The 8 Best Sci-Fi Shows On Apple TV+ Ranked

Apple is one of the most successful companies on the planet. They’re doing fine, and certainly don’t need any help from us. But since it has never released any subscriber numbers for its streaming service, Apple TV+, and since that service’s shows frequently rank very low on analyses of what people are watching, it seems like a lot of potential audiences simply are not aware that there’s a treasure trove of original TV shows just waiting to be consumed. (Here are the 15 Apple shows that justify a subscription, and there are also great movies like the Oscar-winning “Coda” and the underseen gem “Swan Song” lurking in its archives, as well.)

If you’re a science fiction fan, you’re really in for a good time, because for years, the decision-makers over at Apple TV+ have been consistently greenlighting banger after banger of shows in that genre. Brain-melting thrillers, post-apocalyptic survival stories, family friendly anthologies, high-concept dramas — Apple TV+ has just about every type of sci-fi flavor you could ask for, and they’re often led by A-list actors and supported with lavish budgets. Here are the very best sci-fi shows Apple TV+ currently has to offer.

Sci-fi shows have a tendency to explore the darker aspects of humanity, society, science, and technology. Sure, bleak stories can highlight the resiliency of the human spirit, but sometimes, it’s nice to watch something sentimental. Enter “Amazing Stories,” the short-lived reboot of Steven Spielberg’s classic ’80s anthology series.

“Amazing Stories” arrived in 2020, a time when political polarization, violent extremism, and other horrifying real-life scenarios inspired many creative types to make doom-laden entertainment. However, the Apple TV+ reboot resisted channeling our collective anxieties by instead focusing on heartfelt, optimistic tales about humanity. The first episode, “The Cellar,” is about a construction worker who accidentally travels back to 1919 and falls in love with a woman who stayed in the house he’s renovating. It’s an old-school love story about soulmates from different worlds (quite literally), and it’s just lovely.

Another standout is “Dynoman and the Volt,” which sees a cranky, ailing, old fart (played by the late Robert Forster) bond with his grandson over comic books. What’s more, grandad becomes an actual superhero after receiving a ring he ordered 60 years prior, which just so happens to give him powers. This episode argues that it’s never too late to rediscover your inner child, while also delivering a feel-good, family-oriented story. “Amazing Stories” is the type of show that’s designed to spark the imaginations of children and remind jaded adults that it’s okay to be hopeful — and it’s time for Apple TV+ to renew it for a second season. (Kieran Fisher)

Whether you’re already acquainted with the literally block-busting movie leg of Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse franchise or only cursorily familiar with the concept of Godzilla, Chris Black and Matt Fraction’s “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is a good time. It won’t blow your mind or challenge your worldview, but it does provide a delightful combination of “The X-Files” and “Indiana Jones” with the occasional giant monster attack thrown in for good measure.   

With a story arc that stretches from the 1950s to the 2010s, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is effectively a “best of” collection of action mystery tropes that uses the kaiju opportunities its MonsterVerse setting provides surprisingly sparingly — but effectively. The elusive Monarch organization provides the central mystery, and the show delivers the pieces of the puzzle at a well-determined pace that makes the most of the multi-timeline approach. 

While Godzilla himself is reduced to a glorified cameo role, the show has an even bigger secret weapon in its arsenal: The double-barreled acting cannon of Wyatt and Kurt Russell. The son and the father play the 1950s and 2010s versions of the same character, Lee Shaw, and the viewer can’t help but watch in awe as the show signifies a timeline change with a seamless transition from one Russell face to the other. Leave it to Kurt Russell to provide some of the most captivating visuals in a show that features multiple scenes with actual kaijus, eh? (Pauli Poisuo)

In its infancy, Apple TV+ hit the ground running with a slew of impressive shows. Among them was a post-apocalyptic tale led by Jason Momoa, which felt like the perfect role for the former Dothraki horse lord and then King of Atlantis. Cross “The Book of Eli” with “Game of Thrones” and you get “See,” which transports us to a world hundreds of years in the future, where all of humanity has gone blind. Now, turning tribal in nature, one of its leaders Baba Voss (Momoa) has his life turned upside down when he fosters twin children with the ability to see.

Spanning only three seasons, “See” is among the few shows on this list that you can swiftly binge to the end, and the journey to get there is outstanding. Momoa, as ruler, guardian, and blind barbarian, delivers an excellent performance in a world that, while occasionally veering into farce, feels solid and captivating, hooking you in with its first episode and genuinely original and impressive action sequences. In battle scenes where nearly all the characters are blind, “See” delivers some truly brilliant set pieces that often find Momoa at the center of them, skulking along the ground and killing enemies in ways that will make you wince every single time. Add in great performances from actors like Sylvia Hoeks as Sibeth Kane and Dave Bautista, who dominates the second season as Baba’s vengeful brother, Edo Voss, this is the bloody, epic series you never saw coming. (Nick Staniforth)

What if you could actually explore all the crossroads you come to in life? What if the infinite possibilities of the multiverse contain a seed of hope? What if multiple Joel Edgertons were running around in a frenzied panic and ruining everything? As befitting its ambitions, “Dark Matter” is a series that contains multitudes. Based on the 2016 book by Blake Crouch (who also serves as creator and showrunner of the adaptation), the series almost immediately dares to go where so many superhero movies have not. Jason Dessen (Edgerton) is a physics professor who has seemingly settled for a normal and unremarkable life. He has a humble job, he’s a regular at a local rundown bar, and, oh yeah, he’s married to the love of his life Daniela (Jennifer Connelly) with a son who respects him (Oakes Fegley as Charlie). Still, Jason can’t help but wonder if he missed his calling … and, unbeknownst to him, another Jason from another universe has his eyes set on everything this Jason takes for granted.

That’s just the setup for a wonderfully nuanced, oftentimes dark, and consistently exhilarating adventure that takes the best of what sci-fi has to offer and runs with it. Though there’s a literal mystery box involved, the series smartly relies on more than just twists and turns. In between bursts of action and dazzling visuals, viewers are challenged to keep up with a story that has much on its mind — and no easy answers for some of its most haunting questions. (Jeremy Mathai)

“Foundation” is a triumph of an adaptation. Isaac Asimov’s sci-fi epic of the same name remains a hugely influential and complex work of fiction, and was long considered unadaptable due to its millennia-spanning story. And yet, AppleTV+’s “Foundation” cracks the code by showing rather than telling. Where the novel often features men in a meeting room discussing huge, awe-inspiring events that happened far away, “Foundation” the TV show focuses on showing those awe-inspiring events and providing as much sci-fi spectacle as possible. This is a gorgeous-looking show, with vast and unique worlds and creatures, and big-scale space battles that put even the biggest movie blockbusters to shame.

“Foundation” is about the big moments that change galactic history, epic struggles, and planet-destroying battles, and it makes for a hugely entertaining viewing experience. But the show also finds time to tell more intimate stories about the role of individuals within massive historical movements, and even mixes in Asimov’s “Robot” stories while also finding the time to be goofy and fun enough to give audiences imagery of Lee Pace fighting assassins in the nude. (Rafael Motamayor)

The science fiction genre is frequently preoccupied with the end of the world. From “Mad Max” to “Terminator” to endless zombie movies, we love to watch society collapse (whether through disease, nuclear war, or robots) and see the survivors endure as they pick up the pieces.

“Silo” is post-apocalyptic fiction, but one set long-past the collapse. In the show’s universe, society has reordered itself into something unrecognizable, with all humanity confined within a single, well, silo. This story isn’t about trying to cling onto the past, but about exploring an unfamiliar future. Something destroyed the world, but we’re as clueless about it as the characters are — which is the way their leaders prefer it. Fans of “Attack on Titan” will find a lot of familiar charms in the mysteries of “Silo.”

What hasn’t changed in the new world of “Silo” is social stratification, with the physical structure of the Silo reinforcing its social contract. Then mechanic-turned-sheriff Juliette Nichols (Rebecca Ferguson, proving she can do plucky tomboy as well as femme fatale action heroine) stumbles into the conspiracy that keeps the Silo standing.

Based on the book series by Hugh Howey, “Silo” has been acclaimed for its worldbuilding, both in the narrative and set design senses. The halls and rooms of the Silo are as tactile as can be; the sets truly feel like a place people live in, as real as the holidays and rituals they practice. (Devin Meenan)

With all due respect to Elon Musk’s pie-in-the-sky fantasies of restarting civilization on Mars, maybe space ain’t all it’s cracked up to be. Maybe there’s wisdom in addressing all our problems here on Earth first. It’d be misleading to say that’s the main message of “For All Mankind,” a multi-season “what if?” series playing out the hypothetical of the Soviet Union beating the United States to the moon back during the height of the Space Race. It’s certainly one of its biggest themes, however, as this alternate take on history continually proves again and again. No matter how much time passes between each season, the innate flaws of the people at the heart of this narrative stay the same. (And, no, I’m not just referring to those increasingly silly wigs, bald caps, and aging makeup used to convince us that, say, Joel Kinnaman is actually a septuagenarian.)

The flashiest parts of “For All Mankind” may revolve around its silly sci-fi twists on real-world history (Stanley Kubrick made “A.I. Artificial Intelligence” instead of Steven Spielberg! Al Gore became President in 2000! Humanity colonized Mars in the 1990s!), but the real meat of the story is found in the interpersonal drama these new scenarios make possible. A Cold War on the moon, a unionization effort on Mars, and a literal race in interplanetary space are all cool ideas in and of themselves. But it’s the personalities and flaws of our well-written main ensemble that keep bringing us back. (Jeremy Mathai)

Few TV shows can consistently surprise fans, and even fewer can sustain their tension so well that each and every minute is appointment viewing. As a show where every word, facial expression, and push of a button can potentially flip the script, “Severance” is a proud member of this rare breed.

“Severance” focuses on people whose “innie” work selves have been surgically split from their off-the-clock “outies,” effectively creating two people living in the same body. From its very first scene, the show drives home how terrifying that concept is. Who would agree to undergo this procedure? What sort of life would a worker who’s permanently trapped in a brightly-lit office hell lead? What work requires such secrecy, and what would the ethical ramifications be? “Severance” dives headfirst into all of these questions and drip-feeds answers that are invariably stranger than anything the viewer can come up with.

Creator Dan Erickson and EP/main director Ben Stiller’s masterpiece takes the life of a white-collar office drone to its logical extreme and beyond. Though a villainous endgame seems to be looming on the horizon, there are no chest-bursting aliens or villainous robots here (that we know of). Instead, Lumon’s under-informed innies face awkward team-building exercises, confrontational colleagues, and outlandish corporate culture. Their enemies are scheming supervisors, rich owners with delusions of grandeur, and middle managers whose preppy smiles never quite reach their eyes. You’ve likely bumped into versions of all these archetypes in your own professional life, and that makes the show so, so much creepier. (Pauli Poisuo)