End of the World Movies: Explained

Apocalypse Origins - What Causes the End of the World in Movie

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re discussing what causes the end of the world in movies.

Now more than ever, people find themselves asking the unsettling yet eerily relevant question, “How is the world going to end?” Nobody knows for sure, although Hollywood screenwriters have given us several possible nightmare scenarios over the years. Some of them seem far-fetched while others almost sound probable. In the case of a zombie apocalypse, the likelihood is somewhere in between.

Zombie outbreaks often start off in a lab where a virus is discovered or created, turning patient zero into a mindless, reanimated corpse whose sole purpose is to bite anyone with a pulse. After nibbling on a few scientists or doctors, it isn’t long until the zombie plague spreads throughout the land. If the outbreak is contained to a small town composed of scrappy young heroes, there may be hope for humanity. Once the zombies reach major cities, though, it’s pretty much game over. That is unless a vaccine is produced, but how do you get a zombie to take their medicine? Zombies might not be real, but if you switch out the word “zombie” with “the infected,” the scenario suddenly takes on a much more relevant meaning. Zombie movies are essentially pandemic movies with more flesh-eating. Pandemics are also popular in the end of the world genre, although seeing people run away from hoards of zombies is admittedly a lot more fun.

Just as there are echoes of real-world horror in zombie movies, the same can be said about the robot uprising genre. In the same vein as zombies, technology gone wrong movies often begin with a virus, albeit one inside a computer. Given humanity’s ever-growing reliance on technology, a global computer virus can cripple our economy, defense systems, and way of life with a press of a button. The cyber carnage will only be amplified if the network behind this virus gains self-awareness. This will traditionally result in a nuclear war, wiping out civilization as we know it. Those who survive Judgement Day will be left to fend off the sentient robots hellbent on terminating what remains of our species. Of course, the technology that dooms humankind doesn’t need to stem from Earth per se. Sometimes it comes in the form of a giant robot from another planet. In that case, though, would it be categorized under the robot uprising or alien invasion genre?

Either way, aliens are also a common source of destruction in movies. Where zombies typically follow a basic blueprint, aliens can get a bit more creative in how they end the world. Maybe flying saucers will be deployed over landmarks, blowing them to smithereens. Or if flying saucers are too cliched, a tripod with laser beams and tentacles will get the job done. Depending on the type of alien, fancy toys aren’t always a necessity. Some extraterrestrial beings are strong and fast enough on their own to destroy a human being with their bare hands. As advanced as aliens can be, the key to their downfall may be as insignificant as a microorganism or a change in sound frequency. Even when aliens mean no harm, trouble can still arise. After all, humanity has a bad habit of judging what they don’t know or understand. The minute the mothership lands, the authorities may jump to conclusions that’ll do more harm than good in the long run.

Aliens don’t necessarily need to come from outer space. Sometimes they’re interdimensional beings from a parallel universe. Whether you want to call them interdimensional, extradimensional, or other-dimensional, they can be smaller than the average human or as massive as a skyscraper. Speaking of which, kaiju have a tendency to wreak havoc on the silver screen as well. Where some originate from different dimensions, others are science experiments gone wrong or gods that’ve been living in seclusion. In any case, all of our nuclear warheads don’t stand a chance against these gargantuan beasts. Towers will topple, bridges will be burned, and those who try running will only get stepped on. Honestly, our only hope is that another giant monster shows up to fight for humanity. Or perhaps beauty will vanquish the beast.

Okay, so far we’ve touched upon zombies, evil robots, aliens, and beastly titans, all of which seem fairly grounded in fiction. Nuclear war is another story, however. We’re not talking about the kind that you see in science fiction pictures. Some nuclear war movies could theoretically happen… even if liberties are taken here and there. In a majority of modern Hollywood productions, the heroes trying to prevent war are American. Whichever country or group is behind the impending attack, chances are the main villain will have a thick foreign accent. There’s usually a time limit to stop the attack - let’s say somewhere between 72 and 24 hours - and occasionally there are a few higher-ups who are in on the conspiracy. Thankfully, there’s always a team of agents - or maybe just one super-spy - to save the world.

When it comes to end of the world movies, though, the go-to setup is typically an act of God. These can range from severe weather conditions to a massive comet on a collision course for Earth. Not all disasters are natural, however. In numerous cases, humanity dooms itself by not taking care of the world they were given. Maybe the government created a weapon that inadvertently stopped the Earth’s core’s rotation. Maybe the effects of global warming finally caught up to us. Whatever the explanation, it’s up to a ragtag group of scientists to either save our world or find us a new one.

Movies have ended the world in a variety of different ways, although there are a few staples we can expect no matter what: large groups running from destruction, historic sites crumbling, newscasters delivering exposition, the president giving an empowering speech, an estranged couple rekindling their relationship, the authority figures who didn’t listen, the hero they should’ve listened to, the list goes on. The world may end, but some tropes never die!