The following contains spoilers for the first three episodes of Paradise, now streaming on HuluParadise's cast of characters isn't short of potential suspects, setting up the show as a mystery drama. However, the plot twist at the end of the first episode is that it's all taking place within a sci-fi setting, as the near-future city is revealed to be one of the last bastions of humanity after an unseen "extinction-level event."

Paradise has been steadily unraveling its various mysteries, including whatever happened to the Earth before the events of the series. It was clearly enough of a threat that people suspected it (leading to the near assassination of President Bradford in a flashback), but it eventually happened and destroyed much of the world in the process. It's also clearly still hanging over the survivors, providing some of the underlying tension and character drama of Paradise's episode 3 ending. Here is what audiences can tell about the extinction-level event from Paradise from the first few episodes.

The World Has Ended In Paradise, But America (Technically) Survived

An American City Has Survived The End Of The World, And Serves As Paradise's Primary Setting

The twist at the end of Sterling K. Brown's Paradise's opening episode reveals that most of the world has been destroyed, leaving very few pockets of humanity left. Agent Xavier Collins' investigation into the mysterious death of President Cal Bradford serves as the central plot of the first episode of Paradise, juxtaposed against flashbacks to their earlier working relationship. However, the big plot twist at the end of "Wildcat Is Down" reveals that the show actually takes place in a post-apocalyptic setting, where some massive extinction event almost wiped out all of humanity off-screen.

Despite this, a small city has survived encased underneath a massive mountain in Colorado. Having been warned that such an event could happen, Samantha Redmond ensured that a certain number of people (including her family) were given a chance to survive. Thanks to her resources and those of the federal government, the United States still technically exists. There is a President, the iconography of the pre-extinction event country remains in the city, and cultural aspects like capitalism still thrive. Even if the world ended, America has persevered.

How Many People Survived Paradise's Extinction-Level Event?

The Existence Of One Last City Suggests A Certain Number Of People Have Survived

It's not initially clear how many people survived the off-screen catastrophe that set up the world of Paradise, but there are clues throughout the first two episodes that hint that the number of confirmed people left in the world is relatively small. The space under the mountain in Colorado is roughly the size of a small city, which would mean it likely accommodates upwards of 100,000 people. However, compared to the general population of the modern United States, that's a mere fraction of the total number of citizens likely killed in the unseen extinction-level event.

This suggests that the population left within the domed city is small enough that the gene pool could become compromised by the lack of diversity, a genuine concern that could impact the long-term viability of the city.

There's a darker clue to the size of the population referenced by Agent Robinson in the second episode of Paradise, "Sinatra." Robinson suggests that the US government is already poised to be monitoring bloodlines and family ties, as within a hundred years they'll need to be very mindful of families in-breeding and the remaining citizens possibly "marrying their cousins." This suggests that the population left within the domed city is small enough that the gene pool could become compromised by the lack of diversity, a genuine concern that could impact the long-term viability of the city.

What Was The Extinction Level Event In Paradise?

The Extinction Level Event Still Hasn't Been Fully Revealed Three Episodes In

The actual extinction-level event remains a mystery in the first few episodes of Paradise, though there have been a few clues as to what happened. During a flashback to a large-scale conference in "Sinatra," Samantha Redmond was motivated to come up with the eventual city of Paradise because a scientist warned an almost empty auditorium that climate change and ecological disaster would cause the end of the world. It was his suggestion to "build a hole in the ground and hide in it" that seems to have inspired Samantha's plan in the first place.

Other flashbacks have remained opaque about the true nature of the event, but a climate catastrophe would explain the nature of Paradise's clues. The US Government was aware of the event enough in advance to plan around it, suggesting it wasn't a human conflict or war that destroyed the Earth. However, flashbacks to the chaotic moments when the catastrophe happened hint that it was sudden enough that people unprepared for the event were quickly wiped out. It may have been an asteroid or some other event, but it's likely Paradise will eventually reveal the truth.