The World After Us on Netflix: What should we learn from this mystery ending?

Warning, this article contains spoilers for The World Us After.

The World After Us, Netflix’s latest little bombshell, is making waves on social media just days after its release. And for good reason, this apocalyptic drama directed by Julia Roberts and Mahershala Ali is a movie of theories: we don’t really know what it’s about, and we probably never will.

To put this movie in context, know that it is an adaptation of a novel released in 2022 written by American author Rumaan Alam and that already, we don’t really know what is going on there. We follow the story of two families who have to live together when tragedy strikes outside. The idea is not so much to know what happened, but to show how people react in such a situation.

A different ending

Director Sam Esmail – to whom we owe the excellent Mr. Robot and Homecoming – dropped a few clues to help viewers understand the plot:

“The book is much more ambiguous. And the ending was a bit too much for the movie. When we read a novel, we are much more open to an open ending, but not in a movie. I wanted an answer, a road map of sorts. But I wanted to stay true to the tone of the book. Because this uncertainty is what life is all about. We don’t have all the solutions and all the answers in everyday life. I imagined 20 different ending scenarios and I didn’t stick to any of them.”– he explained to our microphone.

In the novel, Rose goes to a neighbor’s house, where she indeed discovers a supply of food. The action pauses as he prepares to return them home with a small supply. In the film, a young girl discovers a secret bunker.

As she walks around it, she comes across a DVD of the latest episode of Friends that she’s been dreaming of watching for days. Not far away, we can read on the screen that the White House and major cities of the country have been attacked by renegade soldiers and there is a radioactive explosion. As evidenced by the plan of New York, which is subject to nuclear attacks.

This message, along with GH’s speech, along with several scenes about the existence of a maneuver that serves to destabilize the country from within, supports the theory that this cyber attack – and everything around it – is even coming from within the country. So Americans.

And then ?

And then there is the creation of your own theory. In both the book and the movie, we don’t know what happens to the characters and the country. A script choice that irritated many viewers, but the director wanted to explain to our microphone:

“I like films that provoke something in the audience and start a conversation. There are movies – which I loved – but which give you all the answers at the end. And the experience ends there. Whereas films that end with a question leave room for interpretation. This allows you to discuss it with your loved ones. ”

And what is your theory?