With recent science-fiction films such as Dune being set in a distant future, it’s good to evaluate films that attempt to predict a future that is slightly nearer to our current timeline. A lot of films that attempt to do so end up describing sentiments or events that occurred around the time of the film’s production, but it’s still fun to view them as prognostications. Reddit users have been discussing the topic for a while now, and they’ve picked out some films that seem to have eerily predicted our future.
Whether it’s the Mayor from Jaws, Network’s musings on media, or Contagion’s pandemic prophecies, Reddit users have selected films that have been suspiciously correct with regards to predictions of the future.
Jaws
While Steven Spielberg and company agonized over getting the horror of Jaws right for audiences in 1975, they also ended up predicting some behavior during the pandemic. Reddit user mindpieces mentions that the Mayor character’s “insistence to keep the beaches open is very similar to how certain state governors acted during Covid”.
With the COVID-19 virus affecting almost all facets of life since 2020, some world leaders were more inclined to protect economic concerns as opposed to public safety. It’s safe to assume that Mayor Vaughn would also be prone to act this way had he been in power during the onset of the pandemic.
The Cable Guy
Jim Carrey’s Chip Douglas was eccentric in many ways in The Cable Guy, and he managed to predict smartphone culture all the way back in 1996. Reddit user beehundred quotes his character from the film, saying “Soon every American home will integrate their television, phone and computer”.
Offering free premium channels to customers was one thing in 1996, but with a lot of people cord-cutting in 2022, Douglas would have to come up with some other type of deal. Perhaps free unlimited data plans for smartphones would be the equivalent deal he could use to pester customers nowadays.
Network
Although the commentary was astute even for 1976, a lot of what Network has to say about news broadcasters is arguably even more relevant today. Reddit user xxplodingboy mentions how the Sidney Lumet film predicted things such as “corporatized mass media, fake news” and “trash TV”.
Chasing for and attempting to monopolize ratings is applicable regardless of the era you’re talking about, but the way that the idea is executed in the film certainly leaves a mark even 45 years later. With the advent of social media, the themes and ideas of Network can be assured to stay relevant for the foreseeable future.
Contagion
Arguably no other film was so explicitly reevaluated and reinterpreted than Steven Soderbergh’s 2011 film Contagion, and that was because it got much of its predictions about a pandemic world correct. Reddit user Lord0fHats says that the “most dramatic elements that seemed most fantastic ended up being the most prophetic”.
At one point, characters falling for a fake cure or propagating paranoia may have seemed far-fetched to some, but the past 2 years of the pandemic have solidified the film’s musings enough that those elements have become the most accurate depiction of a pandemic society. Viewers who have avoided the film until now might not have many excuses left.
WALL-E
Although the film is set in 2805, some viewers still feel the constant propulsion towards a society (or lack thereof) as shown in WALL-E. For example, Reddit user mindpieces says that it feels “like we’re moving closer to WALL-E every day”.
Having the Earth turn into a garbage dump, the normalization of obesity, and corporate dominance are all showcased in the film, among other troubling developments, and they’re all based on trends that were apparent in 2008 as well. Hopefully, the film’s optimistic ending is one of the things that Andrew Stanton and company get right as well.
Back To The Future Part II
While the original film had to deal with going back in time, the sequel instead took its setting to 2015 and did so with some accuracy as well. Reddit user notorious98 mentions how the film “missed the Cubs winning the World Series by 1 year”, although it was “right about there being a team in Miami”.
Although the film was released in 1989, it effectively predicted the Chicago Cubs winning the World Series in the mid-2010s and also the fact that there would eventually be a team in Miami, since the Marlins didn’t exist until 1993. It’s a shame that Back To The Future Part II wasn’t entirely accurate about 2015, otherwise flying cars and hoverboards would also exist today.
Minority Report
Steven Spielberg attempted to predict an American society in the 2050s in his film Minority Report, and many of those predictions have come to fruition. Reddit user missanthropocenex mentions elements of the film such as “targeted ads” and the precogs who act like AI that track people’s behavior and flag them as problems.
While a lot of the technological elements of the film ended up being accurate to a future society, the themes that the film deals with such as free will versus determinism and the role of government in crime prevention also feel insightful. It’s safe to assume that the purpose of the word fiction in science fiction is starting to take on another meaning with films like Minority Report.
The Truman Show
The Truman Show was already insightful at the time of its release in 1998, but it has arguably aged even better since then. Reddit user this_is_lance says that the film “predicted the boom of reality TV” and “the need for the constant entertainment of society today”.
While these facets were arguably already a large part of the cultural landscape of 1998, the increase in reality TV shows and the more streamlined access to 24/7 entertainment and coverage of celebrities has only grown since. Smartphones and social media have only increased the number of and ease with which people can access modern “Truman Show” equivalents.
Metropolis
Despite being made nearly 95 years ago, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis is one of the best science-fiction films ever made and still passes the test in terms of some of the predictions that it made about society. Reddit user johnclark6 mentions elements such as the inclusion of “skyscrapers, helicopter-looking vehicles” and “big highways”.
While films made closer to the 21st century have the advantage of seeing societal trends take place in real-time, it’s all the more impressive to see how accurate some facets of Metropolis have turned out to be, especially considering some things like skyscrapers or highways weren’t close to reaching their usage potential at the time.
2001: A Space Odyssey
Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film is widely considered one of the greatest films ever made, and it’s partially due to its scientific accuracy and its prescient technological elements. Reddit user wetlettuce42 mentions how the film “predicted face time and AI”.
Video calling is a substantial plot point in the film, although it was made well before the advent of its use by society. In addition, the computer character HAL is one of the most memorable parts of the film, and it’s partially due to how eerily accurate the character is in terms of comparing it to the artificial intelligence of today.
