Frank Herbert’s epic Dune novels and their cinematic adaptations have already been linked to several present-day political phenomena, including climate change and the U.S. exploitation of oil in the Middle East. And considering Dune’s setting on a near-uninhabitable desert planet with “spice” as its most valuable resource, this checks out. Of course, the first Dune book came out in 1965, long before the U.S. faced the music for its Middle East meddling; and Frank Herbert himself once claimed the novels were mostly warnings against “charismatic” political figures. And yet, the recent Dune movies from Denis Villeneuve have drawn parallels to contemporary events, with Dune 2’s Fremen fundamentalism even mirroring the recent rise of evangelical power in the U.S.
However you interpret them, Dune and Dune: Part Two are certainly not the first movies to have contained political messages. Here are seven more sci-fi epics that contain allegories for real-life political dilemmas.
‘Star Wars’ (1977) | Disney+
Considering it was heavily influenced by Dune, it makes sense that Star Wars would be on this list. And while you may be tempted to think that the ongoing Star Wars saga is just a well-crafted space opera, its origins are as political as they come. Star Wars creator George Lucas’s stated inspirations have included the Vietnam War and the Richard Nixon administration, with the latter especially informing Lucas’s descriptions of the Empire. He also modeled Darth Vader after Adolf Hitler.
‘Avatar’ (2009) | Disney+
This film’s environmentalist message is so clear that it often draws comparisons to Fern Gully. That said, it bears mentioning that Avatar – thanks to its storyline about Earthlings exploiting every last drop of a planet’s resources – serves as a warning about climate change. Colonel Quaritch and his exploitation of Pandora could easily be substituted for former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro’s destruction of the Amazon. On the other hand, Quaritch and his underlings could represent European colonialists’ eradication of indigenous cultures from the planet throughout history. Take your pick.
‘Children of Men’ (2006) | Prime Video
The sci-fi elements took a backseat in this action thriller about a man (Clive Owen) rescuing the last living pregnant woman on Earth in 2027. Instead, the focus remained on its dystopian elements: its desolate environments, its cynical characters, and its soulless government. Still, Children of Men was a top-notch sci-fi film from director Alfonso Cuarón, referencing not only the worldwide hunger crisis but also rising levels of terrorism around the globe. More tellingly, it made several haunting predictions about 2024 Earth, including the global refugee crisis and the relatively recent rise in populism. There are even scenes of refugees in cages in militarized border camps.
‘The Terminator’ (1984) | AMC+
The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day have been seen by some scholars as treatises against America’s international meddling at the end of the 20th Century. In this sense, the evil Skynet could represent corporations around the globe that have amassed incredible power thanks to unchecked capitalism and government corruption. Of course, these movies have taken on further significance with the recent rise in A.I. technology, fanning fears that A.I. will soon rise up and destroy us all like Skynet did.
‘Annihilation’ (2018) | Prime Video
This weird film starring Natalie Portman, Gina Rodriguez, and Tessa Thompson didn’t make much of a splash when it landed in 2018, but it deserves another look. As Portman’s character investigates “the Shimmer,” a mysterious alien organism that has created its own ecosystem in Florida, horrific things begin to happen. As the folksy guitar soundtrack indicates, the Shimmer is otherworldly but familiar: a widespread ecological catastrophe that could have just as easily been created by humans.
‘Planet of the Apes’ (1968) | Starz
The Apes franchise has proffered several political messages throughout its multi-decade run, but its very first outing set the benchmark. As the movie’s hero George Taylor (Charlton Heston) slowly realizes that apes have become the ruling class on Earth, the movie manages to spin a yarn about discrimination and cultural pluralism, warning that humans shouldn’t treat minority groups with such disdain. Otherwise, they might rise up. Imagine that.
‘The Expanse’ (2015 – 2022) | Prime Video
We never said that all these epics would be movies. This universe-spanning sci-fi action political drama extraordinaire was often dubbed “Game of Thrones in space,” so politics are very much part of its DNA. But ultimately, this show’s interstellar politicking and resource wars all contributed to the idea that this was a cautionary tale about unchecked imperialism. When a terrorist cell, tired of ceding its resources to Earth, launched asteroids at the planet, it was seen as a metaphor for 9-11.
