H.P. Lovecraft’s stories are guided by the philosophy of cosmicism, which explores the incomprehensible fear of the unknown. Cosmicism understands that humans are insignificant in the face of an indifferent universe and feel some amount of anxiety when faced with a cosmic void. Movies that can be classified as cosmic sci-fi thrillers follow this literary philosophy, while adding interstellar travel, time loops, or existential plots to the mix.
Genre standouts like Alien (1979) and Interstellar (2004) are obvious candidates, but overlooked titles like Europa Report (2013) and Pandorum (2009) are also significant additions that lean into horror. The most compelling cosmic sci-fi thrillers tap into a sense of urgency irrespective of their pacing, feature entities that defy typical monster tropes, and don’t shy away from the futility of hope amid the bleakest circumstances.
Without further ado, here are seven cosmic sci-fi thrillers that are both brilliant and engrossing.
1
Annihilation (2018)
Alex Garland turned Jeff VanderMeer’s Annihilation into a mystifying film with more grounded action, but the novel’s overarching themes about the limits of human identity remain. The film follows a group of scientists who enter the Shimmer, an eerie quarantine zone filled with mutating flora and fauna. No human has safely returned from The Shimmer with their humanity intact, which is why cellular biology professor Lena (Natalie Portman) is immediately put under investigation after her return from the anomalous zone.
The Shimmer cannot be narrowed down to one or more tangible entities. The zone feels alive with a cosmic force that simply exists, transforming living beings into terrifying (and often, beautiful) new forms that we’re not accustomed to. Lena and her allies are impacted as soon as they enter, losing control of their minds and bodies as they venture deeper. While Lena’s ultimate fate remains a subject of intense debate, she is undoubtedly changed by the time she reunites with the equally altered Kane (Oscar Isaac). This loss of identity is the crux of Annihilation — although we cannot assign maliciousness to cosmic forces, interacting with them inevitably erodes humanity.
2
Sunshine (2007)
In Danny Boyle’s Sunshine, the sun is dying. To help save Earth, eight astronauts embark on a mission to detonate a stellar bomb in hopes that it will reignite the sun. The expedition gets sidetracked after the crew receives a distress signal from an earlier mission vessel, prompting ship captain Kaneda (Hiroyuki Sanada) to divert course. Unfortunately, the ship’s heat shields are damaged in the process, drastically reducing air reserves. This is but the first step towards insanity, as the crew gradually fall prey to the hypnotic pull of the sun as a cosmic entity.
What makes Sunshine so terrifying is the psychological fragility of even the most level-headed humans who have been trained to survive space. The crew is filled with experts in their fields (such as Cillian Murphy’s Robert Capa), who are data-driven in their research and calculations. However, this scientific bent is questioned once they experience religious fanaticism or psychological breakdowns over the horror of staring at a giant star. The pressure to help everyone back on Earth is immense, but once the crew realizes their insignificance in space, the purpose of this mission starts to feel futile. The overwhelming power of the Sun isn’t just a mental construct either — it can incinerate anything within milliseconds, but its absence can wipe out the entire human race within months.
3
Moon (2009)
Isolation in space is a compelling sci-fi horror trope, and Duncan Jones’ Moon pushes this idea to its limits. Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) runs the Sarang Station alone on the far side of the moon, mining helium-3 to help Earth reverse an oil crisis. Sam is technically not alone, as a robot named GERTY (Kevin Spacey) keeps him company. Sam is also cut off from live communications back on Earth, but can still access recorded communications from his wife and child. As Sam nears the end of his three-year contract, a freak accident reveals an unsavory truth that Sam might not be prepared to accept.
Although Sam’s time at Sarang is isolating, we see the man holding on to hope due to the impending reunion with his family back on Earth. This hope is cruelly undercut in Moon, as Sam’s identity is brought into question. Is Sam able to survive this lonely job because he yearns for a brighter future, or is this very assumption a lie? Moon, like Bong Joon-Ho’s Mickey 17, is about the exploitation of the labor force, who are viewed as dispensable cogs in a machine. Megacorporations are terrified of worker solidarity and will go to great lengths to prevent meaningful unionization. What happens when such workers are stranded in space, with no one to help them out? This anxiety is a cosmic one, with radical empathy being the only way out.
4
Event Horizon (1997)
Paul W.S. Anderson’s Event Horizon feels like a literal descent into hell. The film, set in 2047, follows a rescue mission after the lost vessel named Event Horizon reappears seven years after its maiden voyage. Captain Miller (Laurence Fishburne) consults Event Horizon designer Dr. William Weir (Sam Neill) during the mission, hoping that he can guide the crew through the target ship’s experimental gravity drive. Things feel ominous even before the rescue crew steps aboard the abandoned ship, as the vast corners of space soon reveal knowledge that isn’t fit for human comprehension.
Event Horizon is the quintessential cosmic sci-fi horror set in space. It wrestles with the incomprehensible, challenges our perception of “the truth,” and uses grotesque bodily degradation to explain the impact of cosmic forces. It is also a lesson in hubris, as humanity cannot simply punch a hole through space and time and expect to leave unscathed. Everybody pays the price for upsetting the unspoken order of things and is forced to look at Lovecraftian threats in the eye. Anderson makes excellent use of religious imagery to drive these points home, where the inhabitants of the ship are doomed to a damnation that has nothing to do with gods or monsters.
5
Aniara (2018)
In Aniara, the Earth is uninhabitable, which prompts humanity to migrate to Mars. The luxury spaceship Aniara helps passengers make this permanent move, making the experience feel more immersive with a virtual reality simulation that mimics a lush, bountiful Earth. When the ship veers off course one day, the passengers inside Aniara feel suddenly destabilized, as there is no way to course-correct back to Mars. Although the ship’s captain assures everyone that things will work out, the reality of being trapped inside a vessel with a simulation powered by people’s emotions is far from ideal.
Although overlooked, Aniara is an exceptionally effective cosmic sci-fi film that taps into the terrifying fear of being trapped in space. The ship itself is not a threat, as it has not been breached by monsters or aliens. Unfortunately, the human mind is home to the most destructive anxieties, which quickly lead to the breakdown of civil behavior. The passengers aboard Aniara are torn apart due to the absence of hope — some give in to fanaticism, while others fall back on bigotry to cope with the situation. This is a deeply existential look into the absence of purpose as soon as humanity loses its footing and is steered off course.
6
The Thing (1982)
John Carpenter’s The Thing brings a cosmic threat into grounded reality to capture the utter chaos that ensues. After a group of researchers in an Antarctic outpost realize that there’s an imposter among them, helicopter pilot R. J. MacReady (Kurt Russell) and others attempt to figure out the true nature of this entity. Realizing that this entity from outer space can shapeshift into people they know after assimilating them, MacReady takes an abrasive approach to capturing (and eliminating) the titular Thing. Unfortunately, the Thing turns out to be more conniving than expected, as it succeeds in fueling paranoia and turning the researchers against one another.
Although the researchers aren’t stranded in space, they have nowhere to escape. Moreover, the objective is to prevent the Thing from escaping confinement, as its freedom would mean the end of civilization. It is a desperate situation that makes trust and vulnerability impossible — if anything, trusting the wrong person assures a painful death. Carpenter uses the claustrophobic Antarctic setting to sow the seeds of doubt, where pre-existing tensions feed into the life-or-death scenario. The creature’s incomprehensible biology, which appears as a mass of tendrils right before it morphs into its victims, adds to the dread sustained by the film.
7
The Mist (2007)
Frank Darabont’s The Mist is uncompromisingly bleak. A severe thunderstorm strikes Bridgton, Maine, causing a tree to crash through the home of artist David (Thomas Jane) and his family. Noticing a thick fog enveloping the town, David and his son Billy (Nathan Gamble) go to the local supermarket to buy supplies. Little do they know that this community space will become their prison for the next few hours, as massive, tentacled creatures are circling the town while traveling through the mist. That said, the biggest threat is the townsfolk themselves, as the overcrowded supermarket soon becomes a hub of fear, paranoia, and mass hysteria.
While The Mist uses the tentacled creatures as an unknowable threat that humans aren’t equipped to fight, the film’s one-location setting paints humans as the real monsters. Religious extremists interpret these tragic circumstances as divine punishment, exhibiting cult-like behavior that is quick to demonize anyone who doesn’t adhere to the norm. David and Billy become our emotional anchors, as our hopes are pinned on their survival, along with that of their allies. The Mist delivers an unforgettable downer ending, showcasing the cruel cost of giving up too early and the utter indifference of a cold, unjust universe.
