The sci-fi genre has contributed many iconic elements to cinema, but none cooler than spaceships and other vessels of space travel. Some of the most important sci-fi movies ever made massively contributed to the genre becoming what it is today, with big spaceships often being at the heart of that. Be it the iconic designs of big franchises and movies like Star Wars and Star Trek or the more grounded, but no less cool ships of smaller projects, sci-fi ships remain some of the coolest aspects of the entire film industry.
Some sci-fi movie masterpieces arguably wouldn’t be as popular as they are today without the iconic designs that accompanied them. That said, it would be impossible to list all of the coolest sci-fi ships here, just as it would be to nail the 10 best ever made. However, based on aspects like iconicity, overall design, and how well they fit the stories, worlds, and galaxies they inhabit, here are 10 awesome sci-fi ships that have perfect designs.
10
Millennium Falcon
It would be silly not to begin this list with the most iconic spaceship design of all time: Star Wars’ Millennium Falcon. In many ways, the Falcon embodies the best aspects of otherworldly, borderline fantasy sci-fi and real, gritty space travel. It has the worn-down, old-car-like aspect of the latter, with its rustic interiors, missing panels, and broken mechanics, while also sporting the faster-than-light travel, laser guns, and giant, bright engines of the former.
For a franchise like Star Wars, which so often jumps between old-school westerns and modern sci-fi, the Millennium Falcon has an absolutely perfect design. Not only does it make sense for the world, or worlds, in which it inhabits, but it also simply looks cool. Seeing the Millennium Falcon speeding through the Kessel Run or taking on TIE Fighters always looks badass, which, alongside the sheer iconic nature of the ship as one of the most recognizable in history, solidifies it as a sci-fi ship with a 10/10 design.
9
U.S.S. Enterprise
Where there is Star Wars, Star Trek is never far behind. The “Millennium Falcon” of the latter is easily the U.S.S. Enterprise. Be it the original, the 2009 version, or the many other iterations of the chief ship of Starfleet, the Enterprise is up there with the Falcon as one of the most iconic sci-fi ships of all time. What differentiates the Enterprise, though, is its size. The giant disc with two engines attached to it makes it a truly formidable craft, as opposed to the Falcon’s smaller size.
Also, unlike the Falcon, the U.S.S. Enterprise tends to be depicted as much sleeker. The Enterprise embodies what makes Starfleet so elite in Star Trek, through both its scale and pristine condition. All of this, as well as how recognizable the Enterprise is not just in sci-fi, but in cinema as a whole, makes it another easy pick for a ship with a perfect design.
8
Serenity
The Serenity is often considered the 10th main character of its show, Firefly. This alone places the ship as one of the best in the genre, but its design matches that. Serenity looks unlike many others on this list, typifying its status as a 10th character. From the side, the Serenity has its engines at the back, with its cockpit poking out in front. However, the cockpit is attached to a long walkway that bends upwards, giving Serenity somewhat animalistic tendencies. This matches the idea that it is a character in its own right beautifully.
Moreover, Serenity has similarities to the Falcon in that it is fairly rustic in its design. This lends itself well to Firefly‘s western tropes, as do the animalistic parts of the ship’s design. Firefly explores themes of freedom and finding a home, which Serenity provides. Its old-school look and feel give it a Wild West aspect that perfectly sums up the freedom themes of the show, while its constant ability to feel safe gives the main characters of Firefly a home. All in all, Serenity is another perfect sci-fi ship.
7
X-Wing
Back to Star Wars, the second-most iconic design in the franchise is the X-Wing. A dogfighting ship as opposed to a smuggler’s haven, the X-Wing is another of the most recognizable vehicles in cinema history. The way its S-foils expand into attack position, with the nose and cockpit poking out, immediately tells audiences that something exciting is coming. When the design of a ship can dictate how audiences feel, you know it is perfect.
6
Discovery One
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of the most influential sci-fi movies in history, proving to others that the genre could be taken seriously. One way in which it does this is by depicting an excellent ship, the Discovery One. In setting a large portion of the film on this ship, Stanley Kubrick was taking somewhat of a risk. However, it was designed excellently, both inside and outside, to make the movie a quintessential project in its genre.
The sleek, long design made people believe that space travel could be possible, especially with how the Discovery One created aspects like gravity. For such a thought-provoking, incredibly impactful story, the Discovery One had to be perfect. Evidently, it was.
5
Star Destroyer
The Star Destroyer is the last Star Wars ship on this list. On the flip side to the “good guy” ships of the Falcon and the X-Wing is this behemoth: a giant ship that dwarfs others and establishes the might of the Empire. There are many reasons why the opening shot of Star Wars is one of the most iconic of all time, with the Star Destroyer being one of them. Lucas’ ability to design a ship that looked bigger than a planet and as intimidating as one proved unmatched, with the Star Destroyer remaining perfect and, thus, unchanged from 1977 to the modern day.
4
The Tardis
The TARDIS is an old British police box that travels through time and space. It shouldn’t work, but it really does. The design is simple on the outside, but it is so outlandish that it works for all iterations of Doctor Who. On the inside, the Tardis opens up into a massive hub of sci-fi goodness, popularizing the trope of something being deceptively big. All of this makes the Tardis one thing: iconic. Ask anyone, even those who haven’t seen Doctor Who, what the Tardis is, and they can probably tell you, proving it as a perfectly designed sci-fi vessel.
3
Battlestar Galactica
If anything proves how perfectly the Battlestar Galactica is as a sci-fi ship, it is the fact that the whole series is named after it. As the last remaining ship of its kind that serves as a beacon of humanity’s survival, the Battlestar Galactica is perfect. It is big and bulky, almost like a tank in space, to symbolize its militaristic nature. Utilitarian and unassuming, the Battlestar Galactica is one of the most iconic ships in the genre, as the setting of one of the more popular sci-fi shows in history. Without a 10/10 design for the titular ship, Battlestar Galactica simply wouldn’t work.
2
The Rocinante
The Expanse‘s Rocinante is very similar to the Battlestar Galactica. It is utilitarian in design, but no less cool. For a political sci-fi show that is more grounded than the likes of Star Wars and Star Trek, the Rocinante is perfect. It isn’t too flashy, but both its interior and exterior are overly recognizable. It has a solid color scheme, a good blend of weaponry and functionality, and, like Serenity, feels like home for The Expanse‘s core cast of characters. The Expanse is a modern sci-fi masterpiece, and the ship on which a lot of it takes place is too.
1
Heighliners
A different, but no less perfect, design is the Heighliners from Dune. These ships only appear briefly in the modern Denis Villeneuve Dune films, but their design is striking. The Heighliners are giant, somewhat terrifying tubes that float through space and transport people across the galaxy. Looking almost akin to Dune‘s sandworms only in space, the Heighliners are, without a doubt, the most unique of ships on this list. Given their small role but lasting impact, it is clear how perfectly they were designed.
- Release Date
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September 15, 2021
- Runtime
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155 minutes
- Producers
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Herb Gains, John Harrison, Joseph M. Caracciolo Jr., Mary Parent, Richard P. Rubinstein, Cale Boyter, Thomas Tull, Brian Herbert, Byron Merritt, Kim Herbert, Joshua Grode