15 Movies and TV Shows Like ‘Pluribus’ You Should Watch
The new series Pluribus, from Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, has earned a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes . It’s a simply superb show, a sci-fi end-of-the-world story with a wildly inventive apocalypse: instead of zombies or nuclear bombs, the world of Pluribus ends with humanity literally uniting. Thanks to a transmission from space, everyone on Earth merges into a single consciousness, so there’s no more conflict or famine, but also no more individuality. Mysteriously, a handful of people remain untouched by the great meltdown, including Carol (Rhea Seehorn), a cynical, hard-drinking writer who refuses to succumb to the collective.
The only thing I don’t like about Pluribus is that I can’t watch every episode right now. If you’re in the same boat, here are 15 movies and TV shows to watch while you wait for the new Pluribus episode, which airs on Friday.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
If you enjoy sci-fi where everyone is consumed by a hive mind, start with Invasion of the Body Snatchers . The paranoia sparked by the Red Scare in the 1950s created a framework that has been followed ever since. The Body Snatchers series is rebooted every few decades, with the pod people representing different cultural fears—communists in the original, drug addicts of the Me Generation in the 1978 version, and suburban normals and the military in 1993. But the core idea—”I’m the only individual left, and everyone wants to kill me”—remains constant and fits perfectly with the Pluribus concept.
Breaking Bad
Vince Gilligan created Pluribus and Breaking Bad, and while the two series seem very different at first glance, they have surprising similarities. Gilligan’s dark series about a chemistry teacher making meth and his sci-fi series about an author becoming the last man on Earth are carefully crafted yet unpredictable stories set in sun-drenched wildernesses where morality is a complex gray area.
Where to watch: Netflix
Mrs. Davis
We may all be connected together as a hive mind, like Pluribus , but “Mrs. Davis” is proof that there’s something to the idea of collective consciousness. The series was developed simultaneously with Pluribus by another renowned series creator (Damon Lindelof, the father of ” Lost “) and shares a similar central plot: an artificial intelligence has seized power, and everyone on Earth obeys its orders in exchange for peace and prosperity. “Mrs. Davis” feels like a first draft of Pluribus , before the creator decided to take the tone more seriously and remove all the silly nonsense about the Holy Grail.
Where to stream: Peacock
Remains
Like Pluribus, The Leftovers follows ordinary people through a world-changing catastrophe. The catastrophe in The Leftovers is the sudden and unexplained disappearance of 2% of the planet’s population. Like Pluribus , the human drama is as important and weighty as the sci-fi premise, and both series are driven by the energy of “what does it all mean?”
Where to watch: HBO Max
Children of men
The massive and mysterious event at the center of “Pluribus” makes the world a better place in many ways, but when women inexplicably become infertile in “Children of Men,” the result is darkness and chaos. If you enjoy a mix of action and philosophical questions, watch (or re-watch) “Children of Men.”
Where to watch: Rent or buy on Prime or YouTube
Black Mirror
Pluribus could have been an extended episode of Black Mirror. The British anthology series came out of nowhere in 2011 and captured the world’s imagination with its near-future (usually) sci-fi stories exploring the divide between technology and humanity. Memorable episodes for Pluribus fans include ” Hated in the Nation” from Season 3, Episode 6, where autonomous insect drones begin killing people based on a hashtag; ” Joan is Awful ” from Season 6, Episode 1, with its dark comedy and extreme paranoia; and ” Plaything ” from Season 7, Episode 4, where a nerdy writer’s obsession with a ’90s video game triggers a technological revolution that changes the world.
Where to watch: Netflix
The Twilight Zone
Pluribus could also be an extended episode of the original Twilight Zone , a series that used science fiction and fantasy to explore human ethics and morality before most Pluribus fans were born. If you can get past the show’s stage-set atmosphere, there are plenty of great episodes that cover the same ground as Pluribus , such as S1, E22, ” A Monster Is Due on Maple Street,” in which a sweet suburban community falls apart due to fear of an alien invasion; and S5, E20, ” Stopover in a Quiet Town ,” a darkly funny episode in which an ordinary couple faces an all-encompassing mystery. Also, don’t miss S1, E21, ” Mirror Image .” It doesn’t have much to do with Pluribus , but it’s the creepiest, most gripping episode of television ever made, and I think you should watch it.
12 Monkeys
“12 Monkeys” is a perfect match for “Pluribus.” In it, a virus wipes out most of humanity, and one man travels back in time to prevent the end of the world. Like “Pluribus,” it’s a carefully crafted story, full of moral ambiguity, dark humor, and characters grappling with forces far greater than themselves.
Where to watch: Rent or buy on Prime
Prisoner
The Prisoner was far ahead of its time, and its depiction of an MI5 secret agent stranded in a mysterious city for unknown reasons perfectly anticipates the existential paranoia and surveillance themes of Pluribus . Blending spy thriller, psychological drama, and allegorical science fiction, The Prisoner explores the tension between individuality and conformity to this day. It’s also occasionally unbalanced, in that distinctive 1960s style parodied by Austin Powers .
Where to stream: Prime
Her
Real life quickly caught up with 2013’s Her . This quirky romantic comedy details the relationship between nerdy everyman Theodore and the artificial intelligence he falls in love with. Like Pluribus , Her explores how technology and modernity are changing our understanding of what it means to be human, but Her is more intense than expansive, deeply exploring the story of one person (and one bot) without focusing too much on the world at large.
Where to watch: Rent or buy on Prime and Apple TV+.
Severance pay
What I love about “Pluribus” is that Vince Gilligan was given the resources, freedom, and time to fully realize his vision—a luxury that seems to be becoming increasingly rare in the entertainment industry. “Severance” is another example of a high-concept, intelligently crafted sci-fi story that creates a sense of creative freedom. Its exploration of alienation and identity is a perfect match for “Pluribus.”
Where to watch: Apple TV+
The Man Who Fell to Earth
Contemporary sci-fi series like Pluribus and Severance remind me of the heady science fiction of the pre -Star Wars 1970s, where fantastical tropes like spaceships and aliens were used to explore philosophical and cultural ideas beyond the reach of realism. The Man Who Fell to Earth explores important themes like isolation, the corrupting influence of capitalism, and the meaning of “human” (or “non-human”), wrapping them in a surreal, otherworldly story. Plus, David Bowie plays an alien, making it a must-see.
Where to stream: Tubi , Pluto TV .
Russian Matryoshka doll
Matryoshka tells the story of Nadiya, an ordinary city woman stuck in a time loop. She repeatedly dies and wakes up on her birthday, like a more daring version of Groundhog Day . Like Pluribus , Matryoshka combines high-concept science fiction with dark humor and explores themes of identity, choice, and the meaning of life. The series is witty, fast-paced, and clever—perfect for viewers who enjoy fantasy stories with elements of introspection and the absurd.
Where to watch: Netflix
Good place
There haven’t been many (if any) overt comedies exploring philosophical ideas like The Good Place , so it’s hard to believe its big ideas and sitcom-style jokes could blend so harmoniously. But they do, and the result is a completely original show. If Pluribus had been played purely for laughs, rather than partly for laughs, it might have looked something like The Good Place .
Where to watch: Apple TV+
From the car
“Ex Machina” is an intellectual thriller about a young programmer conducting a Turing test on an artificially intelligent robot named Ava. Like “Pluribus,” the film explores important questions of consciousness and free will, and plays with the blurred boundaries between creator and creation. This witty and stylish film is a must-see for anyone interested in the philosophical side of science fiction.