Despite all the new shows and movies released every week, Netflix is still one of the best, if not the best, streaming service for watching classic movies. In October, Netflix subscribers will get the first opportunity in a long time to watch one of the most iconic sci-fi movies of all time.
Of course, I'm talking about The Martian starring Matt Damon. Directed by the great Ridley Scott, The Martian premiered in theaters in 2015. It's based on Andy Wier's epic sci-fi novel of the same name.
The Martian hits Netflix on Oct. 2, 2025
Netflix announced in a recent press release that The Martian will be released on Netflix on Thursday, Oct. 2, so you have just less than a week to wait until the hit sci-fi movie is available to stream. And, everyone, and I mean everyone, should be watching this movie as soon as it's available. I know sci-fi can struggle as a genre on Netflix, where mysteries, thrillers, and Adam Sandler comedies thrive, but I have a feeling that The Martian is going to easily crack the Netflix Top 10.
For those who don't know, The Martian tells the story of Dr. Mark Watney (Damon), who is an astronaut on the crew of a mission to Mars. After an accident on the planet, Watney's crew leaves him, believing he's dead. Watney, however, is very much alive and alone more than 100 million miles from Earth. Using his smarts and survival training, Watney tries to survive long enough for someone to help him.
The Martian basically has an Avengers-level cast, including Damon, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Jessica Chastain, Kate Mara, Sean Bean, Michael Peña, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Sebastian Stan, and more.
Overall, The Martian is just a fantastic movie. It has fans' and critics' Rotten Tomatoes scores of 91%. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor in a Leading Role (Matt Damon). Damon actually lost to Leonardo DiCaprio in The Revenant, but hey, I don't know about that. I think Damon's performance in The Martian is just on another level.
Is it the best modern space movie of all time? It's definitely in the conversation. For me, it's about as good as any of the top-tier recent space movies, including Interstellar, Gravity, the Dune movies, and Arrival.
And, if you haven't read Weir's book of the same name, I highly recommend that, too, either before or after watching the movie. Weir is one of the best sci-fi authors of all time, and The Martian is probably his best work, although Artemis and Project Hail Mary are also fantastic.
Project Hail Mary is also going to be a movie. Ryan Gosling will star in the upcoming film, which will be released on March 20, 2026.
In other words, the Andy Weir spaceship is in orbit, but there's still time to hop on and hitch a ride around the galaxy. Start your journey with The Martian on Netflix on Thursday, Oct. 2.