WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for Leave the World Behind.
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Summary
Some unanswered questions in “Leave the World Behind” are explained by supporting material from the novel and real-life disasters.
The characters’ actions and decisions in the movie raise some serious plot holes and inconsistencies.
The movie connects subtly to Sam Esmail’s previous work, “Mr. Robot,” possibly existing in the same universe.
Sam Esmail’s Leave the World Behind is designed to leave its audience guessing, but some unanswered questions actually reveal some major plot holes. After debuting on Netflix on December 8, 2023, the popular dystopian thriller has caused a swarm of conversations online surrounding the plausible and terrifying portrait of the collapse of American society. Esmail, known for creating the celebrated hacker series Mr. Robot, has addressed some of these plot holes in response but still leaves plenty of question marks in Leave the World Behind.
Some of Leave the World Behind’s unanswered questions are substantiated by supporting material found in the 2020 novel written by Rumaan Alam. For example, the book suggests that the loud noise heard in the movie is from highly advanced airplanes that most of the world doesn’t even know exist. Other explanations have been from the several real-life disasters in Leave the World Behind, which include the eerie recent callback of 2 million Tesla cars for safety issues concerning its Autopilot functions after multiple accidents and fatalities.
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10 Danny Knows About The Thorpe’s Bunker But Doesn’t Use It
Danny informs Clay and G. H. Scott about the doomsday bunker in the Thorpe’s house nearby but decides not to take his family there even though it would obviously be the safest option. Danny knew about it since he was a contractor who built the house. Sharing that information with Clay, G. H., or anyone could actually come back to haunt him in the end. For someone so protective over his property and family, it doesn’t make a lot of sense for him to hand over that intel.
9 Nobody Felt Or Heard The Plane Crash On The Beach Besides G.H.
G. H. was the only person who saw, felt, and heard the plane crash even though he couldn’t have possibly been that far away from the house. He later conceals that information in order to prevent his daughter Ruth from panicking, knowing that his wife was likely on an airplane at the time. Still, G. H. is able to play it off very cool after finding a bunch of dead people on the beach where nobody else apparently heard not one, but two, plane crashes.
8 Julia Roberts Was In An Episode Of Friends, Creating A Paradox
The most common plot hole being discussed in Leave the World Behind is the paradox created by the fact that Julia Roberts was actually on the show Friends at one point in her career. She wasn’t a main cast member who appeared very often but since the world of the movie is meant to be extremely realistic, a common criticism is that Rose, who has seen the entire series but for the finale, would have recognized her mom on the show.
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7 Archie Was The Only One Physically Affected By The Loud Noise
One of the most puzzling headscratchers is that Archie is the only person apparently affected by the loud noise. If the loud noise was the reason why Archie’s teeth started falling out and he vomited a black mass, then the other characters should theoretically have a similar if not the exact same reaction. There is also the unanswered question of whether the tick that bit Archie actually transmitted the strange disease.
6 Amanda Didn’t Need To Drive Head On At The Hacked Teslas
One of the most frantic scenes in Leave the World Behind is when Amanda drives directly at the hacked Autopilot Teslas with her entire family in the car. There is no plausible reason for her to do this, as the Autopilot Teslas appeared to be programmed to drive on the roads and add to the massive roadblocks. Driving at the Teslas was an incredibly dangerous and shortsighted decision when she could have easily just pulled off to the side of the road.
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5 Danny Didn’t See The Red Drone Pamphlets Written In Arabic
Danny had known about the red pamphlets being dropped in San Diego from a friend he contacted before the cellular service went out. He says that his friend indicated that the red pamphlets that were being dropped in San Diego were written in Korean. The drone that flew over Clay’s head where they are located in New York would likely have flown over Danny’s house as well, making it somewhat unrealistic that the first he saw of the Arabic red pamphlets was at the end of the movie.
4 G. H. Let The Sandford’s Back Into His House Against Ruth’s Wishes
G. H. Scott explains to his daughter Ruth that he is trying to do the right thing by allowing the Sandford family to stay in their home, but letting them back in after they willingly left seems like an unrealistically kind and dangerous thing to do, given the circumstances. Amanda was essentially racially profiling him and Ruth in their own home earlier in the film, so G. H.’s apparent altruism is somewhat unbelievable, as most people would not be so kind at the risk of their family’s safety.
3 Archie Doesn’t Appear To Be In Any Pain After His Teeth Fall Out
Although Archie’s teeth literally fall out of his gums, he appears to be in no pain whatsoever in the car ride over to Danny’s house. Archie also vomited a black mass, indicating that there is something very wrong going on inside his body. Archie’s calm demeanor in the backseat of G. H.’s car really doesn’t add up or align with the urgency of the scene in which Clay nearly gets shot trying to get him medicine.
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2 The Thorpe’s Doomsday Bunker The Rose Finds Is Unlocked
Rose somehow finds the Thorpe’s house and their doomsday bunker without any prior knowledge of it being there. Immediately she indulges in junk food and tells no one about her discovery, even ignoring her own mother’s call out for her. Rose then walks down to the doomsday basement, which is implausibly unlocked and as easy to open as just about any other door. It seems strange that there would not be any security measures needed to get into the bunker.
1 G. H. Acts Clueless The Entire Movie Despite Knowing The Plan
One of the biggest headscratchers in Leave the World Behind is why G. H. Scott decides to keep the master plan of the entire collapse of American society under wraps throughout the entire film. He periodically reveals more and more information about his work analyzing global markets and his relationship with an elite client who works high up in the national defense sector. With so much knowledge at his disposal, it’s odd that he waits so long to reveal the truth of what’s really going on at the end of Leave the World Behind.