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2012 poster

Movies that feel like2012 (2009)

Dr. Adrian Helmsley, part of a worldwide geophysical team investigating the effect on the earth of radiation from unprecedented solar storms, learns that the earth's core is heating up. He warns U.S. President Thomas Wilson that the crust of the earth is becoming unstable and that without proper preparations for saving a fraction of the world's population, the entire race is doomed. Meanwhile, writer Jackson Curtis stumbles on the same information. While the world's leaders race to build "arks" to escape the impending cataclysm, Curtis struggles to find a way to save his family. Meanwhile, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes of unprecedented strength wreak havoc around the world.

If you loved 2012, the closest films we have are Superman Returns (2006), The Incredible Hulk (2008) and Ra.One (2011). All three share 2012's kinetic and epic feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

🍅 40% Rotten Tomatoes★ 5.9 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Roland Emmerichkineticepiccerebral
12 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max · Hulu · Disney Plus

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If 2012 hit the spot, these will too

Superman Returns poster
Superman Returns
2006 · dir. Bryan Singer
🍅 72%★ 6.1science fiction · action · adventureMax

Catastrophe as spectacle, with rescue after impossible rescue

The difference: Slower and mournful, more about a man than a disaster

Superman returns to discover his 5-year absence has allowed Lex Luthor to walk free, and that those he was closest to felt abandoned and have moved on. Luthor plots his ultimate revenge that could see millions killed and change the face of the planet forever, as well as ridding himself of the Man of Steel.

The Incredible Hulk poster
The Incredible Hulk
2008 · dir. Louis Leterrier
🍅 68%★ 6.6science fiction · action · adventureHuluDisney+

The same mix in both: momentum, then scale

The difference: Critics rated this one higher still

Scientist Bruce Banner scours the planet for an antidote to the unbridled force of rage within him: the Hulk. But when the military masterminds who dream of exploiting his powers force him back to civilization, he finds himself coming face to face with a new, deadly foe.

Ra.One poster
Ra.One
2011 · dir. Anubhav Sinha
🍅 62%★ 5adventure · action · science fiction

Cerebral action in both cases

When the titular antagonist of an action game takes on physical form, it's up to the game's less powerful protagonist to save the world.

Ender's Game poster
Ender's Game
2013 · dir. Gavin Hood
🍅 63%★ 6.6science fiction · action · adventure

Adventure built on momentum, twice over

Based on the classic novel by Orson Scott Card, Ender's Game is the story of the Earth's most gifted children training to defend their homeplanet in the space wars of the future.

The Wolverine poster
The Wolverine
2013 · dir. James Mangold
🍅 70%★ 6.7action · science fiction · adventureDisney+

Slick blockbuster craft carrying a hero through relentless danger

The difference: Intimate and moody — a single man, no world-ending stakes

Wolverine faces his ultimate nemesis - and tests of his physical, emotional, and mortal limits - in a life-changing voyage to modern-day Japan.

Transformers poster
Transformers
2007 · dir. Michael Bay
🍅 57%★ 7.1adventure · science fiction · actionParamount+Starz

Ordinary people swept into events far beyond their control

The difference: Teen-comedy energy and alien war, not planetary collapse

Young teenager Sam Witwicky becomes involved in the ancient struggle between two extraterrestrial factions of transforming robots – the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons. Sam holds the clue to unimaginable power and the Decepticons will stop at nothing to retrieve it.

Independence Day: Resurgence poster
Independence Day: Resurgence
2016 · dir. Roland Emmerich
🍅 29%★ 5.2action · adventure · science fiction

Global-scale destruction staged like an amusement park ride

The difference: Alien invasion sequel with none of the ground-level panic

We always knew they were coming back. Using recovered alien technology, the nations of Earth have collaborated on an immense defense program to protect the planet. But nothing can prepare us for the aliens’ advanced and unprecedented force. Only the ingenuity of a few brave men and women can bring our world back from the brink of extinction.

Moonfall poster
Moonfall
2022 · dir. Roland Emmerich
🍅 35%★ 5.2science fiction · adventure · actionRent or buy

Emmerich again wrecking the planet with a straight face and huge waves

The difference: Even sillier science, and the reviews cratered harder

A mysterious force knocks the moon from its orbit around Earth and sends it hurtling on a collision course with life as we know it.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer poster
🍅 38%★ 5.6science fiction · adventure · actionDisney+

Planet-threatening stakes delivered with a light, breezy touch

The difference: Cheerful superhero antics — no sustained sense of doom

The Fantastic Four return to the big screen as a new and all powerful enemy threatens the Earth. The seemingly unstoppable 'Silver Surfer', but all is not what it seems and there are old and new enemies that pose a greater threat than the intrepid superheroes realize.

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island poster
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
2012 · dir. Brad Peyton
🍅 44%★ 5.7adventure · action · science fiction

A family holding together while the ground literally gives way

The difference: Kid-friendly romp — the peril never feels genuinely lethal

Sean Anderson partners with his mom's boyfriend on a mission to find his grandfather, who is thought to be missing on a mythical island.

Green Lantern poster
Green Lantern
2011 · dir. Martin Campbell
🍅 26%★ 5.5adventure · action · science fictionMax

Effects-driven scale where the world's fate is the baseline

The difference: Origin-story beats and a CGI cosmos, not quakes and floods

For centuries, a small but powerful force of warriors called the Green Lantern Corps has sworn to keep intergalactic order. Each Green Lantern wears a ring that grants him superpowers. But when a new enemy called Parallax threatens to destroy the balance of power in the Universe, their fate and the fate of Earth lie in the hands of the first human ever recruited.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts poster
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
2023 · dir. Steven Caple Jr.
🍅 51%★ 6science fiction · adventure · actionParamount+

A world-ending threat met with maximum CGI demolition

The difference: Toy-franchise plotting — robots, lore and sequel setup

When a new threat capable of destroying the entire planet emerges, Optimus Prime and the Autobots must team up with a powerful faction known as the Maximals. With the fate of humanity hanging in the balance, humans Noah and Elena will do whatever it takes to help the Transformers as they engage in the ultimate battle to save Earth.

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The best-reviewed films that share 2012’s defining feeling.