Humanity has been looking to the stars since time immemorial. The idea of exploring the vast reaches of space and everything that encompasses it is breathtaking on every level. As such, it should come as no surprise that films have explored space many times over.

When it comes to the 50 best space movies, according to Rotten Tomatoes critics, the results are intriguing. There are some expected fan favorites — no, Star Wars isn’t the best space movie or even in the top 10 — but also some surprising entries. Here are the 50 best space films of all time.

1. Alien

• Tomatometer: 98%
• Runtime: 1h 57m

Released in 1986, Alien is still the epitome of what makes a space movie. The beloved classic is riveting with its horrifying exploration of isolation and Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley trying to survive the unknown.

2. Aliens

• Tomatometer: 98%
• Runtime: 2h 17m

The sequel to the sci-fi horror classic is somehow as captivating as the first. The action and alien horror threats are bigger and better than ever before as Weaver once again nails Ripley’s character.

3. Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe

• Tomatometer: 97%
• Runtime: 1h 26m

Beavis and Butt-Head explore space and the future in this ridiculously over-the-top comedy parody sci-fi film that somehow works surprisingly well.

4. The Mitchells vs. the Machines

• Tomatometer: 97%
• Runtime: 1h 54m

It is up to a young girl and her family to save the entire planet from a threat that aims to destroy Earth. Goofy, heartwarming, and well-animated, this is sci-fi fun for all ages.

5. Forbidden Planet

• Tomatometer: 96%
• Runtime: 1h 38m

This gripping 1950s space narrative explores the mystery behind a missing group of scientists and what happened to them in the far-distant world of Altair IV.

6. Gravity

• Tomatometer: 96%
• Runtime: 1h 31m

Sandra Bullock and George Clooney carry this well-written storyline about two astronauts left to die in the middle of deep space with no hopes of survival.

7. Arrival

• Tomatometer: 95%
• Runtime: 1h 56m

Arrival is less interested in seeing extraterrestrial life in space and more so intrigued by what could realistically happen when a linguistics professor tries to interpret what aliens on Earth wish to tell humanity.

8. Everything Everywhere All at Once

• Tomatometer: 95%
• Runtime: 2h 12m

Everything Everywhere All at Once is a sci-fi film that is best watched without knowing anything. Michelle Yeoh takes viewers on a journey unlike any other.

9. The Day the Earth Stood Still

• Tomatometer: 95%
• Runtime: 1h 32m

This is a timeless 1950s tale of when a UFO lands on Earth and how the world reacts to this history-making moment.

10. WALL-E

• Tomatometer: 95%
• Runtime: 1h 37m

Pixar’s unbelievably masterful sci-fi epic about a futuristic Earth where a singular robot cleans up the planet and eventually learns about the wider galaxy.

11. Close Encounters of the Third Kind

• Tomatometer: 94%
• Runtime: 2h 15m

This is a classic tale about talented people who wish for nothing more than to encounter aliens from outer space.

12. Star Trek

• Tomatometer: 94%
• Runtime: 2h 6m

The modern remake of the beloved deep sci-fi franchise sees the origin story of Captain Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise.

13. Star Wars Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back

• Tomatometer: 94%
• Runtime: 2h 4m

A 1980s sci-fi masterpiece that still stands the test of time, this second — or, ahem, fifth — film in the series follows Luke Skywalker as he fights back against the evil Empire and learns about his Jedi family.

14. War for the Planet of the Apes

• Tomatometer: 94%
• Runtime: 2h 22m

This tale continues the story of Caesar and the other wisened apes as they attempt to rage war on humanity, hoping to cement themselves as worthy of living on Earth.

15. Prey

• Tomatometer: 93%
• Runtime: 1h 39m

This prequel film to the Predator series is a classic throwback. Following a Comanche tribe battling against a high-tech alien from space, it is filled with horror, gore, and survival.

16. Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope

• Tomatometer: 93%
• Runtime: 2h 1m

This is where it all began. The first in the unforgettable Star Wars franchise first introduced audiences to the Empire, Rebels, Jedi, and the Force.

17. Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens

• Tomatometer: 93%
• Runtime: 2h 16m

The seventh movie in the long-running series and the first under Disney’s banner feels like a return to the original series in some of the best ways while introducing fans to a new generation of Force-wielders.

18. Thor: Ragnarok

• Tomatometer: 93%
• Runtime: 2h 10m

This third film follows the god of thunder, Thor, as he encounters a galactic gladiator contest and his sister Hela.

19. Guardians of the Galaxy

• Tomatometer: 92%
• Runtime: 2h 1m

Marvel took to the skies with this film, introducing audiences to a ragtag group of unexpected heroes as they attempt to stop the evil Ronan from taking control of a special orb.

20. Solaris

• Tomatometer: 92%
• Runtime: 2h 49m

This follows a psychologist as he attempts to figure out what happened to a space station's dead and distraught citizens in a gripping, mysterious drama.

21. Star Trek: First Contact

• Tomatometer: 92%
• Runtime: 1h 50m

This 1996 film in the series follows the crew of the USS Enterprise attempting to stop the Borg in the far-flung past.

22. The Endless

• Tomatometer: 92%
• Runtime: 1h 51m

This follows two brothers who previously escaped a cult that follows UFOs and their journey to investigate the mysterious happenings surrounding the group.

23. 2001: A Space Odyssey

• Tomatometer: 91%
• Runtime: 2h 19m

This 1968 film is to thank for many of the modern space movies out there. It shows what happens when a machine becomes too smart and retaliates against a group of astronauts aboard a spaceship.

24. Edge of Tomorrow

• Tomatometer: 91%
• Runtime: 1h 53m

Tom Cruise excels in this strange mix of alien warfare on Earth and Groundhog Day as he relives the same fight over and over.

25. Star Wars: Episode VIII – The Last Jedi

• Tomatometer: 91%
• Runtime: 2h 32m

Controversial but ultimately widely loved, the eighth film in the franchise sees Rey learn under the tutelage of Luke Skywalker. At the same time, the villainous Kylo Ren attempts to grow his relationship with her.

26. The Martian

• Tomatometer: 91%
• Runtime: 2h 22m

Matt Damon carries this entire film as a lone man left for dead on Mars. He captivates in his mission to survive and, hopefully, make it back home to Earth.

27. Galaxy Quest

• Tomatometer: 90%
• Runtime: 1h 44m

This comedy follows a group of actors who are given a chance to save an alien race from their demise.

28. Moon

• Tomatometer: 90%
• Runtime: 1h 37m

Moon is an engrossing look at the mental health and trauma of an astronaut who is getting ready to end his time mining on the moon.

29. Vesper

• Tomatometer: 90%
• Runtime: 1h 52m

In Earth's far future, a young girl has to survive alongside her father and use her hacking skills to make way for a bright future.

30. I Am Mother

• Tomatometer: 89%
• Runtime: 1h 55m

In this space movie, a young girl finds herself raised from birth by a motherly robot who might be too overprotective and hellbent on its job.

31. Annihilation

• Tomatometer: 88%
• Runtime: 1h 55m

The main character, Lena, explores Area X and discovers a horrifying landscape in space that aims to take her out permanently.

32. Color Out of Space

• Tomatometer: 86%
• Runtime: 1h 51m

This is a technicolor horror trip as a family aims to survive against a group of aliens that threaten to kill and color their very lives.

33. Star Trek Beyond

• Tomatometer: 86%
• Runtime: 2h 2m

The crew of the USS Enterprise crash-lands on an alien planet in this sequel, requiring them to survive against the evil Krall and find a way off-world.

34. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

• Tomatometer: 86%
• Runtime: 1h 53m

The second film in the beloved sci-fi franchise sees Captain Kirk and the rest of the Enterprise must take on the memorable Khan once again.

35. THX-1138

• Tomatometer: 86%
• Runtime: 1h 28m

Before ever creating Star Wars, George Lucas created this strange futuristic look at humanity living underground and not being allowed to have feelings. It explores two people who find themselves on the run after falling in (illegal) love.

36. Avengers: Infinity War

• Tomatometer: 85%
• Runtime: 2h 29m

This climactic Marvel film follows various superheroes like Iron Man and Spider-Man as they fight across Earth and the solar system to take down the galactic threat of Thanos.

37. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

• Tomatometer: 85%
• Runtime: 2h 15m

Peter Quill and the rest of the Guardians return in this sequel space film, where they are faced with a threat that is far more personal than ever before.

38. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

• Tomatometer: 84%
• Runtime: 2h 14m

This prequel film follows a group of unlikely allies who find themselves with the chance to change the entire war against the Galactic Empire. If they are able to steal the plans of the monstrous Death Star, that is.

39. Star Trek Into Darkness