Serenity starred Nathan Fillion (r) as former sergeant Malcolm Reynolds

The futuristic release from 2005 was based on the short-lived TV series Firefly. Both were the work of Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon.

Star Wars - which Whedon has conceded had "an enormous influence" on Serenity - came second in the survey.

Blade Runner was third, followed by Planet of the Apes, The Matrix, Alien and Forbidden Planet.

Serenity is about the crew of a space ship of the same name, and at the time of its release, Whedon declared it was a way of showcasing the "gritty" side of the genre.

TOP SCI-FI MOVIES 1. Serenity 2. Star Wars (pictured) 3. Blade Runner 4. Planet of the Apes 5. The Matrix 6. Alien 7. Forbidden Planet 8. 2001: A Space Odyssey 9. The Terminator 10. Back to the Future Source: SFX magazine

"There's something in science fiction, which I love very much, that I've missed of late - which is a sort of grittiness, the reality of what it must be like to be up in a small community or a small ship," Whedon told the BBC in 2005.

"I had a perfectly disparate set of elements.

"I had people who were actual size in a story that was larger than life, and I think when you put those two elements together you get the most exciting kind of film-making."

SFX editor Dave Bradley said it was a "massive surprise" to see Serenity beating Star Wars.