One of the Most Absurd Sci-Fi Comedies of All Time Just Started Streaming on Paramount+

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On December 1st, Paramount+ added Coneheads to its streaming catalog. The absurdist fish-out-of-water comedy is based on Saturday Night Live comedy sketches and follows a cone-headed extraterrestrial family who find themselves stranded in New Jersey and attempting to blend in with their human neighbors after a recon mission for their home planet of Remulak goes awry. The film features 16 past, present, and future SNL cast members, including Dan Aykroyd, Jane Curtin, David Spade, Adam Sandler, and Chris Farley, among numerous others.

Coneheads Is an Underrated Sci-Fi Film With Surprising Depth

Don’t let the low 40% critic score and 38% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes deter you – Coneheads is a great movie, and one that is definitely worth rewatching on streaming. Beyond the all-star cast of SNL greats (Coneheads takes the crown as the movie with the most Saturday Night Live cast members in it), the movie is remembered as one of the most absurd sci-fi comedies ever, and its unique brand of strange delivers plenty of heart.

The movie uses the simple premise of aliens trying to fit into suburban America to paint a surprisingly smart, touching take on immigrant struggles, assimilation, and what it really means to be an American family, balancing its weirdness and absurdist humor with a genuinely touching core. The movie perfectly uses its sci-fi premise to make immigration relatable and funny as Beldar and Prymaat struggle to understand Earth customs, like “narfle the garthok” and eating French fries, attempt to raise a first-generation child on Earth, and face societal judgment, all while they learn to embrace American life and are ultimately accepted into their community.

Coneheads was far from a blockbuster (it only earned $21 million against a $30 million budget) and far below a critical darling, but it’s a classic comedy with sci-fi roots and a surprising cultural impact. The movie, which features plenty of quotable lines and laugh-out-loud moments, is a wholesome and hilarious comedy that has garnered a deserved cult following over the years.

What’s New on Paramount+?

Paramount+ subscribers looking for more movies to stream have no shortage of options. In addition to Coneheads, films including 22 Jump Street, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Django Unchained, Forrest Gump, and No Country for Old Men started streaming on December 1st. Other films now streaming include Braveheart, the Beverly Hills Cop movies, Gone Baby Gone, Inglourious Basterds, and Serendipity, as well as holiday titles such as Adam Sandler’s Eight Crazy Nights, Ernest Saves Christmas, and Miracle on 34th Street.