Netflix subscribers have to run to catch this masterpiece.
Netflix’s movie library features quite a few exciting releases. Between licensed content and Netflix’s Original movies, there is plenty to enjoy on the streaming service, with new films being added to the streamer throughout the year. However, if there is new content coming to Netflix, that also means that some projects are also departing the streamer.
To that end, the best movies to watch on Netflix end up shifting each week. In terms of Netflix’s sci-fi movie offerings, the streaming service recently debuted one of its biggest 2026 films so far, War Machine, which stars Reacher’s Alan Ritchson. However, despite that film’s global success, subscribers need to shift their attention to another sci-fi movie, as it is leaving soon.
District 9 is officially leaving Netflix on April 1. The sci-fi movie was released in theaters on August 14, 2009. It is held highly by genre fans, with District 9 boasting a high 82% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. When it comes to critics, the sci-fi movie had an even better reception, achieving a near-perfect 90% critics’ score.
District 9 scene of Wikus van de Merwe looking up
District 9 is worth watching or even rewatching before it leaves Netflix at the start of April. After all, the sci-fi movie was nominated for several high-profile awards. While it did not take home any Oscars, District 9 racked up four nominations at the 82nd Academy Awards. The fan-favorite sci-fi movie was nominated for Best Visual Effects, Best Film Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Picture.
District 9 hails from director Neill Blomkamp, who has delivered multiple genre entries, such as Elysium and Chappie. Recently, the director helmed David Harbour’s Gran Turismo movie. The sci-fi movie is an adaptation of Blomkamp’s own short film, Alive in Joburg, which was released in 2005. District 9 was produced by Peter Jackson, known worldwide for directing The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movies.
District 9 revolves around an alien spaceship arriving in Johannesburg, South Africa. Given how the aliens, who look like insects, are sick and pose no threat, the government can easily take control of the situation, putting the aliens in a concentration camp, the title’s District 9. Beyond its sci-fi visuals, the movie’s story resonates as an allegory for Cape Town’s District Six.
During the Apartheid, District Six was designated as an area only for white citizens, with people of color banished. The 2009 sci-fi movie was a box office hit, grossing $210.9 million against a $30 million budget. After the film’s success, multiple drafts for a sequel, District 10, have been written. However, on August 25, 2023, Blomkamp teased to The Hollywood Reporter that the District 9 sequel was paused.
Release Date
August 5, 2009
Runtime
112 minutes
Director
Neill Blomkamp
Jason Cope
Christopher Johnson / Grey Bradnam / Trent