7 Great Sci-Fi Shows Inspired By Aldous Huxley

Published Nov 14, 2026, 1:00 PM EST Memory Ngulube joined Screen Rant in April 2024 as part of the Movies and TV team. Since then, she has written for the Perennials and Streaming team, covering a wide range of topics from new releases to old movies and TV shows. Memory is currently a Classic TV writer. Before joining Screen Rant, Memory was a freelance copywriter who specialized in email marketing and social media management. While she enjoyed her job, her true passion was always movies and TV. When she isn’t writing for Screen Rant, Memory can be found reading, baking (which is one of her passions), or watching her favorite K-drama. Aldous Huxley is one of the most influential sci-fi writers of the 20th century. Although he initially gained recognition for his satirical novels, including Crome Yellow, Antic Hay, and Those Barren Leaves, it was Brave New World, a book published in 1932, that cemented his place in literary history. With the influence Huxley’s novels have had on the science fiction genre, one would think thatnearly all of his literary works have a screen adaptation. But that simply isn't the case, though his most popular book, Brave New World, has received several screen adaptations, and several of his other works have also received the film or TV treatment. However, the celebrated author’s influence is not limited to productions that directly adapt his work. Several science fiction shows have explored similar ideas that Huxley delved into in his novels. Huxley’s literary work was far ahead of its time. So it's not surprising that his ideas are still as relevant today as when they were first introduced to the world. The author was deeply interested in the human condition and how we interact with each other. Brave New World and Island are the best examples, but his other novels also show that Huxley was fascinated by philosophical questions that have no easy answers. Brave New World (2020) Image courtesy of MovieStillsDb These days, dystopian science fiction novels like The Hunger Games, The Red Rising series, and The Dream Hotel are celebrated works of literature. But several decades before these beloved books were published, Brave New World laid the foundation for books that explore similar stories and themes. Set in a future society that seems perfect from the outside, Brave New World follows a population genetically engineered into predetermined social classes and conditioned to value hedonism and obedience over personal freedom. Though audiences gave the 2020 Brave New World adaptation a solid 77% on Rotten Tomatoes, the Peacock series was hardly a critical success. The show was dinged for how far it deviated from the source material, while others criticized it for losing steam after a strong start. In the end, Peacock abandoned Brave New World and didn’t renew it for a second season, which was not surprising given the show’s divisive reception. The Peripheral (2022) Although the series is not a direct adaptation of Huxley's writing, The Peripheral​​​​​​'s dystopian vision shares many of the philosophical concerns that made his science-fiction work so influential. The Prime Video science fiction show centers around Flynne Fisher (Chloë Grace Moretz), a young woman who discovers that a virtual reality simulation she is testing connects her to a technologically advanced but troubled future. Like Brave New World, The Peripheral examines the darker side of technological advancement. Both portray futures where powerful institutions exert staggering influence over people's lives, raising questions about freedom, social inequality, and humanity's dependence on technology. The Peripheral is one of the best dystopian science fiction shows, yet it lasted only one season on Prime Video. The reason for its cancellation isn't that the dystopian series was mediocre; The Peripheral was actually renewed for season 2, but Amazon rescinded its decision due to production delays caused by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike. Years And Years (2019) Russell T. Davies' Years and Years is one of those masterpiece sci-fi miniseries that deserves to be more popular than it is. Following the Lyon family over 15 years, the dystopian show chronicles the rise of authoritarian leadership, technological advancements, and the struggles that come with living in a rapidly changing world. As a dystopian sci-fi show, Years and Years shares a lot with Huxley’s philosophical ideas. Brave New World was published almost a century ago, but the concerns the novel raised are echoed in Years and Years through a contemporary lens. Like Huxley's fiction, the series shows that humanity’s greatest threat is how easily powerful institutions can dictate how people should live their lives. Altered Carbon (2018-2020) Image courtesy of MovieStillsDb Aldous Huxley pioneered many concepts we now see in philosophical science fiction, but his novels were never really part of the cyberpunk subgenre. Nevertheless, Netflix’s Altered Carbon draws inspiration from the renowned author’s ideas. In the show, human consciousness can be digitized and transferred between different bodies, effectively allowing wealthy individuals to live for centuries. The story centers around Takeshi Kovacs (Joel Kinnaman and Anthony Mackie), a former elite soldier who is brought back to life in a new body after being hired by a wealthy businessman to investigate his own murder. Both Altered Carbon and Huxley’s sci-fi novels are obsessed with futuristic societies where scientific progress does not necessarily make humanity better. Oftentimes, progress costs something that the people in less powerful positions have to pay for. In Altered Carbon’s case, the rich find ways to manipulate people and reinforce inequality. While Huxley explored a society built around artificial happiness and social conditioning, Altered Carbon focused on immortality and the very chilling possibility that those less financially fortunate will always be disposable. Westworld (2016-2022) MovieStillsDB Game of Thrones has always been and might always be HBO’s biggest show. But like all good things, the high-fantasy series had to end at some point, and Westworld was poised to be the cable channel’s next big hit. Things, however, did not go according to plan. While Westworld’s first season was great, the series began to drop in quality and became far too complicated, with no clear payoff. Westworld is set in a futuristic amusement park where wealthy visitors can live out their wildest fantasies alongside remarkably realistic androids known as Hosts. Designed to resemble human beings, these artificial creations are programmed to follow predetermined storylines and serve the desires of paying guests, who can interact with them without facing real-world consequences. Westworld has a lot to say about autonomy and what it means to be human. While initially the Hosts do whatever they're told, one begins to gain consciousness and questions their existence. In Westworld, the winners are clearly those with the upper hand over the Hosts, but that doesn’t mean the androids’ happiness shouldn't be taken into account, especially when they begin to show emotions associated with humanity. Westworld does an incredible job of exploring how advancement and hedonistic behavior are not always in the best interest of society as a whole. The Handmaid’s Tale (2017-2025) Image via MovieStillsDB Based on Margaret Atwood's acclaimed novel of the same name, Hulu's The Handmaid's Tale chronicles a dystopian America where women have lost many of their rights. The new country, now called Gilead, is a theocratic and totalitarian regime where some women, called "handmaids", are forced to bear the children of the elite class. Atwood's original novel told a complete story. However, Hulu extended the series beyond the book because its messaging was so resonant and important. ‎ ‎The Handmaid's Tale ended in 2025, but the spin-off series The Testaments, set a few years after the original series, continues the story of Gileadwith new protagonists. The type of plot The Handmaid's Tale explores seems worlds away from Huxley's work. Yet it is hard to discount the fact that both Huxley and Atwood had a similar fascination with humanity's need to live in a perfect society, despite what it would cost.‎ Silo (2023-Present) Apple TV’s Silo is hands down one of the best science fiction TV shows the streamer has to offer. The dystopian sci-fi show is set in a future where the last remnants of humanity live inside an enormous underground silo, supposedly protected from a toxic, uninhabitable outside world. The residents follow strict rules, live under an authoritarian government, and are forbidden from investigating the truth about their surroundings. As the series progresses, more information about the silos and how they came to be is revealed. Choose the movie with the higher Rotten Tomatoes score. Silo doesn’t depict a perfect society, but one that is heavily controlled in order to maintain the facade that it is for everyone’s benefit. Similar to Brave New World, the characters in the Apple TV sci-fi series are force-fed information that is sometimes false and are expected to comply with the program if they want to stay alive. Both Aldous Huxley’s literary work and Silo raise questions about what freedom means and whether it is possible to be truly free when even the most basic facts are taboo.