Their futures have arrived: 10 movies that aren't futuristic anymore
When the Future Gets Close
The article considers science-fiction films set at least about a decade beyond their release, but whose settings fall in 2026 or earlier. It excludes movies always set in the past and leaves out Back to the Future Part II because too much of its story does not take place in the actual future.
Children of Men opens on November 16, 2027, so it remains technically futuristic at the time described. The other films considered here have already reached, or passed, their imagined years.
A Grim World in Soylent Green
Soylent Green places its story about half a century after its release, in a society suffering from pollution, overpopulation, instability and rising crime. Those issues also exist in the 2020s, though the article says they are not as extreme as in the film.
The film’s setting is now roughly five years in the past. The article notes that its bleak vision feels unsettlingly close, while avoiding discussion of a major plot twist.
The Apes’ Changing Balance
Rise of the Planet of the Apes is set from 2011 to 2016, about five years beyond its release. War for the Planet of the Apes, released in 2017, takes place in 2028 and is still in the future at the time described.
That leaves Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, which jumps further ahead than Rise. Its story marks a turning point as apes gain dominance over humanity, while War depicts a desperate human last stand.
Monsters and the Apocalypse
Pacific Rim begins with kaiju appearing in 2013, the year the film came out. After a prologue spanning several years, most of the story unfolds in 2025, as robot pilots fight the monsters despite being treated as underdogs.
The article also describes The End of Evangelion as an intense, apocalyptic continuation of the Neon Genesis Evangelion TV series. It presents one of several endings to the series and pushes beyond its already downbeat tone.
Key points
- The films’ imagined futures are now past or approaching the present.
- Soylent Green’s environmental and social crises resemble real concerns, though not at the same scale.
- Dawn of the Planet of the Apes depicts a shift toward ape dominance.
- Pacific Rim’s main story takes place in 2025, after years of preparation for kaiju attacks.