32 Things That Might Happen To You If You Exist In A Post-Apocalypse Movie
Have you noticed there are a lot less human beings around you lately? Have you found yourself unable to find common resources you had no trouble finding on a regular basis before? Do you feel like it truly is the end of the world? Well, chances are that you might be living in a post-apocalyptic movie, which means you are completely on your own with little chance of surviving the harsh and mostly desolate environment that you once called home.
While you may be hesitant to trust us — and we would not blame you for it, given your situation — we genuinely believe that our extensive knowledge of great sci-fi films and intense action movie classics such as these might be of great use to you. Take a look and you might find our tips to be just as valuable to you as water or gasoline.
You Could Be Facing The Aftermath Of Nuclear War
The end of the world has been brought upon in pop culture in various ways, but the most common cause — perhaps, because it is also one of the more plausible — is destruction by nuclear bombs, just like in the Mad Max movies, for instance. If this applies to you, it looks like you might have no one but the roaches to keep you company.
Most Of Humanity May Have Taken Refuge Underground
One of the most common reasons why there may still be some human life left is because the survivors made themselves at home beneath the surface before or soon after the inciting incident. The main character of Amazon Prime’s Fallout TV show — based on a hit video game franchise — was born and raised with several others in an underground bunker, leaving her safe, but also completely oblivious to the dangers outside. That being said, the sheltered lifestyle might not always be the best, psychologically speaking.
The Surface-Dwellers Might Have Found Some Twisted Form Of Stability
The few people who were unable to find an underground home, but still managed to survive might actually be doing pretty well for themselves. They may have even formed their own new communities with their own new governmental system and form of currency.
The Surface-Dwellers Might Have Found Some Twisted Form Of Stability
The few people who were unable to find an underground home, but still managed to survive might actually be doing pretty well for themselves. They may have even formed their own new communities with their own new governmental system and form of currency.
The Surface Is Mostly Desert
There may be very little sign of any urban civilization or even any vegetation left in this new world, but just miles and miles of sand, which is yet another staple of the Mad Max movies. Speaking of, did you ever notice how there are no actual roads in Mad Max: Fury Road? Then again, the sight of an actual street might have felt out of place in that 2015 instant classic.
The Surface Could Be Mostly Water
If you no longer see any sign of land anywhere, you could be living in a world covered in nothing but water, like the aptly titled film, Waterworld. That 1995 cult favorite depicts the cataclysmic results of the polar ice caps melting, causing a global flood and forcing humanity to live like pirates.
A Deadly Virus Could Have Eradicated Most Of Humanity
Another common cause of the world’s end is a highly contagious and fatal virus that claimed most of the global population, such as in films like 1995’s 12 Monkeys or 2009’s underrated thriller Carriers. What is sad is how films like these, in which people are forced to avoid breathing in fresh air or take special precautions when interacting with other people, hit closer to home in real life these days.
A Transformative Virus Could Have Brought On The End
Maybe the cataclysmic contagion that wiped out most of your global population was not exactly fatal, but turned them into a dangerous threat. This means you and whatever survivors you may have managed to hole up with have to look out for reanimated corpses (like in George A. Romero’s genre-defining zombie movies), or vampires, or some other kind of creature that was once human at some point.
Extra-Terrestrials Could Have Caused The Apocalypse
Your apocalypse could have been the cause of a creature from another planet with no other purpose but to vanquish your species simply because it can. For example, the vicious monsters from the aptly titled 2010 thriller Monsters that invaded Earth and made it into a desolate, wasteland.
Extra-Terrestrials Might Have Replaced The Government
Perhaps the otherworldly visitors did not seek to destroy humanity, but to control it, like in 2019’s Captive State. In this case, you have two options: continue to enjoy the freedom of living in some form of civilization, or join a secret resistance group that intends to reassume authority over the Earth.
The Earth Could Have Suffered A Cataclysmic Natural Disaster
In theory, all it could take to destroy civilization is one big, record-breaking natural disaster, like the comet that collided with Earth in 1998’s Deep Impact or the earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and flooding that spontaneously occurred in 2012 from 2009. If enough people survive, overcoming a global catastrophe like that is not impossible, so maybe just give it some time.
High Crime Rates Could Have Caused Society's Decline
What if the worst threat to humanity turned out to be humanity itself and the rise in criminal activity grew so impossible to control, that the world just gave up? That is essentially what happens in John Carpenter’s 1981 cult favorite Escape from New York — in which Manhattan is converted into a large penal colony — which teaches us that you should try as hard as you can to avoid incarceration, but you are never coming back from that.
People Kill Over Resources They Once Took For Granted
In the midst of economic collapse, basically, everything is free, but that does not mean it does not come with a price. In fact, having but one bottle of water or any amount of fuel in your vehicle might make you a target, which must be why so many bad things seem to happen at gas stations in these kinds of movies. All in all, just be prepared to defend your property because anyone you run into is going to want some (or all) of it.
You May Never Leave Your Home Again
If your house or apartment building came out untouched by the inciting event — either by sheer luck or because you planned for this, like Bill in The Last of Us — then you have already mastered the apocalypse, as far as we are concerned. It is especially favorable that you managed to make a stable living in your home because you, more than likely, will not find safety anywhere else.
You May Never Find A Place To Call Home Again
If you were forced to abandon your house or apartment building in an apocalyptic event’s wake, that was probably the last homely place in the world. Your best course of action would be to never stay in one place for too long and just keep moving for as long and as far as possible, like the unnamed father (Viggo Mortensen) and son (Kodi Smit-McPhee) in the cinematic adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel, The Road, from 2008.
You May Find Refuge In An Abandoned Mall
If there is one place that we might recommend holing up inside for a more extended period of time, it would be an abandoned mall. If you are lucky enough to find a secluded and enclosed shopping center that poses no threats inside, whatever supplies are left should keep you going for a while, like the resourceful characters from 1978’s Dawn of the Dead, to name the most essential example
Motor Vehicle Designs May Be More Inventive Than Ever
At least you’ll be able to say, during your trip through the hostile terrain, that you’ll probably have people’s heads turning to scope about the way you customized your ride. There is no choice in this matter as, by the rules originally established in the Mad Max world, all cars in the post-apocalyptic wasteland are a suped-up, battle-ready, gorgeous amalgamation of various parts that probably should not go together, but are impossible to look away from.
Fashion Sense Has Progressed Dramatically
If you, unfortunately, do not have a motor vehicle to use, we are sure you will still get heads turning with your wardrobe. Yet another dystopian guideline established in the Mad Max movies is that clothes are… well, pretty strange, at least by pre-apocalyptic standards. Some costuming is not even beneficial in moments of violence, but seems to suggest that most survivors were devoted followers of the alt-fashion movement.
Driving A Car Might Be Your Least Safe Option
Come to think of it, in some cases, just walking through the wasteland might be your best bet because the sound of a motor might attract the attention of the very threats you are trying to avoid. This could be zombies, those sound-hunting “Death Angels” from the alien invasion movie favorite, A Quiet Place, or even other people.
Trust Among People Is Practically Non-Existent
Because desperate times call for desperate measures, no matter what brought on the apocalypse, the worst thing you can run into might be another human being. In most cases, any strangers you come into contact with are probably seeking whatever you possess and will try to take it by any means necessary. Thus, the chances of a hopeful future in which humanity can band together against its common enemy or rise above its taxing circumstances are slim.
You Could Run Into An Old Friend Who Just Makes Things Worse
We would even recommend avoiding people you already know. You may want to believe they could be of some benefit to you, but your trust in them might be exactly what they prey on.
You May Find Some Companionship In A Lone Animal
If you ever find yourself lonely and in need of some company, we would recommend befriending an animal of some sort. The best choice might be a dog, like Sam — the loyal German Shepherd who accompanies Robert Neville (Will Smith) after he, supposedly, becomes the last man on Earth in 2007’s I am Legend.
You Could Find Companionship With A Lost Child
You might have some good chances of avoiding a double-cross in the event that you befriend a lost child. You may even end up finding an unusually rewarding feeling by acting as a guardian to the young survivor.
The Child Could Hold The Key To The Future
Acting as a guardian to your young companion could actually be of great benefit to the re-establishment of civilization. For instance, in The Last of Us, Joel (Pedro Pascal) is tasked with protecting teenage Ellie (Bella Ramsey), who is mysteriously immune to the Cordyceps, and her survival could mean the end of the infection.
You Might Become Convinced A Utopian Sanctuary Exists
To be perfectly honest, it is probably best not to hold on to the hope that your travels might finally lead you to the one place that was left unscathed in the cataclysm and civilization still thrives. We are not saying it is impossible — such as when Malorie (Sandra Bullock) found a sanctuary in 2018’s Bird Box — but remember how disappointed Furiosa (Charlize Theron) was to learn “the green place” was no more?
You'll Run Into A Conspiracy Theorist With A Unique Take On How Things Ended
Even if you are lucky enough not to run into any shady characters who wish to ambush you, the others might not be worth keeping around either, because all they will want to talk about is how they believe the apocalypse really came about. Then again, there have been cases of these speculative characters being right after all, like the “crazy” person from an alien invasion movie, especially.
You'll Run Into Someone Who Really Messed Up On Day Zero
Another type of non-threatening person you could run into is someone who is always seeking an opportunity to redeem themselves for the mistake they made at the start of the apocalypse. This could be a cop who lost his family — like the title hero of Mad Max — or even the person who is actually responsible for the fall of civilization, like Robert Neville in I Am Legend.
You Might Find Someone Who Claims To Have The Solution
The one type of person we most highly recommend you avoid is someone who swears that they hold the key to reversing the apocalypse. We would not be too quick to trust them. Like, for example, in The Walking Dead when Sgt. Abraham Ford (Michael Cudlitz) chose to believe that Eugene Porter (Josh McDermitt) knew how to cure the Walker virus but just wanted a bodyguard.
The Only Good People Left Are Probably Hiding Something
At the moment it seems that you have finally found a decent sense of community, think twice before you commit to joining the club because the residents might not be who they claim to be. For instance, in The Walking Dead, there was a fabled sanctuary called Terminus that every character intended to reach, only to discover it was a cult of cannibals.
The Real Threat Is Paranoia
If we are being honest here, out of all the horrible things you will find in this new world, the one thing you should fear the most is fear itself. Intense paranoia is the one thing that will get you in the most trouble, such as in the A24 horror favorite It Comes at Night from 2017.
The Truth Behind The End Might Not Be What You Think
Then again, skepticism might be the one thing that leads you to uncover the truth about this new world, because sometimes what we thought was the cause of the apocalypse was not the truth. The premise of Silo — Apple TV+’s adaptation of Hugh Howey’s book series — revolves around a woman living in an underground bunker who begins to question the true nature of their civilization.
Opportunity To Rebuild Could Come, But At A Price
Because people will be so desperate for some real stability again, they will likely accept any form of authority, which would make it easy for a fascist-minded leader to assume control. That is, essentially, how Panem came to be in the Hunger Games movies, to name one of the more popular examples.
Because these types of situations led us to give up hope a long time ago, we cannot, in all honesty, say we have much faith that these tips will help you in your journey through the wasteland. Just do what you can to survive.
