Bet You Won’t Score 100% On This Sci-Fi Movie Quiz
Answers Below – No Peeking!
From timeless classics like 2001: A Space Odyssey to epic modern hits like Dune, this quiz spans decades of sci-fi cinema. Test your knowledge with 20 questions that range from easy warm-ups to brain-melting stumpers. Can you score a perfect 20/20?
20 Trivia Questions on Sci-Fi Movies
Question 1: In which year was the original Star Wars film, later subtitled A New Hope, released?
A. 1975
B. 1979
C. 1977
D. 1981
Question 2: Who directed the 1968 sci-fi masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey?
A. Steven Spielberg
B. Ridley Scott
C. George Lucas
D. Stanley Kubrick
Question 3: What is the name of the commercial towing spaceship in Alien (1979)?
A. Prometheus
B. Nostromo
C. Serenity
D. Sulaco
Question 4: In The Matrix (1999), which colour pill does Neo choose to learn the truth about his reality?
A. Blue
B. Green
C. Red
D. Yellow
Question 5: Who portrayed the cyborg assassin known as the T-800 in The Terminator (1984)?
A. Bruce Willis
B. Sylvester Stallone
C. Jean-Claude Van Damme
D. Arnold Schwarzenegger
Question 6: What model of car serves as the time machine in Back to the Future (1985)?
A. DeLorean DMC-12
B. Ford Mustang
C. Porsche 911
D. Ferrari 308
Question 7: In E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), what is E.T.’s primary goal?
A. To stay on Earth
B. To phone home
C. To fight invaders
D. To heal humans
Question 8: Who directed the dystopian sci-fi film Blade Runner (1982)?
A. James Cameron
B. Paul Verhoeven
C. Ridley Scott
D. David Cronenberg
Question 9: Which director helmed Jurassic Park (1993)?
A. Steven Spielberg
B. Michael Crichton
C. Roland Emmerich
D. Ridley Scott
Question 10: What is the name of the sentient computer in 2001: A Space Odyssey?
A. Mother
B. GERTY
C. HAL 9000
D. Bishop
Question 11: In Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), who commands the USS Enterprise?
A. Jean-Luc Picard
B. James T. Kirk
C. Benjamin Sisko
D. Kathryn Janeway
Question 12: Which actor played Neo in The Matrix (1999)?
A. Keanu Reeves
B. Tom Cruise
C. Johnny Depp
D. Brad Pitt
Question 13: Who directed the 1984 adaptation of Dune?
A. Denis Villeneuve
B. Alejandro Jodorowsky
C. David Lynch
D. Frank Herbert
Question 14: In which film does Arnold Schwarzenegger first utter the iconic line “I’ll be back”?
A. Predator
B. Commando
C. The Terminator
D. Total Recall
Question 15: Who directed the original Total Recall (1990)?
A. James Cameron
B. John McTiernan
C. Paul Verhoeven
D. Renny Harlin
Question 16: In Men in Black (1997), which actor plays the character Agent J?
A. Will Smith
B. Tommy Lee Jones
C. Josh Brolin
D. Rip Torn
Question 17: In which year was Independence Day released?
A. 1994
B. 1998
C. 1996
D. 2000
Question 18: Who directed Avatar (2009)?
A. James Cameron
B. Peter Jackson
C. Ridley Scott
D. Gore Verbinski
Question 19: Which actor played replicant hunter Rick Deckard in Blade Runner (1982)?
A. Harrison Ford
B. Kurt Russell
C. Mel Gibson
D. Tom Hanks
Question 20: Who directed Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)?
A. Steven Spielberg
B. George Lucas
C. Stanley Kubrick
D. John Carpenter
Answers
- C. 1977 – Star Wars premiered on 25 May 1977; 1975 was too early, 1979 was The Empire Strikes Back, and 1981 was Raiders of the Lost Ark.
- D. Stanley Kubrick – Kubrick co-wrote and directed the film, released 2 April 1968; the others directed later sci-fi classics.
- B. Nostromo – The USCSS Nostromo is the ship name per the film’s credits and novelisation; others are from Prometheus, Firefly, and Aliens.
- C. Red – Neo takes the red pill offered by Morpheus to escape the Matrix simulation; blue returns him to illusion.
- D. Arnold Schwarzenegger – Schwarzenegger debuted as the T-800 in Cameron’s 1984 film; others starred in different action/sci-fi roles.
- A. DeLorean DMC-12 – Doc Brown’s modified DeLorean time travels at 88 mph; others are iconic ’80s cars but not the time machine.
- B. To phone home – E.T. famously says “E.T. phone home” to contact his planet; healing is secondary.
- C. Ridley Scott – Scott directed the Philip K. Dick adaptation released 25 June 1982; others made RoboCop, The Fly, etc.
- A. Steven Spielberg – Spielberg directed the Crichton adaptation, released 11 June 1993; Crichton wrote the novel.
- C. HAL 9000 – HAL 9000 is the AI antagonist, named in the screenplay; others are AIs from Alien, Moon, and Aliens.
- B. James T. Kirk – William Shatner’s Kirk captains in the first Trek film; Picard debuted in TNG TV series.
- A. Keanu Reeves – Reeves starred as Neo in the Wachowskis’ 1999 film; others in different sci-fi/action.
- C. David Lynch – Lynch’s version released 3 December 1984; Villeneuve did 2021, Jodorowsky planned an unmade version.
- C. The Terminator – Schwarzenegger’s character says it during his first police infiltration scene in 1984.
- C. Paul Verhoeven – Verhoeven directed the Philip K. Dick adaptation released 1 June 1990; Cameron produced the 2012 remake.
- A. Will Smith – Smith plays Agent J partnered with K (Jones) in Sonnenfeld’s 1997 film.
- C. 1996 – Released 3 July 1996, directed by Roland Emmerich.
- A. James Cameron – Cameron wrote and directed the Pandora epic, released 18 December 2009.
- A. Harrison Ford – Ford stars as Deckard in Scott’s 1982 noir; Russell was in Escape from New York.
- A. Steven Spielberg – Spielberg wrote and directed, released 16 November 1977.
How did you score? Drop your results in the comments below and challenge friends to top your mark on this sci-fi showdown!
