Let’s get real, nothing excites science fiction aficionados quite like a big and dazzling reveal of a weapon. These movie-inspired gadgets haven’t stayed just as machinery—they’re among the mythical components of the movies. So, dressed in your fake blaster, join us as we expose 10 of the most iconic sci-fi weapons ever manufactured in the movies, from the quirky to the outright iconic.
10. Noisy Cricket (Men in Black)
Little, goofy, and insanely destructive—the Noisy Cricket is the best gag gun. Will Smith’s Agent J is left with this little blaster, and each time he fires, he’s knocked backward as it destroys everything within its vicinity. It looks like a toy, but it’s one of the most hilarious and iconic movie guns of all time.
9. Identity Discs (Tron)
In Tron, your computer storage is also your attack vehicle. The radiant Identity Discs not only house all memory and function, but can kill enemies with a single toss. Imagine a USB drive and an endless death frisbee combined, and one of the most beautiful visual effects to emerge from cyberspace.
8. Gristle Gun (eXistenZ)
It requires David Cronenberg to make a gun that’s repulsive and genius. The Gristle Gun, built from teeth and bones, fires tooth bullets with nauseating precision. It’s horrific, it’s unforgettable, and it’s proof that in sci-fi, trash can kill.
7. Head Bomb (Total Recall)
Few cinematic weapons are more extreme (or explosive) than the Head Bomb. When Quaid, disguised as a woman, illegally enters a forbidden area in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s movie, the defective mask proves to be a time bomb. It’s absurd, over-the-top, and one of the wildest reveals in the history of science fiction.
6. PKD Blaster (Blade Runner)
Rick Deckard’s sidearm is as legendary and mysterious as the film itself. Sleek, heavy, and completely recognizable, the PKD gun is the perfect gun for a replicant hunter. Its look has been sufficient to garner decades of fan love—and cement its place as one of the coolest sci-fi weapons of all time.
5. Auto 9 (RoboCop)
Built right into RoboCop’s firearms system, the Auto 9 is a machine pistol with gravitas. Stored in his cybernetic leg holster, it can mow down almost anything that gets in its way. It’s a futuristic and old-fashioned gunslinger—a weapon that symbolizes RoboCop’s cold, mechanical justice.
4. M41A Pulse Rifle (Aliens)
The Colonial Marines are business as usual, and the M41A Pulse Rifle is the proof. Powerful, and with that iconic sound, this rifle was iconic the moment it debuted. Ripley even one-ups it by attaching a flamethrower to it, making it one of the coolest guns in movie history.
3. Proton Packs (Ghostbusters)
“Don’t cross the streams!” Proton packs are every ghost hunter’s fantasy gadget. The Ghostbusters invented them, and they’re nuclear-powered backpacks that can lasso and trap spirits, as well as making them look really cool. They’re as integral to the franchise as the theme music.
2. Phasers (Star Trek)
Whatever you want to halt, vaporize, or cut through metal, Starfleet phasers have it. They’re easy, dependable, and immediately recognizable to Trekkies everywhere. With settings that include “light tap” to “obliteration,” they’re the sci-fi version of a Swiss Army knife.
1. Lightsabers (Star Wars)
You knew it was inevitable. Lightsabers are not just weapons—ravatars of pop culture. Kyber crystal-powered, plasmatic blades of light that flash within the grasp of both Jedi and Sith alike, they’ve illuminated some of the most iconic fights to ever grace the screen. Sleek, deadly, and eternally hip, lightsabers will always be the queens of the science fiction arsenal.
So if you receive your pick, which would you choose for your own space journey? Just be careful about recoil, ghost slime, or sawing through a starship bulkhead by mistake.