Exploring the Best of Science Fiction on Disney+
In 1969, science fiction writer Frank Herbert explained his perspective on the genre and what motivated him to create his formidable universe in an interview. According to Herbert, the author of the Dune saga considered stories that imagined the future or distant places as predictions. Not only for symbolizing collective hopes and beliefs, but also for representing the way man imagines himself.
Whether true or not, Herbert’s premise seems to repeat frequently in the best of current science fiction. From grand visions of amazing futures like in The Creator, to more pessimistic perspectives like the one shown in the Alien franchise. The genre encompasses all concerns, aspirations, and even terrors, condensed into different scenarios. From artificial intelligence turned enemy to great flights of imagination around planets symbolizing humanity’s aspiration to transcend. The genre offers everything and constantly renews itself.
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To prove it, we present you with five science fiction content you can watch right now on Disney+. From a journey through an extraordinary planet destined to be a long cinematic story, to a gem of the genre that has moved generations. The collection covers everything you can dream of in a universe full of dazzling characters and scenarios.
**Avatar Saga**
In 2009, James Cameron began a journey that would not only revolutionize the world of cinema and science fiction from its foundations. He also created the first chapter of what is now announced as a lasting saga in cinema. Avatar, which told a story of bioethics and delved into the epic with ecological overtones, to narrate the clash between two worlds, was a familiar premise for genre lovers. What was not familiar at all was the visual and anthropological research section, which turned the simple script into a journey through an unknown world. James Cameron, an expert in innovating in digital effects and cutting-edge technology, found in his work the best way to use everything learned in previous productions. This turned the film and its sequel Avatar: The Way of Water, released in 2022, into a new type of cinema that continues to amaze the audience. With three sequels in production and a vast universe deepening in different formats, the director’s work is the focal point of a foundational vision of current science fiction.
**Tomorrowland: The World of Tomorrow**
Do you like more traditional science fiction with a touch of innocence? This 2015 film is for you. Directed by Brad Bird (from The Incredibles), it is not only a return to a classic vision of the genre. It is also an exciting story that combines several of its most classic tropes. This makes the film a journey full of differences from the type of films that became famous in the 1950s, albeit with a contemporary touch. Casey (Britt Robertson) is a gifted teenager who cannot find her place in the world. Something that the former child prodigy Frank (George Clooney) could understand. And indeed, that will be the link that unites them both to find the mysterious city of Tomorrowland, a point between time and space destined to save the best of humanity. But soon, this duo of geniuses will encounter all kinds of obstacles, including the real possibility of a dystopian future. This is while the artificial intelligence Athena (Raffey Cassidy) tries to reconcile Frank with his past. With one of the most moving endings in contemporary family cinema, this rare gem, which went unnoticed at the time, is available to you right now on Disney+.
**Tron Saga**
In 1982, director Steven Lisberger created, almost unknowingly, one of the most iconic films in current science fiction. The story of the programmer who enters his computer system to integrate into a completely new universe surprised not only by the way of narrating a story of heroism in a completely new scenario. Also, by the amazing use of light and practical effects to bring to life a world until then little explored. The notion of cyberspace and everything that happened behind the computer screen became in Tron a struggle of life or death, which also linked with the sense of existence itself. In 2010, the film received a late sequel, directed by Joseph Kosinski, which recovered much of the original universe and added a soundtrack by the Daft Punk group, which became an instant classic. For 2025, the third part will arrive, this time with Joachim Rønning at the helm, which will tell a new stage of this unique saga that has its own place in the history of cinema.
**The Black Hole**
A classic for the list, which you won’t find anywhere else. Gary Nelson directed in 1979 this sinister epic, which despite being innocent, is darker and more macabre than it seems. Especially when taking a look at space travel from a strange perspective, closer to fortunate—or in this case mysterious—accidents than to exploration proper.
**The Acolyte**
A former Padawan reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes, only to discover that the forces they are facing are more sinister than they had ever anticipated. V.I.N.CENT (Vital Information Necessary Centralized), is the artificial intelligence that controls the operation of a ship whose orbit leads it to investigate a black hole. What the little robot does not expect is that, in addition, they will stumble upon an enigma. This is: the Cygnus spacecraft, disappeared in inexplicable circumstances. Gradually, the film will progress to the answer to whatever happened to the spacecraft and the horrors it contains.
**Wall-E**
As strange as it may seem, this 2008 film by Andrew Stanton is considered one of the best silent films in the history of cinema. The reason? That during its intense, well-narrated, and visually well-executed first minutes, no one says anything. Neither the titular little robot, nor EVE, his circumstantial companion in the middle of a desolate world. But what begins as a fortunate visual experiment will soon become a dystopian journey towards a possible and desolate future, which will suddenly turn into hope. Even more singularly, this apparently contradictory scenario will also become the sweetest and most atypical romance.
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If you have never seen this Pixar gem, now is your moment to do it on Disney+. But if you have already seen it, give it a second chance. You will be moved by how prophetic and sublime its premise can be. Among the surprises of the platform’s catalog. Get our newsletter every morning. A guide to understanding what matters in relation to technology, science, and digital culture.