Movies like Distant Early Warning (1975)
The best movies like Distant Early Warning (1975) are Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned (2007), Signal One (2026) and The Man from Planet X (1951). If Distant Early Warning hooked you with its tv movie and science fiction, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDoctor Who: A Christmas Carol (2010)8.0/10 from 251 votes
- NewestSignal One (2026)Released 2026
Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned (2007)
When disaster hits the Titanic, the Doctor uncovers a threat to the whole human race. Battling alongside aliens, saboteurs, robot Angels and a new friend called Astrid, can he stop the Christmas inferno?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSignal One (2026)
A computer scientist is invited by a tech billionaire to join his private facility on a Caribbean island to investigate extraterrestrial matter on Earth. When they make contact beyond our world, chaos erupts as we’re left to wonder: do they come in peace?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Man from Planet X (1951)
While watching for a planet that may collide with earth, scientists stationed in Scotland are approached by a visitor from outer space.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisDoctor Who: Planet of the Dead (2009)
A meeting in a London bus with jewel thief Lady Christina takes a turn for the worse for the Doctor when the bus takes a detour to a desert-like planet, where the deadly Swarm awaits.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBen 10: Race Against Time (2008)
Ben, Gwen, and Max must stop an extraterrestrial who plans to open a gateway that leads to an alien invasion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisInvaders from Mars (1953)
A boy tries to stop aliens that have taken over his town and are brainwashing its inhabitants.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisBen 10: Destroy All Aliens (2012)
Based on the original animated series Ben 10. Ben becomes targeted by an evil Mechamorph Warrior, named "Retaliator," who mistakenly blames Ben for something he did not do and attempts to destroy all aliens.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBen 10: Alien Swarm (2009)
Ben and a mysterious girl from his past must prevent an alien threat from destroying the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMetropia (2009)
In the near future, oil reserves are nearly depleted and Europe is connected by series of underground tunnels. While navigating these tunnels, Roger hears voices, one in particular. Seeking a way to rid himself of the voice only leads Roger deeper into a bizarre conspiracy of control - mind and body.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHello Sister, Goodbye Life (2006)
A college student must take care of her 7-year-old half sister after the death of their parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInvasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlood of the Vampire (1958)
A man and wife are terrorized by Mad Scientist Dr. Callistratus who was executed but has returned to life with a heart transplant. Along with his crippled assistant Carl, the 'anemic' Mad Scientist, believed to be a vampire, conducts blood deficiency research on the inmates of a prison hospital for the criminally insane to sustain his return to life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisCircle (2015)
In a massive, mysterious chamber, fifty strangers awaken to find themselves trapped with no memory of how they got there. Organized in an inward-facing circle and unable to move, they quickly learn that every two minutes, one of them must die…executed by a strange device in the center of the room.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeeds of Yesterday (2015)
The Sheffield family reveal and go through some home truths as their middle child inherits the Foxworth mansion. The family's ghosts looming over, and more tragedies are in store as the curse lives on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlien Abduction (2014)
A vacationing family encounters an alien threat in this pulse-pounding thriller based on the real-life Brown Mountain Lights phenomenon in North Carolina.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisThis Island Earth (1955)
Aliens have landed and are hiding on Earth, but need Earth’s scientists to help them fight an inter-planetary war.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisContact (1997)
A radio astronomer receives the first extraterrestrial radio signal ever picked up on Earth. As the world powers scramble to decipher the message and decide upon a course of action, she must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and reality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies 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 & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDoctor Who: A Christmas Carol (2010)
Amy Pond and Rory Williams are trapped on a crashing space liner, and the only way the Eleventh Doctor can rescue them is to save the soul of a lonely old miser. But is Kazran Sardick, the richest man in Sardicktown, beyond redemption? And what is lurking in the fogs of Christmas Eve?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisIsland of Lost Souls (1932)
An obsessed scientist conducts profane experiments in evolution, eventually establishing himself as the self-styled demigod to a race of mutated, half-human abominations.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHere On Earth (2018)
Every morning at school, when girls and boys stand in their lines, Sam, an alien boy, is confronted with his situation: he doesn't fit into this society where everything has to be classified. However, thanks to a teacher he will find his place in the world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & drama
Critters 4 (1992)
A super strain of genetically engineered mutants are designed to take over the universe, hungry to conquer the galaxy, with an appetite for mankind.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisVillage of the Damned (1995)
An American village is visited by some unknown life form which leaves the women of the village pregnant. Nine months later, the babies are born, and they all look normal, but it doesn't take the "parents" long to realize that the kids are not human or humane.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLifeforce (1985)
A race of space vampires arrives in London and infects the populace, commencing an apocalyptic descent into chaos.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Hidden (1987)
When average, law-abiding citizens suddenly turn to a life of hedonistic behavior and violent crime, Detective Tom Beck is tasked with helping young FBI agent Lloyd Gallagher determine the cause.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHunting Grounds (2010)
A group of college students experience the ultimate close encounter of the most ferocious kind in the deserts outside of Roswell, New Mexico in this documentary styled horror film.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
Critters 3 (1991)
As fanged, furious furballs viciously invade an L.A. apartment building and sink their teeth into the low-rent tenants, Josh leads the battle to beat back the conniving critters and save the planet.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisArachnid (2001)
Mercer's brother, an amateur pilot, crashes on an island and is killed by a giant spider. A year later, when Mercer goes in search of him, she discovers a breed of venomous arachnids ready to attack.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Extraterrestrial Woman (1984)
Extraterrestrial Girl visited Earth. Inventor Blinkov fe in love with her. His love has awakened in her new emotions and feelings but she realized that Blinkov can not live in a different world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & science fiction
Like Distant Early Warning and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Distant Early Warning?
The closest matches to Distant Early Warning are Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned (2007), Signal One (2026) and The Man from Planet X (1951). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Distant Early Warning?
Start with Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned (2007), the closest match to Distant Early Warning.
What is the highest-rated movie like Distant Early Warning?
Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol (2010), rated 8.0/10 by 251 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Distant Early Warning?
Signal One (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Distant Early Warning?
Yes: Doctor Who: Voyage of the Damned (2007), Signal One (2026) and The Man from Planet X (1951).
How are movies similar to Distant Early Warning chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Distant Early Warning, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.