Starts with a Sniffle

Here is a chronological list of fictional movies, TV shows, and novels with pandemics as a central theme, compared to actual pandemics between 1900 and 2024: (edited order for chronological release dates)(represented if released in a popular format later)

The Plague

  • Type: Novel by Albert Camus (1947)

  • Theme: A deadly plague strikes an Algerian town, and the citizens must cope with quarantine, illness, and death. The novel is a philosophical exploration of human existence under the shadow of death.

I Am Legend

  • Type: Novel by Richard Matheson (1954)

  • Theme: A viral outbreak caused by a genetically engineered vaccine for cancer turns the world’s population into vampire-like creatures, and the protagonist, Robert Neville, fights for survival as possibly the last human on Earth.

The Andromeda Strain

  • Type: Novel by Michael Crichton (1969), Film adaptation (1971)

  • Theme: An extraterrestrial microorganism brought back to Earth by a satellite begins to rapidly evolve and threatens humanity. A team of scientists races to understand and contain the organism.

  • Comparison: While the fictional pandemic is caused by an alien microorganism, its rapid mutation and threat to global health parallel concerns raised during biological outbreaks like the SARS outbreak (2003) and fears of potential bioterrorism or pandemics in the modern world.

The Stand

  • Type: Novel by Stephen King (1978), TV miniseries (1994, 2020)

  • Theme: A man-made superflu, “Captain Trips,” wipes out 99% of the population, leading to a battle between good and evil as the survivors rebuild society.

  • Comparison: The global spread of a superflu in the novel mirrors the impact of actual pandemics like the Spanish Flu of 1918, and to a lesser extent, the global spread of COVID-19. King’s depiction of societal collapse resonates with fears of breakdowns in public health and infrastructure.

Love in the Time of Cholera

  • Type: Novel by Gabriel García Márquez (1985), Film adaptation (2007)

  • Theme: While primarily a romantic novel, it takes place during a cholera epidemic, and the narrative intertwines love, illness, and the passage of time.

  • Comparison: The depiction of a cholera outbreak in Love in the Time of Cholera highlights how epidemics can shape societies and individual lives, reflecting the long-term emotional and social consequences of disease outbreaks.

Outbreak

  • Type: Film (1995)

  • Theme: A fictional Ebola-like virus, the Motaba virus, emerges in Africa and threatens to spread globally. U.S. military personnel and scientists work to contain it.

  • Comparison: The portrayal of viral outbreaks in Outbreak draws heavily on real-world viruses like Ebola, HIV/AIDS, and the 1993 hantavirus outbreak. It emphasizes global health response and the race against time to develop a cure.

Y: The Last Man

  • Type: Graphic Novel by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra (2000–2008), TV series (2021)

  • Theme: A plague mysteriously kills all male mammals on Earth, leaving one man, Yorick Brown, as the last surviving male human. The series explores the collapse of society and the search for a solution to the crisis.

  • Comparison: Although the pandemic in Y: The Last Man is more gender-specific, it reflects real-world anxieties about how pandemics can destabilize social order and disrupt biological norms.

The Plague

  • Type: Novel by Albert Camus (1947), TV adaptation (2018)

  • Theme: In an Algerian town, a deadly plague spreads, forcing the townspeople to isolate themselves and confront both personal and collective challenges as they fight for survival.

  • Comparison: The Plague is not specifically about a contemporary pandemic but shares many themes with modern responses to outbreaks, including quarantine measures, fear, and societal breakdowns. It’s often compared to the existential reflections that came with COVID-19, highlighting isolation and human resilience.

World War Z

  • Type: Novel by Max Brooks (2006), Film adaptation (2013)

  • Theme: A global pandemic of a zombie virus spreads across the world, threatening to destroy humanity. The novel is presented as a series of interviews with survivors, while the film takes a more action-oriented approach.

  • Comparison: The idea of a rapidly spreading, infectious disease leading to societal collapse has similarities with real pandemics, though the specific zombie virus is fictional. The novel evokes themes from pandemics like the 1918 influenza and more recent outbreaks like the Zika virus and Ebola.

I Am Legend

  • Type: Richard Matheson, Film adaptation (2007)

  • Theme: A viral outbreak caused by a genetically engineered vaccine for cancer turns the world’s population into vampire-like creatures, and the protagonist, Robert Neville, fights for survival as possibly the last human on Earth.

  • Comparison: The viral outbreak in I Am Legend echoes concerns about the unforeseen consequences of medical treatments and genetic engineering, similar to the global debates surrounding vaccinations and bioethics during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Walking Dead

  • Type: TV Show (2010–2022)

  • Theme: In a post-apocalyptic world where a virus has turned most of the population into zombies, survivors struggle to rebuild and protect themselves from the infected and each other.

  • Comparison: While the virus in The Walking Dead is fictional and leads to a zombie apocalypse, it taps into real-world fears about pandemics and societal collapse, paralleling the survival themes seen in the aftermath of major health crises.

Contagion

  • Type: Film (2011)

  • Theme: A highly contagious and deadly virus spreads rapidly around the world, causing mass panic and global health crises. The film follows the global effort to contain the virus and develop a vaccine.

  • Comparison: Contagion is often hailed as one of the most realistic portrayals of a pandemic, closely mirroring the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of its rapid spread, societal impact, and the public’s fear of an invisible threat. It’s also compared to earlier outbreaks like SARS and H1N1.

The Fifth Wave

  • Type: Novel by Rick Yancey (2013), Film adaptation (2016)

  • Theme: Earth is attacked by aliens, and in the chaos, a pandemic virus is unleashed, wiping out much of the human population.

  • Comparison: Although more sci-fi in nature with its extraterrestrial context, the pandemic aspect is reminiscent of real-world concerns about biosecurity and viral outbreaks, especially regarding potential bioterrorism.

Station Eleven

  • Type: Novel by Emily St. John Mandel (2014)

  • Theme: Following a deadly flu pandemic that wipes out most of the world’s population, the story follows survivors as they rebuild their lives and culture.

  • Comparison: The themes of isolation, loss, and rebuilding society are explored in this post-apocalyptic narrative.

The Last Ship

  • Type: TV Show (2014–2018)

  • Theme: A global pandemic caused by a deadly virus threatens to wipe out humanity, and the crew of a U.S. Navy ship, the USS Nathan James, races to develop a cure using the only known sample of the virus.

  • Comparison: The fictional viral pandemic bears similarity to real-world scenarios like the 2009 H1N1 swine flu pandemic and COVID-19, particularly in how governments, militaries, and scientific teams struggle to contain the disease and develop a vaccine.

The Plague

  • Type: Albert Camus, TV adaptation (2018)

  • Theme: A deadly plague strikes an Algerian town, and the citizens must cope with quarantine, illness, and death. The novel is a philosophical exploration of human existence under the shadow of death.

  • Comparison: The themes of quarantine, isolation, and the struggle to survive in The Plague resonate with real-life pandemic experiences, particularly the sense of helplessness and the collective fight against an invisible enemy. The novel reflects the public’s experience during the COVID-19 pandemic and the historical context of the 1918 Spanish flu.

🦠🦠🦠

Station Eleven

  • Type: Emily St. John Mandel, TV series (2021)

  • Theme: Following a deadly flu pandemic that wipes out most of the world’s population, the story follows survivors as they rebuild their lives and culture.

  • Comparison: The themes of isolation, loss, and rebuilding society are explored in this post-apocalyptic narrative, with parallels to the global disruption caused by COVID-19, although it’s more reflective than action-driven.

The Silent Stars Go By

  • Type: Novel by James S.A. Corey (2020)

  • Theme: A global pandemic on Earth causes massive disruption, as a group of space explorers investigates an ancient alien virus.

  • Comparison: The novel blends pandemics with space exploration, but the societal impact of the pandemic aligns with real-world responses to global health threats like COVID-19.

Observation: I am curious how pandemics were perceived at different points in modern history. I am curious how prescient to COVID-19 or how reactive we consider enduring a pandemic after living through one.

Conclusion:

These fictional depictions of pandemics reflect and exaggerate the anxieties and challenges associated with real-life global health crises. Many, like Contagion and The Stand, share themes with the 1918 Spanish flu, SARS, and COVID-19, while others, like World War Z and The Walking Dead, present more speculative or dystopian scenarios, yet still tap into universal fears of societal breakdown in the face of an uncontrollable disease.

Michael Wei