You Have to Watch These Sci-Fi Shows While Apple TV+ Is Free This Weekend

Apple TV+ is dropping a little gift into your lap this weekend: it’s free to stream January 4-5. The promotion’s social media announcement came with a tease of several popular series, but it’s no accident the first clip is from Severance. The Emmy-winning show finally returns January 17, and a weekend is absolutely enough time to binge the nine-episode first season.

This weekend, see for yourself.

Stream for free Jan 4-5. pic.twitter.com/8p6PCUYpms

— Apple TV (@AppleTV) December 30, 2024

But Severance season one isn’t the only sci-fi show you should try and check out during the free period; as io9 has noted before, Apple TV+ is an excellent destination for genre fare. The list of original series has continued to grow, but these are the five must-see titles, starting with the one we’ve already been hyping up:

Severance

Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette, John Turturro, and Christopher Walken head up an outstanding ensemble in this dystopian office drama set in and around a mysterious company where workers volunteer to have their brains surgically divided between their work and home lives. The disconnect between “innies” and “outies” becomes exponentially distressing once the “innies” begin to ask questions—and rebel. Smart, poignant, and equal parts eerie and wryly hilarious, Severance is a top-to-bottom standout. Season one streamed in 2022; season two returns January 17.

Foundation

Isaac Asimov’s Foundation stories inspire this far-future tale that explores the wonders of science—and also its terrors, including the idea that a robot is secretly manipulating the future of humanity. Jared Harris plays multiple versions of genius Hari Seldon, and Lee Pace plays multiple versions of the galaxy’s perpetually cloned Emperor. Thrilling, visually dynamic, and full of stirring plot moments that range from explosive to intimate, Foundation is a sci-fi epic worth diving into, especially if you enter knowing that season two is when it really gets going. You can watch the first two seasons on Apple TV+; a third is on the way.

For All Mankind

The space race between the U.S. and Russia gets an alt-history twist in this fascinating drama co-created by Ronald D. Moore (Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Outlander) that shifts ahead in time a decade with each new season, starting with the Soviet moon landing in 1969. There are now four seasons available to watch, with a fifth on the way as well as a spin-off.

Silo

Maybe even more than Severance, watching Silo during the free trial might make you want to immediately sign up for an Apple TV+ subscription. That’s because while season one of the Hugh Howey-adapted series—starring Rebecca Ferguson, it’s about a dystopian future where people survive in underground silos—wrapped up in 2023, season two is currently working its way through its 10 episodes. If you get hooked on Silo, the season two finale isn’t until January 17.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

Kurt and Wyatt Russell and some guy called Godzilla share the screen in this series expanding Legendary’s cinematic Monsterverse. It’s set in the wake of the 2014 Godzilla movie, with flashbacks to the late 1950s, which is how the Russells are able to play the same character at different ages. A second season is on the way, with (as season one teased) King Kong joining the fun.

Honorable mention: the Joel Edgerton-starring multiverse drama Dark Matter (season two is coming); M. Night Shyamalan’s bonkers psychological thriller Servant (concluded in 2023 after four seasons); and Sugar, the Colin Farrell-starring neo-noir with a shocking sci-fi twist (season two is coming).

There are also tons of buzzy, non-genre original shows on Apple TV+, including Ted Lasso, Presumed Innocent, Shrinking, and The Afterparty—and movies too, including Napoleon and Killers of the Flower Moon. Should you decide to stick around after your free trial, a monthly subscription to Apple TV+ is $9.99 and it includes a free week. Find out more here.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.