This has been a very strong year for science fiction films. With Dune: Part Two, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and A Quiet Place: Day One getting mass acclaim from critics and audiences alike, it’s been an excellent year for the genre.
That winning streak looks to continue in the last four months of the year. From smaller films like Things Will Be Different and major superhero blockbusters like Venom: The Last Dance to projects nearly half a century in the making, such as Megalopolis, the autumn season is packed with intriguing science fiction releases. Here are five of the most anticipated sci-fi movies of fall 2024.
5. Onmi Loop (September 20)
While time loop science fiction films are a dime a dozen, the upcoming Omni Loop looks like a fresh take on the concept. Mary-Louise Parker is a quantum physicist with a literal black hole growing inside her, who teams up with a genius student (Ayo Edebiri) to try to find a solution to her deadly problem. The duo uses time travel to attempt to solve the pending doom, allowing Parker’s character to try to rewrite her life before it’s taken from her.
The Bernardo Britto-directed film currently sports a 100% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. With Edebiri’s star rising thanks to her acclaimed role in The Bear, Omni Loop is positioning itself well to become a standout film of 2024.
4. Things Will Be Different (October 4)
One of the smaller sci-fi movies generating considerable buzz following its debut at South by Southwest in March is Things Will Be Different. Starring Adam David Thompson and Riley Dandy and directed by newcomer Michael Felker, the film follows two estranged siblings who travel through time to hide after committing a robbery. However, their time-travel shenanigans will throw them into further chaos, as their attempts at laying low lead them into an even more challenging time- and space-bending position.
Things Will Be Different, currently sporting a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, has a chance to be a major sleeper hit. It arrives on streaming services next month.
3. Venom: The Last Dance (October 25)
The third installment of Sony’s Venom franchise goes out with a bang in Venom: The Last Dance. With the first two films, Venom and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, grossing more than $1.3 billion at the box office, there’s reason to believe the potential final chapter will find even more of an audience and continue the hot streak of past Venom-starring films.
The Kelly Marcel-directed project is seemingly concluding in the wildest way imaginable: Trailers for the film have teased the arrival of Knull, the God of Symbiotes, and have seen Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) riding a symbiote horse. Plus, with Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, and Chiwetel Ejiofor joining the cast, there’s plenty of acting talent to play in the symbiote sandbox. Yes, the Venom movies might be dumb fun, but that’s what makes them so damn enjoyable.
2. The Wild Robot (September 27)
DreamWorks animation appears to have another major hit with The Wild Robot. It tells the story of a robot named Roz who ends up stuck on a deserted island and slowly forges friendships with the area’s inhabitants. The robot even becomes a parental figure for a young gosling who lost their parents. Directed by Lilo & Stitch director Chris Sanders and based on the children’s book of the same name by author Peter Brown, The Wild Robot feels like it’s set to be an instant classic that packs an emotional punch for audiences.
The film starring Lupita Nyong’o (A Quiet Place: Day One), Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Catherine O’Hara (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice), Stephanie Hsu, and Bill Nighy debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival and currently has a perfect 100% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes. For those looking for an animated sci-fi movie to obsess over this fall, The Wild Robot is the film for you.
1. Megalopolis (September 27)
A film more than 50 years in the making, Megalopolis ranks atop this list just by existing. The Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola has put his money (it has a $120 million budget) and reputation on the line to create the film starring Adam Driver as Cesar Catilina, an architect tasked with turning a former metropolis into a utopia. The film has a massive cast of actors, including Giancarlo Esposito, Shia LaBeouf, and Nathalie Emmanuel. Some characters have incredibly ridiculous names, including Aubrey Plaza as Wow Platinum and Grace VanderWaal as pop star Vesta Sweetwater.
The film received highly polarizing reviews during its Cannes premiere and has a good chance to be a spectacular failure for Coppola. But based on Megalopolis‘ sheer ambition and epic nature that sets it apart in a world of safe, corporate blockbusters, the film will be a sight to behold. It just remains to be seen whether that sight will be good or bad.
