6 Best Environmental Activist Movies

By Vlad Zakh · June 9, 2026

Fighting a company that’s poisoning the water isn’t easy, and these films show how it looks. Dark Waters follows a corporate attorney exposing a chemical company’s decades-long cover-up, Erin Brockovich does the same for a town’s contaminated water, and Silkwood and A Civil Action follow similar crusades. Night Moves gets more radical, with activists plotting to blow up a dam, and Promised Land has a gas company rep starting to doubt his own sales pitch.

Dark Waters (2019)

TMDB ★ 7.5

A corporate defence attorney uncovers a chemical company's decades-long cover-up of toxic water contamination.

Directed by Todd Haynes · 2h 07m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

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

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Night Moves (2013)

TMDB ★ 5.9

A group of radical environmental activists plot to blow up a hydroelectric dam, with devastating unintended consequences.

Directed by Kelly Reichardt · 1h 52m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Philo, Fandor, MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Promised Land (2012)

TMDB ★ 6.3

A natural gas company representative selling drilling rights to a small town begins to question his own role.

Directed by Gus Van Sant · 1h 46m · Rated R

Where to watch

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

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Erin Brockovich (2000)

TMDB ★ 7.4

An unemployed single mother builds a case against a utility company poisoning a small town's water.

Directed by Steven Soderbergh · 2h 11m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

A Civil Action (1998)

TMDB ★ 6.5

A personal injury lawyer takes on two corporations accused of poisoning a town's water.

Directed by Steven Zaillian · 1h 55m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

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

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Silkwood (1983)

TMDB ★ 6.9

A nuclear plant worker's investigation into unsafe conditions turns dangerous when she uncovers a cover-up.

Directed by Mike Nichols · 2h 11m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, 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 Environmental Activist Movies

Dark Waters (2019)

Night Moves (2013)

Promised Land (2012)

Erin Brockovich (2000)

A Civil Action (1998)

Silkwood (1983)

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