Since the second half of the twentieth century, the accumulation of greenhouse gases, rising global temperatures, and rising sea levels have made science fiction writers think about a future in which neglect of environmental issues leads to large-scale climate disasters. We have collected 10 science fiction films about climate change and its consequences for you.
It is worth noting that climate fiction films have long ceased to be just a spectacular attraction. Nowadays, they have become an important tool for influencing public opinion and motivating people to take active steps to protect the environment. For example, research The Yale University study showed that after watching the film «The Day After Tomorrow», viewers showed increased concern about climate change and declared their intention to seek possible political solutions to the problem.
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Year of release: 2004
Director: Roland Emmerich
IMDb rating: 6.5
In the article about melting of the Greenland ice sheet, we told you that the release of huge volumes of fresh water would not only cause sea level rise, but also destroy the system of currents in the Atlantic Ocean. This system shapes the climate on the planet. The protagonist of the film «The Day After Tomorrow», paleoclimatologist Jack Hall, tries in vain to draw the attention of world leaders to the danger of such a scenario.
Soon, the disappointing predictions of scientists become a reality. The warm Gulf Stream stops, and after a series of unprecedented natural disasters, a new ice age begins in the Northern Hemisphere. Roland Emmerich’s disaster movie became a box office hit and provoked a significant discussion about climate change. And although the possible destruction of ocean currents is quite real problemHowever, scientists still consider such a lightning-fast development to be an extremely unlikely scenario.
Year of release: 2025
Director: Bruno Stagnaro
IMDb rating: 7.6
A snowy apocalypse in the middle of summer Buenos Aires in a fresh Argentine series «The Eternaut» is not as epic as «The Day After Tomorrow», but it has something to surprise the audience. Firstly, in addition to the sudden cold snap, the snowfall here is toxic and kills instantly on contact with the skin.
Just finished watching Season 1 of “The Eternaut.” The drama, acting, direction, art design (especially the depiction of snow and the wall of cars), and VFX were all outstanding. The central themes are “an invisible enemy” and “a vast, lurking force behind it all”—very much in… pic.twitter.com/3dvmsnfgGT
— HIDEO_KOJIMA (@HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN) May 6, 2025
Secondly, the show pays a lot of attention to the details of survival, such as making improvised costumes, helmets, and gloves that are needed to explore a new reality. All this makes you believe in the story and instantly immerses you in its atmosphere.
Thirdly, many episodes are shot in the first person, and the camera seems to be looking through the fogged-up glass of a gas mask, which adds to the series the vibe of the Argentine «Metro 2033». And one last thing for those who are not afraid of spoilers: poisonous snow is just the tip of the iceberg in the adaptation of the cult Spanish comic book, which features alien invasion, giant bugs, mass zombification and time travel.
Year of release: 1995
Director: Kevin Reynolds
IMDb rating: 6.3
Research NASA shows that if all the glaciers on the planet melt, the level of the world’s oceans will rise by more than 60 meters. Most of Europe will be underwater, and sunny Florida will become the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico. But the creators of the post-apocalyptic science fiction film «Waterworld» decided to go even further.
According to the scenario of their film, as a result of a climate catastrophe, the ocean level has risen by 25 thousand feet (about 7.6 km). All the continents of the Earth have plunged under water, and a handful of survivors are trying to survive on floating platforms made of various garbage and dreaming of finding at least some habitable land.
Year of release: 2008
Director: Andrew Stanton
IMDb rating: 8.4
In the nineteenth century, overpopulation and overconsumption caused catastrophic climate change, turning the Earth into a garbage-strewn dead desert. Humans left the planet in comfortable spaceships, leaving garbage robots to clean up the mess they created.
But after 700 years of loneliness, one of these robots named WALL-E finds the first living plant among the garbage. Together with the robot scout Eve, he sets off on a long journey to inform humanity about the beginning of the restoration of life on Earth.
The events of «WALL-E» take place in the year 2805, but fordata NASA, some areas of the Earth, unfortunately, may become uninhabitable before 2050. So if we are not going to escape into space in the foreseeable future, it is time to limit excessive consumptionwhich exacerbates environmental problems, destroys ecosystems and accelerates global warming.
Year of release: 2014
Director: Christopher Nolan
IMDb rating: 8.7
Christopher Nolan’s film depicts an alternative Earth of the near future with constant droughts, barren soil, mass starvation, and unbreathable air. Dust storms threaten to destroy the world’s main source of food, corn. As a result, governments are resorting to forced agricultural labor and searching for new habitable worlds.
Although the film centers on the journey of a group of astronauts through a wormhole, it also vividly illustrates the consequences of prolonged neglect of environmental problems and the radical measures that will be needed if humanity does not stop climate change now.
Year of release: 1973
Director: Richard Fleischer
IMDb rating: 7.0
From the distant future, let’s move to the year 2022, as it was seen in the 70s of the last century. According to the plot of one of the first ever cli-fi films (it is based on the novel by Harry Harrison «Move Over! Move Over!»), overpopulation and environmental pollution have led to global warming, soil degradation, shortages of drinking water and the disappearance of most of the vegetation.
Against this backdrop, only the elite can afford clean water and real food. The rest of the population relies on a centralized supply of protein briquettes allegedly made from marine plankton «Soylent». The protagonist of the film, police detective Thorne, is investigating a murder and uncovers a terrible secret about «Green Soylent». But of much greater interest to the modern viewer is the bold prediction of Harrison, who in 1966 described in detail the greenhouse effect and its consequences.
Speaking of predictions, science fiction does materialize its ideas in real life. In 2013, Soylent Nutrition was launched in California, producing… yes, a substitute for regular food under the brand name «Soylent». It’s also interesting that its founder, programmer Rob Reinhart, developed his product because of what he believed to be the excessive complexity of cooking regular meals, which takes up a lot of people’s free time.
Year of release: 2021
Director: Miguel Sapočnik
IMDb rating: 6.9
It’s been 15 years since a powerful solar flare destroyed the Earth’s ozone layer and turned the planet into a dead wasteland scorched by ultraviolet rays, with surface temperatures reaching 70 °C during the day. One of the few survivors, robotics engineer Finch Weinberg, takes refuge with his dog Goodyear in the underground laboratory in St. Louis where he used to work.
Finch tries to be cautious and only goes outside to replenish supplies and always wears a hazmat suit. But he still receives a large dose of radiation and slowly dies as a result. To prevent the dog from being lonely, he creates an intelligent humanoid robot, Jeff. Together they travel to San Francisco. Although the man dies on the way, Jeff and Goodyear find habitable terrain and evidence of human beings nearby.
Year of release: 2013
Director: Pong Joon-ho
IMDb rating: 7.1
12 years before the premiere «Miki 17» South Korean director Pong Joon-ho has already tried his hand at science fiction with the post-apocalyptic thriller «Through the Snow». In his world, humanity is trying to eliminate the effects of global warming by spraying a chemical called CW7 in the upper atmosphere. But the attempt to intervene in the climate «kitchen» of the planet fails: instead of a moderate decrease in temperature, the Earth freezes. All life on the planet dies, except for a group of people who take refuge in the atomic train of the transportation magnate Wilford.
The cars of this miracle express have a clear social hierarchy. At the head of the train, the elite bathe in luxury, and in the last carriages without windows, outcasts try to survive somehow. The revolution, organized by the charismatic leader Curtis, reaps a bloody harvest throughout the train. But when they reach Wilford’s car, the rebels learn that the tycoon himself organized this and other similar riots to keep the population of his world on wheels within certain limits.
Year of release: 2017
Director: Dean Devlin
IMDb rating: 5.3
In 2019, the Earth is facing hurricanes, rainstorms, and droughts of unprecedented proportions. This crisis prompts scientists from 17 countries to develop a global satellite system that can regulate the weather and should permanently protect the world’s inhabitants from its vagaries. At first, the system does an excellent job. But a few years later, the UN team finds an Afghan village whose inhabitants have been frozen alive by a mysterious climatic anomaly. It turns out that unknown attackers have gained control of the satellites and intend to cause a devastating Geostorm.
It’s worth noting that the film’s creators were inspired by real-life geoengineering research aimed at modifying the weather and slowing climate change. But what we see in the movie is far beyond the capabilities of modern science. Methods such as spraying chemicals in the clouds can force precipitation and reduce the damage of drought, but they cannot prevent it from occurring.
Year of release: 2021
Director: Adam McKay
IMDb rating: 7.2
Graduate student Kate Dibiaschi discovers an asteroid heading toward Earth. Her advisor Randall Mindy’s calculations convincingly prove that in six months the space visitor will destroy all life on the planet. However, officials, the US president, and the media prefer to ignore the incomprehensible predictions of some smart people and go about their business as usual.
It seems that the movie about the destruction of the Earth by an asteroid has nothing to do with climate change. But an attentive viewer can easily unravel its true message. The celestial body is a metaphor for the climate crisis. And politicians and society are stubbornly ignoring the truth until it destroys the planet. The authorities think only about votes in elections, and ordinary people try to somehow distract themselves from the inevitable apocalypse in the hope that there will be enough clean water and air for their lifetime.
In the beautiful Midwest, windchill temperatures are reaching minus 60 degrees, the coldest ever recorded. In coming days, expected to get even colder. People can’t last outside even for minutes. What the hell is going on with Global Waming? Please come back fast, we need you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 29, 2019
We are now witnessing a new round of confrontation between climate scientists and conservative politicians. Donald Trump’s administration is pushing for the abolition of climate regulations and wants to prove that global warming will only benefit humanity. Against this backdrop, 15% of Americans do not believe in the reality of climate change, and more than 50% say they do not feel any of its effects.
What to do with a race that does not love itself so much that it does not even want to save its home? The movie «The Day the Earth Stood Still» provides a disappointing answer to this question. The alien messenger Klaatu (Keanu Reeves) says that there is no point in persuading people to change, since destroying everything around them has long been their second nature. So he decides to get rid of humans and thus save all the other creatures inhabiting the beautiful blue planet.