Whether talking about a Disney animated sci-fi movie or Pixar or something that came from yet another studio, there are plenty that stands the test of time. Some of those animated science-fiction movies are ones that are often brought up when talking about someone’s favorite. Others have largely been lost and forgotten about as the years have gone on. There are plenty out there that simply haven’t gotten the kind of attention they deserve.
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Atlantis: The Lost Empire
Everything seemed to be set up for Atlantis: The Lost Empire to be a big hit. The movie was coming out when animated movies were making a bit of a resurgence even among adults. It was based on a topic that has long captured the imagination of sci-fi fans. It centered on a group of adventurers who were under the impression that Atlantis was a real place and just needed to be found. There were some futuristic machines and tools that people got to see the characters use and the cast was fairly star-studded for 2001 with Michael J. Fox at the peak of his popularity in the starring role. There were plenty of other actors whose voices were plenty well known as well including Leonard Nimoy and James Garner.
Atlantis: The Lost Empire was also a Disney flick, so it seemed like it should have had everything going for it. So what happened? It’s not really clear, but it was a pretty big box office flop, making just $185 million against its budget of somewhere in the neighborhood of 120 million. While the movie wasn’t all that popular when it was released, video and streaming have given it a bit of a second life. It’s even got a bit of a cult following and has made a few lists of the Disney films that need another chance. Still, this is one of those films that only diehards are going to remember right off the bat so it certainly counts as one that is quite underappreciated.
Treasure Planet
For whatever reason, Disney was having some real problems with animated science-fiction films in the early 2000s. In fact, the studio had a couple of big box office flops bookended the early years of the decade. Atlantis: The Lost Empire debuted in June and disappointed in the spring and summer of 2001 and then Treasure Planet came around in November of 2002 and also struggled mightily to pick up an audience.
This was another film whose struggles seemed rather odd considering that the Mouse House was putting its support behind the movie with a very good budget and a some big-name stars on the cast. It was also a story that people should have been able to relate to as it was basically Treasure Island but in space. Maybe it was just a really bad couple of years for animated sci-fi films despite what other animated genres were able to.
While Michael J. Fox couldn’t make his star power life The Lost Empire at the box office, the same lament could be said for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who headlined Treasure Planet. The movie had plenty of other star power with Martin Short and Emma Thompson lending their voices to the underappreciated animated science-fiction flick. Now, many many years after its initial release, the movie is finally finding a bit more of a cult audience as people start to realize that Treasure Planet was better than people realized. It’s still a flick that has mostly been lost to the dustbin of history despite the rather obvious pull of swashbuckling in space.
Meet The Robinsons
Yet another very good Disney animated science-fiction film that struggled mightily to find an audience in the 2000s. Meet the Robinsons centers around a young boy genius who grows up in an orphanage and is having a hard time getting adopted. In a desperate attempt to figure out who his mother is, Lewis invents a mind scanner that catches the attention of a villain known as “Bowler Hat Guy” who travels from the future to steal it. He’s chased by Wilbur Robinson, who travels back to 2037 with Lewis to show him how the future is actually in danger.
Needless to say, quite a few hijinx erupt in this computer-animated science-fiction film that the Mouse House likely thought was going to be a very big hit. Instead, it earned just $169.3 million at the box office on a budget of $150 million. Still, the movie is underappreciated thanks to its ability to tug at the heartstrings while also showing off some science fiction fun.
Monsters vs Aliens
Monsters vs Aliens is an interesting addition to this list if for no other reason than the film was actually pretty popular. A Dreamworks flick that was released in 2009, the movie about a young newswoman who is exposed to a goo that eventually makes her a giant that then has to fight alongside a group of monsters against an impending alien invasion made more than $380 million on a budget of $175 million.
The film also had a heck of a big-name cast with Reese Witherspoon playing the giant Susan, Seth Rogen, Will Arnett, Stephen Colbert, Rainn Wilson, Kiefer Sutherland, and Hugh Laurie. It was popular enough that there were even TV spinoffs. Which makes it all the weirder that it’s one of those animated science fiction films that has been largely forgotten these days.
Megamind
Like Monsters vs Aliens, Megamind isn’t underappreciated because it was a flop at the box office. Considering it had Will Farrell and Brad Pitt going toe-to-toe alongside Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller, David Cross, and Tina Fey, the movie was plenty popular when it was released. However, also like Monsters vs Aliens, this movie is about a young boy from another planet who eventually grows first into a supervillain and eventually a superhero seems to be largely forgotten these days.
This film is also the most recent entry in the underappreciated animated sci-fi films as it released just 12 years ago. Still, it’s one of those flicks that has largely been forgotten by all but the most dedicated fans of this genre.
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