Best Space Movies for Kids

On its fiftieth anniversary, the events surrounding the actual Apollo 11 space mission are presented solely using archival footage and still photographs of or associated with the mission. The events span from the eleventh-hour preparations for the launch to shortly after the safe touchdown of the capsule with its three astronauts back on Earth. 

The mission is historic as the first time humans had stepped on the surface of the Earth’s moon.

This Hollywood drama is based on the events of the Apollo 13 lunar mission, astronauts Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Fred Haise (Bill Paxton), and Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) find everything going according to plan after leaving Earth’s orbit. 

However, when an oxygen tank explodes, the scheduled moon landing is called off. Subsequent tensions within the crew and numerous technical problems threaten both the astronauts’ survival and their safe return to Earth.

In this animated film, space adventurer Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) loses his partner during a mission and resolves to never jeopardize another person’s life again. But Buzz’s commander, Nebula (Adam Carolla), finds him a replacement anyway: Princess Mira Nova (Nicole Sullivan). Meanwhile, Buzz’s nemesis, nefarious Emperor Zurg (Wayne Knight), plots to steal the Uni-mind, a valuable device that facilitates the little green men’s collective thought process; without it, the whole race is useless.

After a gentle alien becomes stranded on Earth, the being is discovered and befriended by a young boy named Elliott (Henry Thomas). Bringing the extraterrestrial into his suburban California house, Elliott introduces E.T., as the alien is dubbed, to his brother and his little sister, Gertie (Drew Barrymore), and the children decide to keep its existence a secret. Soon, however, E.T. falls ill, resulting in government intervention and a dire situation for both Elliott and the alien.

When hostile aliens called the Formics attack Earth, only the legendary heroics of Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley) manage to attain a victory. To prepare for the next attack, Col. Hyrum Graff (Harrison Ford) and his cohorts initiate a military program to find the next Mazer. Recruit Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield) exhibits an unusual gift for training, easily mastering all of the challenges thrown at him. Mazer Rackham, himself, takes Ender as a protege to prepare him for the oncoming war.

On the planet Baab, dashing astronaut Scorch Supernova (Brendan Fraser) is a national hero and master of daring rescues. However, Scorch does not work alone; his nerdy brother, Gary (Rob Corddry), head of mission control at BASA, often lends quiet, behind-the-scenes support. When a distress signal arrives from a dangerous planet, Scorch ignores Gary’s warnings and sets out on a rescue mission. Scorch soon finds himself caught in a trap set by an evil enemy, and it’s up to Gary to save him.

A 12-year-old boy goes missing in 1978, only to reappear once more in 1986. In the eight years that have passed, he hasn’t aged. It is no coincidence that at the time he “comes back”, a flying saucer is found, entangled in power lines.

Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is a medical engineer on her first shuttle mission. Her commander is veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (George Clooney), helming his last flight before retirement. Then, during a routine spacewalk by the pair, disaster strikes: The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Ryan and Matt stranded in deep space with no link to Earth and no hope of rescue. As fear turns to panic, they realize that the only way home may be to venture further into space.

Pilot Hal Jordan accepts a mysterious, powerful ring from a dying alien that transforms him into a Green Lantern. He patrols the earth to ensure peace and justice prevail.

Brash space adventurer Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the quarry of relentless bounty hunters after he steals an orb coveted by Ronan, a powerful villain. To evade Ronan, Quill is forced into an uneasy truce with four disparate misfits: gun-toting Rocket Raccoon, treelike-humanoid Groot, enigmatic Gamora, and vengeance-driven Drax the Destroyer. But when he discovers the orb’s true power and the cosmic threat it poses, Quill must rally his ragtag group to save the universe.

After a hive-minded alien race called the Boov conquers the Earth, they relocate the planet’s human population — all except for a little girl named Tip (Rihanna), who’s managed to hide from the aliens. When Tip meets a fugitive Boov called Oh (Jim Parsons), there’s mutual distrust. However, Oh is not like his comrades; he craves friendship and fun. As their distrust fades, the pair set out together to find Tip’s mother, but, unbeknown to them, the Gorg — enemies of the Boov — are en route.

Milo is a 9-year-old boy who has a lot on his mind; he has monster movies to watch, comic books to read, and all other kinds of fun stuff to accomplish. He definitely does not have time to do homework or eat his vegetables. He’s getting tired of his mom nagging him to do these things, and his mom is tired of nagging. But just as Milo is telling his mom that life would be more fun without her, Martians kidnap her. Milo stows away on their spaceship, determined to launch a rescue.

When a meteor full of space gunk transforms Susan Murphy (Reese Witherspoon) into a giant, the government renames her Ginormica and confines her to a secret compound with other monsters, like bug-headed Dr. Cockroach (Hugh Laurie). When an extraterrestrial robot lands on Earth and begins a rampage, Gen. W.R. Monger persuades the president to send Ginormica and her fellow monsters to battle the machine and save the planet.

With enormous enthusiasm and unsinkable optimism, daredevil Gonzo steps into his first starring role in “Muppets From Space,” a hilarious extraterrestrial adventure about the search for Gonzo’s past. On a quest with buddy Rizzo to find his real family, Gonzo discovers that his long-lost relatives are actually aliens from a distant planet.

When astronaut Capt. Charles “Chuck” Baker lands on Planet 51, he thinks he is the first life form to set foot there. He gets the surprise of his life when he learns that it is inhabited by little green people who live in an idyllic version of 1950s America — complete with a universal fear of alien invasion.

A UFO captained by a cat-like extraterrestrial (Ronnie Schell) is intercepted by the U.S. Military. The spacecraft’s feline pilot, who goes by the human name Jake, reveals to his captors that he must locate a substance called “Org 12” to restore his battered spacecraft and reunite with his mothership. With help from scientist Frank Wilson (Ken Berry), Jake figures out the Earth equivalent of Org 12 — gold — and then activates his collar’s technological capabilities to help retrieve it.

A science-fiction film that combines traditional animation with computer-generated images, “Titan A.E.” takes place in the distant future, after Earth has been obliterated by a mysterious alien race known as the Drej. Cale is a human teenager who has been given a mysterious map by his father, leading him on an unforgettable journey.

The legendary “loot of a thousand worlds” inspires an intergalactic treasure hunt when 15-year-old Jim Hawkins stumbles upon a map to the greatest pirate trove in the universe in Walt Disney Pictures’ thrilling animated space adventure, “Treasure Planet.” Based on one of the greatest adventure stories ever told – Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island” – this film follows Jim’s fantastic journey across a parallel universe as a cabin boy aboard a glittering space galleon.

In the 28th century, special operatives Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline worked together to maintain order throughout the human territories. Under assignment from the minister of defense, the duo embarks on a mission to Alpha, an ever-expanding metropolis where diverse species gather to share knowledge and culture. When a dark force threatens the peaceful city, Valerian and Laureline must race against time to identify the menace that also jeopardizes the future of the universe.

A Lesson in The Power of Sharing! Join Captain Cuke (Larry the Cucumber) and his loyal first officer, Mr. Spork (Bob the Tomato), as they embark on an out-of-this-world adventure to bravely travel where no Veggie has ever been. The entire USS Applepies crew takes on Luntar the Looter, a power-stealing space pirate, but they’re in for a big surprise when they find out what’s motivating him!

WALL-E, short for Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-class, is the last robot left on Earth. He spends his days tidying up the planet, one piece of garbage at a time. But during 700 years, WALL-E has developed a personality, and he’s more than a little lonely. Then he spots EVE (Elissa Knight), a sleek and shapely probe sent back to Earth on a scanning mission. Smitten WALL-E embarks on his greatest adventure yet when he follows EVE across the galaxy.

After their father (Tim Robbins) is called into work, two young boys, Walter (Josh Hutcherson) and Danny (Jonah Bobo), are left in the care of their teenage sister, Lisa (Kristen Stewart), and told they must stay inside. Walter and Danny, who anticipate a boring day, are shocked when they begin playing Zathura, a space-themed board game, which they realize has mystical powers when their house is shot into space. With the help of an astronaut (Dax Shepard), the boys attempt to return home.