Best Movies And TV Shows About People Surviving In The Wilderness

Showtime's buzzy series "Yellowjackets" is the latest in a long line of movies and TV shows focused upon humans surviving in the wilderness. Whether on a tropic island, the middle of the forest, the desert, or even the Arctic tundra, these screen experiences have long been a staple of film and TV, with the 1939 film "Five Came Back" serving as one of the earliest examples of the survival genre. Some are more gruesome than others (hello, "Yellowjackets"), but all of them emphasize the locale as an integral part of the survival story.

Merriam-Webster defines wilderness as "a tract or region uncultivated and uninhabited by human beings" and "an area essentially undisturbed by human activity together with its naturally developed life community." Therefore, we focused on not just survival films and TV shows, but ones that specifically highlighted people living in an uninhabitable land. This eliminated media from related genres, such as people lost at sea, disaster films set in cities, apocalypse films, or anything else that did not fit our strict definition of "wilderness." We also left documentaries off our list, although we did opt to include an iconic reality television series. 

Here is a list of fourteen screen journeys –- some harrowing, some comedic, some both -– about humans surviving in the wilderness.

"Cast Away" is one of the most celebrated survival movies there is, pulling in nearly $430 million at the box office, per Box Office Mojo, and launching a volleyball with a face into the cultural landscape. The 2000 flick features Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland, a FedEx executive whose airplane crashes on a deserted island in the South Pacific. As the only survivor of the crash, Chuck survives using an inflatable life raft. Once on the island, he must navigate the uninhabited land by himself. "I made 'Cast Away' because I wanted to examine the concept of four years of hopelessness, in which you have none of the requirements for living — food, water, shelter, fire, and company," Hanks said during an actors' roundtable facilitated by The Hollywood Reporter back in 2017.

Chuck ends up stranded on the island for four years, during which time he bonds with a volleyball he names Wilson (it is a Wilson Sporting Goods product, after all) that has a face due to a bloody handprint and some creativity. Chuck eventually escapes the island on a makeshift raft and is rescued by a cargo ship, but his girlfriend, Kelly Frears (Helen Hunt), has long since moved on. Hanks was nominated for many awards for "Cast Away," including an Academy Award, a BAFTA, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. He won the Golden Globe for his performance.

When it comes to characters stranded on deserted lands, "Gilligan's Island" ranks high up on the list of iconic media. The popular television show may have only aired for three seasons lasting from 1964 to 1967, but its lasting legacy on pop culture cannot be denied. Three television films have been made to continue the "Gilligan's Island" brand, and there have also been animated shows, a video game, a musical, and a novel. In 2004, TBS even tried to make it into reality TV with "The Real Gilligan's Island."

"Gilligan's Island" is about a group of individuals who end up stranded on a deserted island in the Pacific Ocean after a typhoon shipwrecks them. Onboard the S.S. Minnow are two crew members -– the titular character Gilligan (Bob Denver), the dim, clumsy first mate, and the boat's captain, Jonas "The Skipper" Grumby (Alan Hale Jr.) –- and five passengers. The passenger famously included a millionaire, his wife, a movie star, a farm girl, and a professor.

Much has been written about which of the two young women –- Hollywood star Ginger Grant (Tina Louise) or innocent small-towner Mary Ann Summers (Dawn Wells) –- people prefer, but we like them both and find it impossible to imagine the sitcom without one or the other. "Gilligan's Island" was lighthearted and fun in a way that most of the media on our list is not, but it nonetheless incorporated survival in the wilderness into its often silly narrative.

Unlike a lot of the other films and TV shows on this list, "127 Hours" does not involve any sort of devastating plane or boat crash. It is a survival film about a man, Aron Ralston (James Franco), who endures a terrifying hiking mishap that results in him being trapped in the wilderness for –- you guessed it –- 127 hours. The movie is based upon Ralston's book, "Between a Rock and a Hard Place," and it follows actual events that occurred in 2003 when he went out to hike in Canyonlands National Park without telling anyone of his plan.

The accident happens while Ralston is mountain climbing in Bluejohn Canyon, a slot canyon in the park, and a boulder falls on his right arm, trapping him. He must then ration his minimal amounts of food and water and, when that runs out, drink his own urine. Ralston logs his experience using a camcorder and eventually begins to hallucinate. The film's climax comes when Ralston successfully breaks and amputates his own arm, which then allows him to rappel down and find help. The film earned six Academy Award nominations, including best picture and best actor for Franco.

We could not have a list of media about surviving the wilderness and not include the classic reality TV series "Survivor," which has aired more than 40 seasons. The iconic CBS show has been on the air since May 2000, and though many elements of the game have changed, it has remained wildly entertaining and incredibly popular. Seasons have been filmed in a multitude of locations across multiple continents, but the show has permanently set up shop in Fiji since Season 33, per Entertainment Weekly. Through watching "Survivor," we have learned much about survival, but just as much about human interaction, competition, and determination.

Contemporary "Survivor" contestants have had to learn to live off the land, even more so than earlier contestants. According to a 2020 Men's Health article, contestants get only about a cup of rice per day – which is why we have seen people eat things like coconuts, fish, crabs, chickens, wild pigs, and even rats. In one recent season, contestants started with no food and limited camp supplies. In addition to being strategic, social, and athletic, a good "Survivor" player must also build shelter, spear fish, create fire, and more. Bamboo toothbrushes, saltwater baths, and ocean bathroom breaks are the norm on "Survivor," as contestants explained to The Ringer.

Ever since 2008's "Taken," Liam Neeson's career has seen him in a ton of action and adventure flicks, including "Unknown," "Battleship," "Honest Thief," and many more. We are used to seeing Neeson take on human villains, but only one of these films saw Neeson going head-to-head with a bunch of Canadian grey wolves — the 2011 survival film "The Grey." In the movie, Neeson plays John Ottway, a suicidal sharpshooter who makes his living protecting oil drillers from wolves as they work in Alaska. Towards the start of the film, Ottway and colleagues are left to fend for themselves in the Alaskan wilderness when their plane back to Anchorage experiences turbulence and malfunctions.

Ottway quickly takes charge of the scene, moving survivors away from the crash site once wolves descend to feed on the dead (and still living) bodies. As the men attempt to make their way out of the wilderness to safety, they struggle with big wolves, big egos, and the frigid elements. "Expected man-versus-wild, man-versus-absent-God themes ring more true than usual here, though not at the expense of the promised scares: Plenty of chase scenes and gory encounters keep tension high," wrote the Hollywood Reporter's movie critic.

Chances are that you have read "Lord of the Flies" at some point in your life, probably as part of some middle or high school English assignment you barely remember. William Golding's 1954 novel is no doubt a classic, but the 1963 film adaptation is also very good and remains better than the 1990 adaptation, which is less faithful to the original story. If you are not much of a reader, or even if you are, the movie is absolutely worth checking out. It is a wonderful commentary on the dark side of human nature and how anarchy can develop, even amongst children.

"Lord of the Flies" is about a group of young schoolboys evacuated from a warzone who have their plane shot down. They end up on a deserted island, where they soon learn that no adults have survived the crash. Using a conch shell, Ralph (James Aubrey) and Piggy (Hugh Edwards) gather the other surviving castaways from the jungle. The boys then appoint a chief, build a fire, make a shelter, and generally establish some sort of order. However, things devolve into violence and incivility, and the group splits off into two –- one without rules altogether. The boys are rescued in the end, but not all of them make it out alive.

If this list gives you anything, we hope that you notice just how many survivalist stories take place in Alaska, "The Edge" included. The 1997 film, which was written by famed playwright David Mamet, stars Anthony Hopkins as Charles Morse, a billionaire businessman who is up at a remote lodge in a small Alaskan village along with his model wife Mickey (Elle Macpherson), photographer Bob Green (Alec Baldwin), and Bob's assistant Stephen (Harold Perrineau). When the three men set out to track down a local hunter, their plane hits a flock of birds, and they end up crashing into the water. The pilot dies, and the men must survive the elements after swimming ashore.

The survivors are able to make fire and survive the night – and they even start hiking south with the help of Charles' compass –- but trouble soon arises. When Stephen accidentally stabs himself with a fishing spear, his blood attracts a bear that kills him and forces the other men to flee their campsite. The men somehow manage to brave the wintry elements, take on the bear (successfully killing it), and find shelter in an abandoned cabin. Most shocking of all, perhaps, is the struggle between Charles and Bob, as it becomes clear that Bob is having an affair with Mickey and plans to help her kill her wealthy hubby.