25 Movies About The End Of The World You Should Watch Next

A bleak and realistic look at a post-apocalyptic future, 2009's "The Road" is a faithful adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name published three years earlier. Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee star as a father and his young son attempting to cross the barren wasteland of what used to be the United States to reach the coast, not knowing if anything worthwhile awaits them there. The production design and locations chosen for the film result in one of the best-looking post-apocalyptic landscapes found in any end-of-the-world movie. Though none of the characters have names, the supporting cast of "The Road" is packed with stars in small roles, including Charlize Theron, Michael K. Williams, Garrett Dillahunt, Robert Duvall, and Guy Pearce.

The story of "The Road" is straightforward, but full of thematic subtext and thought-provoking questions about humanity and life both before and after the end of the world. The original score composed by Nick Cave and Warren Ellis is a thing of beauty that adds greatly to the overall experience of the film. The director, John Hillcoat, has worked a great deal with Cave and Ellis throughout his career. Hillcoat has directed music videos for their band, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and directed two Westerns written by Cave and scored by Cave and Ellis: "The Proposition" and "Lawless."

There are two distinct versions of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" that are both worth watching; one from 1956 and one from 1978. The two tellings have myriad differences and each have their own strengths, but the late '70s remake surprisingly comes out on top as the more dynamic and exciting movie. "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" is not set far off in a ruined future like the previous two films on this list, but rather it shows the world beginning to fall apart as alien seeds fall from outer space and begin taking over humanity at an exponential rate. This end-of-the-world story blends together science fiction and horror elements to great effect.

Donald Sutherland, Leonard Nimoy, Jeff Goldblum, Veronica Cartwright, and Brooke Adams all star as a group of San Francisco residents frantically attempting to figure out what is happening and how to survive it. The special effects for the "pod people" look gross and great in equal measure, and the film's iconic ending, with Sutherland pointing and screaming, is unforgettable.

"The Book of Eli" is a post-apocalyptic film from 2010 with a heavy emphasis on action. Denzel Washington stars as the titular Eli and commands the screen as a man on a divine mission to transport a bible across the dangerous, devastated wasteland. Mila Kunis plays a large supporting role, and Gary Oldman serves as the film's main villain, a dangerous gang leader named Carnegie. Other supporting roles are filled by the likes of Ray Stevenson, Michael Gambon, Jennifer Beals, musician Tom Waits, and martial artist Lateef Crowder.

The ruins of the post-civilized landscape in "The Book of Eli" look great, even though the world-building at times might feel a little too familiar from various other similar stories. Though there is a large religious component to the film, one does not need to be religious in order to enjoy the science fiction and action elements of the story. "The Book of Eli" was written by Gary Whitta, who would go on to write "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" and multiple episodes of "Star Wars: Rebels." The film was directed by twin brothers Albert and Allen Hughes, who are best known for directing "Menace II Society" and "Dead Presidents" in the '90s.

2015's "The Survivalist" is a low-key post-apocalyptic story made in Ireland for a small budget of about £1 million (via Culture Northern Ireland), or approximately $1.4 million. The film is the feature-length directorial debut of writer and director Stephen Fingleton. The story follows a man, played by Martin McCann, who lives a self-sustaining existence in isolation after the world has ended by way of mass starvation. Two women, played by Mia Goth and Olwen Fouéré, arrive in need of food and shelter, challenging his solitary lifestyle.

Fingleton first told a truncated version of this story as a short film titled "Magpie," released one year prior. McCann and Goth both appeared in that rendition of the tale as well. The low budget shows at times, and "The Survivalist" is extremely small in scope, with just the three main characters and a single primary location. The film's reduced scale is especially apparent when compared to other post-apocalyptic sagas, but it makes for a good change of pace if you're looking for an end-of-the-world movie that is drastically different from most others.

"Embers" is a smaller and lesser seen movie with a unique spin on the post-apocalyptic genre. In "Embers," rather than a violent and destructive force bringing about the end of the world, it's a neurological disorder instead. The world's capacity for memory has been obliterated. Living in the world of "Embers" is a constant battle with repeating amnesia. Characters awaken with no memory of who they are or what happened to the world and are unable to form new memories that last beyond a brief while.

The story of "Embers" takes a vignette approach with minimal overlap, telling different short plots following different characters all struggling to navigate a world without memory. "Embers" isn't a perfect film — it's rough around the edges and doesn't quite deliver on the scale demanded by its premise — but the sci-fi concept at the heart of the film is such a fresh take on the post-apocalyptic genre that the film is worth a watch in spite of its flaws.

"This is the End" is another comedy about the end of the world that was coincidentally released the same year as "The World's End," but the type of apocalypse and the sense of humor are both drastically different. This American comedy is much more crude than its British counterpart and spends far more time exploring the crumbling of the world — or in this case, the rapture.

Though they had written many projects together beforehand, "This is the End" was the first film directed by the creative team of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, whose friendship served as the basis for "Superbad," which they also wrote. The cast of "This is the End" is packed with stars in both large and small roles, and the majority of the cast members play fictionalized versions of themselves. Rogen, Michael Cera, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Danny McBride, Jonah Hill, Craig Robinson, Emma Watson, Rihanna, Paul Rudd, Channing Tatum, Kevin Hart, Aziz Ansari, and more all play exaggerated and often self-deprecating versions of themselves, often with hilarious results.

"A Boy and His Dog" is an absolutely bizarre post-apocalyptic tale from 1975. The novella of the same name written by Harlan Ellison served as the source material for the film, in which a nuclear war between the United States and the Soviets has ravaged the planet and turned it into a desert wasteland. Luckily, before the planet was destroyed, a major scientific breakthrough was made that enabled telepathic communication between humans and genetically engineered animals.

Don Johnson, of later "Miami Vice" fame, stars as Vic, a young man who wanders the wasteland with his telepathic dog, Blood, voiced by Tim McIntire. Jason Robards and Susanne Benton also co-star. The poster proclaims that "A Boy and His Dog" is "an R rated, rather kinky tale of survival," so you know you are in for something a little different than the average post-apocalyptic fare. "A Boy and His Dog" is set in 2024, so we won't have to wait long to find out whether or not nuclear war and telepathic animals are in our future.

George A. Romero returned to the "Dead" series in 1985 with "Day of the Dead." With a completely different setting and group of characters, this is a sequel only in that it takes place within the same world overrun by zombies. This time around, the setting is Florida, and our group of survivors spends the vast majority of the film hunkered down within underground salt mines that also house a military base and a research laboratory. Though most of the film takes place in this one location, "Day of the Dead" does open with an effective view of the post-apocalyptic landscape of Florida. Streets littered with trash, zombie hordes roving the city, and an alligator crawling down the steps of a municipal building culminate in a brief but sobering glimpse of the ruins of the world up above.

The film's main conflict has more to do with infighting between the human characters than it does with the potential danger of the zombie hordes. It's the military versus the scientists in "Day of the Dead," and there are memorable characters on both sides. "Day of the Dead" also introduces the idea of zombie conditioning as much of the research done by the scientists concerns the mental and physiological study of zombies. The scenes between Bub, the smart zombie, and the optimistic Dr. Logan, nicknamed Frankenstein, offer a much needed glimmer of hope for the future of civilization — only to be dashed by the reckless and impatient military.

"Delicatessen" is a 1991 French film centered around the tenants of an apartment building above a butcher shop in a post-apocalyptic world where food is extremely scarce and doubles as currency. The owner of the butcher shop is also the apartment building's landlord, and when tenants go missing, suspicions of potential cannibalism arise. The film was co-directed by Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet, the latter of whom made the highly acclaimed "Amélie." Caro and Jeunet also collaborated on "The City of Lost Children" in 1995.

Those who are familiar with the work of Caro and Jeunet will have an idea as to the visual style to expect from "Delicatessen." The film stands out as unique in the canon of post-apocalyptic cinema and makes extensive use of dark comedy and surrealism. The comedic elements are front and center in "Delicatessen," but the film isn't afraid to get dark at times too.

2013's "Snowpiercer" is set in the distant future after the world has frozen over. Earth's only remaining inhabitants live within a high-tech train that continuously circumnavigates the globe. While the outside world is deathly cold, the interior of the train isn't free from danger either. Those at the back of the train lack all of the comfort and luxury of those at the front in a bit of scathing social commentary on classism — a common thematic focus throughout director Bong Joon-ho's entire body of work. 

The story was adapted from a French graphic novel from the 1980s titled "Le Transperceneige." Curtis, played by Chris Evans, leads a band of rebels from the back of the train on a charge up toward the engine car as class warfare breaks out. Ed Harris has a brief but memorable role as the train's creator, Wilford, while Tilda Swinton, Alison Pill, Tómas Lemarquis, and Vlad Ivanov all stand out as his most memorable subordinates. Serving in the resistance alongside Evans are Octavia Spencer, Jamie Bell, and John Hurt, plus a pair of father and daughter third-party wildcards, played by Ko Asung and frequent Bong Joon-ho collaborator Song Kang-ho, who get caught up in the mix. The story of "Snowpiercer" was expanded with a television prequel in 2020 on the TNT network.

"The Last Man on Earth," not to be confused with the unrelated 2015 television series of the same name, is a sci-fi drama from 1964 and the oldest film to make the list. Horror icon Vincent Price stars as Dr. Robert Morgan, the presumed last man on earth who lives a sad and isolated existence in a world gone to ruin. A disease has ravaged earth's population, and scattered collectives of vampires are the only other traces of life aside from Dr. Morgan.

The story was adapted from the Richard Matheson novel "I Am Legend," which was subsequently adapted into the Will Smith-led "I Am Legend" movie from 2007. The same novel also served as the source material for "The Omega Man" starring Charlton Heston in 1971 and "I Am Omega" starring Mark Dacascos, which was released in the same year as the Will Smith adaptation. Though this story has been told many times, the assorted film versions are all quite different from each other. If you have seen the Will Smith or Charlton Heston version of the story, it can still be worthwhile to go back and seek out the first film adaptation, starring the one and only Vincent Price.

2016's "10 Cloverfield Lane" is a part of the loosely connected anthology of "Cloverfield" films, which also includes the original found-footage movie from 2008 and "The Cloverfield Paradox" from 2018. "10 Cloverfield Land" shares very little in common with the other two, and the original script reveals no connection to the others whatsoever. The film was first written as a spec script titled "The Cellar," and was then rewritten to connect to the "Cloverfield" franchise.

The story follows Michelle, played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who gets in a car accident and wakes up in an underground bunker owned by the intimidating and marginally unhinged Howard, portrayed by John Goodman. Howard claims that the air outside the bunker has become poisoned after an attack, but Michelle doubts the veracity of his claims. The line between protection and possession blurs within the bunker, and Michelle begins plotting an escape with the help of another captive, Emmett, played by John Gallagher Jr.

This well-made film serves up plenty of intrigue and tension with a small cast and a singular location. The overblown ending that connects the film to the "Cloverfield" universe is a little bit of a misstep, but everything else preceding it is quite strong. "10 Cloverfield Lane" was the feature-length directorial debut of Dan Trachtenberg, who would go on to direct episodes of "Black Mirror" and "The Boys." Damien Chazelle — writer and director of "Whiplash" and "La La Land," among other projects — worked on the screenplay early in his career before making it big, via Indie Wire.

"Stalker" is Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky's epic science fiction parable from 1979. Many cinema organizations, such as The British Film Institute, consider Tarkovsky to be "one of cinema's true masters," with films like "Andrei Rublev," "Mirror," "Solaris," and "Nostalghia" to his name. The story concerns a pair of men who follow a guide, known as a stalker, on an excursion into an off-limits area known as "the Zone" in search of a place within called "the Room." This rumored and perhaps mythological room is said to have the power to grant wishes.

The film is unlike the vast majority of post-apocalyptic movies out there. Rather than relying on action and excitement, "Stalker" is a slow-moving and contemplative affair. The terms "poetic" and "high art" are frequently applied to "Stalker," along with the rest of Tarkovsky's oeuvre. The precise meaning of "Stalker" is left open to interpretation, as explored in The Guardian, but most believe "the Zone" to be a representation of the official exclusion zones that surround the irradiated lands near nuclear disaster sites, of which Russia has several.