Why Coronavirus Makes Us Want to Watch Disaster Movies
You would think people would be looking for escapism. Instead, they’re turning to entertainment to see a reflection of their worst fears.
The first sign of how the coronavirus would upend our lives wasn’t the NBA’s suspension of its season. It wasn’t Tom Hanks getting diagnosed or Italy going on lockdown. It was the news that Contagion, a little-seen 2011 disaster movie by Steven Soderbergh, had suddenly become one of the most popular movies in America. The disaster in Contagion is a viral pandemic; it starts in East Asia and quickly infects the rest of the world, forcing the characters to self-quarantine in their homes. The film is full of prescient little details that are all too relevant now: Experts use the phrase “social distancing,” and characters avoid handshakes and remind one another not to touch their faces.
You would think, in the midst of a real-life pandemic, that people would be looking for escapism. Instead, they’re turning to entertainment to see a reflection of their worst fears. Disaster and apocalypse are on people’s minds. It’s natural that we’re trying to find some collective way to think through our worst-case scenarios. At their best, fictional apocalypses can be more than just catharsis; they can cast a light on…
