Why do we watch movies about the end of the world? Is it to feel comfort in the fact that our world is, in fact, not ending? Or do we simply enjoy the excitement and rush of the drama surrounding a potential apocalypse? Whatever the reason, there's no denying that the apocalypse provides some excellent material for movies—knowing that, we've compiled a list of what we think are the 26 best movies about the end of the world.
RELATED: Vacation Vibes: The 31 Best Road Trip Movies of All Time
Not just one of the best movies about the end of the world, but one of the greatest films of the 21st century, Children of Men stars Clive Owen as a man tasked with guarding the last pregnant woman in the world. He is a reluctant savior in a world plagued by war and infertility, Children of Men can be a heavy watch but the acting, direction, and cinematography make it one of the genre's very best.
Based on the novel by Cormac McCarthy, The Road stars Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee as an unnamed Father and Son trying to survive after an unspecified apocalyptic event. It's a brutal, harrowing tale that isn't for the faint of heart, but if you can stomach it, it's a must watch.
Alright, let's take a break from the super serious stuff and lighten things up.
When it comes to humorous end-of-the-world movies, Shaun of the Dead is among the very best. Set in London at the onset of a zombie invasion, we follow a reluctant hero, Shaun, played by Simon Pegg as he attempts to save his family and friends from death.
The third entry in the "Cornetto Trilogy" series of movies by Edgar Wright, The World's End deals with a group of former friends as they reunite for a pub crawl in their hometown.
They soon discover something is amiss and that the town has been taken over by aliens, leaving them as unexpected saviors of mankind.
As various celebrities celebrate a party at James Franco's house, the apocalypse unexpectedly begins happening, trapping Franco and his friends at his house. It's one of the funniest movies about the end-of-the-world you'll ever watch, and Rogen confirmed that about 50% of This Is the End was ad-libbed, allowing this crew to showcase their natural talent for comedy.
Nominated for Best Picture at the 2022 Oscars, Don't Look Up is Adam McKay's less-than-subtle satire of modern society's reaction to its impending doom. An allegory for climate change, we follow two scientists played by DiCaprio and Lawrence, as they attempt to prepare for the world for a comet that is rapidly approaching Earth.
A black comedy film that's perhaps most well-known for Slim Pickens riding a nuclear bomb to his doom, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb sees the Cold War suddenly turn hot.
When an unhinged American general orders a nuclear attack on Russia, the President and a variety of government officials attempt to deal with the fallout.
A "zombie" apocalypse film that features infected humans that aren't, technically, zombies, 28 Days Later follows Jim, a man who wakes up from a coma in the middle of society's collapse in London.
As Jim and his fellow survivors attempt to get to safety, they are forced to deal with infected and a sadistic general and his soldiers.
The sequel to 28 Days Later, the film sees a new group of survivors attempting to deal with life after the Rage virus pandemic has seemingly subsided.
As Britain is quarantined by NATO, those infected with the virus begin dying due to starvation. Unfortunately a new outbreak starts, and chaos ensues as the army, civilians, and others attempt to try to deal with the aftermath.
A made-for-TV movie might sound like an unexpected entry on this list, but make no mistake, The Day After is one of the best movies about what a nuclear exchange between nations might look like.
Set in and around Kansas City, we see different groups of people attempt to navigate a new world after nuclear weapons impact the area.
A film that exists in the same vein as The Day After, Threads depicts what happens in a British city following a nuclear attack. Rather than focus on the immediate aftermath of the explosions, Threads looks years into the future, showing just how damaged and dangerous the world has become for the survivors.
As the film's tagline says, "If they hear you, they hunt you." Directed by John Krasinski, A Quiet Place follows a family attempting to survive in a world that has been conquered by a species of aliens that has incredibly powerful hearing.
A time-traveling, mind-numbing sci-fi film, 12 Monkeys, takes place years after a virus has wiped out most of humanity. Scientists task a criminal named James Cole to go back in time and help prevent the release of the virus in exchange for a lessened sentence.
Since it's a time travel movie, things go awry almost immediately, forcing Cole to adapt to his new situation to prevent more chaos.
The fourth entry of the Mad Max franchise sees Tom Hardy take on the role of Max Rockatansky from Mel Gibson and is possibly the best film of the entire series.
In Mad Max: Fury Road, Max allies himself with a rogue general in a mission to save a group of women from a diabolical, malicious warlord.
We already know what you're going to say: "The world doesn't end in Armageddon!" Sure, that's true, but the threat of impending doom is there. The plot of Armageddon is fairly straightforward: an asteroid is heading for Earth and will kill everyone on the planet in three weeks.
It's a movie with a great cast and is full of Michael Bay-isms, but if you're in the mood for a great popcorn flick then Armageddon fits the bill.
As an asteroid heads for Earth, a space shuttle crew is sent into orbit to try and destroy it with nuclear bombs. While this may sound exactly like the plot of Armageddon, we assure you that this is a different movie.
Released just two months apart, Deep Impact and Armageddon share similar plots and are also exciting end-of-the-world movies. We suggest not doing a marathon of the two since it might feel as is you're suffering from deja-vu.
Plagued by nightmares of a coming apocalypse, a farmer begins to slowly lose his grip on reality as he questions whether the danger is real or it's in his head.
The movie is a fantastic psychological thriller led by a powerhouse performance from Michael Shannon. Whether you're a fan of the genre or not, it's worth watching for Shannon's acting alone.
While the 2004 Zack Snyder version is a solid zombie film in its own right, nothing beats the original Dawn of the Dead by George A. Romero.
A devastating plague has ravaged the United States that reanimates the recently deceased, turning them into bloodthirsty zombies. A group of people attempt to deal with their new reality and do one thing: Survive.
One of Christopher Nolan's best, Interstellar, depicts an Earth that is overpopulated and is facing extinction due to famine and climate change. Humanity is forced to look to the stars in order to survive, and NASA sends a team through a wormhole in space that they hope will lead to a new home for our species.
While the book it adapts is much different than the film, I Am Legend is a solid end-of-the-world thriller that is far from the atrocity many book purists would lead you to believe.
Set in a post-apocalyptic Manhattan, Will Smith plays Dr. Robert Neville, who is possibly the last human being alive. As he searches for a cure to the disease that has ravaged humanity, he grapples with the isolation, loneliness, and despair of his daily life.
As a newly discovered planet hurtles towards Earth on a collision course, a soon-to-be bride, played by Kirsten Dunst, pushes forward with her wedding amidst the chaos.
Directed by Lars Von Trier, who is well-known for the bizarre, Melancholia is a resoundingly dark movie. If you're in the mood to get a little weird with your end-of-the-world movie, Melancholia is right up your alley.
By now, we're sure you know the story of The Terminator, but if you don't, here's the breakdown. In the near future, an artificial intelligence called Skynet has declared war on humanity and has driven us to near extinction.
A man named John Connor leads the resistance, so in an effort to prevent his rise, Skynet sends a "Terminator" back in time to kill his mother to prevent John's birth. Played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Terminator has become a pop culture phenomenon and this movie can't be missed.
It's not often that a sequel proves to be better than the original, but in the case of Terminator 2: Judgement Day, this proves true. One of the greatest action movies ever made, Arnold Schwarzenegger returns as The Terminator, but is the hero in this iteration. Skynet has sent a superior Terminator back in time to kill John Connor, and the Resistance has sent their own to protect him.
A movie that felt all too real a few years ago at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Contagion portrayed a world that is suddenly forced to fight a deadly and seemingly unstoppable virus.
Starring an ensemble cast, Contagion is a terrifying look at how quickly society can devolve when leaving your house is deadly, paranoia grows, and there are more questions than answers.
Following a nuclear holocaust, a man named Eli wanders the wastelands in a daily struggle to survive. His one mission is to protect a copy of the Bible and get it to a group of people that will keep it safe and help it be reprinted.
The Book of Eli is another great Denzel Washington action movie, and when you put him against the great Gary Oldman, it makes this one a must-see.
What would you do if you, and the rest of the world, only had weeks to live? That's the question at the heart of Seeking a Friend for the End of the World.
Steve Carrell and Keira Knightley play next-door neighbors who have come to the realization that they may have waster their entire lives. They begin to develop a friendship and as the asteroid that dooms the planet gets closer, that friendship turns into something more.
