100 Best Disaster Movies of All Time
No Alien Invasion or Monster Movies Included
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- CreatorCraig MazinStarsJessie BuckleyJared HarrisStellan SkarsgårdIn April 1986, the city of Chernobyl in the Soviet Union suffers one of the worst nuclear disasters in the history of mankind. Consequently, many heroes put their lives on the line in the following days, weeks and months.
- DirectorLars von TrierStarsKirsten DunstCharlotte GainsbourgKiefer SutherlandTwo sisters find their already strained relationship challenged as a mysterious new planet threatens to collide with Earth.
- DirectorJim AbrahamsDavid ZuckerJerry ZuckerStarsRobert HaysJulie HagertyLeslie NielsenAfter the crew becomes sick with food poisoning, a neurotic ex-fighter pilot must safely land a commercial airplane full of passengers.
- DirectorJ.A. BayonaStarsNaomi WattsEwan McGregorTom HollandThe story of a tourist family in Thailand caught in the destruction and chaotic aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
- DirectorGeorge P. CosmatosStarsSophia LorenRichard HarrisMartin SheenPassengers on a European train have been exposed to a deadly disease. Nobody will let them off the train. So what happens next?
- DirectorNicholas MeyerStarsJason RobardsJoBeth WilliamsSteve GuttenbergThe effects of a devastating nuclear holocaust on small-town residents of eastern Kansas.
- DirectorFederico FelliniStarsFreddie JonesBarbara JeffordVictor PolettiIn 1914, a luxury ship leaves Italy in order to scatter the ashes of a famous opera singer. A lovable bumbling journalist chronicles the voyage and meets the singer's many eccentric friends and admirers.
- DirectorAbel GanceStarsAbel GanceColette DarfeuilSylvie GanceThe two Novalic brothers, Jean and Martial, are in love with the same woman, Genevieve. Jean is an impoverished actor and an idealistic dreamer, who does not want Genevieve to share in his life of suffering. Martial is an internationally-respected astronomer who discovers the return of Lexell's Comet, on a collision course for Earth. Meanwhile, the rich play while the world is arming for war. Martial decides to use the impending threat of world destruction to reorganize and improve global society. But he is opposed by the rich financiers and government officials who stand to lose their power and influence.
- DirectorRuben ÖstlundStarsJohannes KuhnkeLisa Loven KongsliClara WettergrenA family vacationing in the French Alps is confronted with a devastating avalanche.
- StarsMartha IssováMarek TaclíkOskar HesA fire in a Dukla mineshaft in Havirov on July 7, 1961 is the basis for this TV family drama in two episodes.
- DirectorHenry KingStarsTyrone PowerAlice FayeDon AmecheThe O'Leary brothers--honest Jack and roguish Dion--become powerful figures, and eventually rivals, in Chicago on the eve of its Great Fire.
- DirectorAlex ProyasStarsNicolas CageChandler CanterburyRose ByrneM.I.T. professor John Koestler links a mysterious list of numbers from a time capsule to past and future disasters and sets out to prevent the ultimate catastrophe.
- DirectorDon McKellarStarsDon McKellarSandra OhRoberta MaxwellA group of very different individuals with different ideas of how to face the end come together as the world is expected to end in six hours at the turn of the century.
- DirectorStanley KramerStarsGregory PeckAva GardnerFred AstaireAfter a global nuclear war, the residents of Australia must come to terms with the fact that all life will be destroyed in a matter of months.
- 19641h 35mPG8.3 (519K)97MetascoreDirectorStanley KubrickStarsPeter SellersGeorge C. ScottSterling HaydenAn unhinged American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.
- DirectorRoland EmmerichStarsJohn CusackThandiwe NewtonChiwetel EjioforA frustrated writer struggles to keep his family alive when a series of global catastrophes threatens to annihilate mankind.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsHumphrey BogartEdward G. RobinsonLauren BacallA man visits his war buddy's family hotel and finds a gangster running things. As a hurricane approaches, the two end up confronting each other.
- DirectorLorene ScafariaStarsSteve CarellKeira KnightleyMelanie LynskeyAs an asteroid nears Earth, a man finds himself alone after his wife leaves in a panic. He decides to take a road trip to reunite with his high school sweetheart. Accompanying him is a neighbor who inadvertently puts a wrench in his plan.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsAndie MacDowellJulianne MooreTim RobbinsThe day-to-day lives of several suburban Los Angeles residents.
- DirectorMark PellingtonStarsRichard GereLaura LinneyDavid EigenbergA reporter is drawn to a small West Virginia town to investigate a series of strange events, including psychic visions and the appearance of bizarre entities.
- DirectorThomas VinterbergStarsMatthias SchoenaertsLéa SeydouxPeter SimonischekThe 2000 K-141 Kursk submarine disaster is followed by governmental negligence. As the sailors fight for survival, their families desperately battle political obstacles and impossible odds to save them.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsHenry FondaWalter MatthauFritz WeaverA technical malfunction sends American planes to Moscow to deliver a nuclear attack. Can all-out war be averted?
- DirectorJames CameronStarsLeonardo DiCaprioKate WinsletBilly ZaneA seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.
- DirectorCarol ReedStarsMichael RedgraveMargaret LockwoodEdward RigbyIn a small coal-mining village, Bob Fenwick leads a strike over safety standards at the local colliery. Meanwhile, his son David goes off to university with the hope one day to return to help the miners with their working conditions.
- DirectorMark RobsonStarsCharlton HestonAva GardnerGeorge KennedyVarious interconnected people struggle to survive when an earthquake of unimaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles, California.
- DirectorJ. Lee ThompsonStarsGregory PeckOmar SharifTelly SavalasA bandit kidnaps a Marshal who has seen a map showing a gold vein on Indian lands, but other groups are looking for it too, while the Apache try to keep the secret location undisturbed.
- DirectorW.S. Van DykeStarsClark GableJeanette MacDonaldSpencer TracyA Barbary Coast saloonkeeper and a Nob Hill impresario are rivals for the affections of a beautiful singer, both personally and professionally, in 1906 San Francisco.
- DirectorVal GuestStarsEdward JuddJanet MunroLeo McKernWhen the U.S. and Russia unwittingly test atomic bombs at the same time, it alters the nutation (axis of rotation) of the Earth.
- DirectorXiaogang FengStarsDaoming ChenChen LiYi LuThe epic story of a family separated as a result of the Great Tangshan Earthquake of 1976.
- DirectorJames BridgesStarsJane FondaJack LemmonMichael DouglasA reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a nuclear power plant.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsJeff BridgesCaroline GoodallJohn SavageTeenage boys discover discipline and camaraderie on an ill-fated sailing voyage.
- DirectorKinji FukasakuStarsMasao KusakariTsunehiko WataseIsao NatsuyagiAfter a virus devastates the global human population, survivors in Antarctica desperately try to find a cure and save the human race.
- DirectorJoseph KosinskiStarsJosh BrolinMiles TellerJeff BridgesBased on the true story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a group of elite firefighters who risk everything to protect a town from a historic wildfire.
- DirectorJeff NicholsStarsMichael ShannonJessica ChastainShea WhighamPlagued by a series of apocalyptic visions, a young husband and father questions whether to shelter his family from a coming storm, or from himself.
- DirectorRudolph MatéStarsRichard DerrBarbara RushPeter HansenAs a new star and planet hurtle toward a doomed Earth, a small group of survivalists frantically work to complete the rocket which will take them to their new home.
- DirectorDon ChaffeyStarsRaquel WelchJohn RichardsonPercy HerbertPrehistoric man Tumak is banished from his savage tribe and meets pretty Loana, who belongs to a gentler coastal tribe, but he must fight caveman Payto to win her favors.
- DirectorSteven SoderberghStarsMatt DamonKate WinsletJude LawHealthcare professionals, government officials and everyday people find themselves in the midst of a pandemic as the CDC works to find a cure.
- DirectorRonald NeameStarsGene HackmanErnest BorgnineShelley WintersA group of passengers must embark on a harrowing struggle for survival after a rogue wave capsizes their cruise ship at sea.
- DirectorRoland EmmerichStarsDennis QuaidJake GyllenhaalEmmy RossumJack Hall, paleoclimatologist, must make a daring trek from Washington, D.C. to New York City to reach his son, trapped in the cross-hairs of a sudden international storm which plunges the planet into a new Ice Age.
- DirectorDarren AronofskyStarsRussell CroweJennifer ConnellyAnthony HopkinsNoah is chosen by God to undertake a momentous mission before an apocalyptic flood cleanses the world.
- DirectorAleksandr MittaStarsGeorgi ZhzhyonovAnatoliy VasilevLeonid FilatovStory of the lives of three Soviet pilots who are united by disaster in a small town in the mountains.
- DirectorRoar UthaugStarsKristoffer JonerAne Dahl TorpJonas Hoff OftebroAlthough anticipated, no one is really ready when the mountain pass above the scenic, narrow Norwegian fjord Geiranger collapses and creates an 85-meter high violent tsunami. A geologist is one of those caught in the middle of it.
- DirectorRonald NeameStarsSean ConneryNatalie WoodKarl MaldenThe U.S. must join forces with the U.S.S.R. in order to destroy a gigantic asteroid heading straight for Earth.
- DirectorFrank MarshallStarsEthan HawkeVincent SpanoJosh HamiltonAfter crash-landing in the snowswept Andes, a Uruguayan rugby team has no choice but to turn to desperate measures in order to survive.
- DirectorMervyn LeRoyStarsSpencer TracyFrank SinatraKerwin MathewsA crusty, eccentric priest recruits three reluctant convicts to help him rescue a children's leper colony from a Pacific island menaced by a smoldering volcano.
- DirectorJohnnie ToStarsChing Wan LauAlex FongCarman LeeFollowing the lives of firefighters as they deal with joys and hardships, both on the job and with their own personal lives.
- DirectorM. Night ShyamalanStarsMark WahlbergZooey DeschanelJohn LeguizamoA science teacher, his wife, and a young girl struggle to survive a plague that causes those infected to commit suicide.
- DirectorAndrew L. StoneStarsRobert StackDorothy MaloneGeorge SandersAfter a boiler explosion aboard an aging ocean liner, a man struggles to free his injured wife from the wreckage of their cabin and ensure the safety of their four-year-old daughter as the ship begins to sink.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsDustin HoffmanRene RussoMorgan FreemanArmy doctors struggle to find a cure for a deadly virus spreading throughout a California town that was brought to America by an African monkey.
- DirectorRoger DonaldsonStarsPierce BrosnanLinda HamiltonJamie Renée SmithA volcanologist arrives at a countryside town recently named the second-most desirable place to live in America, and discovers that a nearby long-dormant volcano may awaken at any moment.
- DirectorClarence BrownStarsMyrna LoyTyrone PowerGeorge BrentIn India, a married British aristocrat is reunited with an old flame, but she truly has her sights set on a handsome surgeon.
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsRory CalhounLea MassariGeorges MarchalWhile holidaying in Rhodes, an Athenian war hero becomes involved in two plots to overthrow the tyrannical king: one from Rhodian patriots, and the other from sinister Phoenician agents.
- DirectorShirô MoritaniAndrew MayerStarsLorne GreeneKeiju KobayashiRhonda HopkinsThe shorted re-edited American version of Submersion of Japan, in which Japan slowly sinks into the sea as the US and Japan work together to stop it.
- DirectorErnest PintoffStarsArt CarneyDavid HuffmanCassie YatesDramatization of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. The movie begins with the volcano's awakening on March 20, 1980 and ends with its eruption on May 18.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsDorothy LamourJon HallMary AstorA Polynesian sailor unjustly imprisoned after defending himself against a colonial bully is relentlessly persecuted by his island's martinet French governor.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsGeorge C. ScottAnne BancroftWilliam AthertonA chronicle of the Hindenburg disaster in which a zeppelin burst into flames.
- DirectorMary McGuckianStarsGabriel ByrneRobert De NiroHarvey KeitelIn 1714 Peru, a friar is tried by the Inquisition for questioning God's intentions when five die in the collapse of an Andean rope bridge.
- DirectorAbel FerraraStarsWillem DafoeShanyn LeighNatasha LyonneA look at how a painter and a successful actor spend their last day together before the world comes to an end.
- DirectorHerbert SelpinWerner KlinglerStarsSybille SchmitzHans NielsenKirsten HeibergThird Reich's Nazi propaganda epic about a heroic fictional German officer on board of the RMS Titanic. On its maiden voyage in April 1912, the supposedly unsinkable ship hits an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean and starts to go down.
- DirectorShinji HiguchiStarsTsuyoshi KusanagiKô ShibasakiEtsushi ToyokawaJapan will sink down to the deep sea. The governments only hope is evacuate all Japanese to some other countries.
- DirectorJun'ya SatôStarsKen TakakuraShin'ichi ChibaKei YamamotoCriminals plant a bomb on a high-speed train. It will explode when the train slows down, unless a ransom is paid.
- DirectorJan TroellStarsJason RobardsMia FarrowMax von SydowThe desperate love affair between a young Samoan chief and an American painter, against the will of her father. Amid this man-made tension comes a hurricane so devastating, the lives of the lovers and the entire island are imperiled.
- DirectorBernard L. KowalskiStarsMaximilian SchellDiane BakerBrian KeithIn 1883, ship captain Hanson plans a shipwreck salvage mission in The Dutch East Indies to retrieve a cargo of pearls but an unexpected volcano eruption and a state-ordered transport of convicts upset his plans.
- DirectorAndrew MartonStarsDana AndrewsJanette ScottKieron MooreA dying scientist pushes forward his project to tap through to the Earth's magma layer, with results that threaten to destroy the Earth as we know it.
- DirectorJack SmightStarsCharlton HestonKaren BlackGeorge KennedyA 747 in flight collides with a small plane, and is rendered pilotless. Somehow the control tower must get a pilot aboard so the jet can land.
- DirectorAlvin RakoffStarsBarry NewmanSusan ClarkShelley WintersA pyromaniac, ex-employee of a city oil refinery creates an explosion at the facility which starts a chain-reaction of fires that engulf the entire city.
- DirectorJK YounStarsKim Yoo-jungHa Ji-WonLee Min-kiA woman named Yeon-hee (Ha Ji-won) lives in Busan with her boyfriend Man-sik (Sol Kyung-gu) near Haeundae Beach. But, when they find out a tsunami will hit the city, They realize they only have 10 minutes to escape!
- DirectorRoy Ward BakerStarsKenneth MoreRonald AllenRobert AyresOn her maiden voyage in April 1912, the supposedly unsinkable RMS Titanic strikes an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean.
- DirectorBaltasar KormákurStarsJason ClarkeAng Phula SherpaThomas M. WrightOn May 10, 1996, mountain guides Rob Hall and Scott Fischer combine their expedition teams for a final ascent to the summit of Mount Everest. With little warning, a storm strikes the mountain and the climbers must now battle to survive.
- DirectorJoseph KaneStarsJohn WayneAnn DvorakJoseph SchildkrautA cowboy competes with a gambling tycoon on the Barbary Coast for the hand of a beautiful dance-hall queen.
- DirectorFelix E. FeistStarsPeggy ShannonLois WilsonSidney BlackmerA massive earthquake strikes the United States, which destroys the West Coast and unleashes a massive flood that threatens to destroy the East Coast as well.
- DirectorJames GoldstoneStarsGeorge SegalTimothy BottomsRichard WidmarkA blackmailer threatens to sabotage roller coasters at various American amusement parks if he isn't paid a huge ransom.
- DirectorPaolo HeuschMario BavaStarsPaul HubschmidMadeleine FischerFiorella MariScientists discover that a group of meteors are hurtling on a collison course with Earth, and if they hit, the planet will be destroyed.
- DirectorMichael BayStarsBruce WillisBilly Bob ThorntonBen AffleckAfter discovering that an asteroid the size of Texas will impact Earth in less than a month, NASA recruits a misfit team of deep-core drillers to save the planet.
- DirectorDavid MackenzieStarsEwan McGregorEva GreenLauren TempanyA chef and a scientist fall in love as an epidemic begins to rob people of their sensory perceptions.
- DirectorRon HowardStarsKurt RussellWilliam BaldwinRobert De NiroTwo feuding siblings carrying on a heroic family tradition as Chicago firefighters. But when a puzzling series of arson attacks is reported, they are forced to set aside their differences to solve the mystery surrounding these crimes.
- DirectorJerry JamesonStarsJack LemmonLee GrantJoseph CottenArt thieves hijack a 747, hit fog and crash into the ocean, trapping them and the passengers under one hundred feet of water.
- DirectorJohn GuillerminStarsPaul NewmanSteve McQueenWilliam HoldenAt the opening party of a colossal, but poorly constructed, office building, a massive fire breaks out that threatens to destroy the tower and everyone in it.
- DirectorPatricia RiggenStarsAntonio BanderasRodrigo SantoroJuliette BinocheBased on the real-life event, when a gold and copper mine collapses, it traps 33 miners underground for 69 days.
- DirectorMario BonnardStarsSteve ReevesChristine KaufmannFernando ReyA demobilized centurion returns home to Pompeii to find his father murdered by a gang of black-hooded Christian robbers that terrorizes the city and he decides to investigate the matter while the nearby volcano threatens to erupt.
- DirectorMimi LederStarsRobert DuvallTéa LeoniElijah WoodA comet is discovered to be on a collision course with Earth. As doomsday nears, the human race prepares for the worst.
- DirectorFred F. SearsStarsKathryn GrantWilliam LeslieTristram CoffinDr. Conway has perfected a machine that predicts earthquakes, and has determined that one will strike California within 24 hours. A computer analysis determines that the entire world would explode within a little more than 28 days.
- DirectorCorey AllenStarsRock HudsonMia FarrowRobert ForsterThe vacationers at a winter wonderland struggle to survive after an avalanche of snow crashes into their ski resort. Their holiday then turns into a game of survival.
- DirectorBrad PeytonStarsDwayne JohnsonCarla GuginoAlexandra DaddarioIn the aftermath of a massive earthquake in California, a rescue-chopper pilot makes a dangerous journey with his ex-wife across the state in order to rescue his daughter.
- DirectorPeter BergStarsMark WahlbergKurt RussellDouglas M. GriffinA dramatization of the disaster in April 2010, when the offshore drilling rig called the Deepwater Horizon exploded, resulting in the worst oil spill in American history.
- DirectorRenzo MartinelliStarsMichel SerraultDaniel AuteuilLaura MoranteEngineer Semenza built Vajont dam ignoring landslide risks from Mount Toc. In 1963, a massive slide triggered a tsunami devastating Longarone, killing around 2,000 despite journalist Tina Merlin's warnings being disregarded.
- DirectorRowland V. LeeStarsLynn BariAkim TamiroffFrancis LedererA rope bridge over a gorge in the Peruvian Andes snaps, sending five people plunging to their deaths. A priest sets out to find out more about the life of each of the victims.
- DirectorJan de BontStarsHelen HuntBill PaxtonCary ElwesTwo storm chasers on the brink of divorce must work together to create an advanced weather alert system by putting themselves in the cross-hairs of extremely violent tornadoes.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsGeorge ClooneyMark WahlbergJohn C. ReillyAn unusually intense storm pattern catches some commercial fishermen unaware and puts them in mortal danger.
- DirectorRuggero DeodatoStarsJames FranciscusMimsy FarmerVenantino VenantiniA reporter tries to stop the crash of an aircraft after uncovering an airline's plot to save their business by sabotaging Concorde flights and have them decommissioned.
- DirectorGeorge SeatonHenry HathawayStarsBurt LancasterDean MartinGeorge KennedyA bomber on board an airplane, an airport almost closed by snow, and various personal problems of the people involved.
- DirectorDanny PangOxide Chun PangStarsChing Wan LauLouis KooAngelica LeeOn the hottest day in 50 years, a serious fire incident happened to a busy commercial tower, a gaggle of fire fighters with an indestructible enthusiasm are going to save lives.
- DirectorSteven QualeStarsRichard ArmitageSarah Wayne CalliesMatt WalshStorm trackers, thrill-seekers, and everyday townspeople document an unprecedented onslaught of tornadoes touching down in the town of Silverton.
- DirectorJohn Andreas AndersenStarsKristoffer JonerAne Dahl TorpEdith Haagenrud-SandeIn 1904 an earthquake of magnitude 5.4 on the Richter scale shook Oslo, with an epicenter in the "Oslo Graben" which runs under the Norwegian capital. There are now signs that indicate that we can expect a major future earthquake in Oslo.
- DirectorJames GoldstoneStarsPaul NewmanJacqueline BissetWilliam HoldenAn active volcano threatens a south Pacific island resort and its guests as a power struggle ensues between the property's developer and a drilling foreman.
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsKit HaringtonEmily BrowningKiefer SutherlandA slave-turned-gladiator finds himself in a race against time to save his true love, who has been betrothed to a corrupt Roman Senator. As Mount Vesuvius erupts, he must fight to save his beloved as Pompeii crumbles around him.
- DirectorIrwin AllenStarsMichael CaineKatharine RossRichard WidmarkA huge swarm of deadly African bees spreads terror over American cities by killing thousands of people.
- DirectorJi-hoon KimStarsKim Sang-kyungSol Kyung-guSon Ye-jinA Christmas Eve party at a luxury residential building takes a horrific turn when a fire breaks out.
- DirectorMick JacksonStarsTommy Lee JonesAnne HecheGaby HoffmannA volcano erupts in downtown Los Angeles and a city official and a seismologist try to stop its inevitable flow through the city.
- DirectorDean DevlinStarsGerard ButlerJim SturgessAbbie CornishWhen the network of satellites designed to control the global climate starts to attack Earth, it's a race against the clock for its creator to uncover the real threat before a worldwide Geostorm wipes out everything and everyone.