minutes advising that the crew was safe, and everybody that [was] on board was safe.”

Middleton was told by the ship's captain Monday that the vessel was going to take a longer route to avoid risks along the Yemen coast.

“When I was out with the captain yesterday, we were talking while we were driving, and he advised that they were sailing down and around the tip of South Africa in order to avoid the incidents that are going on off the Yemen coast, and it was a safer way to go,” he said.

Middleton said the  Apostleship of the Sea  is a ministry to seafarers with members that spend time in the port and on the vessels as a friendly face to the seafarers that visit the Port of Baltimore, “taking care of their needs to make sure that they're reminded of their God-given human dignity when they're here in Baltimore.”

Search operation ends in "heartbreaking conclusion," Maryland governor says. Here's the latest

From CNN staff

Six people, who were believed to be part of a road construction crew, are presumed dead after Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday morning. The collapse came after a 984-foot cargo ship hit the bridge's pillar.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore told reporters Tuesday evening it's a "really heartbreaking conclusion to a challenging day."

Late Tuesday, it was discovered that two of the construction workers who went missing after the bridge collapsed were from Guatemala , the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said late Tuesday.

Here's what you should know to get up to speed:

• The victims: Eight people were on the bridge  when it fell, according to officials. At least two people were rescued — one was taken to the hospital and was later  discharged , fire official and the medical center said.
• The incident: Video shows the moment the entire bridge structure falls into the water, as the ship hits one of the bridge's pillars. CNN analysis shows that the  ships lights flickered  and it veered off course before it hit the bridge. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said the crew on the ship were able to issue a "mayday" before colliding into the bridge, which allowed the authorities to stop incoming traffic from going onto the bridge.
• Response efforts: Earlier, dive teams from various state and local agencies were brought in to assist in search-and-rescue operations, according to Maryland State Police Secretary Col. Roland L. Butler Jr.. The mission started with 50 personnel and continued to grow before the Coast Guard announced Tuesday evening that it was suspending its active search-and-rescue operation and transitioning to a "different phase."
• The investigation: Authorities are still working to establish exactly how the crash occurred. The National Transportation Safety Board will look into  how the bridge was built  and investigate the structure itself. It will "take time to dig through" whether the bridge had ever been  flagged for any safety deficiencies , NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said.
• Rebuilding the bridge: US Sen. Chris Van Hollen said the path to rebuilding the bridge will be "long and expensive." Senior White House adviser Tom Perez told reporters Tuesday “it’s too early” to tell how long it will take to rebuild the bridge. President Joe Biden said Tuesday he wants the federal government to bear the full cost of rebuilding the collapsed bridge, noting that it will not wait for the company who owns the container ship DALI to shoulder the costs. Funding could come from the Federal Highway Administration as well as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, but it may require additional funding from Congress.

2 of the missing construction workers from bridge collapse were from Guatemala, foreign ministry says

From CNN’s Allison Gordon, Flora Charner and Amy Simonson

Two of the construction workers missing from the bridge collapse in Baltimore were from Guatemala, the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement late Tuesday.

Those missing included a 26-year-old originally from San Luis, Petén. The other is a 35-year-old from Camotán, Chiquimula, the statement said.

The ministry said both were part of a work team “repairing the asphalt on the bridge at the time of the accident.”

The statement did not name the two people missing, but it said the country’s consul general in Maryland “went to the area where the families of those affected are located,” where he hopes to be able to meet with the brothers of both missing people.

The consulate   also issued a statement Tuesday saying its consul general in Maryland "remains in contact with local authorities," and also confirmed that two of those missing "were of Guatemalan origin.”

Six people, who were believed to be part of a road construction crew, are presumed dead after Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday morning when a cargo ship hit the bridge's pillar.

State and federal officials have not released information about the identities of any of the six missing workers.

Underwater mapping of bridge collapse area to begin Wednesday, Baltimore fire chief says

From CNN's Jennifer Henderson

Search operations near the Key Bridge collapse have shut down for the night due to dangerous conditions, but the process of underwater mapping with many local, state and federal dive teams will begin Wednesday, Baltimore City Fire Chief James Wallace told CNN’s Anderson Cooper Tuesday night.

Wallace said the portion of the Patapsco River is “tidal influenced, so it goes through tide cycles just like the open waters of the Chesapeake Bay does.”

The water depths in the area under the bridge vary from 40 feet to more than 60 feet, Wallace said. The deeper the divers go, the colder the temperatures they encounter, and the visibility is zero, he added.

 Wallace said when crews arrived Tuesday morning, the surface water temperatures of the Patapsco River were about 47 degrees with an air temperature of 44-45 degrees.

Here's what you should know about the historic Francis Scott Key Bridge

The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed early Tuesday after a massive container ship lost power and crashed into the iconic Baltimore bridge, sending people and vehicles into the frigid Patapsco River.

Six people, believed to be part of a road construction crew, are presumed dead and the Coast Guard has ended its active search and rescue mission.

Here's what you should know about the historic bridge:

• How old?: The Francis Scott Key Bridge, also referred to as just the Key Bridge, opened to traffic in March 1977 and is the final link in the Baltimore Beltway, according to the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA.) It crosses over the 50-foot-deep Patapsco River, where former US attorney Francis Scott Key found inspiration to write the lyrics to the Star Spangled Banner, the MDTA says.
• How long?: The bridge was 1.6 miles long when standing, MDTA reports.
• Traffic volume: More than 30,000 people commuted daily on the bridge, according to Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.
• How much did it cost?: The bridge cost $60.3 million to build, MDTA says. Since its collapse, President Joe Biden said he’s committed to helping rebuild the bridge as soon as possible.
• About the port: Baltimore ranks as the ninth biggest US port for international cargo. It handled a record 52.3 million tons, valued at $80.8 billion, in 2023. According to the Maryland state government, the port supports 15,330 direct jobs and 139,180 jobs in related services.
• About the ship: The bridge collapsed after a container vessel called Dali collided with one of its supports. Dali is operated by Singapore-based Synergy Group but had been chartered to carry cargo by Danish shipping giant Maersk . The ship is about 984 feet long , according to MarineTraffic data. That’s the length of almost three football fields.

Baltimore woman says bridge collapse was "like a piece of family dissolved"

From CNN's Kit Maher

For longtime Baltimore resident, Ceely, who opted not to share her last name, seeing footage of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse  Tuesday was deeply personal.

“I was very heavy-hearted,” Ceely told CNN. “Very tearful, thinking about the families whose loved ones may be in the water and just remembering when the bridge was constructed, and it was just like a piece of family dissolved.”

Ceely was at a prayer group Tuesday morning when she saw the news. She recalled being afraid when she first crossed the bridge while in Ford Maverick in 1975, but grew to like it because it saved time on the road.

“It was a main artery just like a blood line. It was a main artery to the other side of town. It was awesome. It beat going through the city all the time,” she said.

Elder Rashad A. Singletary , a senior pastor who led Tuesday night’s vigil at Mt. Olive Baptist Church told CNN that many church members watched the bridge's construction.

"It’s a part of the community. A lot of our individuals in our congregation drive that bridge to go to work, and so now it’s really a life changing moment,” he said.

"Heartbreaking conclusion to a challenging day," Maryland governor says as Coast Guard ended search operation

From CNN's Aditi Sangal

More than 18 hours after the collapse of the Baltimore bridge, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said it was a heartbreaking conclusion after the Coast Guard ended the search-and-rescue operation for the six people who were on the bridge when it collapsed.

It's a "really heartbreaking conclusion to a challenging day," he said.

"We put every single asset possible — air, land and sea" to find the missing people, he told reporters on Tuesday evening. "While even though we're moving on now to a recovery mission, we're still fully committed to making sure that we're going to use every single asset to now bring a sense of closure to the families," the governor added.

6 people presumed dead after Baltimore bridge collapse, Coast Guard says. Here's what we know

As the sun sets in Baltimore, six people are presumed dead after a major bridge collapsed overnight Tuesday, according to the Coast Guard. The Francis Scott Key Bridge came down around 1:30 a.m. ET after a cargo ship collided with it.

The Coast Guard said it has ended its active search-and-rescue operation for the missing construction workers who were on the bridge when it collapsed.

• What we know: Eight people were on the bridge when it fell, according to officials. At least two people were rescued — one was taken to the hospital and has been discharged . The Coast Guard has been searching for six other people. But, around 7:30 p.m. ET, the Coast Guard said it has transitioned to a “different phase” of operation, now it did “not believe we are going to find any of these individuals alive,” Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said.
• About the ship: The bridge collapsed after a container vessel called Dali collided with one of its supports. The vessel is operated by Singapore-based Synergy Group but had been chartered to carry cargo by Danish shipping giant Maersk . The US Embassy in Singapore has been in contact with the country’s Maritime and Port Authority, a State Department spokesperson said.
• The investigation: The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation into the collapse. A team of 24 experts will dig into nautical operations, vessel operations, safety history records, owners, operators, company policy and any safety management systems or programs, said NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy. A voyage data recorder will be critical to the investigation, she added. 
• Vehicles on the bridge: Officials are also working to verify the numbers of how many cars and people were on the bridge, Homendy said. Gov. Wes Moore said the quick work of authorities in closing the bridge had saved lives . Radio traffic captured how authorities stopped traffic and worked to clear the bridge seconds before the impact . Maryland State Police Secretary Col. Roland L. Butler Jr. said there is a “ distinct possibility ” more vehicles were on the bridge, but authorities have not found any evidence to support that.
• Looking ahead: NTSB will look into how the bridge was built and investigate the structure itself, including if it was flagged for any safety deficiencies , Homendy said. The federal government has also directed its resources to help with search and rescue, to reopen the port and rebuild the bridge, Vice President Kamala Harris said . Earlier, President Joe Biden said t he federal government will pay to fix the bridge.
• The economy: Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg warned the collapse will have a serious impact on supply chains . Until the channel is reopened, ships will likely already be changing course for other East Coast ports. Ocean carriers are already being diverted from the Port of Baltimore, where the bridge collapsed, to the Port of Virginia to “keep trade moving."

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