8 movies like Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning that feature AI as a villain

ChatGPT-like Artificial Intelligence tools have been slowly creeping into our lives to make things easy. What feels normal today was at one point part of fictional and sci-fi movies. Over the years, we’ve seen all sorts of AI entities in movies ranging from apocalyptic to romantic.

With the upcoming Mission Impossible – The Final Reckoning featuring an AI villain, it seems like the right time to look back at movies that have portrayed AI as an antagonist.

Mission Impossible: The Dead Reckoning

Ethan Hunt has been posed with all sorts of villains since 1996. However, the ultimate villain turned out to be a nasty piece of AI known as the Entity. It seems to be part-codebreaker, part-spy, part-weapon, and part-psychic that has been able to predict every move made by the Impossible Mission Force (IMF). 

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While the Entity’s endgame has not been revealed, it is safe to assume that it is not in the world’s best interests. The ultimate showdown between Hunt and the Entity will be showcased in the upcoming Mission Impossible the Final Reckoning. In the meantime, the previous seven movies can be binged on Prime Video. 

2001: A Space Odyssey

2001: A Space Odyssey is regarded as one of the greatest sci-fi movies of all time, and it largely comes down to the lingering fear of HAL 9000, represented by a glowing red dot. 

HAL 9000 starts off as a friend but starts malfunctioning when faced with a shut down. It goes on to make murderous decisions. For a movie that was released in 1968, the film definitely was way ahead of its time. Feel like watching the movie? You can stream it on Apple TV+ and Prime Video. 

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Remember when the Avengers were pitted against their own creation in the form of a homicidal AI known as Ultron in the movie Avengers: Age of Ultron? Built by Tony Stark (Iron Man) and Bruce Banner (the Hulk), the AI gets corrupted when exposed to human history, the internet, and more.

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Ultron then decides that the only way to save humanity is to wipe the slate clean and start over. However, Ultron was so powerful that it required another AI, Vision, to stop him. Being a marvel movie, fans can watch it on Disney+ Hotstar. 

CTRL

A perfectly influential couple, Nella and Joe, hit a rough patch when she finds out he cheated on her. She turns to an AI app to delete Joe from her digital life. However, it gets complicated when the AI starts creeping into her life and taking control via her laptop and smartphone. 

This cautionary tale on cybercrime and artificial intelligence, CTRL, is a great wake up call for social media junkies on their online behaviour. You can stream the movie on Netflix. 

AfrAId

Taking smart home to the next level, a family is selected to try a revolutionary digital family assistant called AIA. Once the unit along with its sensor and cameras are installed in their home, AIA starts to get comfortable. After learning the family’s behaviour, it even begins to anticipate their needs. 

Things get scary when AIA starts using its devious mind to control the family. AfrAId is available to stream on Prime Video. 

The Terminator franchise

While the audience was introduced to The Terminator franchise in 1984, the movies gave rise to a deep-rooted fear that someday a computer program built by humans could take over the world.  

People still joke about the Judgement Day when Skynet, a self-aware AI program, will send John to kill John Connor and prevent him from growing up to become a leader of the human rebellion against the machines. You can watch the entire franchise on Prime Video.

I, Robot

I, Robot is set in an alternate future where humans coexist with robots in the year 2035. Things take an ugly turn when one mysterious robot known as Sonny goes rogue.

A robot-hating cop and a skeptical scientist team up to help Sonny protect humans from VIKI, the centralised AI that controls all robots. This aspirational sci-fi movie can be streamed on Prime Video. 

There seems to be a steady rise in AI villains taking over from the likes of the iconic Hannibal Lecter and Michael Myers. What do you prefer humans or AI as villains? Let us know in the comments section below.