Star Warshas been around since 1977 and fundamentally changed thesci-filandscape, but a lot of people don’t realize how many science-fiction films have come before the tumultuous space opera. Admittedly, beforeStar Wars, science-fiction films were for more of a niche audience. Much of the genre was simply not taken seriously before George Lucas came around, and great genre films likeThe BlobandGodzilladid not receive as much love from the Academy Awards, being dismissed as B-movies by critics and cinephiles (until they received intellectual reappraisals over recent decades which explored their brilliance, withGodzillanow referred to as poetry).
Updated August 10, 2025: Curious about the best classic sci-fi movies made beforeStar Wars? You’ll be pleased to know we’ve updated this article with new entries.
However, there have been a handful of science-fiction films that have stuck out among the crowd and remain beloved to this very day.Star Warsmight have redefined sci-fi, but it was also standing on the shoulders of what had come before. Here are the best science-fiction movies beforeStar Warswas released in theaters.
15It Came From Outer Space (1953)
1953’sIt Came From Outer Spacetells the story of an alien spacecraft that crash lands on Earth while the main human characters - an astronomer and his fiancée are stargazing in the desert. The aliens then take human form and attempt to find parts to repair their ship to return to their home planet as the plot progresses. The film was particularly notable for being one of Universal’s first 3-D films, exploring the early advent of 3-D cinematic technology.
Related:The 20 Best Sci-Fi Movies of All Time, Ranked
The movie, produced by William Alland and directed by Jack Arnold, was generally well received and was an early exploration of the sci-fi genre in the ’50s, which comprised and depicted largely peaceful aliens and a progressive storyline unlike the usual invasion concept while exploring how the extraterrestrials dealt with the event of their spaceship crashing on Earth.
14Silent Running (1972)
Douglas Turnbull, an innovative visual effects supervisor, who created scenes for2001: A Space Odyssey,Blade Runner, andThe Tree of Life, made his directorial debut with this compelling environmental sci-fi drama that rips your heart out.Set in the post-apocalyptic future,Silent Runningtells the melancholic story of Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern), a lone crew member of a spaceship maintaining a variety of plants for humans' eventual return to Earth.
When Lowell is ordered to destroy the last of the planet’s botany, he rebels and attempts to save the greenhouse with the help of three robots. At the heart ofSilent Running, which influenced many subsequent sci-fi films, including Pixar’sWALL-E, are feelings of sadness and hope.
13THX 1138 (1971)
George Lucas revolutionized cinema forever withStar Wars,but his lesser-known first feature filmTHX 1138,might be a movie that not many people are aware of. The film performed abysmally after it was released in what was Lucas’ debut feature film, much before his success with theStar Warsfranchise. The premise of the film is a dystopian world where humans are stripped of their identities and all kinds of pleasurable activities and are drugged on meds and made to conform to working jobs tirelessly.
The film was re-released by studios after the success ofStar Warsin the hope that it would ride the George Lucas wave, but it still failed to draw any kind of notable audience. However, the movie was a glimpse into Lucas’ ingenuity and visionary thinking and was a precursor to his eventual success withStar Wars.
12Invasion Of The Bodysnatchers (1956)
Produced by Walter Wanger and directed by Don Siegel,Invasion Of The Bodysnatchersdepicts how alien plant pods get scattered on Earth, with each pod replicating human traits identically and converting people into pod humanoids. The pods threaten to take over humanity, converting humans into emotionless pod humanoids unless the protagonists find the root cause of the invasion and the solution to save the Earth.
However, there would be controversies surrounding the film’s ending, with different versions of the film’s conclusion added and altered to the original take by studio executives against Siegel’s wishes. Regardless though,the film was a revelation at the timeand coincided with the advent of more elaborate scripting and concepts in the sci-fi genre.
11Things To Come (1936)
Based on H.G. Wells’ novelThe Shape of Things to Come,1936’sThings To Comewas a far cry from the concepts of sci-fi films (aliens, monsters, etc.) that would follow as cinema evolved but was perhaps an early indicator of the power of sci-fi storytelling. The film depicts how the human race survives a mass worldwide conflict and then learns from the mistakes of their war-ridden past to become a technologically advanced society.
The film was released in 1936 before WWII and perhaps served as an ominous indicator of the perils of a world consumed by war that forced humans to the brink of extinction while also reflecting on the power of progress in a world united by peace.
10Them! (1954)
Portraying gigantic ants attacking the planet,Them!is a classic example of a sci-fi film about the oversized monsters vs. humanity theme. The film was one of the earliest renditions of the concept, which several films since would follow, with the Earth in turmoil as gigantic creatures threaten to overrun the planet. With innovative use of visual effects, sound, and technology at the time,Them!was a visual delight to moviegoers in its era, which kept audiences on the edge of their seats, leaving them enticed, thrilled, and engrossed with the on-screen drama. The movie pioneered the use of cinematic technology that pushed boundaries of production and direction and remains one of the hallmark classics of sci-fi cinema to this day.
9Alphaville (1965)
Directed by perhaps the most importantfilmmaker of the French New Wave, Jean-Luc Godard, 1965’sAlphavillecombines the genres of film noir and dystopian science fiction. The movie follows secret agent Lemmy Caution (Eddie Constantine), who arrives in the distant space city of Alphaville to free it from its evil ruler named Von Braun (Howard Vernon). Von Braun’s daughter (Anna Karina) helps Caution. It is a strange but beautiful sci-fi without special effects.
8The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
No, this isn’t the off-beat, if visually stunning, Keanu Reeves movie. The originalThe Day the Earth Stood Stillcenters around a flying saucer that landed in Washington, D.C. The saucer harbored an alien named Klaatu and his robotic companion named Gort. Looking at it from a contemporary time period, the film is very dated, and the robot costume for Gort is laughable, but beyond that, the film is noteworthy for its detailed exposition of the human race and how the ideologies of peace are often traded for war and avarice. The film was selected for preservation at the National Film Registry in 1995.
7The War of the Worlds (1953)
Another original, alien-centric film remade in the 2000s (with Tom Cruise) wasThe War of the Worlds, the 1950s flying saucers classicbased on the groundbreaking H.G. Wells masterpiece. The aliens don’t come in peace, and as soon as they land on Earth, all hell breaks loose as the monsters go on a killing spree to take over the world. The aliens are foiled by the bacteria in the atmosphere foreign to them as they die off. Potent, riveting, and ambitious even for a B-flick, the film was a step forward in science fiction and even won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects.
6The Time Machine (1960)
BeforeStar Warsand, more appropriately,Back to the Futurewere released, Rod Taylor starred in the classic movieThe Time Machine. It explored the themes oftime traveland progress for the sake of science. George Wells (an obvious nod to the author H.G. Wells in this other adaptation of his) is a genius inventor who convinces his science-minded friends that he has discovered the secret of time travel. After his friends rebuff his claims, Wells decides to travel into the future, seeing what progress mankind has made. The movie is nostalgic, clever, and wonderfully acted by Taylor. It proves to be thought-provoking and stellar in its storytelling and structure.
