Trailer
Summary
A fleet of Martian spacecraft surrounds the world's major cities and all of humanity waits to see if the extraterrestrial visitors have, as they claim, "come in peace."
Good for
- Date night
- Family movie night
- Friends night
Where to watch
Fingerprint
At a glance
Critics vs audiences
Audiences a little warmer than critics (+7)
Critics 55Audiences 62GoodWatch 58
Tomatometer57%
Metascore52
Letterboxd · 328 K ratings3.3/5
IMDb6.4
User score6.4
Audience score53%
Box office
1.4×its budget
- Budget
- $70 M
- Worldwide
- $101 M
Worldwide it earned $31 M more than it cost.
Running time
1 h 46 min
A typical length for comedies, +6 min on the typical 100
typical 100106Half of all comedies run 91–111 min.
Reach
Streams in 42 countries, rent or buy in 44 more
+32Released
1996
December 13, 1996
30 years ago
Genres
ComedyFantasyScience FictionLanguage
English
Original language
Also spoken
FrenchMade in
- United States
Rated
- PG-13United States
Yes: it's rated PG-13 in the United States for violence and strong language, and the viewing guide lists it for kids.
What's in it
- ViolenceMild
- Gore, disturbing imagesModerate
- Frightening scenesMild
- Sex, nudityLittle or none
- Dark themesLittle or none
- Strong languageNamed in the advisories
In white: what the content advisories name. Levels from the title analysis.
Viewing guide
AdultsDate NightFamily Movie NightFriends NightParty VibeIntergenerationalKidsPartner WatchPublic Viewing SafeSolo WatchTeensComfort WatchPure Escapism
and 47 more71 people
- Jack NicholsonPresident Dale / Art Land
- Glenn CloseMarsha Dale
- Annette BeningBarbara Land
- Pierce BrosnanDonald Kessler
- Danny DeVitoRude Gambler
- Martin ShortJerry Ross
- Sarah Jessica ParkerNathalie Lake
- Michael J. FoxJason Stone
Rod SteigerGeneral Decker
Tom JonesTom Jones
Lukas HaasRichie Norris
Natalie PortmanTaffy Dale
Jim BrownByron Williams
Lisa MarieMartian Girl
Sylvia SidneyGrandma Norris
Paul WinfieldGeneral Casey
Pam GrierLouise Williams
Jack BlackBilly Glenn Norris
Janice RiveraCindy
Ray JCedric
Brandon HammondNeville
Joe Don BakerGlenn Norris
O-Lan JonesSue Ann Norris
Christina ApplegateSharona
Directing · 7
- Tim Burton Director, Producer
- Paul F. Bernard Second Second Assistant Director
- Janna Stern Script Supervisor
- Catherine Bond Second Second Assistant Director
- C.C. Barnes Second Second Assistant Director
- David Kelley Second Assistant Director
Writing · 1
- Jonathan Gems Screenplay
Production · 6
- Larry Franco Producer
- Victoria Thomas Casting
- Matthew Barry Casting
- Jeanne McCarthy Casting
- Paul Deason Unit Production Manager, Associate Producer
- Mark S. Miller Associate Producer
Camera · 9
- Peter Suschitzky Director of Photography
- Ray De La Motte Camera Operator
- Michael J. Coo Key Grip
- Suzanne Trucks Second Assistant Camera
- Alan R. Disler First Assistant Camera
- Clyde E. Bryan First Assistant Camera
Editing · 2
- Chris Lebenzon Editor
- Steve Bloom Assistant Editor
Sound · 13
- Danny Elfman Original Music Composer
- Randy Thom Sound Designer, Sound Re-Recording Mixer
- Richard Hymns Supervising Sound Editor
- Shawn Murphy Sound Re-Recording Mixer
- Frank E. Eulner Sound Effects Editor
- Gary Summers Sound Re-Recording Mixer
Art · 6
- Wynn Thomas Production Design
- Nancy Haigh Set Decoration
- Jerry Moss Property Master
- John Dexter Art Direction
- James Hegedus Supervising Art Director
- Colin Batty Sculptor
Costume & Make-Up · 11
- Colleen Atwood Costume Design
- Ve Neill Makeup Artist
- Gary Archer Prosthetics
- Valli O'Reilly Key Makeup Artist
- Julie Hewett Makeup Artist
- Joy Zapata Hairstylist
Visual Effects · 2
- Kyle Balda Animation
- Roger Huynh VFX Artist
Lighting · 1
- Ian Kincaid Chief Lighting Technician
Other crew · 15
- George Cheung Stunts
- Thomas Rosales Jr. Stunts
- Jimmy Ortega Stunts
- Charlie Picerni Stunts
- Corey Michael Eubanks Stunts
- Darrin Prescott Stunts
Tropes
More like this
Similar
Most like Mars Attacks! overall
Nearest on the related map: closest in everything it does to you, not one trait
- Psycho Goreman (2020)
GoodWatch score 66 - Family Guy Presents: It's a Trap! (2010)
GoodWatch score 67 - Kung Fury (2015)
GoodWatch score 78 - Family Guy Presents: Something, Something, Something, Dark Side (2009)
GoodWatch score 72 - Futurama: Bender's Big Score (2007)
GoodWatch score 88 - Stuart Fails to Save the Universe (2026)
GoodWatch score 67 - (T)Raumschiff Surprise - Periode 1 (2004)
GoodWatch score 60 - Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs (2008)
GoodWatch score 75 - Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
GoodWatch score 86 - Invader ZIM (2001)
GoodWatch score 84 - Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
GoodWatch score 67 - Family Guy Presents: Blue Harvest (2007)
GoodWatch score 77 - Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
GoodWatch score 75 - Gremlins (1984)
GoodWatch score 75 - Mystery Men (1999)
GoodWatch score 63 - Star Trek: Lower Decks (2020)
GoodWatch score 67
Same genre
More comedy movies
- Pulp Fiction (1994)
GoodWatch score 90 - Jojo Rabbit (2019)
GoodWatch score 68 - Green Book (2018)
GoodWatch score 74 - Airplane! (1980)
GoodWatch score 77 - Being John Malkovich (1999)
GoodWatch score 84 - Pineapple Express (2008)
GoodWatch score 66 - DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story (2004)
GoodWatch score 60
