Top 25 Ranked

Best SciFi Movies of 2022

Interstellar Journeys and Multiverse Marvels

Explore the best science fiction films from a year of alien encounters, futuristic dystopias, and mind-bending journeys through the cinematic multiverse.

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About 2022 SciFi Movies

In the rearview mirror of cinematic history, 2022 looks less like a single year and more like a pivotal turning point for science fiction. After years of the genre being dominated by the clean, clinical aesthetic of prestige space dramas or the neon-soaked repetition of cyberpunk, 2022 felt like a chaotic and brilliant explosion of new ideas. It was the year that science fiction stopped trying to look like the future and started trying to feel like the present, reflecting our internal anxieties through a lens of high-concept madness.

The undisputed heavyweight champion of the year was Everything Everywhere All At Once. While it technically functions as a family drama, its structural DNA is pure, unadulterated sci-fi. By weaponizing the concept of the multiverse not as a tool for franchise building, but as a metaphor for the overwhelming noise of the digital age, the Daniels managed to make the genre feel dangerous and vital again. It proved that audiences were hungry for complexity, provided it was anchored by a beating heart. The film did not just win awards; it shifted the gravity of what a mid-budget genre film could achieve.

At the same time, the legendary David Cronenberg returned to the fold with Crimes of the Future. This was science fiction at its most visceral and philosophical, stripping away the shiny alloys of typical futuristic settings in favor of something biological and decaying. It reminded us that the genre is often at its best when it examines how technology and evolution might change the literal fabric of our bodies. It was a stark, uncomfortable contrast to the maximalism of the multiverse, proving that there was still plenty of room for cerebral, slow-burn storytelling.

The year also showcased how sci-fi could be used to sharpen the edges of social satire. Jordan Peele delivered Nope, a film that used the iconography of a classic UFO encounter to interrogate our obsession with spectacle. By blending Spielbergian wonder with a modern sense of dread, Peele reframed the extraterrestrial visitor as a predator, making the unknown feel terrifyingly tangible. On the streaming front, the surprise success of Prey reinvigorated a tired franchise by stripping it down to its most primitive elements, proving that the best way to move a genre forward is sometimes to look deep into the past.

We also saw the return of the populist epic with Avatar: The Way of Water. While many critics had spent a decade betting against James Cameron, the film arrived as a reminder of the sheer power of world-building. It was a technical marvel that focused on the environmental and colonial themes that have always been central to the genre, delivered with a visual fidelity that made every other blockbuster look dated by comparison.

Looking back at 2022, the landscape was defined by its unpredictability. Whether it was the claustrophobic dread of a biological metamorphosis or the sprawling insanity of an infinite universe, the films of that year rejected easy answers. They moved away from the stale tropes of the previous decade and embraced a messy, vibrant, and deeply human vision of the future. It was a year that reminded us why we look to the stars or the lab or the screen in the first place: to see ourselves a little more clearly.

The Complete Rankings

Based on the top picks in drafts on SnakeDrafts

See Top Ten
25
2022 SciFi in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (2022)
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
2022

The Red Ribbon Army, an evil organization that was once destroyed by Goku in the past, has been reformed by a group of people who have created new and mightier Androids, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2, and seek vengeance against Goku and his family.

Animation
Science Fiction
1h 40m
Tetsuro Kodama
Masako Nozawa, Toshio Furukawa, Yuko Minaguchi, Hiroshi Kamiya
24
2022 SciFi in Next Exit (2022)
Next Exit
2022

A research scientist who makes national news proving she can track people into the afterlife - Rose sees a way out and Teddy sees his chance to finally make it. These two strangers, both harboring dark secrets, race to join the doctor's contentious study and leave this life behind.

Science Fiction
Comedy
1h 46m
Mali Elfman
Katie Parker, Rahul Kohli, Rose McIver, Karen Gillan
23
2022 SciFi in Something in the Dirt (2022)
Something in the Dirt
2022

When neighbors John and Levi witness supernatural events in their LA apartment building, they realize documenting the paranormal could inject some fame and fortune into their wasted lives.

Comedy
Horror
1h 55m
Justin Benson
Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson, Sarah Adina Smith, Wanjiru M. Njendu

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22
2022 SciFi in Wifelike (2022)
Wifelike
2022

A grieving detective in the near-future hunts down criminals who trade artificial humans on the black market. In the fight to end AI exploitation, an underground resistance attempts to infiltrate him by sabotaging the programming of the artificial human assigned as his companion to behave like his late wife. She begins to question her reality as memories of a past life begin to surface in a world where nothing is as it seems.

Science Fiction
Mystery
1h 46m
James Bird
Elena Kampouris, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Doron Bell, Agam Darshi
21
2022 SciFi in Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons (2022)
Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons
2022

After discovering he has powers, 11-year-old Jonathan Kent and assassin-turned-Boy-Wonder Damian Wayne must join forces to rescue their fathers (Superman & Batman) and save the planet from the malevolent alien force known as Starro.

Animation
Action
1h 20m
Matt Peters
Jack Dylan Grazer, Jack Griffo, Laura Bailey, Troy Baker
20
2022 SciFi in Alienoid (2022)
Alienoid
2022

Gurus in the late Goryeo dynasty try to obtain a fabled, holy sword, and humans in 2022 hunt down an alien prisoner that is locked in a human's body. The two parties cross paths when a time-traveling portal opens up.

Science Fiction
Action
2h 22m
Choi Dong-hoon
Ryu Jun-yeol, Kim Woo-bin, Kim Tae-ri, So Ji-sub
19
2022 SciFi in Project Gemini (2022)
Project Gemini
2022

After depleting Earth's resources for centuries, humankind's survival requires an exodus to outer space. An international expedition is quickly formed to find a suitable new planet, but when plans go awry, the crew is suddenly stranded without power on a strange planet, where something unimaginable lies in wait.

Science Fiction
Thriller
1h 38m
Serik Beyseu
Egor Koreshkov, Alyona Konstantinova, Konstantin Samoukov, Pyotr Romanov
18
2022 SciFi in Rubikon (2022)
Rubikon
2022

The company soldier Hannah and the scientists Gavin and Dimitri are researching an algae project on board the Rubikon space station, which is supposed to permanently supply humanity with oxygen and food. But suddenly the earth disappears below them in a brown, toxic fog and all contact is broken off - are they the last survivors of humanity? Should they initiate the safe station, dare the return flight and thereby risk their lives?

Science Fiction
Thriller
1h 50m
Magdalena Lauritsch
Julia Franz Richter, Mark Ivanir, George Blagden, Nicholas Monu
17
2022 SciFi in Significant Other (2022)
Significant Other
2022

Ruth and Harry decide to take a romantic backpacking trip through the Pacific Northwest, but amongst the beautiful scenery, Ruth makes an unexpected discovery that sets her off on a strange, frightening new path. The couple aren't alone in the woods, and they might not be the same when they come out...if they come out.

Science Fiction
Mystery
1h 25m
Robert Olsen
Maika Monroe, Jake Lacy, Matthew Yang King, Dana Green
16
2022 SciFi in The Time Capsule (2022)
The Time Capsule
2022

In the near future, a politician fresh off an electoral loss escapes to his family's summer lake house. His vacation is disrupted by the appearance of his first love, who has just returned from a 20-year space voyage and hasn't aged a day.

Drama
Romance
1h 45m
Erwann Marshall
Todd Grinnell, Brianna Hildebrand, KaDee Strickland, Baron Vaughn
15
2022 SciFi in Slash/Back (2022)
Slash/Back
2022

In a remote Arctic community, a group of Inuit girls fight off an alien invasion, all while trying to make it to the coolest party in town.

Science Fiction
Action
1h 27m
Nyla Innuksuk
Tasiana Shirley, Alexis Vincent-Wolfe, Nalajoss Ellsworth, Chelsea Prusky
14
2022 SciFi in Vesper (2022)
Vesper
2022

After the collapse of Earth's ecosystem, Vesper, a 13-year-old girl struggling to survive with her paralyzed Father, meets a mysterious Woman with a secret that forces Vesper to use her wits, strength and bio-hacking abilities to fight for the possibility of a future.

Science Fiction
Drama
1h 52m
Kristina Buožytė
Raffiella Chapman, Eddie Marsan, Rosy McEwen, Richard Brake
13
2022 SciFi in The In Between (2022)
The In Between
2022

After surviving a car accident that took the life of her boyfriend, a teenage girl believes he's attempting to reconnect with her from the after world.

Romance
Science Fiction
1h 56m
Arie Posin
Joey King, Kyle Allen, Kim Dickens, John Ortiz
12
2022 SciFi in Lightyear (2022)
Lightyear
2022

Legendary Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear embarks on an intergalactic adventure alongside a group of ambitious recruits and his robot companion Sox.

Animation
Science Fiction
1h 45m
Angus MacLane
Chris Evans, Keke Palmer, Peter Sohn, Taika Waititi
11
2022 SciFi in Strange World (2022)
Strange World
2022

A journey deep into an uncharted and treacherous land, where fantastical creatures await the legendary Clades—a family of explorers whose differences threaten to topple their latest, and by far most crucial, mission.

Animation
Family
1h 42m
Don Hall
10
2022 SciFi in After Yang (2022)
After Yang
2022

When his young daughter's beloved companion — an android named Yang — malfunctions, Jake searches for a way to repair him. In the process, Jake discovers the life that has been passing in front of him, reconnecting with his wife and daughter across a distance he didn't know was there.

Science Fiction
Drama
1h 36m
Kogonada
Justin H. Min, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith
Why it ranks

Kogonada offers a quiet, devastatingly beautiful inquiry into silicon-based memory and the quiet layers of the domestic future. It is a sophisticated piece of techno-futurism that finds the ghost in the machine through the lens of grief and cultural legacy.

9
2022 SciFi in Dual (2022)
Dual
2022

A terminally ill woman opts for a cloning procedure to ease her loss on her friends and family. When she makes a miraculous recovery, her attempts to have her clone decommissioned fail and lead to a court-mandated duel to the death.

Science Fiction
Comedy
1h 35m
Riley Stearns
Karen Gillan, Aaron Paul, Beulah Koale, Theo James
Why it ranks

Riley Stearns utilizes a dry, satirical deadpan to explore the bureaucratic horror of cloning and identity. The film’s minimalist aesthetic serves as a perfect canvas for its sharp critique of social conformity and the absurdity of self-replacement.

8
2022 SciFi in Crimes of the Future (2022)
Crimes of the Future
2022

With his partner, a celebrity performance artist publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances. An investigator from the National Organ Registry obsessively tracks their movements, which is when a mysterious group is revealed... Their mission — to use the artist's notoriety to shed light on the next phase of human evolution.

Science Fiction
Horror
Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux, Scott Speedman, Kristen Stewart
Why it ranks

David Cronenberg returns to his fleshy throne with a chillingly antiseptic look at the next stage of human evolution. It is a provocative meditation on internal cartography where surgery replaces art and the body becomes the ultimate playground for biological rebellion.

7
2022 SciFi in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
2022

Queen Ramonda, Shuri, M’Baku, Okoye and the Dora Milaje fight to protect their nation from intervening world powers in the wake of King T’Challa’s death. As the Wakandans strive to embrace their next chapter, the heroes must band together with the help of War Dog Nakia and Everett Ross and forge a new path for the kingdom of Wakanda.

Action
Adventure
2h 42m
Ryan Coogler
Why it ranks

The introduction of Talokan expands the MCU's speculative horizons into a hauntingly beautiful underwater civilization rooted in Mesoamerican history. This entry stands out for its somber tone and the sophisticated political friction between two technologically insulated superpowers.

6
2022 SciFi in Prey (2022)
Prey
2022

When danger threatens her camp, the fierce and highly skilled Comanche warrior Naru sets out to protect her people. But the prey she stalks turns out to be a highly evolved alien predator with a technically advanced arsenal.

Thriller
Action
1h 40m
Dan Trachtenberg
Amber Midthunder, Dakota Beavers, Michelle Thrush, Stormee Kipp
Why it ranks

Stripping the Predator mythos down to its primal core, this period piece proves that high-tech sci-fi thrives best when pitted against raw human ingenuity. The juxtaposition of Comanche tradition with interstellar weaponry creates a masterfully paced survival thriller.

5
2022 SciFi in Moonfall (2022)
Moonfall
2022

A mysterious force knocks the moon from its orbit around Earth and sends it hurtling on a collision course with life as we know it.

Science Fiction
Adventure
2h 11m
Roland Emmerich
Halle Berry, Patrick Wilson, John Bradley, Charlie Plummer
Why it ranks

This unapologetic disaster epic revels in the glorious absurdity of its lunar hypothesis, delivering the kind of high-budget lunacy that modern sci-fi often forgets to indulge in. It is a loud, proud celebration of gravitational chaos and planetary-scale destruction.

4
2022 SciFi in Nope (2022)
Nope
2022

Residents in a lonely gulch of inland California bear witness to an uncanny, chilling discovery.

Horror
Science Fiction
2h 10m
Jordan Peele
Daniel Kaluuya, Keke Palmer, Brandon Perea, Michael Wincott
Why it ranks

Jordan Peele subverts the typical alien invasion narrative by reframing the extraterrestrial encounter as a predatory spectacle of nature. The film excels as a meta-commentary on our obsession with capturing the impossible through a lens, turning the sky itself into a source of primal terror.

3
2022 SciFi in The Adam Project (2022)
The Adam Project
2022

After accidentally crash-landing in 2022, time-traveling fighter pilot Adam Reed teams up with his 12-year-old self on a mission to save the future.

Adventure
Science Fiction
1h 44m
Shawn Levy
Why it ranks

By blending Amblin-esque nostalgia with slick modern visual effects, this feature revitalizes the time-travel subgenre through earnest character dynamics. It prioritizes the emotional paradoxes of meeting one's past self over convoluted temporal mechanics.

2
2022 SciFi in Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
Everything Everywhere All at Once
2022

An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save what's important to her by connecting with the lives she could have led in other universes.

Action
Adventure
2h 20m
Daniel Scheinert
Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, James Hong
Why it ranks

A maximalist assault on the senses, this film weaponizes the multiverse trope to explore profound existential dread through a lens of absurdist kineticism. It is a rare feat of speculative fiction that manages to be simultaneously frantic, hilarious, and deeply moving.

1

Set more than a decade after the events of the first film, learn the story of the Sully family (Jake, Neytiri, and their kids), the trouble that follows them, the lengths they go to keep each other safe, the battles they fight to stay alive, and the tragedies they endure.

Action
Adventure
Why it ranks

James Cameron delivers a masterclass in world-building that pushes CG photorealism into the realm of the sublime. This sequel transcends its predecessor by grounding its high-concept biotechnology in a tactile, aquatic ecosystem that feels more discovered than designed.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about this list and SnakeDrafts

"Everything Everywhere All at Once" is a 2022 sci-fi film that uniquely combines multiverse exploration with elements of action and comedy, delivering a fresh and mind-bending cinematic experience.

James Cameron's "Avatar: The Way of Water" pushes the boundaries of sci-fi with groundbreaking visual effects and immersive underwater adventures, expanding the original's world while exploring themes of environmentalism and cultural identity.

"Prey" distinguishes itself in 2022 as a sci-fi thriller by rebooting the Predator franchise with a focus on intense survival action and cultural authenticity, offering a fresh perspective on alien-human encounters.

Yes, the list includes animated sci-fi films such as "Strange World" and "Lightyear," which blend family-friendly themes with adventurous science fiction storytelling and imaginative worlds.

Jordan Peele's "Nope" masterfully intertwines horror with sci-fi by crafting a suspenseful story about mysterious alien phenomena, emphasizing atmospheric dread and societal commentary.

"After Yang" delves into futuristic dystopian themes through a poignant and contemplative narrative focused on family, memory, and the ethical nuances of artificial intelligence.

"The Adam Project" blends action and adventure within its sci-fi framework, featuring time travel and comedy to create a lighthearted yet thrilling exploration of family and second chances.

David Cronenberg's "Crimes of the Future" combines science fiction with horror and drama, presenting a disturbing and thought-provoking vision of body transformation and human evolution in a dystopian setting.
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