4 Excellent New Sci-Fi Movies and Shows You Can Watch This Week at Home or in Theaters, Including ‘Somnium’

This week brings a focused lineup of science fiction across streaming and theaters. There is a returning favorite that blends satire with near future tech and three feature films that tap into mutants, night terrors, and an invasion that collides with a weekend escape.

You will find creator led projects, ensemble casts, and loglines that get right to the hook without wasting time. Dates and where to watch are included in each entry so you can lock in your plans with zero guesswork.

‘Upload’ (2020–2025)

The final season of ‘Upload’ lands on August 25 on Prime Video. Created by Greg Daniels, the series follows Nathan Brown and Nora Antony through the digital afterlife of Lakeview, with Robbie Amell as Nathan, Andy Allo as Nora, Allegra Edwards as Ingrid Kannerman, Kevin Bigley as Luke, Zainab Johnson as Aleesha, and Owen Daniels as A. I. Guy. The story explores corporate control, class divides, and the practical headaches of living on servers after death while friends and loved ones try to connect from the real world.

This season closes the arc that began with Nathan’s untimely death and upload, pushing into questions around sentient artificial intelligence and the rights of the living and the digitized. The series holds an 87 percent critics score and a 79 percent audience score and returns with new episodes on August 25 on Prime Video, bringing the Lakeview journey to its endpoint.

‘The Toxic Avenger’ (2025)

‘The Toxic Avenger’ hits theaters on August 29 and reimagines the 1984 cult classic with writer director Macon Blair at the helm. Peter Dinklage plays janitor Winston Gooze who transforms into the Toxic Avenger after a catastrophic accident, with Jacob Tremblay as Wade Gooze, Taylour Paige as J. J. Doherty, Kevin Bacon as Bob Garbinger, Elijah Wood as Fritz Garbinger, Sarah Niles as Mayor Togar, and suit performance by Luisa Guerreiro. The film keeps the splatter comedy and vigilante spirit while updating the world around its mop wielding hero.

The plot follows Toxie as he takes on a corrupt enterprise and its violent enforcers while trying to protect his son and keep a handle on his own mutation. The production comes through Legendary with the original Troma creators Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz credited on the project, and audiences can catch it in theaters on August 29.

‘Run’ (2025)

‘Run’ opens in theaters on August 29 with a survival story that collides with a full scale alien attack. After Melissa leaves her fiancé at the altar and heads to a remote cabin with friends, the group finds a body in the woods as national broadcasts report an invasion, which sparks a fight to stay alive. The film stars Annie Ilonzeh as Melissa with Marques Houston, Erica Mena, Drew Sidora, Claudia Jordan, Ken Lawson, and Obba Babatundé rounding out the cast.

Chris Stokes directs and the screenplay is credited to Chris Stokes with contributions from Marques Houston. The film threads a cabin in the woods mystery with an extraterrestrial threat that forces the characters to question every plan and every alliance, and the feature arrives in theaters on August 29.

‘Somnium’ (2025)

‘Somnium’ reaches theaters on August 28 with a psychological science fiction tale set inside an experimental sleep clinic. The story centers on Gemma, a new overnight hire whose shifts begin to blur the line between dreams and waking life as the program pushes beyond anything she expects. The film is written and directed by Racheal Cain and builds its tension around isolation, memory, and the danger of engineered dreams that refuse to end.

Chloë Levine leads as Gemma with Grace Van Dien, Johnathon Schaech, Peter Vack, Will Peltz, and Draya Michele in key roles. The feature runs as a tight genre piece that plays with hallucination and paranoia while its clinic setting slowly reveals the true cost of making dreams real, and it arrives in theaters on August 28.

Tell us which one you are watching first this week in the comments so everyone can trade recommendations.