6 Best Astronomer and Stargazing Movies

By Vlad Zakh · June 19, 2026

Looking up at the stars is a very particular kind of wonder, and these films try to capture it. Interstellar travels through a wormhole, Arrival has a linguist talking to aliens, and Contact follows a radio astronomer who picks up a signal that could change everything. Hidden Figures, The Dish and October Sky bring it back down to earth and the people doing the work.

Interstellar (2014)

IMDb ★ 8.7 RT 73% Metacritic 74

A pilot leaves his children behind on a dying Earth to search the stars for humanity's next home.

Directed by Christopher Nolan · 2h 49m · Rated PG-13

Won 1 Oscar45 wins & 148 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Arrival (2016)

IMDb ★ 7.9 RT 94% Metacritic 81

A linguist tries to communicate with alien visitors before global panic turns into war.

Directed by Denis Villeneuve · 1h 56m · Rated PG-13

Won 1 Oscar73 wins & 276 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Peacock Premium, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Peacock Premium Plus · Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Hidden Figures (2016)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 93% Metacritic 74

Three Black women mathematicians become essential to NASA's early space race successes.

Directed by Theodore Melfi · 2h 07m · Rated PG

Nominated for 3 Oscars37 wins & 94 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Cinemax Amazon Channel, HBO Max, Cinemax Apple TV channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Contact (1997)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 69% Metacritic 62

A scientist's decoded alien signal leads to a single seat aboard a machine built to reach the stars.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis · 2h 30m · Rated PG

Nominated for 1 Oscar15 wins & 32 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Dish (2000)

TMDB ★ 6.8

A small Australian town's radio telescope becomes crucial to broadcasting the first moon landing.

Directed by Rob Sitch · 1h 41m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

Rent or buy: CosmoGo

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

October Sky (1999)

TMDB ★ 7.7

A coal miner's son defies his father's expectations to pursue his dream of building rockets.

Directed by Joe Johnston · 1h 47m · Rated PG

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.

6 Best Astronomer and Stargazing Movies

Interstellar (2014)

Arrival (2016)

Hidden Figures (2016)

Contact (1997)

The Dish (2000)

October Sky (1999)

You might also like

6 Best Oscar Best Visual Effects Winning Movies

6 Best Space Colonization and Off-World Settlement Movies

6 Best First Contact Alien Movies

20 Best Space Exploration Movies of All Time

8 Best Movies of 2016

8 Best Movies of 2014