5 Best Movies About AI, Ranked

Like it or not, artificial intelligence has played a major part in shaping 2025. Whether you’re excited that AI can complete tasks you never want to do again or you’re annoyed that AI may be the reason your next smartphone costs more, its influence on tech this year is hard to miss. For better or for worse, AI is likely here to stay, so we devised a list of some of the best movies that have their own perspectives on the subject.

For this list, we made sure that each film holds high esteem from critics and audiences alike. Along with some of these movies earning notable nominations and awards, we made sure each film on this list has a high audience and critic score over on Rotten Tomatoes. The flicks in the list below will have you meeting with creepy AI dolls, hunting for androids, watching peculiar relationships with AI unfold, and even stopping the world from nuclear destruction.

We did our best to let you know where each of these movies are streaming, but be aware that a number of them are currently only available to rent. Once you’re done checking out this selection of films, you can also view our choices for the best sci-fi movies of 2025, to see how our list compares to your own.

If the horror-franchise “Child’s Play” is what happens when a man’s consciousness is transferred to a doll, then 2023’s M3GAN by director Gerard Johnstone is what happens when something similar happens with artificial intelligence. We raved about this film’s Rotten Tomatoes score back in 2023, and at one point we even considered it one of the best films of 2023. This horror-mystery-thriller is sure to satiate the appetite of anyone looking for one of the best flicks involving AI.

“M3GAN” follows the story of an eponymous doll powered by AI that’s been designed by Gemma (Allison Williams), an engineer for a toy company. After becoming the caretaker for her 8-year-old niece, Cady (Violet McGraw), Gemma gifts the girl M3GAN after becoming too preoccupied with her work. However, this decision only causes further complications. Along with Williams and McGraw, the film also features Ronny Chieng, Brian Jordan Alvarez, and Jen Van Epps.

Currently, you can check out “M3GAN” streaming on Peacock, though it’s also available to rent through Amazon Video and Apple TV. Additionally, the film holds a 93% Tomatometer score and a 78% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes. In a 2023 review for Spin, critic Nicholas Bell states, “M3GAN may not dream of electric sheep, but she’s got some killer dance moves and a CPU as delightfully wicked as any femme fatale.” If you find yourself a fan of the first film, it’s worth noting that the 2025 sequel, “M3GAN 2.0” holds an 81% Popcornmeter score, though it also holds a 57% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes.

With Open AI’s GPT-4.5 having passed a Turing Test according to researchers, it seemed appropriate to include a movie that performs a few tests of its own. If you’re not familiar, the Turing Test is named after computer scientist Alan Turing, and it’s a way of determining whether a computer can “think” similarly to a human being might, based on how well a person can distinguish its responses. Within director Alex Garland’s 2015 film “Ex Machina,” this concept is taken to the next level.

Distributed by A24 — the same company responsible for producing and distributing big-name movies such as 2019’s “Uncut Gems,” 2022’s “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” and soon a movie about a certain beloved celebrity chef – “Ex Machina” stars Domhnall Gleeson as Caleb Smith, a young programmer who is chosen to spend a week at the CEO of his company’s residence to test a new robot named Ava (Alicia Vikander). However, things quickly take a turn as he discovers the AI is far more capable than it lets on. Along with Vikander and Gleeson, “Ex Machina” also stars Oscar Isaac, Sonoya Mizuno, and Claire Selby.

“Ex Machina” currently holds a 92% Tomatometer score and a 86% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes. Placing it eighth in its own list of the best movies of the 2010’s, CNET’s Jennifer Bisset states, “The tense, thoughtful sci-fi set in a remote cutting-edge cabin raises big questions and upgraded Alicia Vikander to even greater status.” The film is free to stream with a Fandango at Home account, or it can also be rented from Amazon Video or Apple TV.

It would be a shame not to include Spike Jonze’s 2014 film “Her” on this list. After all, the director is no stranger to tech, as evidenced by his 5-minute commercial for the Apple AirPods 4 starring Pedro Pascal, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also raved about the film “Her” in 2024. At the same time, however, this film may also be indirectly responsible for getting Altman into some hot water with actress Scarlett Johansson for potentially appropriating her voice. Given that, there’s more than a couple of reasons this film is worth a watch if you have an interest in sci-fi films or artificial intelligence.

“Her” stars Joaquin Phoenix as Theodore Twombly, a writer who finds himself heartbroken due to his marriage ending. It’s then he finds himself developing a relationship with Samantha (Johansson), an operating system brimming with personality. Everything starts off innocently enough between the two, but things grow more complicated as the relationship blossoms into something more. Along with Phoenix and Johansson, “Her” also stars Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, and Chris Pratt.

Nominated for 187 awards and securing 83 wins, Jonze secured the Oscar for Best Writing, Original Screenplay and the film also received the Best Motion Picture of the Year nomination. On Rotten Tomatoes, “Her” holds a 95% Tomatometer score and an 82% Popcornmeter score. In a review for ScreenAnarchy, critic Dustin Chang states, “With ‘Her,’ Jonze also proves himself to be a very acute observer of the hypersensitive generation that was raised on the computer.” As of this writing, the film is available to rent on Amazon Video and Apple TV.

Despite “The Terminator” being one of those rare instances where folks find the sequel to be a better film — and many would certainly argue that “Terminator 2: Judgement Day” is better than the first — the original still holds up, and it feels just a bit more appropriate for this list. Though, if you’re one that feels like artificial intelligence is rising in a world where everything is collapsing, this movie may be too on the nose. Directed by sci-fi legend James Cameron — who actually worked on a Kurt Russell flick prior to filming this — “The Terminator” likely isn’t going to have you cheering for technology.

If you’re not familiar, “The Terminator” follows the story of Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), a woman who unknowingly can help save the future from Skynet — an AI system that has the potential to bring about a nuclear apocalypse. To make things even more complicated, Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) is sent from the year 2029 to protect her from a cyborg that will do anything to stop her from saving humanity: The Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger).

The film currently holds a 90% Tomatometer score and an 89% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes. In a 2024 review celebrating “The Terminator’s” 40th anniversary, critic Deborah Ross writes for The Spectator, “It’s engrossing, suspenseful, has a personality all of its own, and absolutely stands the test of time.” At the time of this writing, the film is streaming on Netflix and MGM+, though it is also available to rent through Amazon Video and Apple TV.

Though it would have been just as easy to put the original 1982 “Blade Runner,” directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford, in this spot, we just couldn’t help ourselves in picking the modern sequel instead. Directed by Denis Villeneuve — who is hopefully delivering us a third “Dune” movie – you don’t necessarily have to see the original to enjoy “Blade Runner 2049,” but considering it’s also an all-time classic, it certainly isn’t going to hurt.

Taking place 30 years after Scott’s original film, “Blade Runner 2049” follows Officer K (Ryan Gosling), a young Blade Runner — essentially a futuristic bounty hunter that hunts androids — working with the Los Angeles Police Department, discovers a secret that can potentially disrupt all of society. It’s this secret that has Officer K go on a manhunt for Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former Blade Runner that has been missing for over three decades. Along with Ford and Gosling, the film stars Dave Bautista, Ana de Armas, and Robin Wright.

With 164 award nominations and 100 wins, including Cinematographer Roger Deakins securing a 2018 Oscar for Best Achievement in Cinematography, the film currently holds an 88% Tomatometer score and an 88% Popcornmeter score on Rotten Tomatoes. In a 2017 review for Smash Cut, critic Karl Delossantos says, “To call ‘Blade Runner 2049’ a satisfying experience would be an understatement. It’s the reason we go to movies, to feel something.” Unfortunately, you’ll only be able to rent this one through Amazon Video or Apple TV, but it’s definitely worth checking out.