As the calendar turns to November, many streaming services will gear their programming to reflect the holidays. However, there will still be other genres readily available. Tubi, for example, still has a great selection of sci-fi films. As a FAST service, Tubi customers can access the service for free and watch programs with ads.
Sci-fi fans need to watch these three films in November: a reboot of a storied franchise from the 1960s and 1970s, an iconic horror film from John Carpenter, and a sequel to Guillermo del Toro’s monster movie.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes remake in 2001 was a commercial hit, but 20th Century Fox decided to pass on a sequel due to the negative reviews and confusing ending. Burton also said he would rather “jump out of the window” than direct a sequel. A decade later, the studio rebooted the franchise with Rise of the Planet of the Apes, a far superior film to the 2001 adaptation.
In San Francisco, scientist Will Rodman (James Franco) is experimenting with drugs on apes in hopes that they will cure his father’s (John Lithgow) Alzheimer’s disease. Will takes in an infant ape named Caesar (Andy Serkis), who grows into an intelligent creature after being exposed to the drugs. After a public confrontation ends badly, Caesar is sent to live in captivity, where he leads an uprising against the humans. The gamble to reboot the franchise paid off as Rise spawned three sequels, including 2024’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
Stream Rise of the Planet of the Apes on Tubi.
The Thing (1982)
Tubi loves Carpenter. As one of the most influential horror and sci-directors, can you blame Tubi for their admiration toward Carpenter? After watching 1981’s Escape from New York on Tubi, stick with Carpenter and head to the next film in his filmography, The Thing. At an Antarctica research station, a group of scientists comes into contact with a mysterious sled dog controlled by a strange humanoid organism that can shapeshift into the bodies of its hosts.
The human residents at the station include pilot R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell), biologist Blair (Wilford Brimley), and mechanic Childs (Keith David). The scientists kill the dog after it attacks, but the mysterious creature transfers to another host. The organism continues assimilating within the camp, wreaking havoc on its members. 40 years later, The Thing is considered a masterpiece, with visuals and special effects ahead of its time.
Stream The Thing on Tubi.
Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018)
The Pacific Rim franchise boils down to this idea: What if humans could fight Godzilla with giant robots? After del Toro’s Pacific Rim in 2013, Steven S. DeKnight helmed the 2018 sequel, Pacific Rim: Uprising. Set 10 years after the climactic battle in the first film, Jake Pentecost (John Boyega) — son of Stacker Pentecost (Idris Elba) – is failing to live up to his father’s legacy. Instead of piloting Jaegers, Jake steals their parts and sells them on the black market.
After he’s caught and threatened with a prison sentence, Jake agrees to train future Jaeger pilots. Yet, rogue Jaegers threaten to disrupt the peace by unleashing the Kaiju (giant sea monsters) back into the world. Left with no choice, Jake leads a new team of pilots to defeat the stronger, deadlier Kaiju. Fans of the original will appreciate that Uprising doubles down on the fight scenes.
Stream Pacific Rim: Uprising on Tubi.
