You probably equate Peacock to some of its most notable original shows like Dr. Death, Poker Face, and The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Or maybe you know of Peacock for the access it offers to a library of NBC titles, since the streaming service is owned by NBC. But Peacock offers access to an expansive library of movies as well, including favorites from decades past.
They are available in every genre you can think of, but when it comes to sci-fi, there are three sci-fi movies on Peacock you need to watch in August. The selection of movies is always changing, so if you want to enjoy these sci-fi gems for the first time or again, queue them up before the summer is over, just in case.
Timecop (1994)
Widely considered to be one of Jean-Claude Van Damme’s best movies, and also one of his highest-grossing films, Timecop is a sci-fi action movie about Max Walker (Van Damme), a police officer in present day 1994. He travels in time to fight crime thanks to future technology in the only way Van Damme knows how: ferociously, and with tremendous skill. His goal: to take down Senator Aaron McComb (Ron Silver), a corrupt politician. Those who exist in 1994 know that time travel arrives a decade later, but they themselves can’t travel forward. Max has become a federal agent in 2004, and while those from the new century can, and are trying to, travel back to alter history, it’s his job to stop them.
Despite receiving mixed reviews and being called a lesser imitation of The Terminator, Van Damme was praised for his acting in Timecop and the movie for its action sequences. A perfect watch for the summer, Empire Magazine’s William Thomas calls Timecop a “brainless romp” while also describing the campy film as a “real blast.”
Stream Timecop on Peacock.
The Endless (2017)
A sci-fi horror movie, The Endless is about two brothers who, after receiving a video cassette from Camp Arcadia, decide to return to a cult they were once part of as kids. While Aaron (Aaron Moorhead) remembers the camp as a friendly commune, Justin’s (Justin Benson) recollections are much different: He believes it was a UFO death cult. What’s more, the talk of ascension in the tape leaves Justin fearful that a mass suicide might be in the works. Unhappy with their own lives anyway, the two decide to pay a visit and see what the commune is like today. But when they arrive, things get increasingly strange.
The Endless has been described as bizarre, but critics find it deeply compelling. Brent McKnight from The Last Thing I See describes The Endless as “a puzzle to unravel, a maze to solve,” and says “it presents a smart, satisfying mind-bender of a sci-fi/horror hybrid.” If you’re familiar with the Benson-Moorhead duo, known for the found footage horror movie V/H/S: Viral and more recently for directing several episodes of the second season of Loki, you’ll recognize their signature style.
Stream The Endless on Peacock.
If You Were the Last (2023)
Bored of the usual sci-fi movies? If You Were the Last combines sci-fi with romantic comedy. The film is set in space where two astronauts — Adam (Anthony Mackie) and Jane (Zoë Chao) — are on a multiyear mission. While stuck in space with one another, the two strike a bond that slowly morphs into a romantic connection. Thanks to the chemistry between Mackie and Chao, the story is believable and captivating as you watch both desperation and attraction kick in through unimaginable circumstances.
Keep If You Were the Last in your back pocket as a great compromise sci-fi movie when you might want something cerebral and scary but your partner prefers a rom-com. Lex Briscuso from Inverse says the “sincerity and heart” of the movie prove that it is “one of the greatest in the overarching canon of emotionally-driven science fiction.”
Stream If You Were the Last on Peacock.
