5 Best Alien Movies of the 21st Century, Ranked

Since the earliest days of cinema, filmmakers have looked beyond Earth for stories about alien life. Humanity had spent centuries staring at the stars and imagining what might exist in the cosmos, so it was only natural for that fascination to reach the screen. From A Trip to the Moon onward, alien movies have explored nearly every genre and tone. Extraterrestrials can be gentle companions, as in E.T., or imposing forces that remind humanity of its fragile place in the universe, as in The Day the Earth Stood Still.

The 57 best alien movies of all time demonstrate just how much creative potential remains in stories centered on beings from beyond Earth. The 21st century has continued that tradition with plenty of films capable of thrilling audiences. Blockbusters such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Avengers: Endgame were obvious commercial successes, but which alien movies stand out for their artistic ambition? The five films below rank among the strongest of the century, listed from “least best” to greatest according to the author’s subjective opinion.

Each movie succeeds in its own distinctive way, while reaffirming why the mystery of alien life continues to fascinate humanity.

John Krasinski went from waiting tables to being named one of Time‘s most influential people, but his early filmmaking career briefly suggested that his ambitions might lead nowhere. His 2016 independent drama The Hollars was widely criticized for wasting performers such as Margo Martindale, Anna Kendrick, and Richard Jenkins on clumsy storytelling and retrograde depictions of women. If that film represented Krasinski’s ceiling as a director, it seemed reasonable to question whether he should continue behind the camera. Then, two years later, he adapted a horror script by Bryan Woods and Scott Beck, polishing it further and launching himself into a new level of critical success.

The awkwardness of The Hollars was replaced by the sharply controlled visuals of A Quiet Place, which follows a family forced to live in near-total silence while audio-sensitive aliens spread across Earth. Krasinski and Emily Blunt portray Lee and Evelyn Abbott, but Millicent Simmonds delivers the film’s emotional standout performance as their eldest daughter, Regan. Her work gives the story its human core and makes the family’s struggle especially gripping.

Krasinski and cinematographer Charlotte Bruus Christensen also display remarkable command of suspense, staging sequences in which the slightest sound could bring the creatures directly to the family’s doorstep. The film’s carefully timed scares are both inventive and terrifying, turning A Quiet Place into a triumphant reinvention for Krasinski’s directing career.

Amy Adams has proved capable of elevating virtually any material, from musicals and intimate independent dramas to broad comedies and prestige science fiction. Her finest performances have helped define 21st-century American cinema, and one of her most powerful arrives in Denis Villeneuve’s first major science-fiction feature. Before Blade Runner 2049 and the Dune films, Villeneuve directed Adams in November 2016’s Arrival.

Adams plays Dr. Louise Banks, a linguistics professor recruited to help humanity communicate with alien visitors hovering above Earth. Are they peaceful or hostile? Arrival builds its mystery around those questions while examining the fundamental challenges of communication. As Banks works to establish a dialogue between humans and the extraterrestrials, the film refuses to rush through the process, giving its characters and central conflict an unusual sense of realism. The towering creatures, nicknamed Abbott and Costello, are visually imposing enough to inspire awe, fear, and uncertainty in equal measure.

Villeneuve’s talent for evocative imagery gives Arrival a powerful sense of scale, particularly in its unforgettable compositions of alien spacecraft set against the familiar landscapes of Earth. Yet the film’s most enduring element is Adams, whose deeply controlled lead performance anchors the entire experience.

Jordan Peele’s decision to avoid franchise filmmaking has benefited both his career and cinema. Each of his three directorial features has followed its own creative instincts rather than serving established continuity, audience expectations, or sequel setup. Get Out and Us were able to pursue their ideas without relying on fan service, while Peele used each film to explore a different corner of horror. In 2022, that experimentation led him into science-fiction horror with Nope.

The many details viewers may miss in Nope reflect the density of Peele’s filmmaking, which combines entertainment with layered observations about human behavior. The movie’s greatest visual achievement, however, may be its primary alien presence, nicknamed Jean Jacket. In its climactic form, the creature is almost impossible to categorize, resembling a biblically accurate angel more than a conventional extraterrestrial. At a time when many movie aliens look like variations on the Xenomorph, Jean Jacket’s abstract, unsettling design feels strikingly original.

Just as Peele used doppelgängers and slasher conventions in Us to examine class inequality, Nope uses science-fiction horror to explore the consequences of trying to control forces that were never meant to be controlled. The result is another ambitious showcase for Peele’s distinctive cinematic vision.

Directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, Project Hail Mary—an adaptation of Andy Weir’s novel—succeeds on several levels. Its greatest pleasure may be Rocky, the alien brought to life through puppetry and voiced by James Ortiz. The creative team fully embraced the book’s description of a being with no discernible face or mouth, a bold choice that somehow makes Rocky both convincingly otherworldly and instantly endearing.

Ortiz’s voice performance and impeccable comic timing make Rocky even more captivating. His unusual mannerisms and constant visual surprises give real warmth to the developing friendship between astronaut Ryland Grace, played by Ryan Gosling, and his alien companion. Plenty of first-contact stories begin with humans and extraterrestrials uncertain of one another before turning into tales of friendship, but Project Hail Mary feels singular because Rocky is such a fully realized character. Few movie aliens have inspired a bond so soulful or emotionally affecting.

With its striking visuals and Daniel Pemberton’s tremendous score adding to the experience, Project Hail Mary offers an especially rich cinematic adventure for alien-movie fans. Rocky’s extraordinary journey is so effective that it may seem surprising he does not occupy the top spot on this list.

It’s hard to describe your emotions after watching “Under the Skin.” In that sense, this Jonathan Glazer directorial effort is an outstanding approximation of an encounter with an otherworldly organism. It leaves viewers unsure of what to do, what to say, or even what they’re looking at. One of the very best Scarlett Johansson movies, she plays a character known only as Woman, an alien that’s taken on the physical form of a human lady. In her time on this planet, she lures men into a black void, where they’re trapped and used for her own purpose. She’s clinical, aloof, and uncaring even to the screams of babies or innocent bystanders.

Why would she respond? She’s not of this Earth, she doesn’t understand human-based ways of communicating pain or needing help. Johansson’s fascinatingly streamlined performance exudes (in a fittingly understated manner) this reality, while also being equally compelling depicting a Woman growing increasingly intrigued by her body. “Under the Skin” won’t work for everyone, but its outstandingly realized form, evocative aesthetic, and willingness to eschew so many standards of mainstream narrative cinema are laudable. It comes together in something as precisely realized as it is atmospherically unforgettable. 

Like its alien wandering among a gaggle of humans, “Under the Skin” immediately stands apart from typical examples of modern English-language cinema. The film is all the better for it, especially since its unique virtues ensure it’s the peak of 21st century alien movies.