Movies like The Emissary (2018)
The best movies like The Emissary (2018) are Stowaway (2021), Vesper (2022) and Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods (2009). If The Emissary hooked you with its science fiction and drama, 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
- NewestFree Fall (2025)Released 2025
Stowaway (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 & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVesper (2022)
After the collapse of Earth's ecosystem, Vesper, a 13-year-old girl struggling to survive with her paralyzed Father, meets a mysterious Woman with a secret that forces Vesper to use her wits, strength and bio-hacking abilities to fight for the possibility of a future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStargate SG-1: Children of the Gods (2009)
An alien similar to Ra appears out of the Stargate, killing five soldiers and kidnapping another, a year after the original Stargate mission. A new team is assembled, including some old members, and they go in search of the missing soldier in order to find out how Ra could still be alive. Meanwhile, the alien Goa'uld kidnap Sha're and Skaara, implanting them with symbiotes and making them Goa'uld hosts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)
Thomas Jerome Newton is an alien who has come to Earth in search of water to save his home planet. Aided by lawyer Oliver Farnsworth, Thomas uses his knowledge of advanced technology to create profitable inventions. While developing a method to transport water, Thomas meets Mary-Lou, a quiet hotel clerk, and begins to fall in love with her. Just as he is ready to leave Earth, Thomas is intercepted by the U.S. government, and his entire plan is threatened.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJonathan (2018)
Jonathan is a young man with a strange condition that only his brother understands. But when he begins to yearn for a different life, their unique bond becomes increasingly tested.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisOmni Loop (2024)
Diagnosed with a black hole growing inside her chest and stuck in a loop reliving the last five days of her life, a 55-year-old wife and mother from Miami, Florida decides to solve time travel in order to go back and be the person she always intended to be.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDoctor Who: Dark Water / Death in Heaven (2014)
In this epic two-part finale, the Doctor comes face to face with the mysterious Missy, and an impossible choice is looming. With Cybermen on the streets of London, old friends unite against old enemies, and the Doctor takes to the air in a startling new role.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 thisDoctor Who: Deep Breath (2014)
The newly-regenerated Doctor arrives in Victorian London, and Clara Oswald struggles to embrace the man he has become. All the while, they reunite with the Paternoster Gang to investigate a series of combustions that have been occurring all around the city.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDoctor Who: Last Christmas (2014)
The Doctor and Clara face their Last Christmas. Trapped on an Arctic base, under attack from terrifying creatures, who are you going to call? Santa Claus!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
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 & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPlanet of the Apes (1968)
Astronaut Taylor crash lands on a distant planet ruled by apes who use a primitive race of humans for experimentation and sport. Soon Taylor finds himself among the hunted, his life in the hands of a benevolent chimpanzee scientist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & drama
Worth the HypeMovies 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 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 thisVoyagers (2021)
With the future of the human race at stake, a group of young men and women -- bred for intelligence and obedience -- embark on an expedition to colonize a distant planet. When they uncover disturbing secrets about the mission, they defy their training and begin to explore their most primitive natures. As life on the ship descends into chaos, they soon become consumed by fear, lust and an insatiable hunger for power.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTimescape (1992)
Before they can complete renovations on their new country inn, a widowed father and his young daughter are visited by a strange group of tourists. He soon makes a chilling discovery: they are disaster junkies from the future who visit the past to witness history's greatest catastrophes—and his small town is their next stop.
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 thisTitan A.E. (2000)
A young man finds out that he holds the key to restoring hope and ensuring survival for the human race, while an alien species called the Drej are bent on mankind's destruction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDoppelgänger (1969)
A planet is discovered in the same orbit as Earth's but is located on the exact opposite side of the sun, making it not visible from Earth. The European Space Exploration Council decide to send American astronaut Glenn Ross and British scientist John Kane via spaceship to explore the other planet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBabylon 5: The River of Souls (1998)
A group of Soul Hunters come to Babylon 5 demanding the return of something that was stolen from them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOsmosis (2023)
Brazilian mission commander Sam struggles with establishing a stable connection from Earth to his lover. German scientist Joy explores planet Kepler 452b at her research facility for Alchemy Plasma, a revolutionary energy source. Their long-distance relationship faces doom, when alien Dardesh invaders attack the human outpost, 1400 light years away.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & drama
The Enemy Is Coming (TBA)
Set in 2257, Earth has run out of natural resources and Terra Corp — a single world government — controls the galaxy. When the Ellison Colony is destroyed in a staged attack blamed on the Krytillians, one survivor uncovers the truth behind the cover-up. Written and directed by Mark Eder. An Australian independent sci-fi feature film with sequel and series treatments already in development.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & drama
Moon Rainbow (1983)
After a strange incident, a group of russian space commandos starts developing supernatural powers. But how did they acquire such abilities and what is their intentions?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & drama
Space Fantasia 2001 Nights (1987)
In the year 2058, mankind is about to take its first leap into the distant reaches of space. Using the resources at the tail end of a comet, massive spaceships will be sent to the corners of the universe in an attempt to colonize other worlds, but due to the length of time it will take to arrive at even the closest solar system, the comets must be destroyed in-flight, resulting in super-fast speeds that will kill any life onboard; only frozen sperm and eggs, and machines will survive the journey. Carrying the unborn children of the Robinsons, the first of these ships must now set forth to Ozma; and with its precious cargo is coupled the hopes and fears of all humanity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction & drama
FTL (2017)
A lone astronaut testing the first faster-than-light spacecraft travels farther than he imagined possible.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisExplorers (2017)
Explorers is a idealistic look at the future of space travel, seen from the perspective of those who dare to venture into the unknown.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
Free Fall (2025)
Cut off from his crew by a devastating proton storm, repairman Max drifts alone through open space and must trust Delta dispatcher Anna to bring him home alive. But survival has never felt so uncertain.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisConquest of Space (1955)
A team of American astronauts leave their space station on the first mission to Mars, but the captain's religious beliefs may get in the way.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisVoyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women (1968)
Astronauts crash-land on Venus and find themselves in trouble when they kill a monster that is worshipped by a group of Venusian women. Re-edited version of Soviet sci-fi Planet of Storms (1962) by Pavel Klushantsev, dubbed into English with additional scenes.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisQueen of Blood (1966)
A spaceship is sent to Mars after an alien distress signal is picked up. They find one survivor, but when a crew member is found drained of blood it's evident they have rescued a bloodsucking monster. (Uses footage from Encounter in Space (1963).)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both science fiction
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Emissary?
The closest matches to The Emissary are Stowaway (2021), Vesper (2022) and Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods (2009). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Emissary?
Start with Stowaway (2021), the closest match to The Emissary.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Emissary?
Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol (2010), rated 8.0/10 by 251 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Emissary?
Free Fall (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Emissary?
Yes: Stowaway (2021), Vesper (2022) and Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods (2009).
How are movies similar to The Emissary chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Emissary, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.