From asteroid to zombies to aliens, film makers have created stories of the end of the world for every scenario. From the funny to the gritty to the clever, these top ten end of the world TV shows and movies are well worth a watch.
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The Road
- 2009 Movie
- 3.9/5
The movie ‘The Road’ based on the book by the same name is a gritty and at times confronting post- apocalyptic movie that doesn’t pull any punches. It tells the story of an ailing father and his young son, who realising they will not survive the winter where they are, start an arduous journey to the ocean across a ruthless apocalyptic world. Filled with dangers the man and his son face terrifying situations and impossible decisions on their journey south in the hope of survival. ‘The Road’ can at times be hard to watch but is raw in its portrayal of the realities of a world in which society has so completely broken down. It explores the courage of trying to do good and maintain your humanity in a horrendous situation and of the love of a father for his son.
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Salvation
- 2017 TV Show
- 3.8/5
'Salvation' is a clever series in the sense that it poses complex questions while still maintaining a highly entertaining story line. When a college student discovers an asteroid on a collision course for Earth he teams up with a tech genius to try and devise a way for humanity to survive. The cast and writers of ‘Salvation’ do a great job in creating complex and engaging characters and a story line that will keep audiences guessing. The real stand out for ‘Salvation’ though is the fact that at its core it poses an exploration into humanity and asks the question if you couldn’t save everyone who would you save? What is the public’s right to knowledge? What is the value of a life? And is it worth sacrificing some to save others?
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A Quiet Place
- 2018 Movie
- 4.1/5
The highly acclaimed movie ‘A Quiet Place’, written and directed by John Krasinski and starring both John Krasinski and Emily Blunt is a fantastic addition to the apocalypse genre. ‘A Quiet Place’ follows the story of a family in an apocalyptic world in which bloodthirsty monsters are attracted to sound. As the name suggests, this movie unlike many other in this genre, is quiet. With very little spoken dialogue in the film, the use of both sound and silence is used incredibly skilfully to draw you in and keep you there. With a very small cast, the actors in ‘A Quiet Place’ give phenomenal performances and create a movie that is filled with suspense but also with a lot of heart. ‘A Quiet Place’ at its core is not just a movie about the end of the world, it is a movie about family and about the unconditional love of a parent for their children. A very unique movie, ‘A Quiet Place’ is one that will not disappoint.
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Extinction
- 2018 Movie
- 3.1/5
An often understated movie, ‘Extinction’ is a very different sort of end of the world movie. The basic premise we have seen before, a family man starts having visions of an alien apocalypse and then when his visions start to come true, he must use these visions to protect his family and lead them to safety through a city filled with danger. ‘Extinction’ though is filled with twists that you won’t see coming and provokes questions such as what it means to be human, how far we are willing to go for family and the dangers of playing God. It is the cleverness of ‘Extinction’ that sets this movie apart, and the fact that it is a movie that isn’t willing to give all the answers. Set over only a few days, with the bulk of the movie taking place over the course of just one night, ‘Extinction’ is skilfully made to be well paced and with twists that will captivate your attention. This movie is not just an end of the world movie but a thought provoking piece on what it really means to be human.
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Fear The Walking Dead
- 2015 TV Show
- 3.1/5
‘Fear the Walking Dead’ is the prequel to the much acclaimed ‘The Walking Dead’ series. It follows the story of a family during the initial outbreak of the zombie plague that is well underway in the Walking Dead series. Although the show has very little cross over with the character in ‘The Walking Dead’ it is a quality series in its own right. For fans of ‘The Walking Dead’ the show is highly recommended as it gives some great background and delves more into the outbreak of the plague than the original ‘Walking Dead’ series did. For anyone that hasn’t seen ‘The Walking Dead’ you can still jump right in, as although the two series are related, they don’t rely on each other to make sense.
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Zombieland
- 2009 Movie
- 4.4/5
'Zombieland' is a movie that answers the question of how can a zombie apocalypse be a whole lot of fun. It follows a rag tag, dysfunctional group of survivors that must journey through the zombie filled wasteland of America. Our survivors include an awkward college student, a pair of street smart sisters trying to reach an amusement park and a gun toting, slightly unstable tough guy on a quest to find a Twinkie. ‘Zombieland’ is not intended to be a serious end of the world movie, mixing the apocalypse with comedy can at times make the movie a little absurd, but it is definitely a unique addition to the classic zombie genre and is a film that brings a whole lot of fun to the zombie apocalypse.
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Falling Skies
- 2011 TV Show
- 3.7/5
On the surface the TV series, ‘Falling Skies’ is about survivors in an alien apocalypse but underneath that it’s a story about the human spirit, what we are willing to sacrifice to survive and the love of family. Starting a few months after the initial alien invasion, the show follows a group fighting back against the aliens while struggling to survive, focusing largely on the Mason family, made up of a father and his three sons. The series has all the charm of an end of the world sci-fi, but the great thing about ‘Falling Skies’ is that isn’t all it offers, making it not feel like just another rehash of a played out story. The series is produced by the legendary Steven Spielberg and Noah Wyle leads the cast with a fantastic performance.
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Revolution
- 2012 TV Show
- 3.6/5
'Revolution' is a unique series in terms of its complexity. In many aspects, the series keeps audiences in the dark as much as the characters, including a slow reveal as to what exactly caused the apocalypse and why it occurred. The series has all the necessary elements of a post-apocalyptic show while really standing out on its character development and complexity, there are very few clear cut heroes and villains in the series and this was something refreshing for a show such as this. The basic premise of ‘Revolution’ is that an unknown cause has shut down all electronics world wide, plunging the Earth into darkness. In this post-apocalyptic setting revolutionaries fight with various warlords as the world struggles to survive. This series is one that may take some time to work out but is well worth the wait.
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The Day After Tomorrow
- 2004 Movie
- 3.8/5
‘The Day After Tomorrow’ is a classic apocalypse movie. A favourite of the genre since its initial release in 2004 the film stars big name actors such as Dennis Quaid and Jake Gyllenhaal. When a shift in currents sends the Earth into a new and sudden ice age, Jack Hall, a paleo-climatologist undertakes the arduous journey across the frozen wasteland to try and reach his son in New York. The movie has a captivating story line but is still a nice and easy watch when you want an end of the world movie that isn’t too stressful. ‘The Day After Tomorrow’, is well made and is a standard apocalypse movie that is well worth your time.
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Deep Impact
- 1998 Movie
- 3.3/5
‘Deep Impact’ is another classic of the apocalypse genre. Starring Elijah Wood, Tia Leoni and Morgan Freeman, this 1998 movie revolves around the prospect of an extinction level asteroid that is on a collision course to Earth. Made in 1998 the movie does not have the same level of special effects that you may expect in a movie made today but has a solid story line and quality acting that has endured the test of time. It poses moral questions such as the value of one life over another and aims to remind the audience of just how small we are in the universe. ‘Deep Impact’ is a movie that will have you on the edge of your seat and captivate your attention.
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