Movies like Shutdown (2002)
The best movies like Shutdown (2002) are Dark Star (1974), Stowaway (2021) and Family Guy Presents: Blue Harvest (2007). If Shutdown hooked you with its science fiction, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFinch (2021)7.8/10 from 4,282 votes
- NewestCycle of Time (2025)Released 2025
- In FrenchCycle of Time (2025)Also in French
Dark Star (1974)
A group of scientists are sent on a mission to destroy unstable planets. Twenty years into their mission, they have to battle their alien mascot as well as a "sensitive" and intelligent bombing device that starts to question the meaning of its existence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStowaway (2021)
A three-person crew on a mission to Mars faces an impossible choice when an unplanned passenger jeopardizes the lives of everyone on board.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFamily Guy Presents: Blue Harvest (2007)
With the Griffins stuck at home during a blackout, Peter tells the story of "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like this2073 (2024)
Inspired by Chris Marker's iconic 1962 featurette La Jetée; the year is 2073—a not-so-distant dystopian future—and the setting is New San Francisco, the scorched-earth tech-dominant police state where democracy and personal freedom have been well and truly obliterated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStar Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
The surviving Resistance faces the First Order once again as the journey of Rey, Finn and Poe Dameron continues. With the power and knowledge of generations behind them, the final battle begins.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisF.R.E.D.I. (2018)
An intelligent, lovable robot known as "F.R.E.D.I." is stolen from a secret research facility by the project's lead scientist. The robot is found by a 15 year old teenager, James. Soon the two begin to communicate and create a bond in which F.R.E.D.I. learns about teenage life and James learns about some new values.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisAutomata (2014)
Jacq Vaucan, an insurance agent of ROC robotics corporation, routinely investigates the case of manipulating a robot. What he discovers will have profound consequences for the future of humanity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisSurrogates (2009)
Set in a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and interact through surrogate robots, a cop is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others' surrogates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStar Trek: Insurrection (1998)
When an alien race and factions within Starfleet attempt to take over a planet that has "regenerative" properties, it falls upon Captain Picard and the crew of the Enterprise to defend the planet's people as well as the very ideals upon which the Federation itself was founded.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSolo: A Star Wars Story (2018)
Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future copilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
An alien and a robot land on Earth after World War II and tell mankind to be peaceful or face destruction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMoonshot (2022)
In a future where Mars is terraformed and colonized by the best humanity has to offer, two very different college students wind up joining forces and sneak onboard a space shuttle to the red planet in order to be united with their significant others.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBabylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers - To Live and Die in Starlight (2002)
After being punished for retreat from combat, Ranger David Martel is given command of the Liandra, a haunted 20-year old Minbari fighting ship. He's escorting ambassadors to a secret archaeological site, the oldest city on record and a clue to a dangerous ancient race.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSpace/Time (2025)
After a fatal test shuts down their project, a disgraced team of scientists enters the criminal underworld to rebuild a forbidden space-bending engine that could rescue humanity or annihilate it entirely.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisTerminator Genisys (2015)
The year is 2029. John Connor, leader of the resistance continues the war against the machines. At the Los Angeles offensive, John's fears of the unknown future begin to emerge when TECOM spies reveal a new plot by SkyNet that will attack him from both fronts; past and future, and will ultimately change warfare forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension (1984)
Adventurer/surgeon/rock musician Buckaroo Banzai and his band of men, the Hong Kong Cavaliers, take on evil alien invaders from the 8th dimension.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStar Trek Beyond (2016)
The USS Enterprise crew explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a mysterious new enemy who puts them and everything the Federation stands for to the test.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCycle of Time (2025)
In 1950s France, Helene and Michel lead a simple life until a freak accident in 2025 leads to Helene becoming a bank executive and Michel struggling with unemployment and depression. Their children grow up in a technology-dominated world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuperintelligence (2020)
When an all-powerful Superintelligence chooses to study the most average person on Earth, Carol Peters, the fate of the world hangs in the balance. As the A.I. decides to enslave, save or destroy humanity, it’s up to Carol to prove that people are worth saving.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisFinch (2021)
On a post-apocalyptic Earth, a robot, built to protect the life of his dying creator's beloved dog, learns about life, love, friendship, and what it means to be human.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAny Last Words (TBA)
The crew are missing, the ship is damaged, the salvage is at risk. With no help coming and the oxygen running low, an officer and private begin to mistrust one another as their morals and mortality are put to the ultimate test.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
The 5th Kind (2017)
Three best friends try to get 'internet famous' by filming their own survival show out in the woods. A weekend trip to accomplish this project turns deadly when a mysterious and very foreign visitor ends up in their neck of the woods.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
I'm With You (2023)
A mute nurse cares deeply for the dying woman she lives with, but after a miscommunication with her client, she's forced to decide if she should break the one forbidden rule of the job - going outside.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
The Cure to Loneliness (2022)
Netty is feeling lost in life following the abrupt end of her relationship with Liam. Luckily, there's a quick fix found in pill marketed as "the cure to loneliness".
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Zug (1987)
Tells the story of Jerry, a factory worker with some industrial strength nightmares that are an attempt to escape the harsh reality of his industrial environment. Unrelentingly grim visions of the industrial wasteland such as the horrifyingly violent and erotic inner world bred in those wastes become blurred in his mind until he finally takes action, thereby freeing himself and the love of his dreams from the inhumane imprisonment symbolized by the dark, shadowy Brain Police. A film directed by a group of young filmmakers who live and work in the automotive corridor of the Midwest, Zug has the look of an Eraserhead sequel, Detroit style. Photographed in shadowy film noir tones, with gruesome special effects and a synthesized mechanical soundtrack.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Chromatography (TBA)
Chromatography, centers around Nayae (Renée Veronica Freeman), a brilliant biologist working for a global task force to create a pill that genetically engineers the human body into its most efficient, healthy state. However, when Michelle (Folami Williams), a colleague before a sister, uncovers Nayae’s secret project to preserve the mental deviations that define humanity, tensions soar. In a high-stakes game of cat and mouse, Michelle must decide whether to expose Nayae’s dangerous secret or join her in a race against time to protect the essence of humanity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Simulation (2019)
An advanced alien civilization builds a simulated reality where infinite beings, including humans, are imprisoned.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Journey to the West (2023)
Tang Zhijun, an editor of a science fiction magazine, attempts to find signs of an alien civilisation. When a strange young man claims to have received instructions from aliens, Tang and his team follow him in search of extraterrestrial creatures.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHOME! (2021)
Year 2124, Christopher is on research expedition on Mars but he discover a missing commercial vessel...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
2091: A Space Mediocrity (2023)
An astronaut's exploration is interrupted by an intergalactic space commander.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Like Shutdown and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Shutdown?
The closest matches to Shutdown are Dark Star (1974), Stowaway (2021) and Family Guy Presents: Blue Harvest (2007). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Shutdown?
Start with Dark Star (1974), the closest match to Shutdown.
What is the highest-rated movie like Shutdown?
Finch (2021), rated 7.8/10 by 4,282 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Shutdown?
Cycle of Time (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there French movies like Shutdown?
Yes: Cycle of Time (2025).
How are movies similar to Shutdown chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Shutdown, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.