After seeing Steven Spielberg’s “Disclosure Day,” check out these real-life accounts of strange aerial sightings.

The 12 best UFO documentaries for those who want to believe

After seeing Steven Spielberg's "Disclosure Day," check out these real-life accounts of strange aerial sightings.

and Kevin Jacobsen

June 13, 2026 3:00 p.m. ET

Bill Ryan in 'Mirage Men'; a former student in 'Ariel Phenomenon'; Christo Roppolo in 'Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs'. Credit:

Perception Management Productions/YouTube; String Theory Films, LLC; Virgil Films

What is it about UFOs that we humans find so fascinating? Is it the desire to know that there may be life beyond our planet? Is there something about these flying objects being unidentified that makes us feel like amateur detectives? Is it the conspiracy element that drives us to seek answers that the government may be covering up?

No matter what drives our interest, it's the intangible mystery of it all that connects UFO enthusiasts. For decades, documentarians have been intrigued by stories of UFO sightings, from centuries-spanning intros to the subject like *UFOs: The Secret History* (2010), to character-driven pieces such as *Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs* (2016), to the prolific works of James Fox.

Ahead, we're looking at some of the best UFO documentaries that explore what may be out there, for those of us who want to believe.**

Ariel Phenomenon (2022)

A former student in 'Ariel Phenomenon'.

String Theory Films, LLC

Director Randall Nickerson spent more than a decade gathering material for this documentary, which tells the story of a massive otherworldly sighting and the psychological effects of not being believed. On Sept. 16, 1994, 60 children claimed they saw a UFO on their school grounds in rural Zimbabwe; their accounts were dismissed, but the group is still sticking to their story nearly 30 years later.* Ariel Phenomenon* follows one of those witnesses as she returns to the site of the event as an adult, bringing in a BBC reporter and a Harvard professor to corroborate her story — and those of her classmates — for the first time. —*Katie Rife*

Where to watch *Ariel Phenomenon*: Amazon Prime Video (to buy)

Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs (2016)

Christo Roppolo in 'Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs'.

If the title of this documentary isn't enough to sell you on it, the highly entertaining story therein surely will. The cursed man who sees UFOs is Christo Roppolo, an eccentric Californian who claims to have videotaped multiple sightings over the years. Director Justin Gaar joins him on various pursuits to capture more footage, and he (and most viewers) find it impossible not to be charmed by Roppolo's enthusiasm. As the film shifts to a more poignant meditation on Roppolo's life beyond his hunt for aliens, Gaar shows how investigating the human observer is just as fascinating as what they observe. —*Kevin Jacobsen*

Where to watch *Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs*: Tubi

I Know What I Saw (2009)

James Fox (right) in 'I Know What I Saw'.

James Fox is a mainstay of the UFO sighting scene, and his film for the History Channel is considered one of the most thorough and well-researched documentaries on the “nuts and bolts” side of extraterrestrial research. Fox’s focus here is on the link between the U.S. military and the UFO phenomenon: What do they know, how long have they known it, and why aren’t they sharing this information with the public? His approach is straightforward and fact-based, utilizing footage from congressional hearings and press conferences, along with interviews with retired military and government officials, to lend an air of legitimacy to the subject. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *I Know What I Saw*: Amazon Prime Video

Love & Saucers (2017)

David Huggins in 'Love & Saucers'.

Curator Pictures/Amazon

David Huggins, a New Jersey-based artist who claims to have had a consensual sexual relationship with a female alien that lasted for several years, could be nothing more than a joke. What makes this documentary about Huggins so good, though, is that it doesn’t treat him as one, instead using his story as a jumping-off point into an earnest exploration of the nature of belief and, indeed, of reality itself. Sequences of Huggins explaining his artwork — a series of paintings depicting his encounters that numbers in the hundreds — to skeptical gallery-hoppers skillfully strike a tricky tonal balance, and the addition of a religious studies professor who compares Huggins’ experiences to those of medieval saints brings a fresh, fascinating perspective. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Love & Saucers*: Fandango at Home

Mirage Men (2013)

Bill Ryan in 'Mirage Men'.

Perception Management Productions/ Youtube

This provocative documentary, based on the book of the same name by Mark Pilkington and John Lundberg, presents a radical alternative theory of UFOs: that they’re all lies. What the directors posit is that, 60 years ago, the U.S. military deliberately concocted the extraterrestrial phenomenon as a way to distract the public from classified weapons research, and that the government has been manipulating belief in aliens ever since. Interviews with former members of the AFOSI (Air Force Office of Special Investigations) officers support Pilkington and Lundberg’s case, and the film has a spooky aura that makes you feel as if you’re being watched. But by whom? —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Mirage Men*: Tubi

Moment of Contact (2022)

James Fox (right) in 'Moment of Contact'.

James Fox Productions/YouTube

Another documentary investigation of a global extraterrestrial event, this film focuses on the Varginha UFO Incident, which began in the winter of 1996 when three teenage girls saw a four-foot-tall creature with a huge head and red eyes they described as “the devil” in Varginha, Brazil. Things get even weirder from there as documentarian James Fox shines a light on a lesser-known example of a so-called UFO “flap” in his deep-dive, interview-based style. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Moment of Contact*: Tubi

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Out of the Blue (2003)

Bill George in 'Out of the Blue'.

Billing itself as “the definitive investigation of the UFO phenomenon,” this 2003 film was originally produced for the Sci-Fi Channel, and its reputation has only grown in the years since its release. It also marked the directorial debut of James Fox, a name that appears multiple times on this list. Fans praise the documentary for the depth of its research and its level-headed approach to what can be a very out-there topic. It’s convinced of the existence of UFOs, and argues this point passionately, which was a risky stance to take 20-plus years ago — but, given revelations since, it’s a stance that’s aged as well as the documentary itself. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Out of the Blue*: Amazon Prime Video

The Phenomenon (2020)

Garry Nolan in 'The Phenomenon'.

Documentarian and UFO expert James Fox’s 2020 follow-up to *I Know What I Saw* incorporates new information that’s come to light in the decade since that previous film’s release, creating an informative overview of what *we know* about what the* U.S. government* knows about UFOs (or, to use the more official term, UAPs — unidentified anomalous phenomena). The documentary covers revelations from *The* *New York Times*’ bombshell 2017 investigation into the Pentagon’s clandestine UFO program, pairing it with new evidence for a movie that comes with the endorsement of both Jacques Vallée (a scientist/UFOlogist) and now-deceased U.S. Senator Harry Reid. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *The Phenomenon*: Amazon Prime Video

UFOs: The Secret History (2010)

A diagram from 'UFOs: The Secret History'.

If you're looking for a primer on the history of unidentified flying objects and our cultural understanding of them, this is where to start. Director David Cherniack doesn't resort to sensationalist storytelling; rather, he treats the subject with earnest sincerity as we learn about 19th-century sightings, explore what might really have happened in Roswell, and hear modern-day accounts. Bolstered by expert analysis, the film provides a fascinating look into governmental cover-ups over the years and humanity's natural curiosity for what may be out there. —*K.J.*

Where to watch *UFOs: The Secret History*: Amazon Prime Video

Unacknowledged (2017)

Steven M. Greer in 'Unacknowledged'.

UFOlogist Steven M. Greer is the founder of the Disclosure Project, a group that advocates for classified information on extraterrestrials to be made available to the public. This crowdfunded 2017 documentary is part of that mission, collecting theories and stories from the early-‘60s through the present day that all point toward a government cover-up of the truth about aliens. Like *I Know What I Saw*, this film relies heavily on interviews with retired military personnel to give it credibility, along with archival footage to bolster Greer’s convincing case. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Unacknowledged*: Amazon Prime Video

Unsolved Mysteries, “Something in the Sky” (2022)

A reenactment in the 'Unsolved Mysteries' episode 'Something in the Sky'.

The long-running newsmagazine show has performed dozens of investigations into extraterrestrial encounters, but this 2022 episode, part of the revival series on Netflix, is among the best. Its focus is on the UFO sightings that occurred all over West Michigan in 1994, where multiple people — including a National Weather Service meteorologist — saw what they described as clusters of lights flying over Lake Michigan before abruptly disappearing. This episode, the second episode of Volume 3, is structured around first-person interviews, and while it offers no clear answers, it’s pretty darn compelling. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Unsolved Mysteries*: Netflix

Witness of Another World (2018)

Young Juan in 'Witness of Another World'.

Like* Ariel Phenomenon* and *Love & Saucers*, this UFO documentary from director Alan Stivelman focuses on the human consequences of extraterrestrial contact. The film follows Juan, an Argentinian gaucho whose life was so shattered by an alien encounter that he still lives as a hermit and refuses to talk about what happened to him even 30 years later. Astronomer and UFOlogist Jacques Vallée appears to shed additional light on Juan’s story, and dramatic effects sequences dramatize the emotional impact of his close encounter. —*K.R.*

Where to watch *Witness of Another World*: Fandango at Home (to rent)

- Documentary Movies

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Documentary”