a musical adaptation will hit Broadway in 2023. The sequel made so many accurate predictions about the future too, such as hands-free gaming consoles and wearable technology. But Redditors aren't referring to the fun '80s sequel in regards to movies that best predict the future of humankind.
Reddit s have negatively but logically debated which films best depict the future of the human race, and they're almost all dystopian and post-apocalyptic. If there's any lesson to be learned from the Redditor's comments, it's that they don't have much hope for the future.
Minority Report (2002)
Minority Report has a fascinating philosophical premise. The film essentially asks the question, if police knew that a crime was about to happen, should that potential criminal be arrested even though the crime hasn't been committed yet? The movie follows a task force acting on what three people called "precogs" believe will happen.
Soyoulikedonutseh thinks that's what the future of humankind will look like, "But instead of three people, it's simply an algorithm." Algorithms currently dictate what people listen to, what people watch, and so many other microcosms of people's lives, and this Redditor thinks it's only a matter of time until algorithms dictate who gets arrested.
Her (2013)
Her best depicts the future, as it illustrates humankind increasingly relying on artificial intelligence before it inevitably backfires on everyone. The Redditor explains, "Exciting new AI tech seems poised to make life incredible, but as it gains more intelligence, it loses interest in us completely and disappears to do its own thing."
Her is a heartbreaking movie, and what it does differently from other movies about artificial intelligence is that it focuses on humans' personal relationships with it instead of it being on such a global scale. As it's semi-autobiographical about Jonze's divorce, Her is more about human nature and emotions being just as intrinsic in the future as it is today, regardless of what technology is available, but it's also a cautionary tale about not relying too much on Siri.
The Simpsons Movie (2007)
The Simpsons Movie had over 100 script rewrites during development before the production team landed on one that worked. The story that was finally settled on was the Environmental Protection Agency covering Springfield with a glass dome after Homer pollutes the lake.
The Simpsons Movie, and given how polluted the world is, it's only a matter of time. And as the show has accurately predicted the future on countless occasions, this could be another accurate prediction, and possibly even more proof of the popular theory that creator Matt Groening is a time traveler.
Idiocracy (2006)
Idiocracy best represents the future of humankind. The Redditor notes, "If anyone needs to be convinced that this is the correct answer, go to YouTube and watch the first 5 minutes of it. There is no denying the inevitability of this."
The first five minutes of the movie follow two different families. The first is a wealthy and smart husband and wife who are waiting to have children because they don't want to raise a child in a bad economy, and when they're finally ready, they have trouble conceiving. The second couple has a low IQ, lives in a trailer park, and has dozens of children together. Cut forward 500 years, and civilization is in tatters.
Don't Look Up (2021)
Don't Look Up is the latest satirical comedy from celebrated writer-director Adam McKay, and it follows the different ways in which America reacts to a giant comet hurtling toward Earth. Dutch_Fudge thinks humankind will become divided in the future just like in the 2021 movie. The Redditor notes that the movie is a great depiction of the future, "Maybe not with an actual meteor, but this is how we will probably actually respond to a major threat to humanity."
While Don't Look Up is a movie about an Earth-destroying comet, it's actually a metaphor for climate change, as the characters are desperately trying to get politicians to act on it. This is not just realistic of the future; it can be seen in today's world.
Interstellar (2014)
The Christopher Nolan-written and directed Interstellar delves into the idea of time traveling and what happens in wormholes. But if all the Nolan bells and whistles are removed, it's simply about a NASA pilot trying to find a habitable new planet after humans have destroyed Earth.
best original blockbuster movies of the 2010s, and it's endlessly rewatchable, but the idea of the world coming to an end due to crop blights and dust storms with nowhere else to go is terrifying.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
The Mad Max: Fury Road was the densest depiction of that world. The 2015 movie is the dryest-looking film ever made, as cult followers have become savages in the desert and are grateful for any little puddle of water they come across. Makingclaims thinks that this could very well be the future of humankind.
The Redditor posits, "Mad Max: Fury Road gets a lot of elements of what I see happening over the next 50 years right. Water scarcity and desertification are upon us already." While 50 years might be an exaggeration, the Redditor makes some astute observations.
The Little Mermaid (1989)
The Little Mermaid is the best representation of the future of mankind, simply commenting, "The sea levels do be rising." The Redditor is basically explaining Waterworld, which is set in a dystopian future where sea levels have risen thousands of meters and the ocean covers 90% of land.
But while the concept was great and could have been like a water-themed Mad Max, live-action remake of The Little Mermaid might even make some kind of comment about the rising sea levels.
Escape From New York (1981)
Escape from New York depicts the U.S. as being completely riddled with crime, but as a solution, the whole of Manhattan has been turned into the sole maximum-security prison in the country. Uiosxoated thinks the future of humankind is leading that way but tries to see the positive side, noting, "At least it will be cool to have a Snake Plissken doing cool s***."
The 1981 movie isn't the only film to have this idea. While a very different movie, the James Bond spoof Johnny English features a French villain who plots to turn the whole of Britain into the world's prison. So given that the idea has been heavily used in movies, it's likely that some scandalous politician has had the same thoughts.
Brazil (1985)
Oopeeyay thinks Brazil is the direction in which humankind is headed in the future. The movie depicts so much in its 143-minute runtime, as not only does it portray a future run by a bureaucracy, but it's also a commentary on surveillance, corporations, capitalism, pollution, and consumerism.
All of that has been becoming increasingly prevalent since the release of the 1985 movie, and the world is now closer to the events of the film than where the world was in 1985. The Redditor puts it best by explaining, "Brazil is probably the most accurate dystopian film when compared to current times."
