Overall, 2025 was a good year for genre fans. While TV had a score of great shows, movie theaters packed folks in, too. There was a fantastic revival of the Predator franchise, the acclaimed Mickey 17 and Bugonia and Superman took DC to new heights.
However, there were also a lot of genre films that were huge letdowns. It wasn’t that they were all bad (although a few of them most certainly were), but rather how they failed to live up to their potential. Some were successful at the box office, even as critics disliked them and fans failed to connect with them. Here are 15 of the most disappointing sci-fi/fantasy movies of 2025, which show that not everything this year was stellar for genre fans.
1. War of the Worlds
When it was announced there’d be a new take on H.G. Wells’ science-fiction landmark, it was only natural to assume it’d be at least watchable. In a way, it was…not unlike how a train crashing into a fuel dump is watchable. Easily the worst-reviewed movie of 2025, this was less a film than a feature-length Amazon ad, complete with a gift card being a plot point.
Having the whole thing be told via video screens was already a bad idea. Toss in the laughably horrible CGI, even worse acting and the ludicrous hacker plot line, and this ended up being the laugh riot of the year. Ice Cube’s performance has already created a wave of memes, and it’s still hard to believe this was an actual movie rather than a bizarre fever dream.
2. M3GAN 2.0
Rarely has a sequel completely missed what made the original work so well. The first M3GAN movie was a sensation as a sci-fi/horror hybrid with the freakiest killer doll since Chucky. Expectations were high for the follow-up, only for it to feel like a completely different movie. It was more like a superhero adventure with M3GAN suddenly the hero, indulging in one-liners and a dance scene only because the first one had become a meme.
The movie disappointed the audience and became a surprise box office flop. Jason Blum himself admitted they made the mistake in thinking the audience would accept such a change in direction and a bad release date. Rather than continuing a great franchise, this outing may have killed it.
3. Snow White
It’s not like expectations were high for the latest Disney live-action remake of an animated classic. Yet even by the low bar already set, the new Snow White was a disaster on every level. The good news is that Rachel Zegler did carry her role with a wonderful singing voice. That’s where the good ends. Gal Gadot was completely miscast as the Evil Queen and the CGI Dwarves were nothing but nightmare fuel.
The plot made bizarre alterations to the original film, the attempts to “modernize” it only exposing what a cash grab it was. Its box office failure was no shock and it was stunning how Disney could butcher the legacy of its first animated feature in this fashion.
4. Lilo & Stitch
After the failure of Snow White, it looked like we might see the end of the Disney live-action remakes of animated classics train. Then Lilo & Stitch became a big hit to start it up again. It’s surprising, given that many who saw the remake will acknowledge it was a big comedown from the 2002 gem. Stitch himself looked terrific, yet the fun vibe of the original movie wasn’t captured as well in live-action.
That’s without further plot changes, including getting rid of a top villain. Biggest of all is a baffling change in the climax, ruining a key message of the entire story. While it was successful, the film is another reason why these live-action remakes are constantly underwhelming.
5. How to Train Your Dragon
Whatever the many flaws in the Disney live-action remakes, they at least try to change things from the animated originals. It doesn’t always work, yet the filmmakers attempt to differentiate the remake from the original. That’s why DreamWorks’ adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon was a letdown, as it took “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” to the extreme.
The movie is almost literally word-for-word and shot-by-shot exactly like the 2010 film, down to poses and angles. Having it be live actors robs it of much of the magic, with Toothless looking worse than the animated version. The cast wasn’t bad (Nico Parker was a highlight), yet it came off completely unnecessary and shows that being so faithful can be as much a bad move as changing the original film too much.
6. The Electric State
There’s a good reason the Russo Brothers are heading back to Marvel, as their latest big-budget Netflix sci-fi epic was a total mess. What’s worse is that it was based on a graphic novel seemingly perfect for adapting, only for the Russos to make every wrong choice possible in story beats and alter things into a bad comedy.
Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt were terribly cast, the latter doing yet another spin on Star-Lord while Brown showed she was better suited on Stranger Things. For such a monstrous budget, the CGI was laughably bad and matched by a horrible script. Even by Netflix standards, this was a waste of cash and another sign the Russos really can’t work magic outside the Marvel system.
7. Star Trek: Section 31
Originally, Section 31 was planned to be a Star Trek series. It’s obvious why they decided to just make it a movie. Somehow, a film starring Oscar-winning action icon Michelle Yeoh came off as a boring slog. Yeoh was doing her best, but even her talents couldn’t overcome a terrible script cramming in way too many plots and some of the worst characters in Trek history (a small alien controlling a Vulcan with an Irish accent?)
Attempting to explore the backstory of Emperor Georgiou came to nothing, with brief flashbacks further muddying the plot. The action was atrocious, the direction awful and it came off as the pilot for a show that was deservedly ignored. It has made history as easily the worst Star Trek film ever, a dubious honor to say the least.
8. The Running Man
On paper, this should have worked. Edgar Wright, a man known for his amazing direction of wild action pieces, doing a far more faithful adaptation of Stephen King’s landmark novel. Rather than the cheesy 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, this film had Glen Powell as the man trying to stay alive while hunted by the world to save his family. How could this fail?
For a start, those action scenes were surprisingly bland for Wright, lacking the energy needed for the tale. The overlong length made it feel slower and badly paced, and attempting to turn Powell’s character into a heroic leader went against the novel. Sometimes being more faithful doesn’t always make the remake better after all.
9. Tron: Ares
After fifteen years, fans of the cult sci-fi movie series got a new installment…and it was nowhere worth the wait. Jettisoning the characters and plot of Tron: Legacy was a bad first step. The baffling decision to cast Jared Leto as the heroic lead was far worse. Leto was ill-suited for the part, far too somber and lacking the energy needed to keep this franchise going.
Mixing the real world with the computer world wasted a very cool concept on some lackluster action scenes. Greta Lee was good, but even Jeff Bridges’ cameo couldn’t save this film. It’s a shame one of the most groundbreaking movies ever made ended its franchise hopes with this whimper.
10. Wicked: For Good
It’s not that Wicked: For Good was bad. It simply paled in comparison to the first entry. That should be no surprise, as fans of the musical have long noted that the second act is a comedown from the first. The cast was still game, only for this entry to feel more dragged out, especially with the added songs.
There were some terrific performances, such as “No Good Deed” and the two leads were as captivating as before. However, the callbacks to the first movie didn’t work with the long break between films, and so the conclusion felt unearned. Perhaps it would have been better to make one overlong film than try to break a great work into two halves.
11. The Old Guard 2
In 2020, The Old Guard was a major hit on Netflix. The adaptation of the comic book about a pack of immortal soldiers was a showcase for Charlize Theron’s action prowess and left the door open for a follow-up. Somehow, it took five years for it to arrive and quickly be seen as lacking compared to the first entry. Opening with Theron’s character stripped of her immortality robbed it of some special aura.
The other characters were virtually ignored as more than supporting players, and the would-be romance between Theron and an evil Immortal didn’t quite work. Neither did Uma Thurman as a villainess. It ended on a huge cliffhanger that may never be resolved, as this tale of immortal warriors may not have much fight left for a franchise.
12. Captain America: Brave New World
Marvel had a decent year in 2025 with Thunderbolts*, Fantastic Four: First Steps and Daredevil: Born Again. Too bad the kick-off was one of the worst MCU entries ever. The first film starring Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson as Captain America was planned as a thriller with top-tier action, but was undermined by numerous reshoots and dropped plot lines.
Harrison Ford’s casting as President Ross was too distracting, the action didn’t connect and the plot was too convoluted, with a lame villain in the Leader. It was a sad fall for the once-mighty Marvel brand, and while they still have life, Mackie and Sam both deserved far better than this.
13. Him
It was inevitable that Jordan Peele would hit a speed bump in his road of horror movie success. It happened while producing this promising supernatural horror movie that failed to deliver. The concept was sound as a young quarterback (Tyriq Withers) tries to emulate his idol (Marlon Wayans), only to be drawn into a bizarre ritual.
The cast won wide praise but was underwhelmed by a bad script that failed to deliver either the scares or the social satire the story promised. The muddled finale didn’t help, with many believing the alternate ending was far superior. Given the pedigree of Peele and the rest involved, this football tale fumbled at the goal line.
14. Until Dawn
We’re living in a golden age of good video game adaptations, yet there are still duds around. The biggest in 2025 was Until Dawn, an attempt to capture the games where a group of people are in a time loop, helplessly being murdered over and over until they can find a way to stop it. It’s a (literal) killer premise that the film falters in making work.
Fans of the game weren’t happy with the changes made, so it barely seemed connected at all. The jump scares were lame and the characters weren’t as compelling as the game versions either. It was far from the worst horror movie of 2025, but compared to what it could have been, most preferred the game.
15. Jurassic World Rebirth
Some aspects of the latest entry in the iconic franchise were good. It had a nice return to form with scientists on an island of deadly dinos and Scarlett Johansson was quite engaging as the lead. But even more than some past JP entries, there was bad writing, paper-thin characters and too much emphasis on a family drama rather than the dinosaurs.
Attempting “super dinosaurs” has never worked well for the franchise, and made this film feel padded and almost like a direct-to-video entry rather than a theatrical blockbuster. It’s not the worst entry in the franchise and has some potential for a sequel, yet the proof is there that this once-mighty roaring film series may be headed toward extinction.