10 Best Sci-Fi Movie Prequels Of All Time, Ranked

As far as cinematic stories go, prequels are a tricky proposition, having to create an engaging narrative even though savvy audiences know where it's going. Having said that, there are plenty of fan-favorite prequel movies, including within the science fiction genre, proving the narrative approach can work admirably. Many big franchises have received their own prequel, expanding out the backstory of established properties in exciting and rewarding ways. In recent years, a number of sci-fi franchises have taken the soft reboot approach, developing movies that function as both loose prequels and quiet reintroductions of beloved stories.

We're rounding up the greatest science fiction prequels to grace the silver screen. In some cases, they even became the best installments of their respective franchises. The movies included here go from horror to full-blown space opera, as sci-fi prequels continue to underscore how malleable the genre truly is. Like any good prequel, regardless of genre, these movies function perfectly fine on their own and as an extension to a popular film. 

Solidly adding to the preceding films' mythos, these are the 10 best sci-fi movie prequels of all time, ranked.

The history behind the dystopian future detailed in "The Hunger Games" stands revealed in the 2023 prequel "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes." Set decades before the events of the main series, the movie has a young Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) participate in the 10th annual Hunger Games to restore his family's fortunes. Coriolanus serves as a mentor to Lucy Gray (Rachel Zegler), a defiant young musician who is a tribute within the lethal competition. However, Coriolanus' obsession with obtaining power and prestige places the two at odds with one another, even after they both survive the games.

"The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" is a good, if overstuffed, prequel to the preceding movies. Seeing Blyth's Coriolanus grow into the villain that we know from Donald Sutherland's previous performance makes for an interesting central character arc. This is matched by a fiery turn from Zegler, serving as an idealistic counterpoint to Coriolanus even as they work together. Newcomers should check out the main story first, but "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" provides a solid revisit to the young adult dystopia.

Whereas the 2014 "Godzilla," which launched the interconnected MonsterVerse, was set in the present day, 2017's "Kong: Skull Island" turned back the clock to the 1970s. In the final days of the American involvement in the Vietnam War, Bill Randa (John Goodman), the head of the clandestine government agency Monarch, leads an expedition to Skull Island. Accompanied by an air cavalry unit, Randa's surveying mission is disrupted by the sudden and violent appearance of Kong, a towering gorilla. Mercenary James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston) leads the survivors to the coast to escape while vengeful American military officer Preston Packard (Samuel L. Jackson) vows to kill the beast.

"Kong: Skull Island" is a vital narrative in setting up "Godzilla" and the MonsterVerse, especially the idea that its Titans come from Hollow Earth in the planet's core. But beyond its mythos-building elements, the movie is a stylish period piece that offers its own twist on the familiar King Kong story. Compared to other MonsterVerse stories, "Skull Island" veers a bit more overtly into horror as its human characters are picked off one-by-one by creatures in this deadly landscape. Seamlessly integrating its eponymous Titan into the MonsterVerse and providing a fun-filled ride along the way, "Kong: Skull Island" is a freewheeling high adventure flick.

After helming 1979's "Alien," filmmaker Ridley Scott returned to the sci-fi horror world he helped create with the 2012 prequel "Prometheus." Set 29 years before the events of the 1979 film, the movie revolves around an expedition to investigate an ancient alien civilization linked to the creation of humanity. Joined by corporate android David (Michael Fassbender), archaeologists Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) explore a faraway moon. As the team encounters deadly extraterrestrial life in the civilization's ruins, they also realize that David is not as friendly a companion as he initially appears.

Over a decade since its release, "Prometheus" still stands as one of the boldest science fiction movies in recent memory. The movie makes even the most stalwart "Alien" rethink about the implications of the franchise's wider narrative, more than just the origins of the Xenomorphs. The scares are effective, particularly a twisted C-section sequence as the movie's centerpiece, while Rapace and Fassbender both are firing on all cylinders. "Prometheus" is absolutely crucial to Ridley Scott's "Alien" franchise, providing the clearest articulation of its nihilistic themes.

One surprisingly prolific sci-fi horror series over the past several years is "A Quiet Place," which started in 2018. The franchise's third installment, "A Quiet Place: Day One," is a prequel to the entire story, as New York City is invaded by alien monsters sensitive to sound. Terminally ill cancer patient Sam (Lupita Nyong'o) and law student Eric (Joseph Quinn) find themselves caught in the midst of the invaders' attack. As the duo realize the nature of the otherworldly threat stalking the city's streets, they search for a way for Eric to escape safely.

"A Quiet Place: Day One" is the best movie in the series, going deeper with its characters while still providing the monstrous scares. The emotional richness and nuance that Nyong'o brings to her dying character in the midst of the end of the world elevates the film above its predecessors. At the same time, the sci-fi mayhem is still on full display, including a memorable opening onslaught kicking the story into high gear. At once the most bombastic and intimate entry in the franchise, "A Quiet Place: Day One" expands what the series can be.

Fans finally got a good "Star Wars" prequel with "Rogue One," the second movie in the franchise released after Disney acquired Lucasfilm. Set directly before the events leading into "A New Hope," the 2016 film follows Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), whose father Galen (Mads Mikkelsen) was forcibly recruited by the Galactic Empire. Brought into the Rebel Alliance, Jyn teams up with intelligence operative Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) to locate Galen, who is in the final stages of developing the Death Star. This leads to a desperate mission to obtain the superweapon's schematics from a top-secret Imperial station culminating in a fierce skirmish against an overwhelming Imperial force.

"Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" is a fantastic expansion of that galaxy far, far away, finally revealing the fateful battle that yielded the Death Star plans. The final battle, as Rebel Alliance and Galactic Empire clash across and over the beach planet of Scarif, are among the most beautifully rendered action set pieces in the franchise. Beyond the movie itself, the story spawned the television series "Andor," set even earlier in the timeline and exploring the "Rogue One" backstory further. Still the best movie in Lucasfilm's Disney era, "Rogue One" organically delves into an untapped moment in the franchise's history.

A game that stands as both a prequel and soft reboot all at once, 2018's "Bumblebee" is set in 1987, two decades before the first live-action "Transformers" movie. As the Autobots lose the war for Cybertron against the Decepticons, Bumblebee (Dylan O'Brien) is sent to scout Earth as a possible evacuation point. Disguising himself as a Volkswagen Beetle, Bumblebee befriends California teenager Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld) when she acquires him as her first car. The duo's safety is threatened by the government hunting for Bumblebee while the Decepticons arrive on Earth after detecting the Autobot's presence on the planet.

"Bumblebee" gives the "Transformers" franchise a robotic beating heart in direct contrast to the loud, relatively soulless Michael Bay movies. Director Travis Knight frames his tale of sci-fi robots from across the cosmos within a coming-of-age narrative led by an engaging Steinfeld. This, coupled with the '80s nostalgia that the Transformers sprung from, right down to the classic designs, makes this the most sumptuous installment in the series yet. Bringing a tightened focus and stronger emphasis on sentimentality, "Bumblebee" demonstrates what's possible for the franchise in live-action.

Another movie that could qualify as a soft reboot or prequel is 2011's "Rise of the Planet of the Apes." The movie posits that apes grew super-intelligent from clinical trials involving a radical new drug developed in an effort to cure Alzheimer's disease. Seek of being cruelly mistreated while in captivity, chimpanzee Caesar (Andy Serkis) leads his fellow heightened intelligence apes to escape. This occurs as the latest experimental drugs are revealed to be lethal to humans and highly contagious, effectively tying the apes' rise with humanity's downfall.

Trying to decipher the timeline of the "Planet of the Apes" franchise is a headache, so try to approach "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" as a fresh jumping-on point. As the title suggests, the movie offers an alternate explanation on how apes supplanted humanity as the dominant force on Earth. At the same time, there are plenty of Easter eggs and allusions nodding to the classic movie series that started in 1968. Providing a rebirth for the iconic sci-fi franchise, "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" centers its narrative on Caesar in his own self-empowerment arc.

When "Mad Max: Fury Road" completely revitalized filmmaker George Miller's post-apocalyptic epic in 2015, it introduced the hardened road warrior Furiosa, who reluctantly allied herself with Max Rockatansky. The backstory of the breakout character is fully unveiled in the 2024 prequel "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga," with Anya Taylor-Joy playing a younger version of the titular protagonist. Adopted by the roving warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) after he tortures her mother to death, Furiosa plots her revenge as she grows up. However, Dementus proves wilier than Furiosa anticipated, even as her patient vendetta crescendoes while she rises through the ranks of the wasteland communities.

With "Furiosa," George Miller is making a modern myth, telling a story that spans over a decade of the protagonist's hardscrabble life. But beyond just focusing on Furiosa, the movie provides the most widespread world-building of the franchise's post-apocalyptic setting than ever before. The story captures the complicated alliances and rival factions throughout the wasteland, even as it sets them ablaze with fury and blood. "Furiosa" stands as George Miller's magnum opus, not just a prequel to "Fury Road," but the most grandiose entry in the iconic series.

As far as superhero properties go, the X-Men are one of the most overtly rooted in science fiction, with the Children of the Atom's powers linked to their genetics. This distinction is illustrated beautifully in the period piece prequel to the Fox movie series "X-Men: First Class," directed and co-written by Matthew Vaughn. The movie features the first meeting of Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender), who are recruited to defuse the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. The duo enlist a group of young mutants, honing their unique powers to take on the villainous Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) and his own formidable cadre of mutants.

Compared to the more self-serious original trilogy directed by Bryan Singer, "X-Men: First Class" brings a more unabashed sense of fun to the premise, embracing the occasional campiness of it all. At the same time, Vaughn and the creative team are crafting an emotional tale of friendships from conflicting viewpoints and damaged characters overcoming their issues together. This provides a strong grounding to the super-powered spectacle, especially its showstopper climax in Cuba culminating in Magneto's confrontation with Shaw. One of the best X-Men movies to date, "X-Men: First Class" takes advantage of its '60s setting with groovy enthusiasm and a stellar cast.

The "Predator" series heads back in time with "Prey," winding the clock back to North America in the early 18th century. The prequel centers on Naru (Amber Midthunder), a young Comanche woman who longs to become a hunter for her tribe. Naru's life is derailed forever when a Predator begins stalking the warriors in her community after arriving on Earth. Physically and technologically outmatched, Naru has to use her wits to survive the harrowing battle against the interstellar hunter.

"Prey is the best reviewed "Predator" movie to date and for good reason, because it tells the most entertaining and beautifully staged story since the 1987 original film. The untamed North American wilderness serves as a fresh backdrop for the series, bringing a real grit to match its stripped-down conflict. It's no wonder that filmmaker Dan Trachtenberg has been given the keys to the franchise ever since helming the 2022 movie, because he brings a clear vision to the series. Anchored by a star-making performance from Midthunder, "Prey" is the innovative take the franchise has needed for decades, truly giving it its second wind.