10 Survival Movies and Shows That May Scare You into Staying Home - Netflix Tudum

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    These Survival Movies and Shows Might Ruin the Outdoors for You

    “I’d survive that,” you say from your safe, comfy couch.

    By Ananda Dillon
    May 4, 2026

From time to time, it’s good to be reminded just how resilient and resourceful humans can be. While we all cross our fingers that we’ll never have to find out exactly how strong our will to live actually is, there’s something very reassuring in watching stories of survival against the odds. Maybe it’s the cave person deep down in all of us, but seeing others live off the land, roughing it without electricity, running water, or DoorDash, both exercises our instincts and entertains us.

It’s also the safest way to “experience” an adrenaline-fueled catastrophe. In fact, some say the best way to prepare for a disaster is to imagine yourself going through it. So, really, watching survival movies and shows is just one way of doing our homework. Prepare to take notes and grow your appreciation for indoor plumbing as you (plane) dive into the wild with these exhilarating watches.

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    Man closely examining a large map dotted with red pins in a dimly lit room, appearing focused and thoughtful as he touches the map with his hand.

Against The Ice

Based on a true story, this film emphasizes that the only reason we know as much about our world as we do is that we willingly head into the wild unknown. It’s 1909, and Captain Ejnar Mikkelsen (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) has taken a crew to East Greenland to try to find the records made by a previous and ill-fated expedition. The members of the original mission were out to gather proof that Greenland is an island, thus preventing America from making a claim on it. Mikkelsen and a lone volunteer from his crew, Iver Iversen (Joe Cole), set out on sleds and are very quickly overwhelmed by the extreme conditions of northern Greenland. Polar bears, dying sled dogs, diminishing supplies, and uncharted terrain make things difficult, but they press on, ultimately making history for their accomplishments. 

Against The Ice
1h 43m   13+   2022
Watch

Apex

Humans often pose a threat scarier than nature in survival films. In this intense thriller, Charlize Theron (The Old Guard 2) stars as Sasha, a grieving climber on a solo trip to the mountains of Australia. She crosses paths with a few unsavory men, but Ben (Taron Egerton) seems friendly and gives her advice on where to camp. When she wakes up one morning to find her pack missing, she runs into Ben, who is initially helpful — until he reveals he stole her pack to lure her to him, forcing her into a ruthless, ritualistic game of cat and mouse. Sasha faces raging river waters and steep rock faces, and she lives off what little she has with her. But none of that is as horrifying as the depraved killer hunting her down. 

The I-Land

Washing ashore on a deserted island would be disorienting enough, but in this series, the 10 people who find themselves on an island beach also have no memory of who they are or how they got there. Instead, they find their names written on their shirt tags and come across various items buried in random places. Chase (Natalie Martinez) focuses on finding food and water, but suspects there’s a bigger conspiracy behind their circumstances. Meanwhile, KC (Kate Bosworth) is combative and suspicious of Chase and her questions. As arguments escalate between the islanders, and they slowly start to get their memories back, they realize a far more sinister game is afoot.

Keep Breathing

Stuck in an airport and desperate to escape her own life, attorney Liv (Melissa Barrera) begs pilot George (Mike Dopud) and his passenger, Sam (Austin Stowell), to allow her to tag along on their private charter to Inuvik in northern Canada. Mid-flight, the engine fails, and the plane crashes into a lake in the Canadian wilderness. Liv has to use what little she retrieves from the plane to stay alive. But no one who has personal demons is ever truly alone, and Liv has no choice but to confront the harsh truths about her past that she’s been running from. To find the strength to survive, she’ll need to dig deep. 

Nowhere

Set in a dystopian future, this Spanish film is all the more harrowing with the double threat of both a nature crisis and a tyrannical government. Expectant mother Mia (Anna Castillo) and partner Nico (Tamar Novas) are trying to escape Spain, where dwindling resources have left people desperate and the government has turned to genocide to control the population. They sneak into a shipping container but are soon separated, leaving Mia alone as her container is loaded onto a boat. When a storm knocks the container into the ocean and it slowly begins to fill with water, she must use the goods inside to sustain herself. Even more pressing is the looming possibility that, at any moment, Mia could go into labor. 

True Spirit

Another real-life adventure brought to the screen, this movie is about Jessica Watson (Teagan Croft), a 16-year-old Australian girl who, in 2009, set out in her sailboat, determined to be the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe. Her mother, Julie (Anna Paquin), her father, Roger (Josh Lawson), her mentor, Ben (Cliff Curtis), and her three siblings are rightfully nervous about letting her take a 6-month trip on open waters all alone. Jessica holds on to her dream and sets out on a 210-day trip full of ups and downs — one of which is a truly terrifying run-in with not one but three storm cells that unite into a superstorm that would daunt even the oldest and most experienced of sailors.

Yellowjackets

Yellowjackets
16+   2021

 

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