6 Best Space Race Movies

By Vlad Zakh · May 4, 2026

The Cold War urgency of the space race inspires true-story drama. Apollo 13 has NASA engineers racing to bring astronauts home, Hidden Figures has Black mathematicians helping NASA win, and The Dish has an Australian crew fixing a malfunction during the Moon broadcast. For All Mankind, October Sky and The Right Stuff round out the six.

Apollo 13 (1995)

IMDb ★ 7.7 RT 92% Metacritic 78

A moon mission's crew has to improvise a way home after an oxygen tank explosion cripples their spacecraft.

Directed by Ron Howard · 2h 20m · Rated PG

Won 2 Oscars31 wins & 59 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Philo, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Dish (2000)

TMDB ★ 7.1

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

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

For All Mankind (1989)

TMDB ★ 7.7

Archival footage from every Apollo lunar mission is woven into a single astronaut's journey to the Moon.

Directed by Al Reinert · 1h 20m

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, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

October Sky (1999)

TMDB ★ 7.8

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

The Right Stuff (1983)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 96% Metacritic 91

The original Mercury Seven astronauts and the test pilots who paved the way for them.

Directed by Philip Kaufman · 3h 13m · Rated PG

Won 4 Oscars14 wins & 18 nominations

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · 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 Space Race Movies

Apollo 13 (1995)

The Dish (2000)

Hidden Figures (2016)

For All Mankind (1989)

October Sky (1999)

The Right Stuff (1983)

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