Decoding the absurd end credits scene of ‘Don’t Look Up’
(Credit: Netflix)

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Decoding the absurd end credits scene of ‘Don’t Look Up’

Disaster movie aficionados get off on global cataclysms and impending dooms that threaten to ravage humanity. While most films end on a hopeful note, Adam McKay’s latest Netflix release Don’t Look Up bears a grim reminder of how we have successfully fucked up as a species and provides a scary picture of a global catastrophe infused with dark humour. 

Starring a star-studded ensemble cast, namely Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Timothee Chalamet, Jonah Hill, Rob Morgan, Cate Blanchett, Mark Rylance, Ron Pearlman, Ariana Grande, Tyler Perry, Kid Cudi and more, the film sees Michigan State University professor Dr Randall Mindy and his PhD candidate student Kate Dibiasky chance upon a humongous meteor that is hurtling towards earth in six months and will ravage the planet, leading to mass extinction. 

Anxious and paranoid to save the world, the duo, along with another concerned scientist, venture into the world to warn them against the impending danger. However, the film is a satirical and allegorical take on the climate change crisis that is overtaking the world now and shows the nonchalance and ignorance of the wealthy and privileged, who only take action when their interests are threatened. 

The film is supposed to be a satire and an allegorical tale meant to talk about the climate change deniers who are taking global warming lightly. With its zany and absurdist humour, the film has two end-credits scenes following the supposed mass destruction of the earth after being hit by the asteroid that could not be destroyed by the tech giant’s drones. 

The first mid-credits scene in the film takes place “22740 years later”. The ditzy and opportunist President Orlean, played by Meryl Streep, had escaped the planet along with her associates and the wealthy tech businessman Isherwell, played by Rylance, to venture towards a habitable planet. In her frenzied escape, Orlean forgets her beloved sociopathic son, Jason, behind on earth. 

After they reach the Utopian world that seems like a paradise and has higher oxygen levels than the earth, they venture out naked- not to mention Streep’s body double’s rear with a ghastly tattoo- when they encounter strange birdlike creatures. True to Isherwell’s predictions about Orlean being killed by a “Bronteroc”, the birdlike creature gobbles her up moments after she says, “My goodness, what is that beautiful creature!” This indicates the mass eradication of the survivors by hordes of Bronterocs on the planet. The rich could not, after all, escape their fatalistic ending!  

The end credits scene is even more absurd. Jason, played by the hilarious Jonah Hill, has miraculously survived the catastrophe. Clad in a dirty suit, he clambers out of the rubble and whips out his phone to post a video, marking his survival. He says, “What’s up y’all, I’m the last man on earth! Don’t forget to like and subscribe!”

On this dark and biting note, the film, which is meant to serve as a brutal and scathing commentary on the modern human condition in the 21st century amidst the burgeoning presence of social media and the nasty political and media turmoil, ends.

Watch Don’t Look Up on Netflix now!