Serenity

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Serenity

PG-13

2005

1h 59m

Sci-Fi

Action

Adventure

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

82%

Tomatometer

187 Reviews

91%

Popcornmeter

250,000+ Ratings

In this continuation of the television series "Firefly," a group of rebels travels the outskirts of space aboard their ship, Serenity, outside the reach of the Alliance, a sinister regime that controls most of the universe. After the crew takes in Simon (Sean Maher) and his psychic sister, River (Summer Glau), whom he has just rescued from Alliance forces, they find themselves being pursued by the Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor), an Alliance agent who will stop at nothing to find them.

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Critics Consensus

Snappy dialogue and goofy characters make this Wild Wild West soap opera in space fun and adventurous.

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Andrea Gronvall

Chicago Reader

Jun 6, 2007

Joss Whedon makes a rousing feature-directing debut, exploiting the cult status of his short-lived series Firefly to continue it on the big screen.

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Nick Funnell

Time Out

Jun 24, 2006

The settings and tone are hyper-real, yet the human behaviour is grounded and credible, the moral conflicts complex and involving. Shiny, intelligent fun.

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Ken Tucker

New York Magazine/Vulture

May 12, 2006

Go out and see Joss Whedon's witty whizbang of an action movie, or we will kill a kitten.

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Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

Jul 28, 2026

The characters may ride spaceships and fire lasers, but this really is a frontier western, set in the wake of a polarizing civil war and driven by heroes for whom family and community are synonymous.

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James Croot

The Post NZ

Jun 9, 2022

You don't need to be a fan, or have watched the show, or even like the genre to appreciate one of the best science-fiction movies of the 21st century.

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Kathi Maio

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction

Feb 28, 2020

Sadly, it seems certain that Whedon listened too carefully to the suits at Fox who told him to pump up the action.

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George W K

Jul 8, 2025

Serenity is a classic. A shame is didn’t spawn a series. Better than the prequel or sequel trilogy.

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ROBERT

Jul 8, 2025

Great movie. They should have made more.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 16, 2026

Serenity = a 4,5 star Movie!

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Alton Y

@leo923 Aug 25, 2026

At this point, Serenity is like comfort food. A go -to Sci-Fi classic and also a goodbye to characters that we grew to love in the brief time that we had them. Still can't stop the signal!

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nick S

@Nick_S Aug 9, 2026

I was very impressed with the world building and sheer effort that went into this. But it wasn't for me. The dialogue was trying to be just a little too clever, and instead came across as unnatural and stilted. This in turn affected the acting, which was middling at best.

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Renaissance M

@RenaissanceMan May 17, 2026

This is fine space sci-fi, but it's largely an allegory for the Lost Cause myth in American history. The film is Confederate adjacent, so I don't think it deserves the avid fanbase it still has.

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Joss Whedon

Director

Nathan Fillion

Capt. Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds

Gina Torres

Zoë Warren

Alan Tudyk

Hoban "Wash" Washburn

Morena Baccarin

Inara Serra

Adam Baldwin

Jayne Cobb

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Synopsis

In this continuation of the television series "Firefly," a group of rebels travels the outskirts of space aboard their ship, Serenity, outside the reach of the Alliance, a sinister regime that controls most of the universe. After the crew takes in Simon (Sean Maher) and his psychic sister, River (Summer Glau), whom he has just rescued from Alliance forces, they find themselves being pursued by the Operative (Chiwetel Ejiofor), an Alliance agent who will stop at nothing to find them.

Director: Joss Whedon
Producer: Barry Mendel
Screenwriter: Joss Whedon
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Mutant Enemy, Universal Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Sequences of Intense Violence|Action|Some Sexual References)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action, Adventure
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 30, 2005, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 12, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $25.3M
Runtime: 1h 59m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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