As one of the most popular and longest-running science fiction franchises of all time that predates even the likes of Star Trek and Star Wars, the British series Doctor Who has left a strong impact on popular culture. At the heart of it lies a seemingly simple story about an alien who travels through time and space and experiences various adventures.
However, the series has offered many original moments and ideas, not least of all the regeneration of the main character. Considering the popularity of the Doctor Who series, it won't come as a surprise to learn that the show inspired multiple science fiction movies.
5 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Doctor Who started airing in 1963, so by the time the iconic science fiction movie 2001: A Space Odyssey premiered, Doctor Who was already an established show. While the inspiration isn't as obvious story-wise, there is still a connection between the two. Before he finished the movie, its director Stanley Kubrick apparently sought the Doctor Who production team's knowledge, and wanted to know how to create the special effect of the spaceship.
In other words, even though Kubrick went his own way in the movie, he drew the technical know-how from the creative forces behind Doctor Who. The movie would have most likely existed without the show as well, but it's impossible to determine whether it would have looked so realistic and believable. Finally, there's also the fact that by the early 1960s, the New Yorker Kubrick was already working in the UK as well. This made it that much easier for him to watch Doctor Who and get inspired by the series.
4 Back To The Future (1985 - 1990)
The Back to the Future trilogy became an icon of its own. In fact, many fans might not realize it shares significant similarities with Doctor Who. In both franchises, the characters use a time machine that also functions as a vehicle. In Doctor Who, it's a spaceship; in Back to the Future, it's a car, the DeLorean.
The movies focus on the eccentric Doctor Brown who has a younger companion, Marty McFly. Their relationship is similar to how the Doctor took various younger humans on his journeys, such as Rose Tyler or Amy Pond. And finally, both franchises mix humor, science fiction, and drama in equal parts. Once the viewers notice the shared points, it's impossible to unsee them. The good news is both series are worth watching, regardless of their similarities.
3 Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Multiple Star Trek movies use the motive of time travel, but the closest to Doctor Who is the fourth Star Trek movie. Captain Kirk, the newly resurrected Spock, and their friends travel back in time to 1980s San Francisco in order to find a few whales and bring them to the future. The movie has an ecological subtext, just like multiple Doctor Who stories that discuss how humans exceed at destroying their own planet. The film has a similar mixture of adventure, tension and humor.
And last but not least, it was directed by Leonard Nimoy, Spock's actor. Nimoy almost directed a Doctor Who movie, but it didn't pan out in the end. By doing The Voyage Home, Nimoy then got as close to directing a Doctor Who adventure as he could have.
2 Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
Of all science fiction movies inspired by Doctor Who, Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure takes the most from the British series. It focuses on two friends who get the option to travel through time in a phone box. Since the Doctor uses a ship masked as a police box, it's obvious that Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure drew from the series. Unfortunately for them, their time travel machine isn't bigger on the inside. It's important to also note the fact that Bill and Ted travel through time so that Ted could pass a history exam at school.
Doctor Who originally functioned as an educational show for children as well. The earliest Doctor's adventures took the viewers into different time periods and allowed them to learn something more about history, just like the heroes of this movie do. Both franchises have a strong comedic undertone to them too, proving yet again that without Doctor Who, there would be no Bill and Ted movie trilogy.
1 Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (2005)
The literary series Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy was also adapted into a film, and the 2005 movie has a similar wide scope as Doctor Who. The heroes travel to various planets and places, some stranger than others. They also have a robotic sidekick, the robot Marvin, just like the Doctor had the robotic dog K-9 once upon a time. Of course, K-9 is much less depressed than Marvin who sees no point in existence.
Another similarity is the imminent destruction of Earth. Doctor Who threatened to destroy it multiple times, and the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy took it one step further. Even though it might seem like a common enough trope in science fiction, there is actually a surprisingly small number of movies that completely destroy the Earth. Finally, the series' author Douglas Adams also wrote several Doctor Who stories. His unique sense of humor comes through in his writing for both sci-fi franchises.