When it comes to space movies, critics can debate realism all they want—but few have actually floated in zero gravity. Enter Senator Mark Kelly, a former NASA astronaut who flew four space missions, now offering his expert-approved watchlist. Kelly recently took to social media to name three films that meet his high standards for scientific accuracy and emotional authenticity.
The Martian: Engineering Over Drama
Topping Kelly's list is Ridley Scott's The Martian, starring Matt Damon as a stranded astronaut. Kelly praised it as "really a movie about how you use science and engineering to solve hard problems," calling it more of an "engineering problem-solving movie" than a traditional space flick. He also appreciated the realistic crew dynamics, noting that the relationships "felt very real to me." However, he had one nitpick: the crew referring to their commander as "Commander Lewis." Kelly explained, "That's actually not how that works. You're very close to your crew members, and, you know, it's very informal." It's a small detail, but one only a veteran astronaut would catch.
Interstellar: Time Dilation and the Twin Paradox
Second on his list is Christopher Nolan's Interstellar, another film featuring Jessica Chastain. Kelly's appreciation goes beyond star power—he loves "the physics involved, and just talking about time dilation, and how the faster you travel, and if you go into a deeper gravity well, that time goes by slower for you." As a twin himself (his brother Scott Kelly is also a former astronaut), Kelly has a personal connection to the film's famous "twin paradox." He shared, "When my brother went into space for a year, and he's got 520 days in space, I've got 54 over my four missions, time traveled slower for him. When I was born, I was six minutes older, and now I think the calculation... is I'm now six minutes and 13 milliseconds older because of general relativity." Thankfully, that extra 13 milliseconds doesn't compare to the decades Matthew McConaughey's character loses in the film.
Project Hail Mary: A Recent Favorite
For his third pick, Kelly went with the more recent Project Hail Mary, based on Andy Weir's novel. He enjoyed "the whole concept of alien civilizations, same problem, trying to fix this," and appreciated "the consequences and the complexity of it." While he found the film had "kind of a slow start," by the end he "really enjoyed it." The movie has earned a 94% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and grossed $681 million worldwide, proving Kelly isn't alone in his admiration.
Kelly, who has represented Arizona in the Senate since 2020, is married to former Representative Gabby Giffords. The couple became prominent gun control advocates after Giffords was seriously injured in a 2011 mass shooting. Kelly won the Senate seat vacated by the late John McCain.
For more space movie recommendations, check out our Weekend Watchlist for streaming picks. And if you're curious about other celebrity space enthusiasts, see Eiza González's failed Star Wars audition.
