Time Travel Sci-Fi backdrop

Time Travel Sci-Fi movies

Time rules drive the plot: loops, paradoxes, timeline changes, and consequences of rewriting past or future.

An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save what's important to her by connecting with the lives she could have led in other universes.

Themes

Intergenerational trauma, Mother daughter relationship, Lgbt visibility, Laundromat life pressures, Divorce and family strains, Interdimensional travel exploration

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Palm Springs

2. Palm Springs

Comedy Romance Science Fiction Romantic Comedy High-Concept Comedy
7.4

20201h 30min

United States

Director: Max Barbakow

Nyles arrives at a wedding as the boyfriend of the bride’s friend and ends up trapped in a time loop after entering a mysterious cave. Forced to relive the same day over and over, he spends his time drinking, partying, and hitting on wedding guests instead of trying to better himself or learn anything new. Things take an unexpected turn when, one evening, the bride’s sister also gets pulled into the loop.

Themes

Deception and betrayal, Romance under constraint, Hedonism vs responsibility, Time loop endurance, Escape through science

Available on

Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Tenet

3. Tenet

Action Thriller Science Fiction Spy Action Mindfuck Thriller
7.3

20202h 30min

United Kingdom, United States

Director: Christopher Nolan

A secret service agent learns to use time inversion to save the world from criminals from the future who are trying to destroy the planet.

Themes

Time travel consequences, Espionage and secrecy, Terrorist plots and attacks, Global catastrophic stakes, Arms dealing networks, Dual timelines paradoxes

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Flash finds himself in a war-torn alternate timeline and teams up with alternate versions of his fellow heroes to restore the timeline.

Themes

Power and responsibility, Leadership under pressure, Alternate timeline, War of factions, Government vs resistance, Memory changes

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
HBO Max
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Edge of Tomorrow

5. Edge of Tomorrow

Action Science Fiction Military Action Time Travel Sci-Fi
7.9

20141h 54min

United States

Director: Doug Liman

Major Bill Cage is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously demoted and dropped into combat. Cage is killed within minutes, managing to take an alpha alien down with him. He awakens back at the beginning of the same day and is forced to fight and die again... and again - as physical contact with the alien has thrown him into a time loop.

Themes

Duty under pressure, Cycles of learning under siege, Exoskeleton warfare, Humanity vs superorganism, Sacrifice and persistence, Cooperation under danger

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The ultimate X-Men ensemble fights a war for the survival of the species across two time periods as they join forces with their younger selves in an epic battle that must change the past – to save our future.

Themes

Intergenerational conflict, Survival under threat, Time travel politics, Mutant vs humanity, Coexistence after conflict, Governance and power

Available on

Disney Plus
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Call

7. The Call

Thriller Mystery Science Fiction Mind Game Thriller Time Travel Sci-Fi
7.1

20201h 52min

South Korea

Director: Lee Chung-hyun

Connected by phone in the same home but 20 years apart, a caller puts a woman’s past — and life — on the line to change her own fate.

Themes

Loyalty under duress, Survival through cooperation, Labor exploitation, Leadership dynamics, Trust and hierarchy

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Flash

8. The Flash

Action Science Fiction Adventure Superhero Action Time Travel Sci-Fi
6.6

20232h 24min

United States

Director: Andy Muschietti

When his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry Allen becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned and there are no Super Heroes to turn to. In order to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry's only hope is to race for his life. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?

Themes

Secret identity, Power and responsibility, Time travel consequences, Mentorship and guidance, Loss and obligation, Alternate realities and multiverse

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
HBO Max
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

One year after the events of the anime, Rintarou begins to feel the repercussions of extensive time travel, and eventually completely fades from reality. Kurisu, being the only companion to remember him, now must find a way to bring him back.

Themes

Romance under pressure, Time travel consequences, Fractured reality perception, Obsession with invention, Memory overload risk, Doppelganger ethics

Available on

Apple TV
Amazon Video
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

After accidentally crash-landing in 2022, time-traveling fighter pilot Adam Reed teams up with his 12-year-old self on a mission to save the future.

Themes

Time travel ethics, Deception and trust, Family bonds across time, 2050s pressure, Playful resilience, Explore consequences, Joyful exploration

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.