The 7 best new sci-fi shows of 2025 – no.5 went under the radar
Nothing but brand new sci-fi shows to sink your teeth into
While the last few years have been a bumper success for sci-fi – both in movie and show formats – a large portion of the most popular are returning series.
There's always room for new additions, of course, which is why this best sci-fi shows of 2025 only focuses on brand new releases, with any movies sidelined from this list.
1. The Eternaut
Based on a graphic novel by Héctor Germán Oesterheld which dates all the way back to the late 1950s, The Eternaut – which is a Spanish language original series from Netflix – has great source material.
This alien invasion series is built around themes of community and survival, not jumping in too sharply from the off. What begins with toxic snow that the community has to avoid, progresses into the discovery of a bug-like alien race that they have to avoid.
2. Murderbot
Based on a series of novel – The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells – the Apple TV show, Murderbot, is about a security robot that hacks its own system to become sentient.
While that might sound serious, the show's sarcastic, tongue-sharp script is often hilarious, bringing sci-fi themes head to head with comedy, while navigating a background underlying theme of capitalist greed.
3. Alien Earth
An FX original available on Disney+/Hulu, the first Alien series ever picks up in a similar vein to the movie franchise – widely regarded as the ultimate in cinematic sci-fi horror – bridging the timeline gap ahead of Prometheus. But if you're an Alien newbie then that won't matter.
Set in 2120, Alien: Earth follows a group who are exploring a research spaceship that contains Xenomorph aliens which are then able to get back to the home planet. The series' protagonist is a hybrid, Wendy, representative of the show's key premise – humanity's exploration for immortality through cyborgs and synthetics. A premise that the aliens firmly threaten.
4. Pluribus
Apple TV's most-watched show of the year is also one of the best sci-fi shows ever. Pluribus was created by Vince Gilligan, of Breaking Bad fame. But while the show is also set in Albuquerque, NM, its concept is entirely separate.
Carol Sturka, a fantasy author, is one of a small group of humans who proves immune to an alien takeover, which transforms humanity into a singular hive mind. Per the show's title – Latin meaning "from many" – it's about the conflict of whether this new dystopia is better or worse than the world before.
5. Cassandra
This is one that will have gone under the radar for many, but was a critics' favourite – with a full 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes. It's a German series, which might explain its limited success in the wider world.
As you can see from the trailer, though, the concept is sci-fi brilliance. Cassandra is about a family who move into a 'smart home', whose AI housekeeper, the titular character, becomes increasingly sinister to the home's new occupants.
There are clear echoes of themes from sci-fi classics, such as 2001 and 1984, in this thriller – because it touches upon could-be-reality so well. Its retro aesthetic, given the 1970s home in which the series is set, only adds to its unnerving appeal.
6. IT: Welcome To Derry
Stephen King's original IT book – which spawned a 1990s two-part classic TV show – might be closer to supernatural horror than sci-fi. But there are certainly genre overlaps, given Pennywise's – the creepy clown, who lives in the sewers – interdimensional origins.
This HBO series is set in the decades leading up to the first movie – released in 2017, but set in the 1980s – acting as a prequel that further explores the lore of Maine and why this evil cosmic force is present there.
7. The War Between Land And Sea
- Streaming now on BBC iPlayer (Disney+ in 2026 for USA)
This one's for Dr Who fans, which explains why the spin-off series is available first on the BBC in the UK – it'll be coming to other territories, such as the USA, via Disney+ in 2026.
The show is about humanity's clash with aquatic beings, which emerge and demand planet Earth be returned to them. It might look like a British version of Avatar, but with firm links to Dr Who lore, it carves its own path.
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