6 Best Time Traveler Movies

By Vlad Zakh · May 9, 2026

Time travel brings mind-bending paradoxes and personal stakes. About Time has a young man using the ability to fix his own life, Looper has a hitman facing his future self, and Primer has engineers whose invention spirals into confusion. Twelve Monkeys, Back to the Future and the 1960 The Time Machine round out the six.

About Time (2013)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 70% Metacritic 55

A young man finds out the men in his family can travel through time and mostly uses it for small things.

Directed by Richard Curtis · 2h 03m · Rated R

3 wins & 9 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads · 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

Looper (2012)

IMDb ★ 7.4 RT 93% Metacritic 84

A hitman who kills targets sent back in time is ordered to kill his own future self.

Directed by Rian Johnson · 1h 58m · Rated R

18 wins & 47 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Starz, Starz Apple TV channel, Starz Roku Premium Channel, Sony Pictures Core Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Plex · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Primer (2004)

IMDb ★ 6.7 RT 72% Metacritic 68

Shane Carruth's no-budget debut about two engineers who accidentally build a time machine in a garage.

Directed by Shane Carruth · 1h 17m · Rated PG-13

3 wins & 7 nominations

Where to watch

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

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Twelve Monkeys (1995)

IMDb ★ 8.0 RT 88% Metacritic 75

A prisoner from a devastated future is sent back in time to gather information about a deadly virus.

Directed by Terry Gilliam · 2h 09m · Rated R

Nominated for 2 Oscars11 wins & 25 nominations

Where to watch

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

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Back to the Future (1985)

IMDb ★ 8.5 RT 93% Metacritic 88

A teenager accidentally travels to 1955 and has to make sure his own parents still fall in love.

Directed by Robert Zemeckis · 1h 56m · Rated PG

Won 1 Oscar27 wins & 25 nominations

Where to watch

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

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Time Machine (1960)

TMDB ★ 7.1

A Victorian inventor travels far into the future and finds humanity divided into two very different species.

Directed by George Pal · 1h 43m · Rated G

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 Time Traveler Movies

About Time (2013)

Looper (2012)

Primer (2004)

Twelve Monkeys (1995)

Back to the Future (1985)

The Time Machine (1960)

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