KLM Movies August 2026: Best Films Ranked by Critics

KLM's August 2026 entertainment lineup runs to 438 titles — the largest cabin selection of the summer so far. This article ranks the best by combined critic score: Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer plus Metacritic, averaged to a single percentage. No algorithm, no guesswork. Just the films critics actually rated highest, available on your flight this month.

→ Browse the full KLM August 2026 catalog with live critic scores — inflight.guide

How We Rank KLM's Inflight Films

Every score here is a straight average of the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer and Metacritic score for that film — two independent critical aggregators, combined into one number. Only films confirmed as available in KLM's August 2026 IFE system are included. You can verify availability and filter the full catalog by genre at inflight.guide.

The 10 Best KLM Movies in August 2026

1. Toy Story (1995) — 98%

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy | Runtime: 1 hr 21 min | RT Score: 100% | Metacritic: 96/100

The same film that topped this list in July holds the top spot again, and for the same reason: John Lasseter's original Pixar feature has never really been bettered for pure economy of storytelling. Woody and Buzz's rivalry resolves in 81 minutes flat — short enough to watch twice on a long-haul without it feeling repetitive. It's the safest first pick if you're introducing a kid to the seatback screen for the first time.

2. Inside Out (2015) — 96%

Genre: Animation, Family, Comedy | Runtime: 1 hr 35 min | RT Score: 98% | Metacritic: 94/100

Pete Docter's study of an 11-year-old's inner emotional cast still holds nearly the same score it earned back in the spring rankings. It's dense enough to reward adults who are actually paying attention and simple enough for kids dozing in and out during a night flight. Genuinely one of the smartest scripts Pixar has produced.

3. Dumbo (2019) — 96%

Genre: Adventure, Family, Fantasy | Runtime: 1 hr 52 min | RT Score: 95% | Metacritic: 96/100

Worth being precise about this one: KLM's August Dumbo is Tim Burton's 2019 live-action reimagining — Colin Farrell and Michael Keaton, real circus tents and real sadness — not the 1941 animated original. It's a slower, more melancholic film than the cartoon, closer to a circus drama than a children's short, and its 96% combined score is a genuine critical reappraisal since release, not a nostalgia bump. Families expecting 64 minutes of singing elephants should know what they're actually boarding with.

4. Toy Story 3 (2010) — 95%

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Family | Runtime: 1 hr 43 min | RT Score: 98% | Metacritic: 92/100

The Sunnyside Daycare stretch is as tense as anything in a real thriller, and the incinerator scene remains one of the few moments in a family film that's made grown adults go quiet on a plane. Andy's send-off closes the trilogy properly. If you've only ever seen the first Toy Story, this one's worth the extra 22 minutes.

5. Finding Nemo (2003) — 94%

Genre: Family, Adventure, Animation | Runtime: 1 hr 41 min | RT Score: 99% | Metacritic: 90/100

Twenty-three years on, the Great Barrier Reef photography still looks better than most 12-inch seatback screens have any right to show it. Albert Brooks' anxious Marlin remains one of animation's great neurotic performances. A safe, warm choice for the middle stretch of any flight.

6. One Battle After Another (2025) — 94%

Genre: Drama, Thriller | Runtime: 2 hr 42 min | RT Score: 94% | Metacritic: 95/100

Paul Thomas Anderson's sprawling story of a washed-up revolutionary (Leonardo DiCaprio) searching for his missing daughter is the highest-scoring new-era title in KLM's entire August catalog — and the film this month's article is genuinely built around. At nearly three hours it demands a proper block of uninterrupted time, ideally started after meal service with the cabin lights down. It rewards that patience completely.

7. Toy Story 2 (1999) — 94%

Genre: Family, Adventure, Animation | Runtime: 1 hr 33 min | RT Score: 100% | Metacritic: 88/100

The weakest-scoring entry in the trilogy only because the other two are near-perfect; on its own terms this is still excellent. Jessie's backstory song is the emotional gut-punch nobody expects from what's ostensibly a toy-store chase movie. Genuinely rewatchable.

8. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) — 94%

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi | Runtime: 2 hr | RT Score: 97% | Metacritic: 90/100

George Miller's desert chase opera loses some scale on a seatback screen — nothing short of a cinema does it full justice — but the sheer physical craft of the stunt work still comes through. Two hours, almost no dialogue, and it never once slows down. One of the best pure-action picks in the whole IFE system this month.

9. Sound of Falling (2025) — 93%

Genre: Drama | Runtime: 2 hr 35 min | RT Score: 95% | Metacritic: 91/100

Mascha Schilinski's Cannes 2025 film follows four generations of women on the same German farm across a century, with images that echo and rhyme across timelines rather than following a conventional plot. Not light watching, and at 155 minutes it asks a lot of you — but it's the kind of formally ambitious filmmaking a quiet long-haul cabin is genuinely the right context for.

10. Up (2009) — 93%

Genre: Family, Adventure, Animation | Runtime: 1 hr 36 min | RT Score: 98% | Metacritic: 88/100

The opening ten minutes of Up are still some of the most emotionally efficient filmmaking Pixar has ever produced — expect at least one passenger nearby to need a tissue. After that gut-punch it turns into a genuinely funny adventure involving a floating house and a talking dog. Good for a shorter sector where you want something that starts sad and ends warm.

Full August 2026 KLM Film Rankings — Top 20

→ See full scores, filter by genre, and build your watchlist on inflight.guide

New This Month

August leans into library depth rather than festival premieres, but there's real news here:

• Black Panther + Black Panther: Wakanda Forever — the full MCU Wakanda duology lands together (92% and 76% combined). A major superhero-catalog completion moment for KLM.
• The Devil Wears Prada + The Devil Wears Prada 2 — the 2006 original (68% combined) debuts alongside its new 2026 sequel, which arrives with an early Metacritic score of 63 while Rotten Tomatoes is still compiling reviews.
• Dumbo — Tim Burton's 2019 live-action reimagining, 96% combined, one of the best-reviewed titles in the entire catalog this month.
• The Super Mario Galaxy Movie — a brand-new 2026 theatrical release. Early critic reception is soft (Metacritic 37), but expect it to be one of the most-searched titles of the month regardless.
• Crazy Rich Asians — 82% combined, the strongest new comedy arrival of the month.
• Tenet — Christopher Nolan's 2020 sci-fi thriller joins the library at 70% combined, giving Nolan a second entry on KLM alongside Blade Runner.

Leaving KLM's Catalog

Compared to July, a number of titles have left KLM's catalog this month, including Bugonia, Homebound, and the music biopic Back to Black. If you were planning to catch any of these on a recent trip, they're no longer available — worth double-checking inflight.guide before you assume a film is still there.

What to Watch If You Want...

A long film to fill a transatlantic flight: One Battle After Another at 2 hr 42 min — dense, demanding, and completely riveting once it gets going. Something light and easy: Toy Story — 81 minutes, still perfect after thirty years. A critically acclaimed title you've missed: Sound of Falling — Cannes 2025, 93% combined, one of the year's most formally ambitious dramas. Best for watching with kids: Dumbo — just remember it's Tim Burton's 2019 live-action version, not the short animated classic.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does KLM update its movies every month? Yes — KLM's inflight entertainment catalog rotates monthly. New titles are added at the start of each month and some films leave the lineup. This article covers August 2026's selection of 438 films. For current availability visit inflight.guide.

Can I see what movies are on KLM before my flight? Yes. inflight.guide lists KLM's current inflight entertainment catalog with Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic scores, filterable by genre. KLM's own portal at entertainment.klm.com shows titles without quality ratings — inflight.guide adds the critical context.

Do all KLM flights have the same movies? Long-haul widebody flights (Boeing 787 and 777) carry the full IFE catalog with individual seatback screens in all cabins. Short-haul European flights on the Airbus A321neo have a limited personal-device streaming service rather than seatback screens — the selection is smaller.

Can I use Bluetooth headphones on KLM? KLM recommends wired headphones for the seatback IFE system. Bluetooth headphones require an adapter — KLM doesn't supply one onboard, so bring your own if you prefer wireless.

Internal Links

• KLM In-Flight Entertainment Guide — full IFE overview
• Best New Movies on KLM — August 2026 — the Black Panther duology, the Devil Wears Prada franchise pairing, and the family wave in detail
• Best Drama Films on KLM — August 2026 — full drama rankings, led by One Battle After Another