While you're eagerly awaiting the next episode of Alien: Earth on Disney+, we've got a list of five fantastic science fiction films that are sure to satisfy your craving for body horror, interstellar excitement and existential terror.
Best of all, they're all available on streaming platforms.
The series from Fargo's Noah Hawley has been receiving glowing reviews from fans and critics alike, who are enjoying the nostalgic nods to the original spaceship slasher and reflections on artificial intelligence.
With an entire weekend still to go before the series continues, here are five underrated sci-fi gems to keep you entertained.
From space epics to action-packed thrillers, there's something here for everyone.
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Ad Astra
In addition to the body horror and skin-crawling sexual metaphors, the Alien franchise captures the fear-inducing emptiness of space like no other, reports the Mirror.
If you're after a film with similar levels of dense atmosphere and a beautifully depicted vision of outer space, look no further than the overlooked masterpiece Ad Astra, featuring Brad Pitt.
This atmospheric space opera follows the F1 star as an astronaut embarking on an interstellar journey to uncover the truth about his missing father, portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones.
One five-star Letterboxd review described it as "one of the most meditative and breathtakingly exquisite outer space epics ever made."
Ad Astra is available to stream on Disney+.
Gattaca
This overlooked sci-fi masterpiece from the 1990s is set in a near future where humanity has become fixated on genetic perfection, chillingly echoing many of the themes found in Alien.
Ethan Hawke plays Vincent, a young 'In-Valid' who infiltrates the biological elite by masquerading as a paralysed swimming champion, played by Jude Law.
Desperate to join a mission to Saturn's moon Titan, he gradually discovers sinister secrets lurking beneath the veneer of this supposedly flawless new world.
One five-star Google review declared: "One of the best sci-fi movies ever made.
"I saw a clip in Biology class (we were studying gene editing), fell in love, and promptly watched the whole film.
"Since then, I've re-watched it countless times, and countless more sci-fi films, and this one still stands out from all of them."
You can watch Gattaca on Prime Video via streaming.
Color Out of Space
If you're seeking more horrifying body horror and spine-tingling Lovecraftian menaces from beyond, Color Out of Space might be precisely what you're looking for.
Featuring Nicolas Cage, this little-known thriller from 2019 centres on a family who relocate to a farm to flee the chaos of contemporary life. Huge error.
When a meteorite crashes into their garden, they slowly become consumed by an alien colour that starts to contaminate and transform everything within its reach, including the family themselves.
"This thing is going to be a cult classic," one Letterboxd user promised.
"It's got the blueprints of a wild premise and a truly off the rails Nic Cage performance.
"It's a horror that doesn't rely on anything really that scary but knows when to leave it to your imagination. With some great visuals and Cronenberg-y body horror, Color Out of Space absolutely rips."
Color Out of Space is available to stream on Prime Video.
Crimes of the Future
Speaking of David Cronenberg, one of his finest and most legendary films, The Fly, is available on Disney+. Nevertheless, if you're an Alien enthusiast there's a good possibility you've already watched it, so why not sample one of his more recent offerings?
Another chilling sci-fi thriller, Crimes of the Future, pushes the boundaries of body horror to an entirely new dimension, building its distinctive suspense story around a performance artist who uncovers a dark conspiracy to reveal humanity's next evolutionary phase.
Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux and Kristen Stewart feature in this bizarre glimpse of tomorrow which "showcases [Cronenberg's] mastery over the ghastly and the gruesome", according to one enthusiastic Google review.
"Perverse and provocative, it's easy to understand how it might not be most people's cup of tea, however, fans of Cronenberg and his penchant for the grisly will be delighted."
Crimes of the Future is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Prey
If there's one film series that pairs perfectly with Alien, it's the Predator franchise, which kicked off in 1987 with the Arnold Schwarzenegger classic and even teamed up for two delightfully cheesy crossover films in the early 2000s.
Even though they've gone their separate ways in the meantime, there's a possibility that the two franchises could reunite, thanks to the reboot of the *Predator* series by Dan Trachtenberg, the director who brought us the brilliant *Prey* in 2022.
Having been gripped by this nail-biting thriller about Amber Midthunder's 18th-century Comanche warrior facing off against the iconic hunter, fans can look forward to the highly anticipated follow-up, *Predator: Badlands*.
Set in the future, this chapter unfolds on a far-flung planet and features Elle Fanning playing a synthetic being crafted by Weyland-Yutani from *Alien*. Is there a chance a Xenomorph might pop up out of the blue?
You can watch Prey on Disney+.
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